Bryan daily eagle and pilot. [volume] (Bryan, Tex.) 1909-1918, 1912-01-15
|GOOD ROADS BOND ISSUE
A Meaty Letter from W. L. Edge

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A Meaty Letter from w. L. Edge.
To the Editor of The Bryan Eagle:
AS there is going to be an election
to determine whether the people o
, Brazos county want bonds issued t
build roads, and as there is some OBJ
lection to the issue, beg to submit
few thoughts upon the subject. Z.
will say in the outset that doubt that
the people of the county are ready to
issue bonds, because they are not in
formed as to what kind of roads that
the commissioners court contemplate
building. For instance, the people in
the north end of the county are afraid
that there will be continuation of
the system that has been followed in
the past, and II the roads are graded
and no adequate arrangements made
to keep the roads properly repaired by
systematic dragging, so that the ruts
will not be cut hub deep after every
rain-if this plan Is to be followed
the people in the north end, as 4 I'M
derstand it, will vote very near solid
against the bond issue. The PROPOSE.
ton to spend the proportionate part
of the money raised by bonds in each
district they are afraid of, because
they would be left out with only their
ment because they have no moneyed
corporations, such as the railroads, ma
tional and state banks, telegraph and
telephone companies, congresses, oil
mills, -four mills, ETC., but their labor
and produce are furnished to sustain
their institutions. But l think that If
the people in the north end of the
county were assured that they would
be furnished with straight road, or
one practically straight, from Edge to
Bryan, which would save them at
least four miles distance to market,
that they would be won over to the
bond idea.
After giving road building in Brazos
county many years of earnest thought
my conclusions are, as | have often
advocated to Judge Board and the
commissioners court, that it would be
wise and just policy for the court to
establish as near as practical straight
/, roads, and then build them substan-
TALLY, with due regard to drainage and
controlling the water, which can only
be done by competent road builder.
An incompetent, cheap man is dear at
any price. But the people not only of
BraZos county, but of the whole state
of Texas, before We can have solid,
smooth dirt roads, will have to adopt
the wide-tired wagon and thereby pack
their roads instead of cutting them in
deep ruts by the use of narrow tires.
But there Is where we have got to
have campaign of education and
bring the matter before the people and
show them that it will help to keep
the roads in order to use the wide
tire, while the narrow tire cuts the
road in ruts and holds the water, then
the travel works it up into mud. The
graded, properly crowned road, kept
dragged, with wide-tired wagons TO-.
pack instead of cutting them, will go
further toward keeping good roads
than anything that can be done in our
county. We all know, who have given
the matter consideration, that gray.
elled or asphalt roads with the means
that Brazos county can raise, are i'm
practicable, because OF the cost. II
know of no suitable gravel for road
building in the county, and If we have
to buy the gravel delivered at the
railroad, then haul it to the county
roads,-well, don't know just what
1t would cost, but it is safe to say that
when 100000 was spent we would
have less than forty miles of road
built. But with a small amount spent
in Strengthening the roads and the
balance spent on about six roads run
ming out from Bryan, starting from
Bryan, the people would all get some
benefits. But a man, or any machine,
is no better than his or its weakest
part; so it Is with a road The object
in building roads is to cheaper the
cost Of transportation, so the man llv-
ing at Edge has saved nothing in his |
TRANSFORMATION bill though he had !
gravelled road all the way to Bryan |
except one-half mile Of bad road He |
would be forced to load his team to |
suit the bad road
Now as to the commissioners court |
not raising the tax more than ) cents !
on the hundred dollars, that may be |
possible, but suspect that after the |