Polk County observer. (Monmouth, Polk County, Or.) 1888-1927, 1915-11-19
MAY YIELD TO DEMAND
TAX FOR BRIDGE MAY BE IN
CORPORATED IN BUDGET.
County Court Considering Splitting
Cost, Making Cost Of Structure
Cover Two Years.

Because there seems to be no al
tentative it is very likely that the
Polk county court, at its regular meet
ing early next month, will include in
the annual budget some provision for
the inter-county bridge, and that
structure may get start in the world
by next spring. The bridge question
has become famous in the short time
it has been in the public mind and
on the public tongue of the two coun-
ties. 1t has called forth great var
iety Of engineering talent that has put
the fear of death into the hearts of
the hundreds who daily cross the
bridge, and shiver every bone in their
bodies for fear the gallant wind will
throw itself into the high and speed
up to twenty-five miles an hour-with
the disastrous result that the old,
weak and detected bridge would col
lapse like SO much lockwood, and
would be washed away to an eventual
fine powder by the surging torrent Of
the mighty Willamette that charges
on its tempetuous way beneath the
ghostly bridge. People who never be-
fore knew fear are up in arms, crying
for the preservation of the race that
would perish from the face of the
earth when the twenty-five mile wind
pushed our historic old monument to
transportation into the river, and are
criticising the county court for its in
activity. The engineering talent has
said that the bridge was a physical
myth, that it should be Immediately
condemned and the traffic allowed to
swim the stream, and on the heels of
its utterances has also said limited
traffic, say 14O0 pounds to the foot,
might safely travel over the bridge
for a year or so.
Salem merchants got the talent to
switch its remarks Of condemnation,
but now, it seems, some of the same
element have gathered in high coun-
ell to say that the bridge cannot with
stand the ravages of the wind. Then,
too, after an estimated repair cost Of
$500 had stretched itself into 1880,
and after Mr.. Holmes and Mr.. Cantine
and Mr.. Morse, representing the we'll
known bridge builder, Ralph Nodes
XII, had inspected the structure. The
bridge, therefore, is closed to traffic
during gales. But that isn't the end
of the story. The next chapter opens
with the inspecting epidemic stamped
out after all available inspectors have
had finger in the pie. Nine chances
to ten the bridge will be ordered clos
ed permanently. In such an event
there is only one way out for the Polk
county court. That body must make
to care for its share Of
the cost of new bridge. The opin-
ion expressed by Judge Teal yester-
day that the bridge cost could be in
cluded, at least in part, in the budget
that will be prepared early in Decem-
Der, is undoubtedly founded well. But
to care for this cost will mean that
other very necessary improvement
work will have to be set aside for
year or two, and that the tax rate in
the county will remain the same as it
was last year, rather than being de-
creased by several mills as Judge Teal
had hoped to do next month. There
must be bridge, and if the present
structure is forced to remain idle the
only thing that can be done is for
Polk county to heed what are practi-
cally demands from Salem and help
build a new one. At best only part
Of the cost could be provided in the
budget this year and work could not
be started until spring. Rainy wealth
er would again set in before the
bridge was finished and it could not
be completed before the end of the
following summer. Therefore, if the
get a majority vote that
the bridge is as useless as nanny
goat in deep well it will be two
years before Polk county people have
the excruciating pleasure of patro-
nizing Salem commercial interests,
which will have been largely respon-
,ible for condemning the present
structure. Judge Teal, in common
with majority of Polk county peo-
pie, thinks that the present bridge
would serve well its purpose for
another year or so, or until the coun-
" can fairly and squarely ask over
1urdened taxpayers to dig up the cost
If new one. This thing of having
arms confscated for taxes and per-
'onal property sold at auction to sat
sly the sheriff's judgment seems 10
lave escaped Marion county in the
rear vicinity Of the paved streets and
arge commercial houses, where the
principal hives of new-bridge agita-
ion may be found on any dark even
ng. But if the old bridge is not to
We, new bridge must be, so the quick
II Judge Teal an his commissioners
ring themselves to the drastic duty
# duplicating the assessment of last
'ear, the sooner will engineers and
,alemites be happy and peaceful.