The Caledonian-record. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1920-current, 1922-04-22

time. Both proved that roads,
bridges and culverts were too
weak and too narrow and that the
army could not be moved by
motor convoy over dirt roads af-
ter heavy rains. And the miles OF
roads better than dirt expressed in
the hundreds of thousands and the
miles of dirt roads are expressed
in millions. Is the United States
safe.
Can any other term than bad
be applied to the situation when
one reflects that it IS costing US
fully three times as much per mile
to move American goods over the
highway-end of the journey from
the farm to the markets of the
world as it costs our competitors
for those markets?
When we speak of the highway
situation in our country as bad,
we must qualify. Conditions are
much better north OF the PotO-
mac and the Ohio and east of the
Mississippi and in Florida and
west of the Rockies than else
where. However, even in the most
progressive sections the mileage
of improved roads is small when
compared with the mileage of
roads of type which belongs to
a day that IS dead.
Why do we insist that the stu
alton is bad? Principally, though
not altogether, because of the gas
engine and its utilization IS the
power unit of a vehicle. History
shows that when the Almighty
seeks to impart an impulse to hu-
man progress. He usually puts in
to some human brain d notion that
leads either to a discovery-Chris-
topher Columbus for eXample-Or
to an idea that blossoms as an
invention, like the reaping ma
chine, the application of steam to
transportation, and a dozen
others. Among them all there is
none that has imported, or is des-
tined to impart a nightier I'M
pulse to human progress than the
motor vehicle. However, the
motor vehicle requires for it SET
ficient and economic operation an
adapted track, as much so rs
does the railway locomotive, the
only difference being that an au-
tomobile can be operated on q
wagon road and the locomotive,
by reason of its weight, cannot.
When we built our railroads,
we first built the grade, laid The
ties and spiked down the rails;
and then and not until then did
we purchase the rolling stock and
put into commission.
In developing motor transporta-
ton however we have reversed
the order I'VE have purchased our
rolling stock, an intricately con-
structed and costly mechanism,
subject to serious injury with
rough usage, and We have put it
into commission before construct
ing a proper track for 1t to run
upon; we have put it into commits
sion on tracks built for much
lighter and totally different type
of vehicle, the buggy and the
NdSoH' nv lN1UiN - .'4"N
efficiency OF transportation 1acl-
hty almost 100 per cent efficient
in itself IS cut down by use OF
non adapted roads to less than
half lis value and there are
doubtless considerable areas IN the
United States where los, in ef-
hclency amounts to as much as 70
per cent.
On an improved ROAD one can
now travel by automobile IN com
fort and at moderate cost OF " 10
80 miles per hour instead OF lot
merry at 4 to miles an hour.
Goods can be moved at - 10 -
miles per hour instead OF by wa
gon at : TO > miles per hour.
Thus it follows that the way to
progress Is to build the motor
track and that until we do we are
losing more than half the Nalue
OF our most valuable instrument
of progress.
Since the buying pubic is Will
ing to pay so much more for a
superior transportation unit, the
buying public Is not gong to he~-
itate to 90 to the expense OF
paying the increased price OF the
superior road called for by the
superior vehicle, especially when
the cost Of the modern highway IS
a mere bagatclle compared with
the appalling loss and waste due
to the anachronism OF modem mo-
torized America trying to do bus
mess over primitive wagon trails
of type long ago discarded by
other civilized nations.
Deplorable a is the situation,
il is improving more rapidly than
either water or rail ttan-porta-
ton. Improvement would have
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