The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-04-19
AUTOMOBILE NEWS

tContinued from Page Thirty-eight) ~ -~---~~~~--~----~-->---
 George c. Diehl, chairman of the A. A. A.
 national good roads board, indicate a quite positive interest of the members of
 the other branch of Congress. Consid- erable opposition has been aroused to the
 bill passed by the House because of clause
 1, embodying the Shaekleford roads rental
 proposition, whereby the federal govern
 ment would pay the several states a sum
 per year per mile for so-called use of
 rural free delivery routes, which would
 mean piecemeal and ineffective scatter
 ing of federal money in such a manner as to practically put a premium upon
 leaving the dirt roads they are, except only for such occasional dragging as
 would qualify them for the $l5 per year
 per mile As a matter of fact. in most
 states it is already required that this
 class of roads shall be kept in travelling
 condition. In order to advance class C
 dirt road to the class E division of gravel
 or other similar material, an expenditure
 of not less than several hundred dollars would be necessary to obtain the in- creased rental of 80 per year per mile: {: while to advance from class to class
 A the outlay would be several thousand dollars per mile to secure the $6O annual payment
 Procedure under clause B. however which calls for the expenditure of money on whatever roads are mutually agreed upon by the governor of a state and the Secretary of Agriculture, seems to meet with quite general approval though it is not improbable that the appropriation for the first year may be reduced from S25,O0O.- OOO to S5,p0,OO0. Among those who have not hesitated to express pronounced views on the subject is Senator Lane of Ore gon, who says.
 '1 would like to see a plan devised by which main highways of the country would be constructed by the government, making use of the army engineers in the construction and have the states, through the use of the prisoners build feeders to them"
 Senator Reed Smooth of Utah, comes ] forward with this summation of the sub
 ject; T will frankly state that l am op- posed to the so-called Shackleford roads bill for believe that it is nothing more
 nor less than pork barrel measure. I am in favor of good roads legislation, but before embarking upon it l believe 1t is
 the duty of Congress to agree on a com prehensive plan which will not only ben eft the states but the nation''
 Senator Morris Shepard of Texas says: "l am in favor of peoples legislation along this line. l will go thoroughly into the matter at the earliest possible oppor- tunity. The Senate committee on agri- culture. of which am member has re- ported d good roads bill and it is now on the calendar
 Senator E. Ransdel of Louisiana: .sI assure you that this is subject which
 commands my special attention at all
 times''
 Senator John Weeks of Massachusetts
 Personally l believe that roads should
 be constructed by local communities but
 I am well aware of the fact that we have reached a point where we are almost ger
 tain to have national legislation. That
 being the case my desire is that the money be so appropriated, under a defin- 1te plan, that waste may be prevented and the best possible results obtained.
 OAKLAND SALES
 According to a report from the local Oakland automobile agency the follow