The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1922-04-27
Project So Financed AS To Make Ger
tain The Joining of the West and
The East by Automobile

Arriving in Pensacola yesterday
from Mobile, Harral B. Ayers. manag-
ling director Of the Old Spanish Trail
Association, win today start out on q
trip across West Florida in the interest
of bridge and road work on the trail
Conferences to help along the work
in all phases will be held at all towns
as far east as Apalachicola bridge
Road improvement, route marking and
section map Data, will be studied III
the interest of accommodating traffic as
soon as west Florida bridge work let's
1t through.
The schedule called for: Milton
Thursday morning; Crestview Thurs
day afternoon: DeFuniak Springs, FIR
day morning; Bombay, Friday after
noon, Chipley Saturday morning; Mar
iannA, Saturday noon; Apalachiccia
bridge, Saturday afternoon, returning
to Mariana for the night. Pensacola
and Mobile should be reached again
next Monday night.
The party will cross Escarnbia bay,
where the 'S-mile bridge Is nearing
contracting stage; will cross the new
Blackwater bridge, and also the river
and approaches Of the S,000-foot Choc-
tawhatchee bridge now under contract.
Following this trip another will be
made westward across Mississippi and
on to New Orleans in the interest of
the various road and bridge works in
that direction.
In speaking Of what has already been
q n nj ar H,xy& ~ a.
Association, Mr.. Ayers when seen last
night at the San Carlos, called atten-
ton to the fact that already, with only
a few years of actual work as a back
ground, the trail Is an assured fact ana
IL already proving an asset and pro-
noting travel from the Pacific coast.
As an instance Of constructive work
which has been q real factor in de-
velopment, Mr.. Ayers pointed out that
a nine mile stretch Of marsh this side
of New Orleans. between the bayous,
Chey Menteur and the Rigolets, which
for many years have been practically
impossible.
Since the first white man set foot
on this continent, these marshes have
been an insurmountable barrier" said
Mr.. Ayers. From New Orleans it is
possible to get eastward only on the
railroad or by making detour of 200
miIes,-when If It were possible to
construct road over these marshes,
the same trip, which now takes practi-
cagy day, could be made ii an hour
as the distance would be only about
IS miles. against 200, If possible to
traverse these marshes, and get across
these bayous.
THAT this will be possible is evil
denced in recent work which has been
found practicable. Since 1917 the peo-
pie OF Louisiana, have been working to
get q road bed over these marshes.
last week lhe Louisiana State En-
ginasr and Highway Commissioners
drove over these marshes on a new
road bed. that is now solid and high
enough for the state Of Louisiana to
use in bridging the two bayous.
This means thar the Old Spanish
Trail connection. which viii bring to-
g@thes the people of the Atlantic and
I'aniftc. making 1t possible to cross
the continent by nutosnpI1ile In a few
days. IL really nearing q solution.
BY the time your Ferry Pass bridge
Is built over here that piece Of darkest
Africa, represented by those two,
Louisiana bayous, win also have come
out into the light Of day. and It will
be possible to drive direct from New
Orleans to Pensacola, even though 1T
may yet be some years before our
hoped for Cult Coast Boulevard is
completed.
Il wonder how many people real
ize that the Old Spanish Trail is al
ready financed In such a way as 60 In
sure that all bad stretches OF road will
be taken care OF In q short time? I
mean by that that while the entire
project IL not yet fully completed, that
the program has gone 30 far that every
bad stretch OF road between New Or
leans and the Pacific coast has been
looked after and planned for in such
4 way that already there are sufficient
funds at the command OF the o. q. r.,