The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1914-02-13
GOOD ROADS
National Aid In Securing Of
Them
Advocated By Congressman
". A. AShbrOOk
In A Speech Saturday Support
ing The Bill

Last Saturday while the house of
representatives at Washington had un-
der consideration house bill No. II, ,686
to provide that the United States
shall, in certain cases, aid the states
and the civil subdivisions thereof in
the construction and maintenance of
rural post roads, Congressman Viii.
liam A. Ashbrook made the following
speech on the subject:
Mr.. Chairman, I am in hearty SYM
patiiy with the Shackleford good-roads
bill and support it with great satisfac-
tion. My vote for the Sherwood pen
sion bill and the vote / expect to cast
for the Shackleford good-roads bill
will be the two votes of which l will
be most. proud as a member of this
body.
Mr.. Chairman, have long been an
advocate of good roads. am not a
recent convert My record on this
question is well-known in my district,
and especially in my home county.
have the good fortune to be possessed
of farm back in Ohio, and am glad
to say it is the farm upon which was
born, and still more pleased to say the
farm upon which my father was born
and has always resided upon. want
to give notice now that expect to alb
sent myself to attend the ninetieth
birthday celebration of my good old
father on that old Buckeye farm on
the 10th day of this month. GAP
plause.) l am now paying special as
sessments on my farm for three pixies,
which / gave my best influence to Sc
cure. pay these taxes cheerfully, be-
cause / am believer in good roads
and am willing to help pay the freight.
Ohio Is giving much attention to the
building of pixies and the Improvement
of the highways. Some portions of the
state are now practically all piked.
This bill, in my opinion, will be
great incentive to not only the people
1t is what the people have been de-
manding for years, and the people are
at last getting recognition. Why this
Government can appropriate thirty to
| forty million dollars annually for riv-
ers and harbors, as it has been doing
for many years, and then deny Federal
aid for post roads on the grounds that
it is unconstitutional could never un-
derstand. If we have the right under
our Constitution to appropriate for
one purpose, then we have the right to
appropriate for the other. The same
argument is as good for one as 1t is for
J the other. More than rs members have
already spoken in favor of this bill
during this general debate, and am
glad to say none of the constitutional
experts have so far raised their voices
in opposition on the ground. The light
is breaking in at last.
This bill provides:
That the Secretary of Agriculture,
one behalf of the United States, may
aid the States and the civil subdivi-
sions thereof, in the construction and
maintenance of rural post roads in an
amount not exceeding $25,000,000 in
any fiscal year; that the portion there
of which may be expended in any
State in any fiscal year shall be de-
termlned upon the following basis, to
wit: One-half in the proportion which
the total population of such state
bears to the total population of all of
the States. as shown by the next pre-
ceding Federal census; and one-half
In the proportion which the total num-
ber of miles of rural post roads in use
in such State bears to the total num-
Der of miles of rural post roads in use
in all of the States, as shown by the
report of the Postmaster General at
the close of the second quarter of the
last preceding fiscal year.
Upon this basis Ohio will receive as
its share of this appropriation $685.
900. Ohio has 1858 rural routes, with
an average length of 1880 miles, or an
aggregate length of 6O,406 miles. In
addition there are III star routes,
with an average length of GIG miles,
or total of 1,165 miles. The grand
total is therefore 61,561 miles travers-
ed by the rural and star routes in
Ohio.
In all of the States there were in
operation on December 1, 1913, 42,961
rural routes, with an aggregate length
of 1,042,477 miles, or an average
length of 24.27 miles for each route
At the same time there were 12,257
star routes, with an aggregate length
of 156,477 miles, an average of 1916
miles for each star route.
'rhe estimated number of miles OF
highways in the United States is 2,
l - - a 90