The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1917-03-08
The I,itt-JOlnstOn Road Bill.


Representative Ira Nichols in his
Hardin County Citizen, Iowa Falls)
A careful, detailed, analytical
study of the Pitt-Johnston road bill
reveals number OF interesting
votes rather than to build roads or
carry out any principle or definite
line of thought. 1t: is a miscellan-
eous patchwork, lacking in compre-
hensiveness, detail and clearness
Some sections of the bill are we'll
written, while others are feartully
and wonderfully made. There are
dicraft of dozen miscellaneous road
artists, travelling in dozen direc-
tons, and there are poorly construct
ed sentences that babble on and on,
and paragraphs filled with unrelat-
ed ideas, and Fluctuations sprinkled
in without aim or direction.
Such mess and mixture of ideas,
officials and courts something to do
for some time to come, studying and
Interpreting. Such law would be
a nice source of income to the law
yers.
Taking up the general outline Of
the bill, such as exists, there is to be
a one-man highway commission, in
stead of three. This commissioner is
to be located under the gilded dome
Of the capitol and is to be the politi-
cal appOintee and puppet of the gov
ernor. He is to receive salary Of
$4,000 and is to have $4,000 for
miscellaneous use. The commission
er may perfect plans and specifica
tons, but no one is required to use
them. In alterations between local
authorities, he is the court of APP
peal His principal duties are, ac-
cording to the bill, to disseminate
information, to acquire knowledge,
to look at construction work in the
role of a harmless spectator. and to
create no expense for lectures: 1t
will be seen that the commissioner
is to be a hot air artist by the print
ed word route with nice little fund
Of $25, 900.
The commissioner is not only the
political puppet Of the governor but
all county engineers must receive
his endorsement through an exam
machine, the tentacles OF which
reach out into every county Of the
state.
Section % Of the bill gives the
highway commissioner blanket auth
GRITTY, without any directions or
bounds, to do anything necessary to
secure the federal appropriations. He
and get one back. SO far as the bill
is concerned the commissioner may
take the funds out Of the general
state tax, or the county road tax, or
what not. He may pull off most any
stunt. He may require the raising
of $2,200,O0O by a general state
levy. There is no check.
Johnston bill practically all author
ity is lodged with the boards of
supervisors. They may go in ninety
nine different directions. They are
supposed to be more competent than
the highway commissioner, engin-
GERS or road experts. They not only
attend to the county roads but see
that the trustees and township road
builders toe the mark.
Instead of taking the money ex-
pended by the state commissioner
out Of the automobile fund, it is TAX
en- out of the general state tax and
each taxpayer must directly contrib
ute his share
Township roads may be taken over
the supervisors, practically without
the consent of the people of the
township and without regard to the
condition of the roads.
The salary of the present commits
sioner is $4,000 each. The salary of
the proposed commissioner is $4,000.
The incompetency Of some of the
judged by the fact that the last draft
OF the measure, just as it was to be
brought out and placed on the calen-
dar, contained section giving over
to the highway commissioner the
drainage work of the state, the 'ex-
pense of which was to be paid out of
the $4,000 appropriation. They did
counties have over a hundred drain
age districts and there are counties
to which the engineer might devote
his entire time and attention.
The bridge builders, cement MAX
ers, combines and all of the Inter
ests' are interested in the passage
of the Pitt-Johnston bill. Why
LYNNE boards and a political engin-
eer makes their task easier.
There is very little in the so-called
Pitt-Johnston road bill to enlist the
support of the unbiased student of
the road problem. There is little in
it to enlist the support of the man
who believes in protecting the inter-
ests OF the taxpayers, who believes in
efficiency, and who believes in the
with the funds at our command.
ed in political expediency, and is
foisted on the unsuspecting public
for the purpose of catching votes. 1t
never was a road measure and it |
never will be and in the end the
record will sustain the statement.
No combination of reactionary SEN
special interests, politicians,
and invisible government can frame
a real road law for the people of /
Iowa who pay the price. Its bust
ness is politics and pelf, not road
building. {,
Few Horses Left For Army.