116 BuKEATJ OF FaRMEES' INSTITUTES. 



electricity was harnessed to the car that business facilities might 

 keep pace with the progress of time; and now New York city is 

 going to expend $35,000,000 in building an underground rapid 

 transit railroad, and, strange as it may seem, doing that without 

 calling upon the taxpayer for a single penny. The Canal Com- 

 mission appointed by the Governor of the State recently, recom- 

 mended the improvement of our canals, the cost of which is esti- 

 mated at f 60,000,000. 



TVTiere are our country roads during all this period of progress? 

 Just where our grandfathers left them and practically in the 

 same condition. 



The " Higby-Armstrong Law," provides for the construction of 

 permanent roads under State supervision, that is macadam roads 

 that will wear a long time with but little expense for repairs. 

 This law provides that the State shall pay 50 per cent, the county 

 35 per cent, and the town or the petitioners 15 per cent, of the cost 

 of construction. There is now a bill before the Legislature, if it 

 has not already passed, and if it has not, it, in all probability 

 will pass, appropriating $1,000,000 for road purposes under this 

 law; that means that there shall be a like amount raised by direct 

 tax in the localities where the roads are built, thus creating a 

 fund of $2,000,000 to be expended in road building.* There has 

 been built under this law twelve and one-fifth miles of road at 

 a cost of |6,717 per mile. Cortland county has in round numbers 

 1,000 miles of road, one-half of which are important roads. There- 

 fore, if it were possible for us to have the whole of the appro- 

 priation expended in this county, we would get about half our 

 important roads macadamized, or if continued, we could have 

 them completed in about two years, and we will have paid a tax 

 of about 15 per cent, of our assessed valuation. Then the ques- 

 tion at once presents itself. Will the value of our prosperity be 

 therebv advanced sufiBcientlv to warrant such taxation? That 

 may perhaps be a debatable question. I most earnestly urge each 

 taxpayer to examine carefully and critically the " Fuller Law," if 

 he has not already done so, and while some defects may be 

 found, it seems to me that it certainly has many advantages over 



* Only $150,000 was appropriated for this purpose last year (1900). 



