Good Koads. 109 



Many jears ago I think the farmers used the roads fully as 

 much, in proportion to the population, as they do to-day; I refer 

 to the time when the farmers had to haul their farm products a 

 long way to market. I have frequently heard farmers relate 

 experiences in hauling loads of farm produce from Cortland 

 county to the city of Albany. In those days the roads were full 

 of teams at certain seasons of year, and the roadside inns were 

 taxed to their utmost to accommodate the traveling public. 

 But circumstances wrought a change. By the opening of the 

 canals the markets were brought nearer to the farms, and road 

 travel was much diminished, and circumstances etill continued 

 to work to lessen highway travel, and thereby diminish the im- 

 portance of good roads. Kailroads were built traversing the 

 country east and west, north and south, until a market place 

 was established in almost every town. Then at once this (Cort- 

 land county) became the great dairy section of the State, and 

 the average farmer could stay at home and work through the 

 entire season, and in the fall load his entire farm product on 

 his wagon and draw it to market at a single load. His neces- 

 sary use of the roads was very limited, and for a period they 

 were used by him more for pleasure than from necessity. Cir- 

 cumstances continued to exert their influence until to-day a very 

 large number of dairymen draw their products to market — not 

 in one day and at one load, but to the milk station 365 days in 

 a year, and most of the time twice a day. They are now using 

 the roads for something beside pleasure. The farmer of this 

 section has found that he can no longer afford to grow his own 

 grain feed. Cheap transportation that has come hand in hand 

 with the development of the great west has made it possible for 

 him to buy western grain feed cheaper than he can produce it 

 on his own farm, and he now draws many tons of feed from the 

 feed store to his farm. 



But a few years ago the markets were calling on the grain 

 producers of New York for a portion of their product, now those 

 markets are supplied by the great west. The western cream- 

 cries are now supplying the market that but a few years ago 



