Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1916-04-01
NATIONAL DEFENSE HIGHWAY.
"The Maps The Fhing.~

Dear Sir.
l wish 10 congratulate you and the
many readers OF the Times, which has
so enthusiastically and efficiently es-
poused the cause Of the construction Of
the National Defense Highway over the
OH Stage Road from Bladensburg. in
Prince Georges county. to Camp Pa
role, Anne Arundei county, Md. on the
latest letter of Taxpayer to the Bal
timore Sun in opposition to our pro-
posal. That gentleman, impelled by
what motives ] know net, after making
many Injurious grounless assertions
in references to the subject. and utter
ing very serious aspersions of our mo-
tives' has now come forward although
at the elventh hour. and threatened
should our bin pass the Legislature. as
we trust it may and believe il should
that I'VE will submit to the Governor a
map to show the utter uslesseness of
the road
have assured him that should events
so shape themselves, as we hope they
maythat the Governor should have the
decision OF the question, some few OF
us will as Mark Twain once promised
for himself on notable occasion.
postpone all other recreations and at
tend when Taxpayer submits the
aforesaid map, as we shall be very
much interested and very anxious 10
see this wonderful performance con
summated / om gratihed. even at this
late hour, to have this writer proner
D ffs Nraf fgh 1t, f,,lr.
tain his ineXcdsable and gratuitious
hostility to a proposition whose bene
tits,if it were accepted would be state
wide. and which should, therefore. have
statewide support In that respect il
stands pre-ominent over the other road
building proposals. Being quite famil
lar, however, with the maps of our
county. ami the State, from the time OF
those made by our good old surveyor
Simon j Martenet TO those which are
now issued by our "State Geological
Survey" must be pardoned from be-
ing somewhat skeptical as to the abil-
ity Of this gentleman to make good"
on his prof'er.
We shall, however, should he Gppor-
tunity to do so be afforded him. at
least have the pleasure of at last meet
ing him face TO face. and / trust ami
believe he viii not then seem really
so bad as his written productions indi-
cate and | hope that he may even soft
EN- toward us and come to the concms-
ion that we are not so constituencies
as ne must--at a distance think us.
In response 20 his expression of sur
prise that his letter should have evoh
ed so much adverse criticism r.
beg to remind him that the people OF
Southern Maryland have never yet de-
clined an invitation TO combat: and ]
am restrained neither by modesty nor
the facts of history from stating that
we have generally acquitted ourselves
with at least oderate credit when we
have Joined issue with others, either on
the field Of battle or in debate
! wish. also. to assure him that we
of Prince Georges county are not at
all different from the people in other
counties of Southern Maryland, and
that we are likely, indeed. we are al
most certain ito put ii mildly) to be
come kinder" restive when our mo-
so shamelessly aspersed as they have
been by him Dwelling. however. as
he seems TO be. in an atmosphere OF
Boetian darkness on this subject Il is
not at all surprising that ne shouN ia
dulge in whatever views" and be-
liefs' that may be suggested to him
by his own selfishness.
Claiming some familiarity with roads
and road-buildmg both in this country
and in Europe / venture to remark
that have yet to learn of any nation
state. county or city, which has been
"bankrupted" by building good roads
when the money appropriated for the
purpose was properly expended. rs
such fupls have been under our Good
Roads Commission, and l have no fear
OF such result IN our State. for good
roads make the quickest and the most
widely diffused return for the exnendi-
ture of monev-a return which is alike
Immediately beneficial to the million
aire who travels such roads IN his
limousine and to the humhlest citizen
who hoofs' it over them.
Taxpayer is also ankle-deep. not Il
say overhead and ears in error in
his reference to those who take the af-
firmative for the Old Stage Road as -
few politicians" Had we been polite
ians. indeed. it is altogether probable
that in the distribution of road funds
we should have Jared much better but
most of US confne our political activity
to voting in the primaries and on the
regular election DAYS whichI presume.
even Taxpayer" will admit. come but
twice a year.
] also wish TO suggest that the fact
is but a small proportion of ustthough
even that number is very largel are
Immediately adjacent to the roa,l :"
With due humility. / beg to inform him
that he errs. again in stating thai this
roaG is solely advocated in the interest
of Prince George countiaps. and They
do not care a rap for Annapolis
We in Prince Georges county are
honestly and enthus.astieallv in favor
OF a good road to the Capital OF our
State as well as to the Caaital OF ou~
Nation was under the impression.
however. that the people in Anne Arun-
del county were and are somewhat in
tersted in the improvement OF this
ro,l Perahps Taxpayer" can correct
me Ii am wrong about that ! be-
iieve I have been reliably informed