Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1912-07-25
bENEf|Ts0F
 |NTERURBANS Increase Property Values and Also Population
 in Many Cities.
BENEFITS E DERIVED
Increases in Farm Values is Equal to Total Cost of Construction
 of the Lines.

(Fort Scott, Kas., Tribune-Monitor }
 Of interest to everyone in Fort scott and Bourbon county just now, Ill view of the projected interurban lines through this county is a state ihent of the results of an interurban coming into community, written by II. B. Stltcher, general manager for the Texas Traction company, and puDilshed in the current number of ruDllc Service, a magazine devoted to pubic service interests. The peo- pie or tnls community have little con ceptlon of the benefits that follow the building of such lines. MT. Stitch CT gives some interesting figures and some interesting facts based upon the actual experience of towns into which lines have been built. Below we re- produce his statement in full:
 The general interest always shown by the public in the suggestion by persons of good financial standing, of the building of an interurban, and the hearty approval that invariably meets such proposal in the com munity, show that there must be great many benefits to be derived through it's building and operation.
 An investigation into the benefits derived by the communities at large through which interurbans have been built not only in the eastern states on the Pacific coast, but in Texas. as well, disclose interesting facts that would be difficult to believe under ordinary circumstances.
 Engineers and financial institu- tons. i'll determining the advisability or constructing an interurban, are governed largely by the population of the towns to be served, and the number of inhabitants for a distance of one mile on leach side of the pro- posed route. In the country we have to consider two square miles con taining total fo $1,2SO acres for each mile of track built, and assum- ing that the road is built through through farm land averaging $50 per acre i'll value we may cOnservatively estimated that the land adjoining the right-of-Way will at least double i'll value within the first year of opera tion. and there will be a certain in- creased value to farm lands extend Ing back from the right-of-way for one mile in each direction; beyond this distance, we will assume that there will be no advance in the val ues of the farm land by reason of the building of the interurban We then have an increase of values rang ing from $50 per acre to nothing, or an average of $25 per acre for the entire $1,2S0 acres, thus showing an increase amounting to $32,O00 for each mile of the right-of-way Thus, during the first year of operation alone the cash values of the farm lands have increased an amount that is practically the actual cost of con- struction of the interurban per mile, including proportionate costs of pow CT house and equipment.
 The increase in value to business property in per cent is not so great however, but in total dollars is sev- eral times greater. and it has been my observation, l may say without single exception, that business property of all kinds has immediately, after tine road is constructed, taken on new lease of life, the owners seeing fit to improve the appearance and condition of their property and rent it to good class of tenants at good increased rental values. One very striking instance of this kind is called to mind where a business corner had for year remained in ra ther a dilapidated condition, with a poor class of tenants frequently nov ing in and 6ut. Shortly after an in- terurban line was put into operation in front of the property, the land lord accepted proposition from a dry goods merchant to improve the property on five-year lease at a very handsome rental. I could cite a number of instances of this kind, notwithstanding the statement so frequently hear from ill-advised or minimizing persons that an interur- ban railway will build up the retail stores in the larger cities at the ex- pense of those in the smaller ones, and want to go on record right here with the statement that such con- ditiOn, viz, the building up of the re- tail stores in the larger cities at the expense of those in the smaller towns and cities from any such cause has never come to my attention.
 Only last week my attention was called, by financial institution ill the east, that the postoffice gross receipts in the city of Mckinley, Tex, on the the Sherman-Dallas lnterur- ban amounted to $5.97 per capita, based. on the 1910 census for that year and for the year 1911 the post office receipts showed an increase of practically 20 per cent above that amount The financial institution re- ferred to was making inquiry as to the cause of these unusually large receipts. took occasion to take the matter up with the local postoffice, only to learn that there was nothing unusual to cause this increase ex- cept the general good business con- ditions prevailing in that sections in spite of what might be termed a three years drouth, and as far as they knew no one thing caused the increase as much as the building of the ihterurban through the city. An other remarkable illustration, all of which. of course, cannot be charge ot,yn tr tho iufornrhqn fS the fact