The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1923-11-02
WHY ALWAYS THE RANGES?

The next meeting of the County
Commissioners promises to be a well
attended one as the matter of cut
ting the levies for the coming year
will be taken up on the recon-
mendations of the Taxpayers
League of Duluth and the Duluth
Trades and Labor Assembly. A list
of alleged unnecessary expenditures
has been prepared by the League
cutting the levy in the sum OF
$747,720 and chopping off items
from the salary budget of the
county officials, the road and bridge
fund and otherwise pairing down the
levy according to the strictly
Duluth views of the members.
One of the items to be uncerimon-
iously slashed from the budget is the
special appropriation of 100000 for
the Ely-Finland road. The mere fact
of removing this item from the bud
get is not enough but in recommend
ing the same very unwholesome
smash is taken at the ex-county COM
missioner of this district and the state
officers who saw in the Ely-Finland
road an inestimable benefit to this
county and in consequence appropri-
ated the necessary funds to put this
popular highway in passable condi-
ton.
In the recommendations, the
League also lost sight of the fact
that this road is of more benefit to
the people of Duluth and st. Louis
county than any other highway lead
ing into or out of the Zenith City
1t begins and ends in Duluth and
this year was travelled over by
people from all parts of the world
including large number of the
people of Duluth. 1t is estimated
that during the tourist season this
year an average of $50 cars day
made the loop trip via. the Ely
Finland road and all were more than
satisfied with their investment and
expressed the opinion that the road
should be further improved and
maintained as one of the scenic
routes of America. Not content
with recommending the cut for the
road, the writer of the comments
on the proposed cuts prevaricates to
beat Aninias when he says:
"The former county commissioner
in the fourth commissioners district
spent large amount of money on
the Ely-Finland road, both in st.
Louis County and Lake County. By
the end of this year $4,000 will
have been spent on this road, only
two miles of which is in st. Louis
County. The road will then be i'm
proved sufficiently to meet present
needs. No further appropriations
should be made at this time"
In the first place there are about
eight miles of this road in this
county, the balance being in Lake
county.
In the second place $4,000 of
the $4,000 appropriated to this
road was donated by the state from
the Fire fund on the urgent request
of settlers at Isabella and Finland
who wanted way to get out in
case of fire.
In the third place the road will
not be improved sufficiently to meet
present needs.
In the fourth place Commissioner
McMahan saw in the road a real
benefit to the county he represented
and asked for the appropriations for
this reason.
In the fifth place why should the
range districts always give up every
thing they desire in favor of the
lower end?
A comparison of the valuations in
the Duluth end commissioner dis
tricts will show just where they are
doing business. to large extent on
the money which should be appropri-
ated to the range towns. The
ranges are new and need more in the
road line than does Duluth which
should have been building roads
long before the ranges were thought