The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1921-08-11

and the kind of an individual that the
world can't get along without. Oul
most immediate need for a peptomist
however, is to solve our road prob
lem in Brookings county. If we hat
a good bunch OF peptomists We would
soon have a system of good roads In
this county.
To illustrate what we mean by
peptomist, we will repeat the story
that Is told of the motorist who got
stuck in a mud hole on one of oul
roads. The pessimist came along anc
advised the unfortunate motorist tc
leave his car there until fall when
the mud would be dried up and re
marked that there was no use what
ever in trying to get 1t out for he
| would only get stuck again. The op'
timist then came along and cheer
fully remarked that he wasn't in such
a bad fix, he could easily get out and
the sun would soon shine and every
thing would be lovely. He could~count
himself lucky that 1t wasn't worse
But then the peptomist came along
finding the motorist still stuck in the
mud. He looked the situation over
and smiling, he took off his coat.
unhappy motorist, Lets go to it and
get it out Of the mud" And they did.
There you have the characteristics of
the %peptomist in contradistinction to
the pessimist and the optimist.
Up in North Dakota they have an
organization of peptomists called the
North Dakota Good Roads association
OF which Will f. Holbein, a former
resident of Brookings, is the chief
peptomist and secretary. Their slo-
gan is this, Now we have all been
yipping about good roads. let's De
peptomists and build them" The as
ISOLATION Is working in a peptomistic
manner to get a system of honest-to-
goodness highways in North Dakota.
They have devised a program which
we believe is equally good in South
Dakota, and we offer 1t to our readers
who are interested in the development
Of highways which will bring the
farmer closer to his market, not tour.
list highways especially, but roads for
business use.
Their proposal is to cut or reduce
all Of the FIVE highway taxes that the
taxpayer Is now burdened with which
brings him little or no results. They
would eliminate the mud tax alto
gether and the special assessment to
meet federal aid. They would reduce
the township road tax, the county road
tax, and the county bridge tax. They
do not intend to issue bonds on the
credit of the state and they will posi-.
lively not levy any extra taxes against
real estate to build roads. Where is
the money coming from then? The
road building program is to be financed
through motor vehicle licenses and
taxes in a manner similar to Mime,
sofas plan of financing their 500, 900,
600 road building program. During
the past ten years the counties and
townships have spent S35, O0O, 900 on
roads without having any system to
work on. The same has been true in
South Dakota. The annual taxes at
present. for roads amount to about six
million. Property owners are paying
a share out Of proportion to the
amount paid by the people who use the
roads. At the next election the asso
citation will submit to the people of
North Dakota a constitutional amend
ment providing for a statewide sys.
tenn of highways to be financed through
automobile liceses and taxes.
--Gw c c H