The Bismarck tribune., 1924-05-17
HIDE ANDSEEK
R0ADPR0GRAM
GETS SETBACK
I
Route Proposed For Enter
Mandan Back Door Plan''
Is Not Feasible
FT. YATES ARGUMENTS
Join With Bismarck in Oppos-
ing Proposed West of
River Road Policy

The "you must come in our
back door policy" which a few
Mandan citizens have pro.
posed be followed in creating
a highways system south of
Mandan with the federal gov
ernment paying a good share
OF the cost has suffered it's
first setback, it became evi-
dent today. Engineers who
surveyed the so-called Man
dan plan found out that the
extension of the highway
down through Sioux county
as proposed was virtually i'm
possible because of hills and
/ ravines.
But the policy hasn't been
altered materially, and the
fight is going on to the bitter
end. This also became evil
dent today. A new hide-and
seek method of road building
, was proposed, with laterals
galore, which won't solve the
problem after all, in the opin-
ION OF Sioux county men who
were here yesterday after
noon to talk the proposition
over.
A meeting was held after luncheon
by representatives of the Assocla-
ton of Commerce of Bismarck, Su-
perlntendent K. ID. Mossman of the
Standing Rock Indian Agency and
other Sioux county citizens, and E..
y. Hathaway, federal district en-
gineer and W. G. Black, secretary of
the state highway commission. DR..
N. y. Ramstad presented the atti-
tude of the Association of Commerce.
which proposes that Bismarck shall
have chance to entertain citizens
from the south country" and citiz-
ems of the "south country" shall
have chance to come to Bismarck
and use the new $1.5OO,OOO bridge
without taking circuitous route
into Mandan's back door.
Emphasize Cut.Off
The Bismarck men emphasized the
cutoff road across the river which
would intercept the st. Anthony road,
On which cutoff local citizens by
private subscription and in coopera-
tion with Morton county people have
already built bridge. Mr.. Black
told the meeting he was not opposed
to this 1.% miles cut off, which some
Mandan citizens have bitterly oppos-
ed, saying that bridge like the new
one over the Missouri should have
as many feeders as possible.
! But so much for the Bismarck
side. Sioux county has her argu-
ments. In addition to Mr.. Mossman
the Sioux county men here included
r. G. Bede. editor of the Ft. Yates
Pioneer, G. W. Gokanson, Gus Hokan-
son, Ray Shipman and c. G. Lew Hew.
This is their outline:
The bulk of the population Of
Sioux county is in the eastern part.
That's where the government has
huge investments. The territory
around Ft. Yates is about equl-dis-
tant from the Northern Pacific rail
road terminus at Cannonbal and the
Milwaukee railroad, which is a South
Dakota feeder.
If the few misguided Mandan citi-
zens, they say, succeeded in forcing
the people Of this section of Sioux
Countrywide live east of Bismarck
although west of the river-to take
circuitous route to Bismarck and
Mandan, they will naturally 60 to
the Milwaukee line to do business,
and Mandan and Bismarck both will
be the losers. That's one argument
for building up the river road now
Tsed as an outlet for this territory.
y Grade OF Road
Another reason is that the grads
on this road near the river is much
easier than farther west, because it
avoids the hills and ravines t. a
large extent. The government has
already spent many thousands Of dol.
lars of money on the road. This in
xestment would be wasted under the
new plan. That's argument number
two.
Then the present Bismarck Man
dan-Cannonball-Ft. Yates road is
part of the capital-to-capital-o
Bismarck to Pierre route-and North !
Dakota should improve her end to !
join with the South Dakota improve
ments. Also there is star mail |
route from Cannonball to Ft. Yates
and one from Ft. Yates to McLaugh.
lin, S. D.. This would have to be |
abandoned if the present road ex-
penditures were rendered usele SIS.
Still another argument. Freight
is hauled over the road from Can
nonball to Ft. Yates. An improved
highway might decrease the freight
charge. But if the road is abandon
ed the cost would be greater and
would force North Dakota business
tp rthe Milwaukee and South Dakota.
Still the Sioux county arguments
pile up. A halfway road or lateral,
with branches to Ft. Yates and Sell
Continued on page g. i