Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1917-03-08
Pitt.Johnson Road DIIi.
(From tie Hardin County Citizen,
Iowa Falls, Iowa.

(From the Hardin County Citizen,
/, Iowa Falls, Iowa.
Taking up the general outline
Of the bill. such as exists, there
is to be a one-man highway com
mission, instead of three. This
commissioner is to be located
under the gilded dome of the
capitol and is to be the political
appointee and puppet of the gov
ernor. He is to receive salary
of $4,000 and is to have $4,000
for miscellaneoussuse. The COM
missioner may perfect plans and
specifications but NO one is re-
quired to use them. In alterca-
tions between local authorities.
he is the court of appeal. His
principal duties are. according to
the bill, to disseminate informa-
ton, to acquire knowledge, to look
at construction work in the role
of harmless spectator, and to
create no expense for lectures. 1t
will be seen that the commissions
er is to be hot air artist by the
printed word route With a nice
little fund of S25, 900.
The commissioner is not only
the political puRpet of the gov
ernor, but all county engineers
must receive his endorsement
through am examination, thus
building a political machine, the
tentacles of which reach out into
every county of the state
Section twenty-five of the bill
gives the highway commissioners
blanket authority, without any di-
rectiOns or bounds, to do any
thing necessary to secure the fed
eral appropriations. He may roll
two dollars down to Washington
and got one back SO far as the
bill is concerned, the commits
sioner 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 requiring the raising OF
SO, 100000 by a general state levy.
There is no check.
Under the provisions of the
Johnson-Pitt bill, practically all
authority is lodged with the
boards of supervisors. They may
go in ninety-nine different direc-
tions. They are supposed to be
more competent than the high
way commissioner, engineers OF
l|road experts. They not only at
tend the county roads, but see
that the trustees and township
road builders toe the mark.
Instead of taking the money OK
pended by the state commissioner
out of the automobile fun, it is
taken out of the general state TIA.
and each taxpayer must directl!
.ontribute his share.
l Township roads may be takeI
over each year into the count.
system by the supervisors, prac
tically without the consent Of tn
people of the township and with
out regard to the condition of tn
ii roads.
The salary of the present com
missioner is $4,000. The salar
of the proposed commissioner j
$4,000.
The Incompetence of some Q
the numerous trainers Of the bl
may be judged by the fact tina
The last draft of the masure, jus
as it was to he brought out an
placed on the calendar. cOntainc
a section giving over to the hie
way commissioner the care of tn
drainage work of the state, tn
expense of which was to be pal
out of the s25. 900 appropriation
They did not know, that man
northern Iowa counties have ovt
hundred drainage districts al
there are counties to which IL
Il GHSIlIeeI lllouI uCSotC iiio oh1i'
time and attention.
III The bridge builders, cemel
makers, combines and all the I'll
terests'' are interested in the pa!
sage of the Pitt-Johnston bi
Why shouldn't they be? III
shift to ninety-nine boards and
political engineer makes the
task easier.
There is very little in the S
called Pitt-Johnston road bill
1 u ienlist the support of the unbias
lI[studenb OF the road proble1
There is little in it TO enlist t
support Of the man who believ
in protecting the interests OF t
iii taxpayers, who believes in Ell
cheney, and who believes in t
building of as good roads as
can with the funds at our col
mand.
The Johnston bill W
conceived in political quacke
framed by political expedien
and is foisted on the unsuspe
I'LL -,,,1,1,o n1,pnncn