The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1923-02-20
FEELING IS DIVIDED AS
TO STATE ROAD BONDS
MEETING IN ATLANTA IN FA-
vOR OF $75,OOO,O0O WAS NOT
LARGELY ATTENDED.
LEGISLATORS SEEMED COLD.
Only Half Dozen Members of Next
House Were Present. Automobile
Clubs and Civic Organizations Were
Well Represented.

Well Represented.
ATLANTA, Ga.-There is as clear
a cleavage in the matter of sentiment
for and against a. state issue of $751;
100000 of bonds for road construction
purposes as there was last year or the
year before.
The prospect, on its face, if fairly
presented at the meeting held here on
last Monday for that purpose, is the
incoming general assembly is not 60
ing to vote a measure to submit
large road bond proposal to the peo-
pie. Those gentlemen who have been
so earnestly endeavoring nearly two
years to bring about a state fund suf-
hciently large to insure completion of
its road construction program are
quite as enthusiastic as ever, and earn
est in the effort to point of eager
ness.
The meeting, which originally was
called by Judge Gus H. Howard and
T. G.. Farmer, of Newman aided by
Secretary Frank T. Reynolds, of the
Georgia Automobile Association, was
an excellent gathering, but was scant-
lily attended by members of the next
house and senate. Indeed, there were
probably not more than half dozen
legislators-elect present at the meet
ing, the major portion of the less than
a hundred at the meeting being made
up of automobile club officials, repre-
sentatives of civic organizations, with
two officials Qadies) of the National
Good Roads Association present, and
a number of county commissioners.
Chatham and Muscogee countiesl
were we'll represented, and in the
meeting of automobile clubs prior toll
the general meeting the cities of Sa-
vannah, Augusta, Columbus and At
lanta were represented. The other au-
tomobile clubs in the state are in
Rome, Carrollton and Athens. The
sentiment favorable to a state bond
issue was expressed by the representa-
tives present from the larger counties
and, while not taking the attitude OF
favoring or disfavoring a bond issue,
but advocating some form of raising
a state fund with which to match and
properly apply the whole Engineer
w. r. Neel, of the state highway de-
partment, addressed the meeting.
Directly replying to much criticism
which he says has been offered to the
maintenance work by the department
during the last year Mr.. Neal very
frankly admitted there has been rea-
son for much of that criticism; but,
he says, the reasons for h a
criticism have been and are be-
ing corrected, and he does not believe
any organization covering the enor-
nous territory covered by the main
tenance division of the Georgia high
way department could have been
worked out any quicker or any better
than in this state, and Of this he made
explanation.
In point of furtherfng campaign
in the interest of a state bond issue
for road construction purpos S,
though, something of a damper was,
as a matter of fact, thrown about the
enthusiasm by two members OF the
next assembly, H. H. Elders, of TAFT
nall, and Herman Miner, of Dodge,
both experienced legislators and each
a man of some proven force in the
legislative halls.
Representative Elders put the gath
ering on notice that he is going into
the legislature with a determination
to fight for certain other issues which
he says are bigger than this or any
thing else" as first proposition, and
against everything else that means ex-
pense until they have been enacted.
He is very much in favor of free text
books for children of the state, and
that proposition comes first with him.
Mr.. Miner, who is a candidate for
speaker protein of the house, declared
himself mot only in the wrong pew,
but in the wrong church and real1yein
among the wrong denomination, be-
cause he is opposed to any other is
sue of bonds by the state for roads
or any other purposes; but he is for
the expenditure by the highway de-
partment "in any way it sees fit and
is proper" of such funds as the state
raises directly without payment of I'M
necessary interest.
Already, he declared, the people of
Georgia are paving tax burden on
So, 500,000,000 of bonds, including the
liberty bonds state bonds and county
road bonds which have been foated
in Georgia, and have seen their ex-
penses increase 200 or 500 per cent.
His plan, and the plan which he says
he expects to advocate, is that the
sum OF money raised by the incense
tag tax on automobiles be applied di-
rect1y to the roads, and he thinks the
gasoline tax should be added to that,
but he believes it entirely unnecessary
for the state to raise any more than
that amount OF money to meet and
match the federal aid road fund and
to support that theory he calculated
the amount of money the state viii
get this year, next year and in 1925
from the federal government, to show
that even a $40000,000 bond issue is
far in excess of what is needed to
match federal money.
At the same time he declared him
self entirely opposed to the centraliza-
ton of further authority in the led :
era1 government, which the present
road funds plans tend toward, when,
as a matter OF fact, he says, that mon
ey is not matching federal funds at
ALL" but is money gotten out OF the
pockets of the people of the state.
Talks in favor of $75,000,000 bond
issue were made by Mrs. A. E. Thorn
ton, prominent club woman OF Allan
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