The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1920-08-23
L0WNDESV|LLE MEN
TALK GOOD ROADS
GOOD ROADS FOR THE FARMER
AND LOTS OF THEM-MAKES
LEGISLATIVE CANDIDATES
TO TASK FOR NOT DISCUSS
ING THIS SUBJECT IN THEIR
SPEECHES
Editor Press and Banner

Editor Press and Banner
The meeting of the candidates at
Lowndesville, yesterday, has been a
pleasant one, so far as friendly in
tercourse is concerned. But the talk
on the good roads subject has been
wanting. This is due, no doubt, to
the lack of basis for discussion. 1
will try, through the columns of the
Press and Banner, to present to our
candidates for the legislature a
more definite ground for their talk.
The advent of the automobile and
of the motor truck has brought a
revolution in the mode of living of
the farmers. The wealthiest, as we'll
as the humblest Of us, need good
roads and this need is Immediate
Now what we farmers mean by
good roads is not expensive roads
built of concrete, asphalt or other
materials, we mean simply level and
well drained roads. We mean roads
that we can rely upon, roads that
we trust, upon which we can easily
travel in any direction all over the
county without fear of being ex-
posed to be stuck in mud holes or to
be stranded helplessly at the foot OF
our hills; this is what we mean by
good roads. Above all we need these
good roads for every body and not
only for few.
We are not able now to be mon
keying our neighboring counties by
spending fabulous sums of money
for a few miles of socalled i'm
proved roads for the benefit of only
a few, while the rest of us will have
to be contented to pay taxes, to con-
tinue to do the best we can with our
impassable roads, and to remain
shut from the rest of the world.
There is no exaggeration in what
T say. Only recently many of our
friends have come to see US but
have had to stop at the foot of the
Allen hill and 20 back home, not be-
ing able to go farther.
The scheme which has obtained
the vote of the 450,000 dollars bond
issue by describing the many roads
which were to be improved, was
perfectly engineered to catch votes,
but it has fundamental defect; its
execution is an impossibility as the
money voted is sufficient for the
construction and maintenance Of
only a few of the roads named.
But another point which seems
to US very important is this:
Is the vote of the bond issue
valid?
In our layman mind we think it is
not.
The vote has been carried by an
insignificant number of voters
(which number could have been still
smaller).
It is our humble opinion that if
the number of votes obtained an
swers the letter of the law it GER
tainly does not answer is spirit.
For the above reasons and speak
ing for many of us, l suggest that
the project of: the improvement of
good roads should be abandoned,
for the present, and that we use the
100000 dollars of the bond issue
for the building of the farmers
good roads" will have been COM
pleted, then we will take over the
construction of the improved roads.
We need the views of our candi-
dates for the legislature because we
must know if we can depend upon
them to help US to carry out our
plan, that is the immediate building
of the farmers good roads"
e. C. Meschine, Hermitage Farm
Lowndesville, S. c., August 20,
1920.
Rev. Clotfelter Says People Want