White Pine news. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1920-1923, 1922-03-26
UTAH'S CONTENTION ANSWERED
BY LINCOLN HIGHWAY OFFICIAL

once In the desert the other side ol
Yuma, right close to the railroad. The
trains went by and there | was stuck
in the sand and they never helped ma
at all. The engineers and firemen
laughed uproariously at my predica-
ment, and the mean dining-car con-
ductor would not even chuck me a
sandwich. 1t is nice to see the trains
but sometimes II is agravatng. The
next fellow that comes along In d
motor car gives much more substan-
tial solace.
Yes, the county we'll is landmark
now, but IL only needs cleaning and
repair and the attention 1t should re-
ceiye to provide good drinking water.
You probably know alsd that the
state spent considerable of our funds
and some of its own in developing
piping down water ut the north point
of Granite Mountain. That work was
carried on just as though there was
no intention of abandoning this spring
and 5000 feet of underground piping
Did you ever drive the Arrowhead
trail on the Fourth of Julyl9 Take
chance and enjoy yourself. I have
done 1t and I'd rathed go by Tono-
pah. AS to snow, why kid yourself
about the snowy Sierras? I have left
here on the 25th of May and waited
in June for them to get the snow
off the road beyond Truckee before
could cross. Now you must have
heard that there is quite bit OF
travel goes through via the Lincoln
highway to Ely and south through
Tonopah much earlier than that.
Sure, the Lincoln highway leads tc
Reno and also leads TO the Midland
trail at Ely. which In turn, enters
California via Westguard pass, which
you probably will admit is open earl
Ter and later than Kings canyon or
the Truckee road.
That you cannot have the building
of your roads dictated by people of
the cast who are not familiar with all
your problems" is quite right, al
though in passing IL might be re-
marked that Utah has been quite will
ing to ACCEPT the money from these
same people of the east. under well
understood agreements, and allow II
to be wasted through a yacillation of
road building policy which would lead
a disinterested observer to believe
that even in Utah there are those un-
familiar with her road problems. Suf-
minds every year as to what should
be done.
II is also quite right for the peo-
pie of Tooele county and the people
of Nevada to object 10 having their
bodybuilding policies dictated by peo-
pie i'm Salt Lake City, particularly
when 1t Is Tooele county money and
Nevada money which will have to
Iuild the road an dictated
II is indeed exactly right that the
nation should pay IS per cent of the
cost of highway improvements in
Utah. Our association has advocated
and fought for this policy for nine
years A road across Utah Is to the
benefit of all the people of the United
States and ii is in behalf of the peo-
pie of the United States that this as
sociation feels that ii is particularly
fortunate that the decision as to
which route will be built and how
the money shall be spent Is vested
in the nation through the federal
government rather than in the pow
ers that be in Utah, which can neither
be depended upon to carry out their
written and signed agreements. stand
by their spoken word to administer
outside funds made available for
highway construction from sources
which have not the power to en-
force its proper and efficient expendi-
lures
When every other state between
the two coasts is shortening the route
of the Lincoln way at great expense.
do you think IT Is fair to ask people
forever TO drive extra miles TO suit
the wishes of Salt Lake City people" 7"
How much longer is the road from
Ely up to Wendoyer. which you would
like TO have Nevada build, than the
direct Lincoln way route9 Suppose
il is twenty or thirty miles longer
and each thousand cars that cross the
continent must drive 10000 to 10000
useless miles. Suppose every state
between the Atlantic and the Pa
cific. for local reasons hard to under
stand. advocated the same policy Salt
Lake now demands. The result
would be that the Lincoln way would
now be 1000 or 5000 miles long,
winding through every town and
every place OF interest and totally
useless as the backbone of an Ameri-
can highway transportation system
in the making. Actually the Lincoln
highway has heen shortened nearly a
hundred miles at great expense since
1918. IL looks as though Utah wants
to lengthen 1t again.