The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1918-11-27
Good Road Boosters
Men Who Return From France
Will No Longer Be Content
With the Bad Roads of
America.

Washington, Nov. 25.-"There will
be couple of million real road
boosters back in the United states
of the men over here appreciate how
good roads can be made invaluable
In my mind there is no doubt but
that the good roads of France saved
her in two instances"
Col. Robert H. Tyndall of the 15Oth
Field Artillery thus writes from cove,
there" to a fellow Hoosier. Chairman
Carl G. Fisher of the A. A. \. Tour
ing Board. 1t will be remembered
that these two were closely associat-
ed several years ago in the Trans
Continental tour from Indianapolis to
San Francisco, at which time much
of the route of the Lincoln Highway
was decided upon. Col. TyndaI is an
inveterate road driver and has cover
ed thousands of miles of good, bad
and Indifferent American highways
In his letter home" he goes on 20
say:
81 have seen movements Of troops
made in the dark which would have
been impossible in any other country
than France. Here the roadmakers
have scientifically planted trees that
absorb drainage on the side and al
the same time shelter the highways
so as to keep them just moist enough
In some instances you will find a tall
poplar standing higher than the rest
! of the trees bordering the road, at ev-
cry kilonaeter, so that you can readily
measure distances with the eye.
One of the great things they ac
here is to repair a road and even
make an entirely new surface with
out interfering with the streams OF
traffic. In one campaign we were in
over a thousand trucks passed my
regiment, each carrying twenty-five
soldiers. This was for reinforce
ment on the flank and was done with
out the slightest confusion. One does
not find here the little holes that
cause so much trouble remaining in
road. The potted places are inn
mediately filed and drained, right ur
to the front line almost.
AS far as being able to orient ones
self, I think from now on can drive
blindfolded any place in the United
States, as most OF my driving on the
front has been at night, and the
reads wind around considerably over
here. I don't have lights and neith-
er do the trucks and other vehicles
coming in opposite directions. We are
not allowed to use the klaXon horn, as
this is the method employed for a gas
alarm. Sometimes, I really wonder
how we get through with it all, but
it shows how person can become ac-
customed to most anything, and we
train ourselves to see in the dark
That big road plan is near 1T
hand in this country is the opinion OF
many leading highway advocates
Chairman George c. Diehl Of the Il.
A. A Good Roads Board summaries
the idea in this manner.
.One hundred million dollars year
appropriated by the federal govern
nnent on a definite. tangible national
highway system will work wonders IN
the form of from five to ten thousand
miles of splendid highway, made up
partially of sections already sufficient
in quality, partly in sections to re-
pair, partly of sections rebuilt and
partly Of entirely new corstructIo"
State and local appropriations Will be
encouraged, and these subdivisions
largely because of federal roads, viii
enormously increase road evpendl-
tures.'