St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1913-06-04
Highways and Scenery

In this age of highway improve
ment we hear many schemes propos-
ed. Some states have bonded heavily
for the construction of trunk lines
and Vermont stands almost alone In
constructing improved highways
only as fast as current funds will al
low. 1t has accomplished great
amount of Improvement by this
method and in a few years at most
will have solid lines of improved
highways running up and down each
side of the state and several cross
trunk lines for the use of motors.
Whether or not it will have roads
permanent enough so the state will
not need to begin rebuilding as soon
as the different sections of trunk
lines are connected remains to be
seen. 1t Will not be strange if the
state has to continue the expendi-
ture of all the funds 1t raises from
year to year to maintain the improv-
ed highways it has already built
and cannot branch out to the other
highways in the towns.
If it does one of the greatest pos
sibiIities in the development of the
scenic attractions of the state will
either be neglected or must be pro-
vided for in other ways. 1t must be
admitted that the trunk lines of the
state do not give the traveller the
best scenery because they are built
almost wholly in the great val
leys. The best scenery is OBJ
tainable only from the hill
roads and the hill roads show
but little if any improvement from
their condition twenty or more years
ago. In fact many of them are not
in so good condition as they were
half a century ago when they were
much more thickly populated than
today. They are inaccessible to au-
tomobiles and such a large proper
ton of travel is by automobile today
that the natural result would be
still further deterioration of the most
scenic and charming highways of the
world. If this follows some of Yer
mont's best attractions will fall into
obscurity.
We do not believe this is neces-
sary, however, and that it is pos
sible for the towns themselves to
improve and advertise the beauties,
charms and grandeur of the roads
that lead to the hill tops. Vermont
has not taken advantage to any APP
preciable extent of the aid the fed
eraI government is willing to give
in the construction of improved rur-
al highways. The road builders of
Caledonia county if they wish can
secure a vast amount of useful in
formation from the bureau of good
roads. They can send samples of
dirt to that Office for testing and
thus learn of the most valuable road
material available for road construc-
ton or repair. Then should they
request it they could secure the ser
vices of a federal expert to lay out
and plan the road work of a season
for the various town road commits
sioners. He might be able to show
them more valuable material than
they know of at present and give to
their work more permanency than
it has ever had. There are two rea-
sons why this has not been done.
First ignorance of the aid the gov
eminent is willing to give and
second the prejudice that always ex-
lists against new methods. But these
should no longer retard local road
Improvement The road builders of
this county should begin plans this
season to secure the services of such
an expert for next season and make
Caledonia county a pioneer in the
improvement of it's hill roads. Such
improvement would increase the val
ne of every parcel of land along the
route and give greater power to
every pound of horse flesh utilized
thereon. 1t would also make the
best scenery Of the state more Access
sible. Can't a move to improve the
scenic highways of this county be
started at once?
-ho roroI0rsor - 49, "a