Cresco plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1913-1945, 1914-01-23
Monster Railroad Rally.

Sg CnAfle4 City TOOK Cr6scO Dy stOIH
on Tuesday when . five-car special
trein brought 200 railroad boosters and
Cons sycial Club members from that
city and 25 Elma men who Joined the
Charles City pilgrims at New Hampton,
AZ soon as the train reached Cresco
the visitors headed by their band, and
joined by large number Of Cresco
citizens, made short parade which
E-<lsd at the Court House for short
yet scquainted" !" meeting after which
tie visitors looked about our city till
E4bs supp per hour when about $50 VISIT
oss and Cresco Club members sat down
\ Ia thsq lArmory TO = sumptuous dinnsf
served ~ Mrs. Geo. Champlin. The
tables cleared away and cigars lighted,
y. ] Sobolik, Pres. Of the Cresco Coms
mefcial Club gave . cordial welcome to
the guests. 5l
Lee Elwood, president Of Elma's
nsw Commercial club, spoke in favoe
of the railroad project q it affected
his town, and Dr.. Kessel, as he always
I does, gave an instructive and enter.
taining talk, counseling fair play for
the people and fair play for the road
should it be built.
Rev. Dibble, who announced that
he was an old Howard county boy-a
\ surprise to most of those present
leaving when IA years Of age, gave q
good talk in which he pointed the ad-
vantage to Cresco. Charles City and
Elma Of being the centers Of future
@electric road building.
o. a. Rustic, of Charles City, pre-
sented the Charles City commercial
club,s viewpoint Of the project. but the
I address of Pres. G. W. Hart, which We
will publish next week in full, was the
most interesting % be spoke with au-
Ihority and in detail OF the plans for
4 building and financering the road. Y
In brief, Mr.. Hart said that the
steps necessary for securing the road
was to first secure a petition Of SO per
cent of the freeholders in the proposed
taxing zone, strip ten miles in width
across the country from Cresco to
Elma and including those towns, ask
ing for an election. This secured, an
election will be held to levy q S per
cent tax On e-fpuEth aetaal
value 81 real estate in the proposed
zone. Assuming the average asses
sable value Of farm lands in the zone
to be $50 per acre, the tax would
amount to 75c per acre. In addition
to this tax, Howard county would be
required to buy SIPS. 900 Of per cent
cumulative preferred stock contingent
on tax being voted.
Mr.. Hart said the entire cost of the
81 miles Of road will be about 81, 200,
900. OF this $4OO, 900 is already in
vested, and with the tax already voted
in Floyd county and the stock they
propose to buy, 10000 of the total
amount to be raised is provided for
With $3.50. 900 supplied by Howard
county through tax and stock sales. it
is anticipated that it will be easy to
obtain the balance Of money needed by
an issue Of bonds, retiring the pre-
ferred stock which investors may ex-
change for bonds if they so desire.
Mr.. Hart said they were proud Of
their little road and were ready and
willing to build more. He said that
steam lines had reached their zenith in
building up the country; that steam
roads would remain the main arteries
of traffic, but that q great wave Of a
new kind Of railroading electric lines
was sweeping over the country and
that as farm lands favored by steam
roads had risen in value to $50 per
acre, that electric interurbans might