The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1916-11-25
ROAD BUILDING A BAROMETER
Prospective Buyers of Real Estate
First Want to Know IL Roads
Are Being Built.

In a real estate Office the other day
a man from the corn belt was listening
to the agent describe the lands on his
list. He asked about soil, crops, mar
kets and then faced the agent sQuarely.
what I want to know most about
right now" said he, sis your roads.
If you are building roads your coun-
try is all right. If you are not, 1 Will
look a little further along"
As but one township in the county
had worked up nerve enough to pass
100000 bond issue, he looked ga lit
tie further along.'
The would-be buyer is not the only
man who watches road building as a
sort of barometer indicating what a
section is going to do, says an Okla
homa writer in Farm Progress. The
bond buyer has his eye on such COM
munitieS. He knows that they are
going to get somewhere, for the plain
reason that they are willing to pay for
progress. He regards the road situa-
ton as more significant than farm club
organizations or the number of farm
ers' institutes. He may consider that
talk is cheap, but good roads indicate
a willingness to spend money in order
TO get more money.
Road bonds are counted as a good
investment because the township or
the county upon which they have been
voted is going to be better and more
productive region. The section is go
ing to develop, it is going to be worth
and produce more and get to be worth
more every year. That makes a good
and safe investment.
Years ago the department OF agricul-
ture watched the results on land
values of the building OF good roads
through some of the eastern states,
particularly in Virginia. Some of these
lands had been ''worn out" it was
thought, in the production of tobacco.
Good roads, not makeshift dirt af-
fairs, were laid down and in a couple
OF years land prices climbed right up
the ladder. They were in touch with
the world, with the towns and with
the markets II months in the year,
and the buyers appreciated this and
were willing to show their apprecia-
ton in cold, round dollars.
That the owners, some of whom had
fought the roads bitterly, had a lively
appreciation of the same thing, was
shown by the Quickness with which
they raised their prices per acre and
the hrmneSS with which they turned
down all lower offers. The roads
showed them and they were quick of
understanding.
Up in Iowa the 'iunearned incre-
ment" has made a lot Of farmers
mighty nearly rich. "Unearned incre-
ment' is a way of describing what
happens when man buys land cheap
ly and an increasing population makes
it worth more. It is something that
happens sooner or later in every COM
munity that is built up out of the will
derneSS, in every town that starts to
grow and keeps growing.
Good roads help to ripen this cum
earned increment about as fast as
anything can. OF course, a man who
pays so many cents per acre over a
term of years in order to meet the
interest and the principal on road
bonds is helping somewhat toward
| earning this increment but he is
| getting by far the better end of the
! deal. At the most he is not going to
pay out very much money, and when
land begins to climb up by So an acre
leaps he certainly can cash in If he
| cares to.
But he won't care TO turn this in
crease Of value into money If he knows
the ways of wisdom. He will live by
the side Of the road, filed with q
sense of satisfaction that his estate has
been increased in value and that the
good, hard highway is going to make
it easier for him to be better farmer
| and to make more money.
The passage OF a good roads bond
issue is a forecast of what a COM
munity is going to be ten years hence.