Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1921-04-21
THURSDAY. APRIL 81. 1921.
Backward. Not Eorxnrd

T.
his slogan. Forward, not Backward"
but his campaign promises reverse the or
der. and should Virginia elect him Cover
nor and he cling TO his platform, ii may OK
pect TO emulate the lowly crawfsh and go
forward backward. No other conclusion
can be deduced from the Senator's re-
peated attacks upon the States carefully
erected good roads structural structure
in the building of which he as a Senator,
had a conspicuous part which he now would
tear down and the pieces of which he would
distribute
Senator Trinkle graphically describes vir-
einia rs great corporation" which de-
mands the services OF sound business man
rs Governor. He is right The building of
highways too, he characterizes as a vast
business upon which during the next four
years perhaps $4,000, 900 of the taxpayers'
money will be expended. Right again! But
there his parallel stops His conclusions.
derived from similar premises, are diamet-
ricaliy opposed to each other. For the State.
with an estimated expenditure of perhaps
sl15,o0o,0Oo, he stoutly advocates n strong
business administration, centralized in the
Governor which, of course he homes to be
but for the Highway Department. which nc
cording TO his own figures. will consume
approximately three-ffths of the total
amount he would have nothing of the sort.
The Highway Department. lie believes, is
too big for any one man So. turning his
back squarcly upon the busnesslike, cen
tralized system N'whichihe helped TO con-
struct, and casting to the discard the OK
ample of every big and successful business
enterprise, he would deccntralize tina, de-
partment and dissipatc authority and re-
spohs'Dil'y among various specialists
If. then, the decentralization and dissipa-
ton OF authority be a sound and progress
sivc business procedure in the affairs OF tho
Highway Department and no one man is
pig enough TO direct it, the Senator should
be losical enough TO admit that tho Cover
noiship with its vastly greater resnonsbili-
ties and It's far-rcaching business ramitlca
tions, is too big for any one man 10 attcmnt
~ ~ "Ho''il ''aatcH 10 DiedRc himself. If
elected Governor, 10 split up his resDousi
biiities with five or six other concurrent
tGoNerhors, in order that the States SIZE.
ooo,Qto business may be carried ont 70 The
best economic advantage IN other words II
Virginia needs six Colemans for Highway
Commissioner, then i; would need at least
half dozen Trinkles for Governor.
By the same token. If centralized au,bor-
ity In big business enterprises is an unsound
principle, our great corporations shoula
hcarken unto MIR Trinkie's advice and ro.
adjust their homogeneous. The Steel Cor
roration, for instance, should have al Ieas,
six Judge Garys at the head of it. and TO
direct TIE affairs OF the United States tho
Il yastest Of all our corporations. We shouId
hasten TO adopt hydra-hoaded presidency
The Trinkle business program docs NOT
appeal Neither does il convince ono that
lit is the product of practical business
mind. The Senator may be willing 10 NV
lin the face of all precedent established Inv
( big business organizations, and 10 eotrust
5Vfrginiaa road building program to an old
4 fashioned board q supervisors but the PEG.
gple Of Virginia are not. And IL is their
money that he proposes thus 10 entlanger.
They went good roads. They are willing
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