The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1915-06-17
TINE RIPE FOR CALLING
BOND ISSUE FOR
GOOD ROADS SYSTEM

representative this morning Secre-
tary Holworthy of the Polk County
Good Roads Association, stated that
a meeting is to be called soon look
ing to the holding a Pix county
BOND election for good roads. Among
other things Mr.. Holworthy said:
Through the efforts of the Polk
County Good Roads Association, the
sentiment for a bond issue for the
construction of a countrywide sys-
tenn of good roads has been crystal
lied, and it is a rare occurrence to
meet with one who is not heartily
IN favor of such action and the times
seem now ripe for our commissioners
to make the necessary call. Polk
county has waited until every county
surrounding her has acted in this
matter and today several of these
counties are building good and sub
stantial highways, not only for the
use and convenience of their pres
ent population, but with the result,
of bringing to them thousands of set
tiers who are constantly refusing to
locate on sand roads or no roads at
all.
Through the lack of intelligence
and business experience necessary to
understand the matter in all it's i'm
portant phases, there has been in
this county. as in the State general
~, an element which has kept back
tremendous development which
, would have come with good roads.
| but this element has been decreasing
year by year, largely because of a.
, systematic education along these
| lines by the press and other agencies
which have called attention to the
development made in other sections
by the building of permanent high
ways. The tax bogey has been prac-
| tlcally eliminated and men who are
able to understand any practical
problem have come to see that they
are now paying annually in taxes for
road building and maintenance a
sum sufficient to pay the interest on
the necessary bonds, provide an ade-
quate sinking fund for the retire
ment OF the bonds and leave a suffi-
cient amount annually for the main
tenance OF the present system and
| addition Of new roads as they be-
/ come necessary, and this without
waiting any longer than the actual
time necessary for their immediate
construction.
The taxpayers OF Polk county
have paid in taxes for road fund dur
ing the last twenty years over a mil
lion dollars and what have we in the
shape of good roads to show for this
expenditure? About fifty miles of
sand clay roads which are wearing
out as fast as they can be built. Use
the same amount Of money, by Dor
rowing 1t, for system OF permanent
highways, only requiring small
maintenance cost and we can have
the roads for use now, doubling the
assessed value of the county immedi-
ately and making it possible, there
fore, to reduce instead OF increase
the individual tax.
1T is firmly believed that a bond
issue for an amount necessary to
construct countrywide system of
good roads can now be successfully
carried and it is up to those who op-
pose the plan to interest themselves
and bring forward their objections
now as well as those who favor it !
Since last July body of representa-
tive men from different sections of /
the county have been carefully work. !
ing out the matter, making a thor |
bugh survey of the needs of this Sec |
tion as well as the results which |
have been and are being obtained by |
adjoining counties who have already |
begun doing business along road
building lines. This association |
comes before the taxpayers, there
fore, with all this intelligent and re-
liable information and asks that ev-
cry taxpayer get in line for an ac-
tive movement at once.
"A meeting will be called the last |
week in this month on a date and at |
a time to be announced in the next
few days and it is urged that men
will, if necessary, lay aside their or
binary business engagements on that
day and join in an enthusiastic and
successful effort to put Polk county
on the map of progressive sections of
Florida in the matter of good roads.
ANY information as to the plans
and purposes of the Association will
gladly be. furnished by writing to
the secretary of the Polk County
Good Roads Association at Lake
l.