The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1921-05-18
MARSH TELLSOF
EFFECT OF BILL
Ii adopted Means Building of
Good Roads in County and
the Escambia Bridge.
ONLY WAY TO GET
SUFFICIENT FINDS
without Construction of Bridge
Escambia Not Likely to
Get Federal Aid.

AT the meeting of the board of 5irao
Tors OF the Chamber of Commerce held
yesterday afternoon, l.. d. Holsharr,.
chairman of the legislative committee
Drought up the question of apnroval o,.
uiSapproval us of the proposed legislative
pm oy the joint good roads commission
on road improvement.
Ihls measure has already received tba
unanimous endorsement of the Joint
IlsSloii, sta-a..it BOARD of county commits
sIonefs and the kiwanis club. but the
legislative committee seemed of the
opinion that the bill might autborizs tho
INVERSION of the bond money for roa.ls
INTO constructing the Escambia bridge
AFTER an exhaustive argument Lefore
.he Doara- they were of the op;Dion thar
lne OH dld not authorize such use of
the bond money, and that it wouId ma
teriaIy assist in procuring federal and
10 help build Escambia roads and at the
same time secure funds to buiId tt..
hridse' and unanimously voted TO en-
dorse the bill and they regret actvitias
IN opposition to it's passage
In ms argument, Mr.. Marsh, who ex
Piaiheu the measure, clearly showed
that the state road department was n6t
"llllns TO use any state or federal aid
whatsoever IN the construction of Lscan1-
pia county roads unless the Escambia
hFa
FEDERAL government had declined to mr.
tcipate in the building OF this bridge
unless 1t was of concrete which wonId
cost such vast sum as to be out ,f
the question VI
The state road department is willing
10 oulio creosoted wooden -structure
win asphaltic covered deckingce'l.ut the
ieuerai aid already appropriated, and
that to be allotted under pending legjs-
iation, amounts in the aggregate to e.
iVo,ooo, which must lie met by taxes
ieVied by the present legislature. and
II the bridge was built with state funds
alone it would result in withdray.inee
over 100000 of state revenue from the
fuhd TO match federal aid This woi,ld
inahe the prldge cost the state in actual
expenses and in forfeitures about p mil
non and a quarter dollars, as it is not
possible under pending revenue meas
ures to match federal aid by anroxi-
mately 81 200, 600
The plan authorized by this bill is
simply to permit the state road depart
nent TO make contract satisfactory IN
Inc county commissioners to construct
the 6S miles of state road No / and :
rom the proceeds of the million and a
nail dollars of bonds. the tyne of road
10 meet with the approval of the county
the state road depart ment
10 De under obligation to complete these
roads which ,necessitate the use Of some
FEDERAL aid in addition to the bonds. But
Is there is large excess of federal aid
Unmatched by state funds. the road de-
par 'hieht VIII De able to use this million
ana half credit to obtain between seven
lundred and eight hundred and fifty
-housand dollars of this unmatched fed
erai aid, and the bill provides that this
'haH constitute special fund in the
state road department for the comple-
-ion OF the roads and the building of the
bridge
MIR. Marsh assured the chanhar ~
commerce that without the construction
u the bridge Escambia would obtain
10 federal aid. and this was the only
possible plan for the construction of the
ridge; that not a dollar Of the bond
money could be diverted into theabuiId-
hg OF the bridge, and that the net re-
Continued orr Page Two)