The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-08-22
HOW TO GET GOOD ROADS

Bridgeport to be congratulated upon It's generous participation in effort to promote good roads, and in the liberal numbers it has contributed to the Good Roads sociaton recently organized.
 The roads of Connecticut poorer than those of European state which lays claim to high civilization And the Connecticut considerably better than the highways of many other states, for this among the first to give aid to highway construction
 Two reasons contribute to make highways in the Uni ted States inferior to those of other nations The land not densey populated, it being plain that when 500 persons live in the average square mile of land they establish better roads than neighborhood which 27 people live the square mile This approximately the relation which the density of population in the United States bears to the density in Belgium.
 The second reason is error into which the try early entered in apporoning the burden of building roads.
 Since the beginning of history the people living in rural districts have paid for the roads.
 The burden has been entirely too heavy for such roads have created and the creation of first class roads entirely at the expense of the country villages has been impossible.
 Any state that to have good roads must take the burden of building them from the backs of the farmers at eas the farmers must not be required to pay than their share which would be the proportion that their wealth bears to the whole taxable wealth of the state
 Injustice seldom pays especially when it is practiced upon broad scale by part of the social body against another
 The poor roads of Connecticut costly proposi- tl0n Over European roads goods can be hauled for egnJ cent ton mile But the cost ordinary Connecticut roads will reach pass 9 cents ton mile This expense necessarily must be charged into the goods and borne by the public
 Nor is the view of the question here presented mere theory. Great Britain, and other European countries passed through the road building phase in which the United States finds itself something like 200 years ago.
 The great historian, Macauley, in his History of England tells of the awful condition of the English roads in the 17th century and says:-
 "One chief of the badness of the roads have been the defective state of the law Every parish tlage) bound to repair the highways which passed through it. The peasants forced to give their grat uitous labor six days in the year If this not sufficient hired labor employed and the expense met by the parochial rate ]"
 This, until very recently, substantially the law of Connecticut and the burden still falls heavily upon the rural portions of the state-ToO HEAVILY.
 But the state alone with it's several communities should bear the whole cost of the roads of nation There should be liberal aid from the Federal
 There is evidence that this aid will be forthcoming We may expect before long, in Connecticut highways of which the citizenship may be proud
 Such improved communication will repay it's cost many fold. :.
 At any rate the great cities will advocate gen state ad and will not insist that the roads which enable communication between them shall be built and maintained principally from the humble resources of the farmers.