The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1922-01-23
Suggests Non-Political In
vestigation of State Road
Policy and Taxation

Policy and Taxation
The Reforlner prints a letter from
Fuller c. Smith of St Adams to
Max L. Powell of Burlington, the
subject of which is road building in
Vermont with comments ON the ar
ticle of Frank f. Howe, published a
few days ago. Mr.. Smith takes ex-
ception to statements made by Mr..
Howe, particularly the ''pay-as-you-
GO policy of highway construction.
Hon. Max L.. Powell. -.@s
burlington, Vermont.
Dear Max -
You doubtless noted the argument in
re good Tor bad) roads in Vermont by
Hon. Frank Il. Howe, published in
yesterdays Free Press. Pardon some
brief observations on his position which |
am writing to you as a progressive sup
porter of better days for Vermont. [
hesitate to discuss the subject in the press
because | commenced many years ago the
advocacy of a reorganization of our high
way system and continued it until readers
became more or less tired of my repeated
attacks upon the string bean policy OF
road building. 1t was against organized
road politics and therefore most unwel
come. If this letter encourages You to
strike further blows for the emancipation
of Vermont from the mud of both reads
and politics I shall be we'll repaid for the
few minutes | spend in making reply to
Mr.. Howe.
Summarizes HOwe's Argument.
Reduced to its lowest terms. Mr.. Howe's
argument is this:
]. Vermont can secure the very best
modern improved system of highways
more quickly and for half the money by
Paying as it proceeds rather than by
bonding the state"
, The irreducible minimum (of mile
age for cement rOadsl is 100 miles. This
will cost &20,000,000, which would hang
like a milestone about our neck for a gen
Grafton or two,
2. 1t would make no difference
whether the bonding was scattered along
for 20 years or was all in one lump. The
annual cost for interest and sinking fund
would be considerably more thar, to start
building the same 700 miles by direct tax
at n rate of 40 to 80 miles n year.
1. The proposal to bond the state to
build hard surface roads is an emphat-
cialy bad business policy.
>. IF the bonded debt were placed at
$15,0O00O0, the total payments of princi-
pal and interest would be S33. 900 900
&. Bonds at ; per cent on a 30-year
maturity means paying the principal and
approximately 100 per cent in interest
Z. The total cost of building 700 miles
Of cement roads, S1J.000000, or 500
100000. is too staggering. The only way
TO build roads is to go ahead and build
them and pay the BILL
Reputation of Howe.
Now that is all there is of Mr. Howe's
message to the voters of Vermont His
discussion of where the roads should be
built and the application of revenues II
be created from taxing gasoline. etc. are
entirely beside the main question of
whether or not we shall change the high
ways policy of the state. We must first
determine to build good roads and then
work out the ways and means to build
them.
l. To say that Vermont can secure
the very modern. improved system of
highways more quickly and for half the
money by paying as it proceeds rather
than by bonding the state" is a dectara-
tion of unbalanced logic. The very object
and purpose Of bonding is TO provide these
highways within the lifetime of the pres
cnt generation. To say that they cannot
be built as quickly or as well or as
chcaply by providing the means to build
them within a period of five years AZ
they can if 30 years time is consumed
Is contradiction of common sense and
requires no refutatiOn.
=. Twenty million dollars spent in
building 200 miles of trunk highways is
no milestone for Vermont, any more than
the million or two dollars spent i'm erect
ing the buildings of the University of Yer
mont is a milestone for Vermont because
it costs the state S6T 400 or more to aid
in its support. There is no direct return
in dollars and cents for what the state
spends in its maintenance; but there Is
tremendous dividend upon the money in
vested when we take account of the man
hood and womanhood which the university
pOurs into Vermont every year of its
life. So with the highways there is TO
direct return to the state treasury for
monies spent in their construction and the
interest on their cost aud the burden of
their maintenance, But there is a
princely dividend which they earn in the
savings effected to the users of such
highways, in the profits they bring from
increased tourist travel. in the increase
culture and cOntentedness of our people
aud in the enhanced values by which con-
tguous landed property is instantly BEN
ehtted. y message on good roads which
ignores these elements of advantage isl
an unsafe guide in negotiating any bust
ness proposition which involves the appli-
cation of business sense and capacity for
administration of public affairs.
Could Pay i'm % Years.
State Auditor Benjamin Gates. i'm the
best statement Of the finances of Vermont
which / ever saw and published in the
same issue of the Free Press with Mr.
IIowes message. shows that Vermont is
expanding this fiscal year S6,000000. I
am fully aware that this sum is an un-
juStifable burden upon the tax-paying
public: but | use the illustration to show
that $20,000,000 in bonds used to build
trunk line cement highways need not
throw anyone into fits. \ sinking fund of
100000 per year invested at 81 com
pound interest for % years will pay the
entire sum. Fundamentally there is only
one question about it: Win the roads be
worth the price to the people of Vermont?
Neither Mr. Howe nor myself, nor, in
my opinion, any other one man or news
paper is competent to answer this cues
tom And Vermont will never know and
never decide intelligcntly until the ques-
tiGn is attacked in a business and scien-