The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1924-03-23
ROGERS ATTACKS
AGE-HERALD
HIGHWAY STAND
Declares Attempt Being
Made To Wreck Bran
don Administration
OPEN STATEMENT
SECRETLY MAILED
Distributes Criticism Of
Age-Herald's Policy To
Certain Papers

Mr.. John A. Rogers, chairman of the
state highway commission, on Friday
refused the formal request Of the rep
resentative of The Age Herald, The Mo.
bile Register, the Montgomery Journal
and the Mobile News.Item for COPY Of
his attack upon The Age-Herald, which
had already been sent to other news
papers throughout Alabama for pub
location today. This attack, which is
signed by both Chairman Rogers and
Commissioner Suttle is In the form Of
an open statement and Is AZ follows:
The Brandon administration is now
and for a long time has been under
bombardment by The Age-Herald.
The luminosity Of The Ase-Herald is
evidently due to the failure of The Age
Herald to dictate the policies or the
appointments under this administra.
ton.
Hence nothing the administration
does is right. ,Fs.s
Nothing it can do, short OF abject sur
render to this arrogant sheet, viii ever
be right.
Because it, cannot rule Governor
Brandon, it would ruin Governor Bran
don.
It will not be allowed to rule.
1t has no power 10 ruin.
Recalls Shelby Road
, 1t disapproves of Rogers and Suttle,
of the highway commission !;
of Keller and McCalla, these two
being the state highway en-
gineer and his chief assistant. The
Age-Herald began its fight on Keller
and McCalla in connection with the
Shelby county road.
They are charged with approving
the construction Of a road that is
worthless.
By sly innuendo and by mean in
situations, The Age-Herald is trying
to make the public believe that McCalla
and Keller are either corrupt or incom-
petent or both.
On March the 7th. The Age-Herald
said editorially:
Who IL 1t then on whose engineering
Judgment Mr.. Rogers bases his approval
Of the costly detour? 1t IL on the
Highway Engineer McCalla, the en-
sineer said to be in some measure re.
sponsible for the added condition in
Shelby county, where the state is
spending enough money to construct a
class "a" concrete highway, and where
the state Is actually getting a high
way, improperly conceived, that will
begin to fall to pieces within the year.
Whenever the people of Alabama hear
Mr.. MeCalla quoted, let them think Of
the state commissions outstanding
highway failure, the Shelby county
highway, and let them remember that
Mr.. McCalla has been personally in
charge Of that construction. Let them
remember also that Chairman Rogers
Of the new commission Is also the Chair
man Rogers Of the old commission,
which had that Shelby county fiasco
put over on it."
The Age-Herald knows that
the highway commission Is guided
and of necessity must be guided
IN the awarding Of contracts for road
construction by the Recommendation of
the engineers. These engineers aroused
the animus of The Age-Herald because
they did not recommend concrete road
In Shelby county.
The Age-Herald wants to dictate the
location of every road in Alabama.
These roads, of course. must center at
Birmingham.
The Age-Herald demands that these
roads be built of concrete. The high
way commission has built few miles
of concrete roads at cost of thirty
seven thousand, two hundred and ninety
dollars and five cents per mile ($37,-
290.05).
Under the plan of road building as
outlined by The Age-Herald no new
road building can be begun. in 1924
except in the counties of ALftGuga, Chill
ton, Jefferson and Cullman. These are
some of the counties through which the
Birmingham-Montg Muscle Shoals
highway runs.
The roads in, these counties alone,
(coatlnotd en- Next Pass)