Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-09-05
Etrrittttp Uta1

Tollgates are down on the high
ways that radiate from Harrisburg
like the spokes of wheel except In
York and Lancaster counties and the
nearest places where people are held
up are twenty miles from the State
capital. This is the informatiop1giv.
en- last night by man who has fol-
lowed the highway situation in Penn
sylvania and who is keenly interest
ed In the making of things easy fo1
crowns Capitol Hill. Twenty-five
years ago there were tollgates on ar
SIDES or Harrisburg, and one has bu
to recall the days of the Spanish
war to remember that people had I'd
pay toll right above Division street
on the Riverside Drive, out near Ru
therford on the way to Hummels
town, down below Highspire on the
way to Middletown and at various
places in the county, while the
memory of tollgates near Camp HE
and Shiremanstown is still fresh Ii
the minds of people who had I'D
pay. 1t took years to get the counts
commissioners and the township au
thorities ap to the point where they
were willing to buy the toll roads
and the struggle to free the Rive
tNoo 10 Sllll lItSIl III lllt OF
many people. The Berks and Dau
phin turnpike section between tbs
railroad crossing just east of Hum
melstown. one of the worst in thi
section, by the way, was the las
turnpike in the county barring som
| stretches down in Conewago which
are tentacles of Lancaster county
turnpikes. The Lancaster toll road
bid fair to go before dong as tn,
nf hnf 81. Ii
gressive citizens of Lancaster city
have agreed to help the State and
county buy the rights. York als(
has a number of toll roads, but mos
of them are we'll kept up. Unfor
tunately the tollgates of these TIVE
counties are astride roads which leat
direct to Harrisburg. although if on
knows the way they can be avoided
Man wants but little here below.
said a philosopher in one of his sa(
moments. The William Penn high
way between this city and Readin
was freed of toll gates Thursday
The gate keepers are off the job antA
innumerable S1.o2- pieces are stayin
where they belong. Before the roa
was freed, however, the State High
way Department had visitor from
Lebanon.
"I came to see about the William
Penn highway, between here an,
Reading" said the visitor.
1T will be freed next Thursday.
| said the Highway Department of
| fetal
IT know that" said the Lebanon
man, "but / came to see about i'm
provements. When are you going t
advertise for bids for the construc
ton of concrete road over tina
thirty-flve miles of pike?"
Great Scott, mani" calculated tn
highway department official. "we'r
! doing pretty WELL aren't we? View
put $4,000 into the purchase of tn
pike. So have the counties. Now
before the gates are freed, you tai
about thirty-five miles of all-new an
permanent road"
That's the idea," said the ma
from Lebanon. There's nothing lik
going after what one wants. That
the most important stretch of roa
in Pennsylvania. What can you d
for us?"
Then the official promised tha
maintenance forces would be put
work Immediately. The Leblanc
man went home determined to go
the commissioners of his county an
Berks and Dauphin counties to agres
to match the highway department.
uOlldIS-uOlldI lOI uOlldI"lO Du
thirty-five miles of 22-foot concret
highway.
Harrisburg's motor fire apparatu
appears to attract about as much a
tention as anything going these day
and almost every official of a city d
borough who comes this way look
up a fire company. Harrisburg is
fair way to become as noted I'D
| a A,,r. II. 60.
streets and other evidences of mt
nicipal progress.
Wood chopping has become popI
lar again in Harrisburg. Years ag
when men wanted exercise they GU
down trees on vacant lots. The las
few days every man who wanted
swing an ak could get job in til
section of the city where the stor1
did most damage. There were me
! 1t work swinging axes who had nd
, done such labor in years and the
; appeared to be enjoying it. One d
the results of the storm was that fin
, wood became very plentiful an
there is more than one yard wherei
wood is stacked up.
telegraph linemen are still tall
ing about the fact that the storm di
| little damage TO lines IN ana aDou
Harrisburg. OF course, in the are
where the storm dropped" te1d
graph and telephone lines wei
hurled about with the rest or thing
but considering the severity of til
storm the damage done to lines
the city at large was trifling.
|
General e deV. Morrell, the EN-
nent Philadelphian who was burie
at that city to-day, highly compl
mented Harrisburg as city for pd
rades when here at the time of COY
ernor Brumbaugh's inaugural,
which procession he was chief ma
shall. General Morrell said that til
streets were we'll laid out for III
covering a line and that all that ,wf
needed at the Capitol was a propS
entrance. The state is now on IA
way to get it.