Rock Island Argus., 1914-12-07
ATTACKING THE TICE LAW.

n Il i 41SLN44NS 1--we LIZA w
Enemies of the Tice law under which
Illinois has undertaken to provide a
| system of hard roads are attacking
| that measure hammer and tongs. They
declare that it is nothing more tnan
a scheme of automobile makers, ce-
ment manufacturers and bankers, the
two first named to sell their wares
and the last named to handle the
bonds which must be voted for the i'm
provements. Here Is a sample of the
line of argument being put forth, be
ing taken from the Canton Register:
We hate the Standard Oil Trust.
We teach the race to hate the hoggish
beef trust and other trusts. Why
! should We hate these and love the
three trusts that have forced the Tice
road law on the people? These are
the cement owners, the auto-makers,
the banking and trust companies OF
Cook county who want to mortgage or
bond all our counties.
I'VE have but two kinds of roads,
the short and long one. The short
one carries our products from our
/ farms to the station on the long or
I iron one When the short road is
made practical for the wagon, the auto
/ or the carriage alike we have paid all
we owe to the nation for roads.
WHY should We allow our counties
to be forced by this law into buying
I a third kind of roads, the long mar
row concrete state boulevard which
but scarcely touches our farm areas
or stations merely to satisfy the ra-
pacity of these trusts?
We'll salaried orators now parade
Illinois telling county boards and in
stitutes that they are going to build
$1,000 miles of these roads at $4,000
or more per mile, over S150,00O,O0O
worth.
Dewitt is an average county and
II figures don't lie it must pay for It's
part near So for each of its 25O,00O
acres, merely to bring it this rapid.
passing automobile show, and this
sum, mind you, does not pay a cent
for costly upkeep or bond interest to
our new masters"
The same writer points out that
state aid is a myth, every county pay
ing in the long run, the entire cost OF
its roads, which, obviously is an argu-
ment not entitled TO much cOnsidera-
tion, inasmuch as nobody ever had
any notion that funds raised by state
or even national taxation were gath
cred out OF the air or anywhere else
than from the pockets of the people.
As to the other arguments they
spring entirely from the shock of rev
elation as to what hard roads really
cost. It is but natural that a great
many objections should be made when
such a big expenditure of money LOT
any purpose whatever is before the
people.
Here in Rock Island county few con
tend that the short road" will en-
tirely answer the bill. The topography
of the county. with inadequate rail
facilities in each end. make excep- |
tionaI conditions which furnish the /
strongest kind of an argument for at 4
least one permanent road from end TO !
end. AS a matter OF fact the necessity |
for something better than the short /
road is pretty generally felt every
where, not alone by those who make |
or own automobiles, but by those who
occa asionalIy ride in them. which takes
in the majority of the people.
II is easy to charge that the hard
roads propa ganda is being fostered by
trusts" Naturally. somebody is
bound to reap a profit whenever a big
work is undertaken, whether it be OF
a public or other nature. Building
roads may help furnish a market for
cement and automobiles and the bank
ers may obtain about the same re
turns from transactions in highway
bonds as from the handling OF other
forms of securities. Probably a good
many laborers will also get work. We
are not likely to get very far in this
world. however. if we limit our enter
Drises to those which do not benefit
else.
This attack on the Tice law IS not
based on fair grounds. The measure
las many faults and some OF them
ire bad ones. II is but a makeshift,
1ut II was apparently the best that
could be evolved under the circum-
stances and with the limited expe-
-ience which the framers had.
Perhaps the most serious shortcom-
ng Of our present highway law is that
{ fails to properly provide for sys-
ematic improvements of the dirt
-oads OF the state which. for many
-ears more must continue TO carry the
leavy end OF the traffic. There ough,
o be provisions for permanent" roads ,
or the communities which are able to /,
AVE them. but there should be some
yay 20 finance the grading. draining ,
nd dragging of the ordinary dirt 4,
Highway, and the Improvement with a !
,lalr, layer OF gravel. where the ma ,
erial is sufficiently convenient TO q
ender its use advisable.
Korea Ends Opium Monopoly. 8