Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1914-06-04
What Assurance Have We?

What assurance have we as citizens
and taxpayers that the Mineral
Springs Project will be a success?
When it comes to real assurance we
haven't any. We are not even as
sured that Ashland will not be swal
lowed up in an earthquake day after
tomorrow. 1t is good gamble, how
ever, that it won't be-and it is an
excellent bet from a gamblers stand
point that the Mineral Springs Prof.
ect will be a success.
The race-track gambler bets on a
horse because of what it has done
on other tracks. He has no assur-
ance that it will duplicate the per-
fo-mance on this particular track.
He feels reasonably safe, however, if
conditions are more favorable for
success than on other tracks where
the horse has won out. In other
words, the Mineral Springs Project
has won out elsewhere under condi-
tions far less favorable than those
surrounding it at Ashland.
To recite in detail the history and
success of Mineral Springs eXploita-
tion at Hot Springs Arkansas, Colo
rado Springs and Manitou in Colo
rado, White Rock Springs at Wauke-
sha Wisconsin, French Lick and West
Baden Springs in Indiana, Excelsior
Springs in Missouri or ColfaX Springs
in Iowa-or any other of the innum-
erable mineral spring resorts of the
country-would lie to impute to our
readers an ignorance of geography
and history and current literature.
The writer is familiar with the last
two of these and knows that they
draw patronage from all through the
middle west TO an extent that would,
if repeated in Ashland's case, bring
hundreds of thousands of dollars
into the city annually. And be it
borne in mind that these springs have
nowhere near the variety in quality
nor the climatic and scenic setting
that Ashland's springs are blessed
with.
Consider Hot Springs South Dako-
ia with her five months season and
inadequate railroad facilities, chuck
ed away in a narrow canyon with
no surroundings and with but two
paltry springs. Special trains run
every summer. through the town in
| Iowa where the writer lived, carry
! ing people TO this resort. 1t has one
of the finest hotels in the middle
west and is the site of one of our
( National Soldiers Homes-a magnif-
icent establishment-and its streets
are thronged daily during the brief
! season that living there is possible
What the Mineral Springs Project
/ will do for Ashland is not merely a
matter of individual opinion. The
Southern Pacific Railroad Company
! has for years had on file reports
! stating that the greatest outlook fol-
Southern Oregon development was
the mineral springs at Ashland and
| it stands ready today to back the
project with advertising and the SER
vices of its experts. Why The
/ Southern Pacific is not a chaser after
! rainbows. 1t IS not visionary. II
doesn't back things that it is not sat.
! isfied are worth backing. 1t agrees
to spend thousands OF dollars adver-
tising our project. Why? Because
! it expects TO get the money back
hauling tourists into Ashland.
! We have the springs We have
! the endorsement of the Southern Pa
cific. We have the record of other
towns TO go by. What further assur-
ance can YOU ask logically? Do you
doubt the possibility of piping the
waters to the park unchanged in
quality? The Smith-Emery Company
guarantee to do that or forfeit a
bond. They will tell you about it at
the big mass meeting next Saturday
night. Can you expect greater assur-
ance?