The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1921-09-21


mission when it designated the route
of road No. 2 and he said then that
he was decidedly opposed to the route
selected. Mr.. Hillman now says that
he is still opposed to road No. 2 and
that he will see to it that the road is
not built for four years. Mr.. Mccall
says the highway commission has
spent lot of money on road No. 2
and if it doesn't go on and finish the
work it will be money wasted. He
says the road is graded from Valdosta
to Lake City with the exception of IL
miles and that many expensive
bridges have been built along the
route. Mr.. Mccall says he is not
against the construction of road No.
l, but that he is of the opinion that
road No. 2 should have at least so
per cent of the attention, money and
men at the command, of the highway
commission, and that road No.
should not have it all as is now the
case. He stated further that the
highway commission was. all balled
up in politics and that the last legis-
lature got so interested IN pet
schemes that no bill was passed to
specify the roads to be constructed by
the highway commission. 1t is Mr..
McCall's opinion that the highway
commission was largely responsible
for this sidetracking of the legislature
so that it might have a free rein with
its state road building. Mr.. Mccall
further accused the chairman of the
state highway commission of calling a
meeting in Jacksonville to see wheth-
er the people of the state wanted
these through roads built or not.
There was large attendance at the
meeting and they were strongly in
favor of building road No. 2. He says
that the chairman of the commission
completely forgot this meeting and
wrote to Gainesville that he wanted
to know the sentiment of the people
of the state and whether they wanted
road No. 2 constructed or not.
Dr. Anderson, president of the
Lake City, Columbia county, chamber
cf commerce, made a short, snappy
talk. He said let's get together now
and work in the present, not to talk
of what has or has not been done but
to work for the construction of road
No. 2.
Mr.. w. w. Phillips, of Lake City,
made the longest and hottest speech
of the evening. Mr.. Phillips does not
take up his time in telling of what
has been done or has not been done,
but said he has come to a conclusion
about this road matter. He said he
did not intend to mince words in the
least but would call spade spade,
regardless of results. He said that
Hamilton and Columbia counties have
begged and pied with the state high
way commission for a road for the
last four years and now have worse
roads than they had when they start
ed begging The highway commission
has torn up the little clay road they
had and left nothing but a sandbed
in its place. Hamilton and Columbia
counties turned over all their road
money to the highway commission
years ago to have the road construct
ed according to the agreement made
with the commission and they are
paying five per cent on this money
and are getting nothing for it. Mr..
Phillips is bitter in his condemnation
OF the state highway commission. He
said the commission will pay abso-
lutely no attention to their appeals and
entreaties. He said that the people
wanting road No. have resolved and
resolved to no avail. He tried riding
| over roads paved with resolutions
| when he drove to Ocala yesterday and
he did not think resolutions very
good form of hard surface. Mr.. Phil
| lips asks the united work of the coun.
| ties along road No. from Hamilton
to Hillsborough and says that unless
we pull together and pull hard we vii
never get road No. 2. Mr.. Phillips
says it is mighty funny that the state
| highway commission has not heard
of road No. 2 when people from al
| over the limited States are cuSSing il
every day. He says it is the mos
talked about road IN this section ant
then the commission has the nerve t.
say it never heard of it. Mr.. Phillips
says that the highway commission i