Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1915-01-14


The fifth new law. known as the
CrossleyOrr law. provides free text
books from the incidental fund of a
district adopting same by proper vote.
A proper proportion OF the county fire
and insurance tax money received
from the state is placed to the credit
of the incidental fund of such dis
trict, thereby enabling it to purchase
free textbooks for the children, Be
fore the adoption Of this law, free
textbooks were supplied TO only five
districts in the state, whereas today
the number of districts runs into the
hundreds. -
To the end Missouri may ever be
ready to push forward our educational
interests, l recommend that you enact
a law creating an education commits
sion, consisting of three or five mem
bers appointed by the governor to
serve without pay, but whose expenses
are paid out of the general revenue
fund.
Reformatory.
1 ~ H a-H . aFNN4 ~
The penal institutions of the state
consist OF. the p~enitentiary, Missouri
Training School for Boys, at Boon
vile; Industrial Home for Girls, at
Chilllcothe, and the Industrial Home
for Negro Girls, at Upton. The mere
punishment by combining in these
penal institutions is not the full meas
ure of the law. The state can and
! should render a higher service, that
OF, reforming as large a per cent as
possible. bringing them back into the
paths Of rectitude and good citizen
ship.
Realizing this, l believe there should
be a new building or buildings erected
at Boonville, and that institution made
not only a training school for boys,
but also a reformatory. The name of
the institution should be changed from
"The Missouri Training School for
Boys" and there should be substituted
the name "The Missouri Reforma-
tory"
There should be different classes or
departments established in the re-
formatory, according to the offenses
committed, the age, conduct and char
acter Of the inmate, and provision
made for the transfer from one class
or department to another.
In having the training school and
reformatory at the same place and on
the same farm, presenting the good
and the bad as object lessons, and
what the reward would be if good, and
what the punishment would be if bad,
a very wholesome lesson could be
taught and great good follow. At the
same time, it would relieve the con-
gestion at the ~penitentiary, as our pen
itentiary is the largest single penal
institution in the world. Perhaps some
200 or more men could be removed
from the ~penitentiary to the reforma-
tory, and the reformatory continue its
labors and industrial training, as the
Boonville training school is located
upon a farm of 500 acres.
Good Roads.
Since the proclamation declaring
two Good Roads Days" in Missouri,
in August, 1913, there has been awak-
ened a new spirit for this important
internal Improvement. Since that time
some Is states have, by proclamation,
had their annual Good Roads Days.
and some Of the foreign countries.
The public highways Of the country
have ever marked by distinct epochs
its civilization, and agricultural and
commercial progress. 1t has marked
it in the life Of Missouri and of the
American republic. Until the high
ways stand abreast our broadcast
civilization, we will not be living up
to our best privileges and the highest
standard we can maintain in our civic
and commercial life. We need to con.
tinue the construction, improvement
and maintenance Of our dirt and our
hard surface roads. The dirt road,
however, is the most important of all
the roads. 1t constitutes 80 per cent
of the road mileage of the state, and
will continue so to do for many years
to come. 1t is the real road of the
people and the great highway of com,
merce.
We are in favor of the construction
and maintenance of macadam, rock
concrete and other high-grade roads
because every road that is constructed
and passes through a section of coun
try that produces something is an in
ternal Improvement of inestimable
value h'.l y"
There are bad dirt roads and goot
dirt roads. Bad dirt roads are a liabil
: ity, good dirt roads are an asset. Mis-
souri, cannot afford bad dirt roads, bui
it a afford good dirt roads. The dir
roads reach out into country life like
tentacles and over them are moved
the products representing the rea
commerce of the country, and theil
improvement will mean more to thu
state and nation than any other ONT
internal achievement which can b.
brought about. We cannot make al
the roads in Missouri ~high-class roads
but we can make all the bad dir
roads good dirt roads, and in th'
! meantime construct as many high
grade roads as possible.
Missouri has $3.50 miles of unim
proved dirt roads and 54,264 miles Of
improved dirt roads. We have 3,42(
, miles of gravel roads and lat miles
Of macadam roads. We have 57t
miles of sand clay roads and 700 miles
OF roads made from chats. We have
about 400 miles Of patent surface ant
other miscellaneous roads, making
the grand total in the commonwealth
oyer $4,000 miles, Last veal there
J was placed upon these highways bet
j terments valued at approximate,
$4,000, 900. Under the new inter
~ 49,