The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1914-02-01

ern use. have gone into the sphere or
national action rather than the ma
tiOnal sphere being extended to EN-
brace the highways.
If this is the proper conception OF
the use and the importance OF the
modern highways between large cen
ters of population, it naturally fol-
lows that the national government
should take up the construction, the
maintenance and control of the great
interstate highways, extending from
one state to another and connecting
the capitals of the various states and
the important centers OF commercial
and social activity.
Such action on the part of the ma
| tional government would be justlhed
from the standpoint OF taxation OF
the whole people for the improve
ment of such roads, it would also nee
essarily insure great efficiency in the
construction of these important high
ways, which are Of use and benefit
| to the people of the whole country
| The national government not only has
enormous resources available for this
purpose, but it also has the best en-
gineering ability and the organization
necessary to the planning and carry
ing into effect of broad and COmpre-
| hensive system of national highways
to conect all the centers Of population
of the United States.
But no plan of highway improve
ment is complete unless it contains
provision for the betterment of ev
cry mile in public use This can be
accomplished through a system Of
state classification of roads and vest
ing of authority for such improvement
| in the state and its subdivisions. To
| this end il should be provided by
! law that the roads of the state should
be divided into several classes The
principal highways Of the state should
| be known as state roads and should
| be improved and maintained at the
| expense of the state. They should be
roads extending between Centers Of
| population like the more important
cities and county seat towns of the
state. such roads are a matter of di-
rect interest and financial benefit to
| the people of the whole state, and
their improvement is a matter of di-
rect importance to the entire state as
! furnishing a means of ready commun-
ication between different important
| points Of activity. The second class
of roads should be comfy highways,
which should bel constructed and
which should be constructed and
maintained at the expense of tn
county. In this class should he in
cluded roads which are of general
use in the county, but are not part
OF the general system of transporta-
tion between centers OF population in
the state.
In the third class should be the
| township or district roads, construct
| ed and maintained at the expense Of
the local community. In this class
should be embraced only roads of
purely local interest and from the
/ construction and maintenance of
which the people at large derive no
| direct benefit. BY a financial system
| which would provide for the improve
ment of the principal highways from
the state treasury, Of the second class
OF highways from the county treas
ury and of the third class of purely
local highways from the district treas
ury, the burdens of taxation for road
improvement within the state would
be distributed among the people in
proportion to the benefits which
would be derived from such improve
ments, this should be the object and
aim of all taxation, and is obviously
Just and equitable.
We believe that the adoption of
such a system of highway improve
ment in this country, and the concen-
tration Of the constructive intelli
gence of the nation upon it, will Sc
cure the maximum of efficiency in
the expenditure of the revenue raised
for that purpose We are convinced
that when such a system is put into
effect in the United States. we will
have a real system of highways equal
to that of any other country in the
world and that until system SUD
stantially along these lines is adopt
ed, We cannot. in the light of past MS
tory and present knowledge. expect