Evening journal., 1913-06-28
SATURDAY. JUNE %. 1918.
coon RoADs AND THEIR MANY BENEFITS.

GOOD ROADS AND THEIR MANY BENEFITS.
TT is estimated by the National Highways Association
in which General I. Coleman dupont OF this city
Is chairman Of the Board Of Councillors, that within
the next twenty-five years more than S25O0OOOOoOO
will be spent on the 100000 miles Of highways in
the United States The fact emphasized by the
sociaon the expenditure Of that vast amount
of money is OF prime importance 10 the 1OOooo'0oo
Americans living and to millions of Ameri-
cans yet unborn
The opinion of the association is that the best
suits will be obtained by first securing the building
and permanent maintenance by the Federal Govern .
ment Of approximately $4,000 miles Of highways
throughout the United States as great system Of
tonal roads and. next to encourage the building
Of good reads everywhere the distributing and col
ectng medium for the trafhc Of national highways
It is pointed out that-of 100000 miles Of high
ways less than 100000 improved and those only
partly so. Investigation has disclosed that It costs
cur farmers more to haul load Of wheat ten miles
to the railroad than does ship it from New York
to Liverpool.
National highways $4,000 miles long at the high hg
ure Of $4,000 mile would $1,000, 100000. It Is
admitted that that lot of money Statistics show,
however that the annual saving would be more than
s5oooOooo In other words the saving in twenty years
would pay for such roads That however, is not all
Of it, Good roads increase farm values within one
mile Of them by SIS an acre Therefore, such sys-
citation would add TO farm values less than $780,
100000 or one-hah the cost OF the national highway
system.
Intelligent and conservative computation reveals that
n the remaining 100000 miles OF highways cost
$4,000 a mile to improve. their total cost O; 10000
100000 would be in and the increase
in the farm land values would be s12s0o0OoOOo, or
more than enough to pay their cost
Statistics compiled with painstakng care by the
association show that there 25OOoOoo horses
and mules. 100000 horse-drawn vehicles and $4,000
automobiles in the United States valued at $400oO0o
ooo They travel 100000 miles of country roads
unimproved rutty muddy. dusty dangerous and S0o.-
600 miles Of improved roads such they II the
annual depreciation due unmproved roads is only
ten per cent or s4oooooooo that amount would build
at $4,000 per mile $4,000 miles of roads In less than
five years the amount now lost in this depreciation
would pay the cost of our present improved roads.
In thirty years It would improve the other 100000
miles of highways.
Investigation and comparison show that poor roads,
poor schools ignorance and poverty go handn-hand.
and that good roads good schools knowledge and
perity almost invariably accompany one another It
is impossible in dollars the moral civic and
educational value of good roads Experience has shwn
that good roads good schools in the rural districts
linked inseparaby. There is average improved
road mileage Of almost s5 per cent IN Massachusetts.
Rhode Island Connecticut Ohio and Indiana. and more
than n per cent OF the children attend school Only
15 per cent of the roads are improved in Alabama,
Mississippi Arkansas South Dakota and Georgia and
less than so per cent Of the children attend school,
The population exceeds 100000 In Massachusetts,
Connecticut New Jersey and Rhode Island and there
fewer than 2o5O0. oss per cent OF ilterate
tive-born whites and than fifty per Of
proved road mileage. Arkansas, Missouri. Mississippi
and North Carolina have almost 100000 populs-
ton or that number $4,000 AIS per cent OF the
native-born whites iiterate, and in those States
only is per of the roads are improved
Those highly significant figures They should
considered carefully by all Delawaresns Who in
only too many instances know the discomfort and in
jury resulting from bad roads. We our Stats
hundreds Of miles OF roads that disgrace 10 the
counties which maintain them. II we could have a
grand trunk line fronend end the State such as
has been proposed by General dupont It would serve
such potent object lesson that in a few years
the present makeshift maintaining our roads
would be abandoned and the people would see to q
that collar of road money spent would bring an
equivalent return. The good feature OF the DUPONT
Boulevard would be that il would be well built ant
automa cay establish standard OF construction ant
maintenance for the guidance of the public in III,
building ard upkeep Of the lateral roads making int
IT, II is exceedingly unfortunate for the people o
State that personal political Jealousy rapacit-
and short-sightednes have prevented General duPon
from carrying out his benefcent project
The statistician informs that America spend