Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1914-08-31
ROAD PROBLEM is
VITAL TO PEOPLE
yeglect TO This Community
Serious as Marine Def
cheney TO Nation.
elyER TELLS AUDIENCE
.z,,,sorners- Give Their Program at
Illinois City and Appeal
for Vote.

p.,ple OF Illinois City and vicinity
-. addressed BY the hard roads
,...,s-s Saturday night, the meeting
:. .ha new town hall being one Of the
-. vet held. The audience was COM
80 almost entirely OF voters. both
55-.-,lo Prairie and Drury townships
ssl.s represented
George Rausch presided He ex-
-,..-a5 that he knew little about the
s-,,osed plan 70 give this county
80 roads and was not in position TO
cav whether he would be for or
sr.,ns, II till he heard arguments on
- sides. His attitude apparently
rss tvp!cal among the people Of the
.o,nupity. who were prepared TO
o,,sIder the proposition on its merits,
- s,,itude OF mind which is all that
rose conducting this campaign have
asked
The speakers were Phil Mitchell,
n-esident OF the Rock Island County
Highway Improvement association, L.
I s,ackhouse. field secretary; E H
c,var OF this city. \ =. Johnson OF
rast Moline and Fred r. Young and
Trevor Of Moline The Svea
ouartet sang several times. being al
vavs encored. and at the close Of the
spsakfng Nj Stackhouse explained
the stereopticou views OF roads which
we're shown
We Are All In II.
Mr. Guyer took for his text the title
Of a reading which SIr. Stackhouse
had given Just previously, He Wasn't
II It. He used Il in bringing home
10 his hearers In q striking manner
the seriousness Of the transportation
problem in general. and that OF wagon
roads in particular.
When this European war broke out
Americans generally congratulated
themselves that they were not in it."
But as prices Of securities began 70
fall and Of eatables 70 rise, while the
financial centsrs prepared 10 counter
act the demand for gold by Europe by
limiting credits and demanding 90
days notices on savings deposits il
Ezs seen that We we're in it."
Furthermore. the merchant marine
Of the world was tied up. rendering i
virtually impossible for Us TO ship
abroad the things We had for sale. a
coalition which vas brought about by
our neglect OF one phase Of the trans
Dortation problem through q long per
iod Of years. II We had a merchant
marine Of our own there would be lit
lie difficulty in taking our goods to
market ard the prices. as a result
would be even higher than they are
nOv on foodstuffs. This Is q cause Of
loss TO the farmer.
In the matter Of roads this state and
county have been in much the same
condition a. the nation in the matter
Of a merchant marine The question
has never been adequately dealt with
and Ee are already beginning 10 feel
the effects
Problem = Vast One.
The road problem confronting the
people Is a vast one. n Illinois alone
10 bring our highway 10 q high stand
ard would call for as much work and
expense as the construction OF the
Panama canal
What We call roads now are merely
lanes and there are altogether too many
acres Of land tied up and useless in
these highways. The mileage should
De reduced and routes changed so as
70 give the most direct possible lines
between population centers. We must
build our roads as the Romans did, 10
last for centuries, and we should start
right
Ar. Guyer gave figures 10 show
ABOUT what II viii cost the average
property owner In the lower end Of