Rock Island Argus., 1914-12-31
Progress Toward Solution of
the Problem Made During
the Year.
ASSOCIATION Is ACTIVE
Campaign for Bond Issue and Building
of Sample Stretches Bring
Matter Before People.

passed. For the first time there wa
made a'united, a intelligently directe
effort to accomplish something, an
while the tangible results are far les
than those most actively intereste
had hoped, undoubtedly the peopl
have been made to think more ser
ously of the subject than ever befor
and that is pretty good for begit
ming.
But this is not all. Through this or
Grafton of the Tice law the first stat
aid hard road has been CONSTRUCTED
here and the contract let which viii
insure the completion of another sam
pie vi it early in the spring. If tn,
two small stretches of highway Civ,
satisfaction the people may be de
pended upon to find way to continue
| the work.
The most active agency in the road
campaign was the Rock Island County
| Highway Improvement association
under the energetic leadership of Phi
Mitchell. This organization, which
came into existence during 1914, held
| good roads meetings not only in Rock
| Island and Moline. but in nearly every
| hamlet in the county. Its officers, with
the aid of other members and gentle
| men not belonging, but interested
merely from thaistandpoint of promot-
ing the public welfare, actively es.
poused the cause of a bond issue o:
approximately 100000 for the i'm.
mediate construction of hard roads
and eventually forced the matter to
an issue before the board of supervis-
Nrc fnh o. hn
at an executive session. declined to
submit the main question to the vot-
ers at the fall election.
Pioneering in Work.
These men were doing a pioneer
work, for there was only one other
county in the state where a bond is
sue of such proportions was seriously
considered, and that was in Vermilion
county, where proposition to borrow
s1,5OO,O0O for hard roads carried by
comfortable majority. The road ques>
ton was presented here in its many
phases so that all she people of the
county had an opportunity to and an
occasion for personal study OF IT.
The result is bound TO be productive
of much good in future
1t may be true, as many contend,
that the Tice act does not afford the
legal machinery which will best meet
the needs of this and other counties
in the state. ItImay also be that the
types of road which the state highway
commission favors have not been suf-
fciently tested to warrant large ex-
penditures at this time Undoubtedly
there should be some effective plan
and one recognized by the statutes for |
the improvement of earth roads, grad !
ing and draining, and the use of sand !
and gravel on clay and muck surfaces, |
in counties such as Rock
Island, where the dirt roads are now
bad and the expense of construction |
of hard ones will be exceptionally |
heavy.
At the same time a great many
people have been made to see that "a
few hard roads of some durable type
are especially important in a commun-
ty so i'll served with railroads as 1
The rural parts of this county are and 4
nore will come to this view as the II
is continued. Great Ss the
iefects in the new law may be they
ire not more serious than the waste
ulness of the iold plan of spending
money hit and miss exclusively
through local officials. and this has
'een made pretty clear to all.
People Must Pay for Roads.
Discussion of the subject this year
las also brought out the fact that
tate and national aid means little be- :
ond intelligent direction to road 1
Whether township, state or
alton contributes the expense falls /
pom the people themselves, and IN
he long run each unit of territory Il
'ill get back about what it puts in.
Me people here have been shown n
hat the only way to get better roads \
; by raising the money to pay for III
hem. and that it is useless to waste 4
ling the financial end of the Job.
While the greater part of the ex-
enses OF the Rock Island County 4
Highway improvement association
urine the year was paid with funds !
aised at good roads ball held in
Ioline early in the season, the Off n
ers of the organization gave freely OF | II
leir time and contributed their own i
ash besides in furthering the cause. II
hey had no hope of financial reward II
eyond their legitimate share in the Il
ided prosperity which they believed
lat the county would enjoy il the
ans they advocated were carried
IT
They may have made some mis-
kes, but they were honest ones and Il
ey are entitled TO the gratitude OF 1
e people as a whole for taking the
ad in campaign which eventually /.
ust result in good for all the people.
is to be hoped that they will con-
lue their efforts in 1915
new f1reproof window shutter is
ide OF series OF metal tubes. u
lied together like the top OF roll
D desk. and which can be dropped
er window by its own weight