Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1916-08-01

la heavy bond issue. 1t will be re-
membered that year or so ago a
heavy bond issue for good roads was
advocated by the Des Moines news
papers, also the Marshalltown Times
Republican and Nonpareil. They cit
ed hard roads of other states which
had been constructed by bonding
long time bonds at low interest, and
Attorney General Cosson had even
favored the buying of Iowa stone
quarries for macadam purposes and
Mr.. Meredith had said with great
enthusiasm that he favored roads
good 365 days in the year.
What did all this mean? 1t meant
that the Des Moines politicians fav-
ored the kind of good roads Mr.. Mer-
edith declared for by bonding or by
some other means, that would cost
not only $1OO,000,00O, but much
more than O,000, 900. Take your
pencil and figure it out for yourself.
The average cost of graveling Greene
county's roads is $1,40O a mile,
which, multiplied by 80, the number
of counties in the state. gives a sum
exceeding 100000, 1000.
Now, while the state constitution
limits the Indebtedness of the state
to per centum of the taxable valu-
alton of property, which would pre-
vent as much as a 500, 1000, 900
bond issue for roads at the present
time, though not far from it, the S
per centum limit would be legal and
would be heavy, and such bonds once
voted would no doubt continue for
half lifetime, or, as in New York,
for SO years.
The trouble with Des Moines poll
ticians, (Mr. Garst included) is that
they overstepped themselves prev
ious to the campaign on the good
roads issue. They imagined they
could convert the state to the Cry
| ing need" of hard roads, roads good
1865 days in the year, and by bonds
or otherwise, secure such roads in a
|jiffy. But, when Mr., Harding an
nounced his theory of good roads
built by the people as they were
needed and could be paid for, and
the taxpayers leagues began to be
organized, and Harding began to
draw large crowds OF farmers Wher-
ever he spoke, the Des Moines poll
ticians took fright; they began to
hedge and try to shift the roads is
sue to the wet" issue. but it
wouldn't shift. The Des Moines news
papers and politicians have suddenly
quit talking bonded debt for roads.
and even Meredith has dropped his
talk of good roads 365 days in the
year and switched to- Harding's good
roads platform.
Mr.. Garst is right in assuming
that it was the road issue that gave
Mr.. Harding his phenomenal vote.
but he is dead wrong in saying that
the people were deceived. They
were not deceived. The Des Moines
politicians, with headquarters in
Des Moines and headquarters in
Marshalltown," did advocate heavy
bond issue for good roads, citing the
bonding system of California, New
York, etc, as the ideal system for
road building in Iowa.
Mr.. ,Garst's memory is at fault. 1t
Ibid not run back to the time just
lprevious to the recent campaign
when the Des, Moines newspaper
ltriumvirate, and hard road boosters,
which includes Mr.. Meredith, were
turning over heaven and earth in an
effort to convince Iowa voters that
la bonded Indebtedness for hard
roads, which would cost 100000
| 900 for graveled roads or many times
this sum for macadam roads, was the
thing for Iowa to do.
4 Mr.. Harding favOrs good roads as
does every other intelligent person
in Iowa, but he is opposed to the ex-
trayagant proposition first made by
the Des Moines politicians, which
would create an enormous debt in
bonds and which the state is not yet
ready for He proposes much san
er plan which will give the state i'm
proved roads from year to year, as
the people are willing to vote them
and pay for them.
The hedging of the Des Moines
newspaper pool and politicians now
will do them no good. They can't
blind the public. The die is cast,
public opinion is made up, and cry
ing "wet," "wet," wet" cannot di-
vert public attention from the real
issue. Harding will be elected by
$4,000 and when governor, good road
work will 60 in an intelligent way
and the enforcement of the prohibit
tory law will be even more ener-
getic than now.
| Waking I'm,