The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1916-03-31
The TEXAS GOOD ROADS
ASSOCIATION MEETING
A Highway Department Is Uroed for
the State-To Improve Routes
of Travel, Etc,

in the way of future road building in
Texas.
Colonel Toolen of San Benito told Of
the work on the diamond loop high.
way running south from San Antonio
E. c. Bowman Of Hilsboro told of the
enthusiasm for good roads in Hill
county and advocated Hillsboro for
the next place of meeting. w. w.
Watson of Salina, Kan, president Of
the Kansas division. told of the me.
ridlan highway and compared road
conditions in Kansas and Oklahoma
with those in Texas and declared Kan.
sas was going to adopt the plans of
Texas for the organization OF the en-.
tire state in building connected roads,
and that the state would complete its
portion of the meridian highway, Lee
J. Rountree of Georgetown spoke on
the subject of Public Highways and
Progress" and referred to the Appian
highway, which leads to Rome, built
300 years before Christ, and which he
visited four years ago Mayor J. w
Higgins Of Waco spoke upon Texas
Needs System in Planning and Spend
ing Road Funds" +. Il. Kone of the
Texas department Of agriculture ex
planned that Texas was big enough and
wealthy enough to build her own roads
with the excellent opportunity afford
ed to secure aid from the federal gov
eminent, County Judge Richard Crit7
IF Georgetown spoke on Needed
Road Legislation in Texas" John A
Hudson, mayor of Georgetown, spoke
upon "The First Roads or Highways IN
Texas"
Resolutions were adopted urging up
on the legislature the creation of 6
state highway department to the enc
that Texas may take its place amOne
the States of the Union in the intelli
gent, judicious and progressive devel
opment Of its public highways; that al
agency may be established, through
which all information resulting from
experience in road construction anC
maintenance may be made available t
every county and district in the state
and that useless waste Of road funds
through inexperience in supervision
and lack of system may be minimized
that for the preservation of our public
highways legislation should be enact
ed which would make it obligatory up
on every county or district providing
funds for road construction by speCia
tax or bond issue, to make reasonable
provision for the maintenance Of sucl
roads; that the body of our road laws
under which county road funds are eX
pended, represent piecemeal legisla
ton enacted over a period Of morC
than third of a century and is made
quate to respond to the need of mod
ern requirements in road building, be
ing the prolific cause of the passag
of more than a hundred special count,
road laws which effeCtually preclude
uniformity in road construction an,
the development of a general state pol
icy in road building.
THAT the present law governing tn
issuance of bonds for road construC
ton, under which it is optional wit
the county or district to retire an
part of such issue under twenty years
results in unnecessary loss to the tax
payers and we recommend that thi
| law be amended to require all sue
bonds to be issued payable serial
after two years.
THAT the experience of all countie
is conclusive of the destructiyeness o.
public highways of the narrow WACO
tire, and we urge such legislation a
will result in their discontinuance
as early a date as practicable, and tn
substitution of the wide tire,
THAT we renew our expression Q
approval of the law requiring the sal
of road bonds at par and accrued inter
est and deplore and condemn the prat
tice of discounting such bonds by bal
tering them for construction contract
and through other expedients.
THAT the president of this associs
ton be authorized to appoint a cOmmi
tee on legislation to comprise sue
number as his judgment may deem
advisable, and we earnestly common
to such legislative committee the dill
gent advancement of the several RET
concentrations for legislation contain
ed in the resolutions adopted by tn
association"
The following officers Of the TeXa
Good Roads Association were electe
for the ensuing year: w. G. Turner
Fort Worth, president; Howard Blan
of TAYLOR, first vice president; d. 1
Colp of San Antonio, secretary-trea'
urer: Thomas l.. BeauChamp OF Paris
assistant secretary.
Four cities made bid for tn
| .c,- .,-,,,+;or-- LIiIIShorO Greer