The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1916-04-04
GOOD ROADS IMPORTANT
FACTOR IN TIME Of WAR

other form, due to bad roads, or other
removable causes.
Broadly speaking there are three
different kinds of transportation upon
which We all depend. l do not refer to
the transportation of passengers, but
to the transportation of goods, for the
latter is a very much larger subject
and one which is of greater national
concern. The three kinds are trans
portation of goods by railroad, trans
portation of goods at sea by steam
ships, and transportation of goods by
wagon; that is to say, carriage in many
forms on our streets annd roads. OF
these three forms of transportation,
that by railroad has received elabor-
ate and public care from both state
andn nation. That by steamship is
now properly receiving thoughtful
care at the hands of Congress and the
administration. That by wagon on our
highways, while actively treated in
certain parts of our land, has not ev-
erywhere been made the subject Of
that public concern which it needs and
which it is sure to receive when its
prave Importance is more fully known.
"Of these three problems, that of
ocean transportation is the smallest,
though it has an Importance to our
commerce far in excess of its own in
trinsic merit. When ] say it is the
smallest of the three / mean that we
expend less ON it. The next order in
expense is the transportation by rail-
way, and the most expensive of all,
that which costs us the most, but 10
which we have given the least thought,
is the transportation by carriage on
our roads. This last is many times
greater in its cost to the nation than
both the others put together. It
probably costs more to haul a bale {
cotton or its equivalent from the farm
to the railway station than to trans
port it from that station to the seaport
and to Europe even at the present ex-
cessive rates. -
Waste is one among, if not the
greatest curse We fast-moving Ameri-
cans have to contend with, and the
amount of wasted energy in drilling
and hardening a great army under the
new conditions of warfare, would be
enormous; almost like the endless
power flowing over Niagara Falls.
Modern fighting calls for trench war
fare, and trench warfare calls for
hardy, well seasoned men.
Congress seems in the proper humor
to call for many thousand more men
for military service. These men can be
trained to the use of trench digging
tools, and seasoned into hardy soldiers
by using them, say five hours per day
on road building. The officers who
drill these men would, as rule, make
very efficient engineers and supef-
visors.
Modern trench warfare also calls for
men of brains. We have a great many
such young men who would join our
army if the pay was better, and by
paying fair wages for all road WORK.
over and above the soldiers regular
pay, soldering would be far more at
tractive.
Good roads agitation and good roads
building are only at the starting point
today. The millions of automobiles,
trucks and tractors new being built
will be many times multiplied
When the soldiers of our new army
have been drilled for three years both
in military tactics and government
road building and when at the end of
enlistment this splendid body of men
return to their respective homes, their
knowledge will be worth untold mil
lions of dollars to the various communi-
ties in which they live, for road build
irg by that time will be a science and
reputable profession. In no more
practical way could we obtain that
most needed essential to our general
good than by training our soldier boys
how to build good roads and no cheaper
may we obtain it than by paying them
well while learning the business.
The soldier life at best is a monot-
onous life, and many thousands of
bright young soldiers have been led,
or misled, into gambling and drinking,
heesuse they ha , 40 much idle time.
Not only would our soldider boys be 8
cleener, better lot of men at end Of
enlistment, but each eGuId have neat
sum of money for start in civil life.
Half million men working FIVE
hours per day FIVE days per week,
leaving one whole day and FIVE half
days for study and drill, would cause
an economic saving of more than 60O,-
100000 labor hours annually, and y
saving to each man, at 20 cents per
hour, of more than $3.50 per year, or
a total saving of 100000 annually.
BY utilizing the waste energy of
half million soldiers we would go far
toward stopping the enormous waste
ih GnT carriage bill.-Wm Deape Ham,