The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1915-02-18
TINE TO GET BUSY.
ON GOOD ROADS
FOR POLK COUNTY

To the Taxpayers of Polk County:
In a recent issue OF The Manufac-
turers' Record appears an editorial,
with caption as above, calling at :
tentioa to the widespread distress
throughout theland by reason of the
lack Of employment for hundreds Of
thousands Of men. The article goes
on to say that city, county, state
and national governments have be-
fore them an immense amount of
work which must be done within the
next few years, and that these two
facts suggest with unanswerable
force the wisdom of such work being
done now while it can be done, by
reason of business depression, at a
very low cost as compared with busy
periods, while at same time it would
help create the much employ
ment and give work to thousands of
n,en who otherwise would be de-
pendent on charity; not a creation
Of work purely to find employment
for the unemployed. but merely do
ing now what must be done sooner
or later; doing it at a lower cost
than it can be done later, and yet in
doing it now thousands of people
would be saved from desperate pow
erty and the tide of business turned
to larger prosperity.
IN this connection il may not be
amiss to call attention to the great
public improvement, than which
there is not one more needed at this
time for the vital interests of this
section of Florida. I refer to a
county wide system of good roads
for Polk county. The Polk County
Good Roads association organized in
July last, has by persistent effort on
the part of a few men Financially
assisted in a small way by few
more) created a good deal of inter
est up and down the county and did
much good work in holding meet
ings in various parts Of the county
preparing maps showing suggested
linesof road. going thoroughly into
thequestion of various materials and
types Of road construction. meeting
and comforting with the county
commissioners, framing specifica
lions and securing the CO operation
of the county commissioners in ad
vertising for bids for the construc
ton Of sample type Of construction
which has been found to be botf
practicable and efficient. The mer
who organized an association for thu
purpose of making it possible TO-
Polk county to possess in the yer!
near future countrywide system o
good roads must have realized tina
such an accomplishment could no
be put through with rush an
without much hard and persisten
work. They must have anticipated
this, for they were for the most par
active business men. And those o
them who have borne the burdel
and heat Of the day have the salts
faction of knowing that their labor
have not gone for nought. The onl
real disappointment they have me
with, SO far, is the apparent indif
ference of SO many whom the
thought to have enlisted in tn
cause. realizing as they did at tn
time Of organization that this wa
not simply a personal matter fo
each taxpayer but large commun
ity enterprise that would requir
and ought easily to have, the acti'
and earnest interest Of every li'
man in the community. In this II
directors OF the Association ha'
been disappointed. and this inactit
has meant hindrance and delay b.
carrying out the plans. Less this
4 forty men have subscribed anythiI
. to the carrying on Of the woE
though, thus far, the work has n
suffered for funds but men who a
engaged in carrying on anythil
more extensive than peanut stat
will easily realize that a big bus
, ness proposition like the one t
association undertook cannot be
nanced with. couple Of hundr
dollars. Everybody's business
nobody's business, and there Dug
to be no hesitation on the part