The Washington herald., 1913-10-28
UNDER THE DOME.

When Representative Dorsey w
shackleford of Missouri begins talking
about good roads It Is hard TO get him
to pct on the brakes.
Don't imagine for an instant. however,
that shackleford believes In the ocean
to-ocean highway project He doesn'i
want any Peacock alley across the con-
tinent He wants good roads for the
common. everyday people. He thinks,
too, that the Federal government can
spend money in the States without
wrenching the Democratic States right
doctrine from 1t foundation, because he
argues that the government has the
right to construct post roads. just as
II has the right TO build postoffices.
There are considerably over 100000
miles OF roads In the United States
he said yesterday, "and many of them
are very, very bad. They ought to be
better. They will be. Take Missouri.
for instance. Our Legislature enacted
a law. modelled after the bill which
prepared and which passed the House,
giving a bonus OF sl5 per mile to every
road between county seats, providing the
road was forty feet wide between fences.
thirty wide between bitches, arched and
crowned and built with stone or con-
crete culyerts. Notwithstanding these
severe provisions. IN six months over
1000 miles of roads were receiving the
benefit of the law.
There are two classes Of people who
want good roads," continued Mr..
Shackleford. "One wants them for
pleasure and the other for business.
am with the business crowd. At the
same time, ! appreciate the tremendous
- ,.Na hsrG mt
only in Joy cars, but in trucks. With
good roads the farmer can run a truck
to the railroad with an enormous load,
Do you know what ! believe? II won't
be SO many years before some sculptor
will make a statue OF the horse simply
to perpetuate the memory Of the animal.
which, as q beast Of burden. had become
extinct!"
Senator Smith of South Carolina has
his hands full trying to keep Gov. Cole
Blease from getting his seat in the Sen
ate. He has been down in his State
working like beaver.
There Is no end of Smiths in Con-
gress. In the Senate there is Ellison
D. Smith, of South Carolina, who wears
a gold medal which he won in sopho-
more debate and prides himself upon
his knowledge OF cotton; John Walter
Smith, of Maryland. who has made
money in the lumber business; Hoke
Smith, of Georgia, who was Secretary
of the Interior under Cleveland and who
has always been a gold standard DEM
ocrat; Marcus Aurelius Smith, Of Ari-
zona, who Is a typical Westerner and
began his political career as Territorial
Delegate, and William Alden Smith, who
owns a fiourishing newspaper In Grand
Rapids. Mich, and came into the lime
light as chairman of the Titanic inquiry
committee.
There are no less than seven Smiths
in the House. Addison T. Smith, OF
Idaho, who learned his law In this city
and as private secretary to the late
Senator Hepburn gathered much political
knowledge: Charles Bennett Smith, a
Buffalo IN. " newspaper man; Frank
o. Smith, who comes from the Eastern
Shore of Maryland. the country of oys-
ters. crabs, canvasbacks, and terraptns;
George r. Smith, of Minneapolis, law
yer and a Delta Chi, and William Robert
Smith, of Texas, whose district has
fifty-seven counties, a territory larger
than many States. There are also two
Smiths from Michigan-Samuel w.
Smith, who survived the Democratic
tidal wave last fall. and ]. NJ. c. Smith,
who used to be a painter and a mason
and then learned law SO succes ssfully
that he held down the job OF prosecuting
attorney for several years before coming
to Congress.
Five Smiths in the Senate and seven
in the House-twelve in all. The Smith
family cannot complain that it lacks
in Congress.
Hobson talks temperance in Alabama
and even Underwood admits that 1t is
a taking theme in the rural districts.
Alabama is not the only State which
is torn up over the liquor question. Rep
resentative Sims of Tennessee says that
Tennessee politics have been split wide
open on account of prohibition.
Politics and prohibition have got US
all stirred up" he said yesterday. "and
as the division on the question has not
been along party lines the politicians
have been all at sea. We have passed
some laws, however, which ought to
quiet the agitation and allow us to get
back to our old bearings. The man who
thinks that prohibition is not an issue
ought to come down to Tennessee.
The stories which are being printed
concerning the farcical election In Mex
leo do not surprise Senator Gallinger Of
New Hampshire He tells good story
of his experience in that so-called re-
public.
when Porfirio Dlaz was President" :"
said Senator Gallinger, 81 was in Mex
:co in the little town of Parral, Chihua-
hua. The election had been held the
day before and one Of tie ballot boxes
was in the office of a friend of mine.
1 asked him to tell me about the cleo
ton Well he said, all 1 know is
that some time during the day one old
man came in and put a piece of paper
in the box. That night the judges of
election reported that Diaz had received
34S votes in the precinct, with not a
vote against him.
You can't beat that, can you?" said
Senator Gallinger, with a smile