East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1916-05-05
PLAN OF NATIONAL
!. HIGHWAY SYSTEM IS
INCLUDED IN BILL
PROPOSAL Is NOW PENDING BE.
FORE COMMITTEE ON MIL
ITARY AFFAIRS.
Investigation win be Made by the
Government Before ANY Action Is
Taken, Thus Preventing Hit or Miss
Methods of Locating Roads; Out
line OF Plan.

WASHINGTON. May 5.-Provision
for an investigation and report to
congress of a preliminary plan for a
system of national highways by the
corps of engineers Of the army is
made in a joint bill now pending be-
fore the senate and house committees
on military affairs, The bill was in
troduced in the senate by Senator
John A. Shields Of Tennessee and in
the house by Representative John H.
Small of North Carolina.
In particular this bill embodies the
principle Of having conducted sci
Cntific Investigation and survey of the
highway routes upon which federal
funds are TO be expended before the
work of construction is begun. II
seeks, it is said. to prevent the hit or
miss building of roads by the Federal
government which are located, not by
expert surveys, but by local political
influence, roads which begin any,
where within a state and end no.
where in particular The danger of
having federal funds for good roads
expended in such fashion has already
caused the dangerous cry of 'pork"
to be raised in congress when the good
roads appropriation bills were under
discussion.
Under the terms of the Shields
Small bill. the federal government
would devote its funs and energies
solely TO the construction of main or
trunk-line highway units connect
ing and correlating the highway sys-
TENS within the states Instead Of
providing funds to pay part Of the
states bills on state roads, the fed
eral government would take over to
build and maintain entirely, certain
of the principal highways. That
would relieve the states of a consid-
cradle part of their present burden
and would allow them to devote more
money to the building of more miles
Of good roads radiating from the fed
eral highways. Counties would then
build good roads radiating from the
state highways, while townships or
individuals would build good roads
feeding the county highways. Thus
the entire country would be woven
together by a network of highways
each system feeding the other, as is
done by the railways.
The Shields-Small bill was drawn
by Cyrus Kehr, of Knoxville, Tenn. a
of the National Highways
Association. in cooperation with Sem
ator Shields, Representative Small,
and engineer officers on duty at the
war department. It has been approx
ed by the war department While the
bill empodies two of the principles
for which the National Highways AS
ISOLATION has contended in its good
roads campaign, it is not particularly
by the association which
thus far has lent lis support to prin-
ciples only and not to any particu-
ar piece of legislation.
That this effort to have congress
provide a preliminary highway plan
prepared according to recognized |
principles of engineering and to pro-
vide for federal interstate highways
before federal funds are spent, marks
the trend Of sentiment upon this sub
iect here is indicated in the debates
upon good roads measures which have
recently occurred in congress. In the
debate upon the Bankhead bill. SEN
ator George W. Norris, of Nebraska.
said:
Il think the contribution of the
federal government ought not to go
to all Of the roads in the country. I'll
ought to be confined to a system Of
interstate highways"
This idea of restricting the federal
participation in highway construction
to a system Of main interstate trunk
lines to be located by an expert sur
rey is now supported by the repre-
sentatives Of many states and many
districts The opinion
Is growing that in this way such fed /
eral funds as are devoted TO good
roads construction will be spent tow.
ard definite object the highest eco
nomis results will be realized and the |
will be saved from con-