Arizona republican., 1919-05-01
snmsthina More Than Sentiment

Every man who has taken pains to make even d casual inquiry doubt that the county road pond issue will carry by overwhelming majority. At any rate the sentiment is overwhelming in every sec ton of the county. All that is needed is to give the sentiment expression The plan of highway improve ment which gives to every locality good surfaced road has avoided that sectional opposition which gen orally sets itself up to proposed road improvement The people realize that though unavoidably some communities by reason of greater density of popua- ton must be better served than others, every com nunty will be infinitely better served than it is now
 Every now and then though, a man is found who is against the bonds. He is either man who is chronicaIly against bond issues else he is man so narrow that he will reject benefit to himself because he believes some one else is going to be more greatly benefited.
 Too much reliance however, is not to be placed upon preponderance of sentiment in prediction campaign. The whole thing depends upon what hap pens on election day-on the votes which represent sentiment For sentiment unexpressed at the polls does not count.
 That was illustrated in Dallas county, Texas, the other dav large road bond issue had been proposed The city of Dallas was for the bonds. There was though great deal of rural opposition mainly for the reason that the proposed plan of improvement ignored certain sections of the county The farmers were not strong for bonds anyhow.
 But there was no doubt that the bonds would carry The vote of the city of Dallas sufficient to smother rural opposition The defeat of the bonds was not contemplated remote possibility. So sure was Dallas the bonds would be voted that comparatively few citizens went to the polls. Here was apathy born of confidence.
 But the next morning Dallas not apathetc. On the contrary it was very much interested and even concerned, but it was too late. The election was over and the bonds had been defeated by 300. The farmers in the dsaffected districts had gone to the polls not with the slightest hope of beating the bonds but to register protest against them. They were just mad and took what turned to be an effective way Of showing it.
 Such a thing could not happen in the crcum- stances surrounding our proposed bond issue; that s it could not happen precisely in that way. There is probably not enough opposition to the road bonds to offset any however light that might be cast in favor of the bonds But the might so light that it would not greatly outweigh the opposition, and then bond buyers might hesitate. They would not know how strong the sentiment for the bonds was They would know nothing about the latenf apathetic sentiment. They could see behind the returns. They might reasonably suspect that some time effort would be made evade payment
 We had bond election in Phoenix Tuesday in- volving the raising of s1ooOoO which is no nsgnifi- cant sum. Though the bonds carried by proportion of more than 10 l. less than two per cent of the qualified voters of the district went the polls
 The people who have an interest in building good roads in Maricopa county need not spend any time in creating sentiment in favor of the bonds It is already created But they should organize to that the sentiment is properly recorded election day