Arizona republican., 1920-12-14
A Paying Investment

Primarily the beneficiary of good roads sys- tenn is the farmer. It brings him closer to the markets encourages production it lessens the cost of transportation It brings to the farmer the ad- vantages of urban life and popularizes the farm with his children who otherwise tempted to join the ctyward hegira which years began to depopu- late the eastern states.
 The completion of the county highway program for which an additional bond issue of $45Ooooo is proposed will make a different county Maricopa, not only so far concerns the farmer, but bene- ficial change in the farming community means 8 similar change in the condition of all of us.
 The program was not intended to enhance our nleasure or to make this county attractive to tour ists. We would hardly invest millions in such an enterprise as that. It proposed as an invest ment for the financial benefit of us al and from whatever angle we look at it. can foresee golden returns from it.
 An article in The Republican yesterday morning shows how in a single instance in the saving or automobile tires alone system of county good roads would be highly profitable to automobile owners It would pay much more than 100 per cent on any in vestment in he shape of additional taxation on ac- count of the proposed s45OooOo bond issue Tor the completion of the county highway program
 The increased tax we are told, would be in the neirbborhood of s2 on each S10O0 of valuaton that inc tax on an assessment of s10OOO would be little less than SEQ. A very large majority of those who can vote at the forthcoming election on December s1 we believe of automobiles; certainly of those whose assessments amount to $5,oO0 or more are car owners. Nearly every farmer is now the owner of a car or truck. We think there can be no doubt that the wearing out of tires is chargeabe, at least one -fourth-and We think that that is a very low estimate-to bad roads tire will last more than twice as long paved road.
 If o more for tires on of bad roads than he would pay in increased taxation on of the proposed bonds And what he pays for tires he pays in cash, immediately, regardless of hard times good times. Then, there is the damage to the car itself caused by the jarrng bad roads the loosening of the body the car the breaking of springs and the derange- ment of the motor. the housings, the differentslal these damages that in the aggregate though they are not always immediately detected, much greater than the damages to the tires.
 The advantage to automobile from a system of good roads is small in comparison with the ad- vantage which would the whole commun- ity, the farmer and the consumer, the latter of whom may not drive at all If the parts of the valley were brought closer together, the of intensive and highly remunerative farming would be extended over a much greater area. There would be much greater production of the food the consumer needs. It would be much greater that it would attract a market which for garden produce raised in this valley now there is reliable market, the trade relying chiefly upon California where good roads systems have converted the whole southern part ot that state into truck gardens. If our county road program of 2sS miles carried out, there would be a development of intensive farming which would make it unnecessary to import garden stuffs iron the coast.
 We have worked soil for all it was worth; we have never got the most out of it and WI have not because have such long stretches of bat roads between the outlying fields and reliable markets.