The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1915-10-30

In this section. i was told by gentle |
man in Washington that his rate was
nearly 81 on the hundred on a yalua-
ton that considered true cash val
ue." imagined what stir such
rate would create among some of my
farmer friends in lower Michigan. II
you are a foe of high taxes stay away
from the west. And. by-the-way. you
don't hear taxes mentioned In any OF
that boosting literature.
California is rapidly ousting Wiscon-
sin from the position of the political
experiment farm of the United States.
Where Wisconsin left off California
commenced and that fact is reflected
in the state tax budget l was quite
surprised one morning on picking up
a Los Angeles paper to learn that the
state is facing a tax budget Of some
$4,000, 900 dollars. The article con
trasted the condition i'm California
with a number of states in the union,
among them my own Michigan, and
II was then that l realized that Michi-
gan is economically governed after all.
California is experimenting with every
new tangled governmental plan jus,
now and she is paying the price.
One can understand where much OF
this tax goes when he rides over the
roads out there and notes the expen-
sive trestles necessary to protect
traffic from the foods. In the Sound
country Of Washington it's trestles
after trestle over the rivers and
lagoons where the water runs quietly
enough within regular channels all
but dozen days In the year. On the
other twelve IT covers and destroys
everything not standing on stills and
SO firmly planted that an earthquake
can't shift H.
And then there Is the concrete road.
Concrete is very fashionable in the
west especially in California and con-
crete costs, you know The Pacific
Highway is a road designed TO cross
the entire Pacific end OF this nation
from Los Angeles to Bellingham,
Washington To the credit Of the west
erners let it be said that the Pacific
Highway is more than name such as
we have come 10 know the Lincoln
Highway, the Dixie Highway and sew
eral other eastern highways that are
built be a few enthusiasts in a con
vention. They are actually grading
and laying concrete in sections along
it's entire route at a rate that will
bring Il TO completion in five years
time visited the work on one sec
| ton Of this road in California. The
work is done by contract the state
furnishing the cement and stone The
contract price on the section ! visited
was about $4,000 per mile which in
cluded grading, laying the concrete
and finishing the road bed. The state
treated the surface TO a coat Of btu
men and spread fine gravel or crushed
stone over II when the contractor had
finished.
saw some gravel roads In Wash
ington but there, also. saw very
large sprinkling OF concrete IT'S
either concrete or dirt in the farming
country of the California valleys
Why do they build such expensive
roads. do you ask? That's the question
that occurred 10 me and In explanation
was told that concrete Is about the
only road that lasts. If they don't have
a concrete road they can't travel I'm the
wet season In the dry season Oh,
water bound macadam ravels fast and
the gravel road loses its binder II
the wet weather the dirt road, which
has from six inches to a foot OF dus
I'm the dry season, becomes spong'
OF soaked clay over which Il Is almos
impossible to move.
In southern California was showi
a road made OF crude oil and ella,
mixed and baked until II was as har,
as asphalt The oil keeps the roa
from disintegrating IN the wet wealth
err didn't learn the comparative cos
OF this road but II certainly made fin
pavement
Just now the western coast is ago
over the liquor question. washingto
and Oregon have voted TO 90 dry o
Jan. J., 1916 and California Is TO vot
next year on an amendment for stat
wide prohibition. TIP in the soun
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