Evening journal., 1911-02-20

of boulevard sixty feet wide and
more than one hundred miles long.
from the northern to the southern
boundary OF Delaware is the offer
made by General T. Coleman DUPONT,
president of the T.. I. dupont deNem-
ours Company. That the offer is unpar-
alleled in the history of Delaware, and
in fact i'm any State in the Union. seem
ed to be the genral belief today, and
il is a striking illustration of the IN
terest General DUPONT takes in ms
state and i'm the good roads movement
To be sure, General dupont does not
offer to give the million dollars TO the
State. but his profer is to furnish
that amount for the construction OF
the proposed State boulevard without
recurring the State to borrow one
cent. and he will trust to the future
development Of Delaware, in which he
heartily believes, to reimburse him
the million dollars. In other words,
General dupont is so absolutely con-
WINGED that the construction OF such
highway would boost land values
all through Delaware that he is Will
ing to take the chance of being reim-
bursed out of the increase In taxes
that will come from the boom IN land
values.
Announcement Of this generous
nroposition to put up a million dollars
was made on Saturday. On Friday Sen
ator Drexler introduced a bill in the
LEGISLATURE authorizing the state to
borrow S75O.O0O for the construction
of a highway through the State, but
such a bill will not be necessary
should advantage be taken of Cen
eral duPonts offer. General DUPONT
some time ago placed the matter in the
hands OF former Attorney General
Robert II. Richards and former Judge
Daniel o. Hastings, to look into the
legal phases of it and 10 work out the
best plan for the construction OF ROADS
with the million dollars he is Wiling
to invest in a State highway
II his million dollar loan offer IS not
accepted. General dupont stands will
ing to give 100000 outright to the
State to supplement any loan the state
may contract for the construction OF a
State long boulevard.
General dupont would like 10 see a
road one hundred feet wide, but he has
heen advised to have it made sixty
feet wide It is understood he Will not
consent to any road less than sixty feet
wide.
Outlines His Plan.
One plan suggested by General du-
POnt is for a company to be organized
TO build the road with the million
dollars he will put up, with legal
agreement with the State and with
the different counties, sanctioned by
the Legislature, for the turning over
10 the company each year by tho
State and the counties money that
has been derived from increased
taxes. due to increased assessments
on lands. By this method General
dupont feels that the entire million
dollars could be paid back within a
few years.
Under Senator Ewing's bill which
has passed the Senate at Dover and
is now in the House, condemnation of
land for widening the State road
would be an easy process, as the Su-
pesior Court or the resident Judge in
each county could appoint a commits
sion to make a return in two weeks.
Three commissions could be asked
for in succession, but there would be
no further delay.
Il is likely that some obstacles
might be found i'm the State COnstitu-
tion to the plan for a company to
build the high boulevard, as suggested