The Newark journal., 1919-06-12


 ment of Agriculture3
 If all the automobiles in this coun- try stood evenly distributed over all the roads of this country there would be fiYe metorears to every two miles If road. And there are 2,547 ,334 miles of public road
 If every motorear in the United States were loaded to it's limit with people, half the population of the Uni Ted States could be hauled at one load. And there are about f10000.000 people in this country.
 Getting down to boot heels and bitu- lithic-iust to avoid the vulgar phrase of bedrock and brass tacks-about ST per cent of all the motor vehicles in the world are on the roads of the Uni led States. By estimate, there were 100000 automobiles in the world on January l. 1919. By actual count. 6, 146,617 Of these were in the United States. Those motor vehicles paid. in license and other fees, S51 ,177, ,416. And this is exclusive of the 107.000 motor vehicles manufactured for the government.
 Each one of those six million one hundred and odd thousand motorcars, when it runs on unimproved roads. pays about twice as much for tires and about twice as much for gasoline as when it runs on surfaced roads. And there are about eight times as many miles of unimproved as of improved ia l., fpff t'1, be specific. the public roads in the United States measure 2, 457 ,334 miles, If which only 29G 200 miles, or about 12 per cent, are surfaced. The rest are earth roads
 Half Billion for Roads.
 Are tine owners of those six million and odd automobiles interested in the federal aid road-building program for 1919? Ii is the most stupendous road building program in the history of the world
 Expenditures for road construction this year are likely te reach $500, ,000- 900, according to the estimates of the United States department of agricul- ture the government agency charged with the administration of the federal aid road act Practically all states are planning q continuous system of connecting highways throughout each state. and there is more general disposition than was ever manifested before toward cooperation among neighboring states so that improved roads will not terminate at state lines.
 Congress, shortly before adjourn ment. made an extra appropriation of $209 100000 in the post office appro- priatiOn bill to meet the federal part of the program. Officials of the bureau of public roads, United States depart ment of agriculture, point out that this Is the largest appropriation ever made by any government for a similar pur- pose and that 1t will enable the fed eral and state governments to carry on road-bulldlng program of q mag nitude never approached in the history of the world. This work, It is esti- mated, will employ more than 100000 men in active road work, in addition to the men engaged in the production and furnishing Of road-buildlng mate rials It affords one Of the large oppor- tunities for profitable employment for returned soldiers and sailors.
 Automobile Owners and Road Bonds.
 The program is q continuing one. The recent federal appropriation Is for three years State. county and local funds will come largely from bond issues. And there is where the 6,000- 900 automobile owners ought to shine with a tremendous radiance.
 Both sensible selfishness and plain duty call upon the automobile owner to vote for road bonds. His tire and fuel costs, as before mentioned, are cut in half by good roads, More im- portant still, if he be city man, as very large proportion of automobile owners are, it brings what he eats to | his door at less cost. Good roads have always meant something in the way ot 1 reducing living costs, but they mem
 more now that the motortruck has
 come to stay-and to expand. One 1 function of the motortruck is to re ieye congestion in the neighborhood