ROAD MADE IN AN HOUR.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXV, Issue LXV, 18 June 1913, Page 5

ROAD MADE IN AN HOUR.

A great piece of road building was completed an lowa (says, the Pittsburg newspaper) when, in. the short space of one single hour, a line of road 380 miles iii length, and stretching'entirely across the tetato of lowa, was put in the most' pe'pfect'condition of any road west of the Mississippi river. ]\ot the least interesting thing in connection with the tremendous piece of work is 3fee.fact thatt not a trran of the entire j(),<)(XJ engaged on the work received •one cent of wages. Goodwill and patriotism are responsible foif the splendid showing. Last winter.i±he.lowa, roads became so TearfiillyTjad that traffic jWas, practically killed, and farmers were • compelled simply^ to in their'homes. Finally, the became a political question-, aM^biith polk ticat parties took 'an ' iiiterest^in the movement. Governor Carroll called a good roads meeting 'at Dei Mioines, early in March, and out of this meeting: was evolved ,th© plan of a river ;'tb! river road,' stretching -from Goiincil Bluffs on the Missouri "riye'r .tp: Davenport on the Mi^issiprji,';a :distance of 380 miles straight "acrossI Me 'Slate from cast to west. Instead appointing new- committees "to ; Handle; the twork, the regular Republican :aii(fc^em4}£ratic committees in ea£h cbffirrty through .; which-: th»- road... *w#ul(l pass were appealed -to. The chairmen of the com-, mittees of each party were asked to get workers for the road. Everybody: agreed io do'so, and soon a rivalry was . created between Republicans and Demo;:crnts,;- eacft. to see which party would 'h^jp .the mo^t -workmen on- the job. A' Saturday was as, the' dayi ivnd-from nine o'clock to ten o'clock the hour *pf. wjork. •; Iri^the weeks .pretfeding i 'Mie jvorkt-'ailf Tjndg^ ancT^rilvert^'Slong' the i-6a'(|"were repaired ;airt[%(nt; ifrififst- - class oi43er,. that no' delay -niighi rcpme; to the road" builders: " The result of the organisation was eho\vn. Shortly before nine o'clock in the morning farmers began getting out in the"road. Hun-, tlreds and thousands of-ploughs^ picks,! sh®ve]s, scrapers, road drags, grading machines, and other implements were brought along. Every farmer brought his team,with him. Superintendents and ovei'seers. had .been, appointed in readiness. And 10,000 determined men fell to. For an hour "they continued working with might and main. At ten o'clock the job .was finished, and +\»' farmers went back to their fields, leaving lowa the possessor, of the finest pfe'ce of lorlg-distance roadway in the West,