Imperial Valley press., 1915-02-04
Assemblyman Wills Tells
Of Two Highway Routes
(R. f. Wills, State Assemblyman, in
the Brawley News.)

icised my action in introducing a bill
providing for an appropriation of
100000 to be expended on the Holt
ville-Yuma road, | feel that you will
grant me space in your paper to
state to you and to your readers my
position on this question and my rea-
sons for so doing.
Two bills have been introduced in
the legislature, each providing for an
appropriation of 100000, to be ex-
pended on a road leading to the coast.
The first bill was prepared by the
state board of control and introduced
by myself and provides for an ap-
preparation of 100000 to be expend-
ed on road from Ell Centre to Yu-
ma via the sandhills and not condi-
tional upon any contingency whatever
The second bill was introduced by Mr..
Avey OF Riverside and provides for
the expenditure of $4,000 on the
road from Brawley to Yuma, and
Sl5O,OO0 on the road from Brawley
to the Riverside county line near
Mecca, and is available only upon the
assurance that Riverside will expend
$220,000 on the road from the Impe-
rial county line westward and also
that San Bernardino county will ex-
pend S280,000 on the road to Los An
geles within her borders.
| have never at any time, nor do
i now oppose the bill introduced by
Mr.. Alvey and more than once have
| assured him that if his bill succeeds
in reaching a roll call in the assem-
bly, upon its final passage | shall
surely vote for it. | have also asked
Mr.. Alvey to assume the same atti-
tude toward the Holtville-Y Yuma road
bill, but so far he has shown no dis
position whatever to do So
Now. believing as | do, that it is
almost impossible to secure appreeri-
atitns Tor 10th the Holtvlhe- Yuma
road and also for the Los Angeles
Yuma road at this time, I think the
interests of Imperial county and
served by supporting that measure
which will serve the greatest num-
ber with the greatest good and | also
think that | should in this particular
case support that measure which has
the greater chance of success before
all the bodies to whom the bills will
be presented before becoming a law.
There are several reasons which
lead me to believe that success can
be more easily attained and that the
greatest good will inure to the great
est number of people by supporting
the Holtville- Yuma road, some of
which | ask you to publish at this
time.
w. Lewis Clark, one of the engi-
neers of the state highway commits
sion, has examined both routes from
the Imperial Valley to Yuma and the
two reports made to his chief, Aus
tin B. Fletcher, are as follows:
Brawley to Yuma via Mammoth Wash.
Jan. Ia, 1915.-To Austin B.
Fletcher, Highway Engineer, Sacra-
mento, Cal-Report of Division En-
gineer, Division VII, on a reconnais-
sance survey between Brawley and the
Arizona border at Yuma, Ariz.
According to instructions to ac-
company Mr.. Alvey on a reconnaissance
from Brawley to Yuma, we started
on December 26, 1914, from River
side, going by automobile via Red
lands. Beaumont, Banning to Braw-
ley. incidentally the trip via the
southwest side of the Salton sea was
corroborative of the reconnaissance
made about two years ago.
Leaving Brawley, December 27,
1914, the road, as now Travelled, runs
practically due east for about 4.2
miles, crossing the Alamo river, and
then turns abruptly north for two
tenths (0.2) of a mile From here
it runs due east for 0.6 mile, and
then turns abruptly and due north 9.6
miles, where it again turns due east
for AS miles to the East Side canal.
Thus far the soil is deep reddish and
sedimentary. When dry it pulver-
ICES extremely fine. When wet it is
very sticky and soft, with great alb
sorptive power. This soil is appar-
emily similar to that between Ell Gen.
tro and Holtville, as reported in an
earlier reconnaissance from Ell Cen
tro to Yuma. Some wagons we passed
had attempted to go through a pool
of water in the road and had sunk to
the hubs in mud, being abandoned
for the time being.
Local Conditions.
All the region thus far is practi-
cally flat and cut up into ranches
(coNTINURD ON PAGE Two)