The Sentinel=record., 1914-05-24
AMAZING IS THE EXTENT OF THE WORK UNDERTAKEN IN THIS
 ROAD BUILDING,
Would Form the Longest and Greatest Highway the World Ever Knew and Would criss.cross the Country.


 sbility of making the huge proiec success,
 The proposed route, together witt the proposed Quebec-Miami ,interna tional highway and the Southern Ma tional highway and the Pacific coas highways, is great in it's immensity.
 Beginning at Quebec, it passet through Montreal, Albany, New Yorl City, Philadelphia. Baltimore, Wash ington, Richmond, Durham and Ashe vile, N. C., and Knoxville and Nash vile to Memphis, Tenn; thence by Little Rock, Hot Springs aud Texar kama to Dallas, thence by Fort Smith, Abilene, Sweetwattr Roscoe and Snyder to Roswell, N. NJ; Dun can. Clifton. Stafford, Gila Valley Globe, Miami, Roosevelt Dam, Mese Tempe, Phoenix, Buckeye and Yuma, Ariz.; thence Holtyile, El Centro, Imperial Valley to San Diego, Call; thence to Los Angeles, San Francis co, Portland, Tacoma and Seattle to Vancouver, B. C. The section of this thoroughfare in which the South is particularly interested is that which extends from Washington to San Diego. It is known officially as The Southern National Highway"
 The Link Between Oceans.
 The genesis of this, the worlds longest improved highway, will con stitute a most interesting chapter on American history. Three states California, oregon and Washington together with British Columbia, in- cluding the cities from San Diego to Vancouver, and all the towns. coun- ties, townships and communities ly- ing along the main line of Pacific coast highway travel, decided to co- operate and build great Pacific coast highway.
 How they have succeeded, and how this highway will soon be completed, a graded, drained, surfaced and mark cd highway, costing several thousand dollars per mile, is a matter of com mon knowledge,
 similar association was formed on the east coast, patterning after the example of the westerners, styl- ed the "Quebec-Miami Highway Asso- cation,' for the purpose of building an Atlantic coast highway. That highway is now completed from Mon treal to Washington, and half way from Montreal to Quebec; thousands os men are building 1t across Vir- ginia, the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida to Miami. Fla. Within a comparatively short time this road will be completed. Now comes the great highway across the Southland to connect the two coast roads.
 Entire South United
 To unite the entire South the route chosen is measurably near the middle. Speaking broadly, the South is a region lyins north of the Gulf of Mexico and south of the old Trails highway. which runs from Washington by Columbus, Ohio, and St. Joseph. Mo, to the Pacific. Among the considerations that weighed in the decision was the availability of the route. 1t had to be practicable one It had to be measurably direct and could not present any unsur- mountahle engineering problems. The latter considerations compelled all to agree. owing to the widely e&- tended flood areas further South, the only practical crossing place Of the Mississippi was at Memphis. No route would answer which led across a wide eXpanso of desert land without water, population, hotels, garages and automobile accessories.
 In seeking the middle line of this region a point was selected midway between Columbus, O., and Jackson will, Fla, and another point midway between St Louis and New Orleans. From the Mexico City line eastward, the route selected follows closely a line through these two middle points.
 Some Tourists Facts.
 An indispensable requisite of the route to be selected was that it must Dt htlIhCAlNt tu ApHi iNln. 4h VI GO realized that tourists, chiefly Amert can, spend s150,000,000 year touring Europe. that New England realizes s75 1000 ,OO0 a year, California s1S,000- 900 year and Colorado s6,000000 a year from the same source. Other facts showed the necessity of afford ing the American public way to see their own country in their own way and to further the "See America First' agitation. There are approXi matoly 100000 automobile owners in thIs country; there are 5000 tour ing cars. privately owned, shipped across the contintnt 10 California yearly for the owners uses in tourins California. Next year when th' Panama-Paciiic Exposition is held a San Francisco. there probably will b' 10000 cars shipped from the East b' private owners for the same pur During the year 1915 these i0,ool cars Of tourists. if they go to an' from California overland will no only spend millions while en ronte