Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1916-02-04

l
post-ollice to Walkers on tho Ceres
road, three miles from the mill to the
Gose's and Lawson's, and on the road
to bland G. H., two miles of the Litz
lane road, not one of which has had
one dollar of bond money and that are
just as they were II decade ago. Have
we been patient about it? If you
were to see from six to seven feet of
Bob Moss stcanling across the pas
lures of mornings even before the
frosty dawn made visible his imra-
tient breath as he tries to catch n co
or n wagon to get to Tazewcll to II
good roads meeting, you'd probably
think we were impatient. Why does
your road commissioner tramp the
four miles before daylight across the
fields? Because his own road is we'll
nigh impossible. If there was oc-
curing only now you might think
him impatient. But as matter of
fact, in all the three years since the
good roads movement first started,
TO say nothing of the years before
when both he and his public spirited
father unseliishly served the public,
not one dollar of bond issue money
has been spent to relieve the tedious
drag of four miles to even get an
even start TO 20 to town or to the
station. And the same is true of the
Kellys and Hiram Showers and all
the East end folks. Here's our direct
routes to the south and to the east, to
the adjoining counties where we do
three-fourths of our cattle trading,
and where we have many friends and
much business interest, lying like
trails of the pioneers, little better
than when first blazed through the
woods, while in and out and around
our county towns whirr hundreds of
tboughtless motoring parties. Is it
fair? But you say we cnnnot expect
county to build roads for Bob Moss
or Joe Kelly or John GoGc. Certainly
not, but when those names stand for
communities of. hard -warking handi-
capped people, it isn't selfshness, IL
isn't even sclf-intcrcst, to want good
roads. 1t is community interest, frank,
open and laudible public spirit and
self protection. On the road leading
off from the postoiiicc TO 70 to Ceres
there are nineteen land owners who
use that road FOR everything, and they
have not had the benefit of even n
dirt road appropriation. Now, we
have reached the day of opportunity
again. On next Saturday in the town
of Graham Mt twelve o'clock mass
meeting of the Clear Fork district
will hear the report of the commit
tees on appropriation of funds TO be
voted i'm the next bond issue election.
This report will cmbody the wisdom
of some tc or twelve public spirited,
sensible men and they have used us
the basis of that report the estimates
made by the engineers and commits
sioners for the other bond issue that
did not go around. Burkc's Garden
will frankly appeal to that committee
and to the mass-meeting to regard
her needs and her rights and we be-
lieve they will. We cannot think that
any man or set Of men i'm this great
progress-movement really mean to be
unfair. We are trying to look at
this matter here in Burkc's Garden
in broad minded manner and mt the
same time we realize that sclf-preser-
vation is the first law of nature. We
are trying TO work out some features
of the Community Idea here in
Burke's Garden and we cant do it with
poor facilities for the Interpretation
of those two greatest words in the
life of community development, trans
portation and communications
Talk ohOut Social Co,to,, tLo
Country Church, Cooperative Clubs,
and all those things that have pro-
jected the west years and years ahead
of provincial, self satisfied counties
like Tazewcll No wonder we speed
on slowly. We fight each other over
roads, telephones, etc, and while we
fight others pass on ahead. Let's
quit fighting and get down and push
and pull and make this thing go!
Pm for another bond issue wisely
and fairly spent and am willing to
give and take in whatever degree of
either is necessary to get results.
And l believe this expresses the at
titude of the majority of citizens.
When the various communities of the
district, Burke's Garden, Clear Fork,
Bluestone, Graham, Pocahontas, etc.,
meet at Graham next Saturday, Ito
morrow, think it is going to be an
open-minded, good humored bunch of
fellows who are trying to find out the
right thing to do and who will have
the brains and grit to do it.
A. s. GREEVER.
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