The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1916-10-18

BUSINESS METHODS URGED
N BUILDING IOWA ROADS

Buena Vista. The bridges here are
being built Of masonry. These last
100 to 500 years. Bonds are issued
| on the bridge fund and permanent
spans are built. Then the bridge tax
is applied on the bonds Under the
present system in most counties the
bridge money goes for everlasting
repairs"
Iowa hasn't even made start on
surfaced roads. Indiana has 43 per-
cent and Ohio 35 percent of roads
surfaced, because they faced the
future and made their roads perma-
nent. They applied business manage
ment to their roads. They put their
fixed revenues to the task Of dis
than in repairs.
The cry is raised that Iowa is
spending so much because 1t has a
big overhead expense. The highway
commission comes in for its share of
this sort of criticism. The commits
sion was likened by the speaker, to
architects. The railroad systems of
the country pay five percent for their
architects, five percent is the usual
charge in any work, yet the state
highway commission is getting only
six-tenths of che percent and when
the county engineers are added the
overhead is only three percent.
School House and Roads.
when you are going to build
school house in your county," Mr..
Norris said, you decide on the
amount to spend, the type of building
and the location. You advertise for
the best contractors, and then you
say to some banker down east, what
will you give for our bonds. The
banker gives you the money. You
build the school house at the lowest
possible price and pay the cost in
the money given by the bankers.
Then you move in and enjoy the
year before the first of your interest
on the bonds is due.
If you built school house like
you do your roads, you'd figure that
you would have so much money COM
ing in. Then you'd dig hole and
wait until next year until more
money came il, BY that time the
hole would be half filled up, and
you would Zig 1t out some more.
Maybe in time you might get wall
built, and then perhaps in more
time you would get roof over your
school.
Build your roads as you do your
school house. Don't Just go out and
patch up a hole in the road in the
spring and grade it or drag it, and
then the next day it rains and you
have it all TO do over again. Build
your roads with the money paid by
the eastern banker for your bonds
and pay OFF your bonds with the
money from your taxes.
"The time is here to build per-
manent roads. Ninety percent of the
people make 6. trip over the comfy
road. When you build that road per
manently you are serving 80 percent
of the people"
while the committee will suggest
that the legislature let the people
vote on the read question. there is
a short cut through the boards of
Lee county and in Iowa just as
schools are built, the only difference
in cost being the difference in ma
terials, and in the amount of taxes"
Mr. Norris was given vote OF
thanks and also was cheered by the
leaguers at the close OF his talk. He
gave the members considerable to
think about along this line, especial
Iy in his reference to interurbans.
Supervisors Guests.
The league had for its guests
County Engineer Malcolm F. McFSS-
land, the county supervisors. G. +.
Maxwell, /. Eosier and John De-
Rosear and Edward F. Kellie who has
located in Keokuk and who will
manufacture tere the materials for
his Appian way process of surfacing
roads. From Hancock county there
were present w. o. Kunkle of Car
ti.aye, in charge of the state aid road
work, William Burgner, county sup
erintendent of highways, and ]. H.
Lloyd, county advisor. ]. G. Imboden
of Decatur, who was in Carthage
accompanied the Hancock county
men. All of the Illinoisans spoke
briefly, and Mr.. Kellie spoke for
few minutes at the request of Presi-
dent NJ. E.. Justice.
Comparatively few people remain