MICHIGAN ROADS AND FORESTS. 



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and then with our larger ability go away ahead 

 and beyond it. 



In 1893 the county road system was pro- 

 vided fcr Michigan, and my county, Chippewa, 

 was one of the first to adopt it. We have 

 never regretted doing so for it opened up 

 new farming sections equal to any in the 

 state, and furnished means of transporting 

 the crops raised thereon to railroad stations 

 and to beat wharves, thus benefitting farm- 

 ers, dealers, shippers, laborers and taxpayers 

 generally. 



In 1901 the legislature of Michigan auth- 

 orized an investigation of the good roads 

 laws of other states and of materials and 

 conditions in Michigan fcr building such 

 roads. That committee in December, 1902, 

 met for the last time and made several rec- 

 cmmendaticns, as follows: 



1st. "A state highway department should 

 be created for the purpose of education in 

 the building and repairing of roads." The 

 legislature of 1903 created such a department, 

 but as that session failed to submit a consti- 

 tutional amendment to the people, providing 

 for an appropriation the department was de- 

 clared to be unconstitutional and the state 

 highway commissioner, Hon. Horatio S. 

 Earle, served out his term in that capacity 

 honorably, without salary, and paid his own 

 expenses. 



2nd. The committee recommended "the 

 establishing of county road institutes." These 

 have since been established and have been 

 of great worth to the whole state. 



3rd. "That townships should have the 

 right to build good roads and to raise the mo- 

 ney for building them without asking the 

 state legislature for the privilege." This has 

 been granted by the township bonding act. 



4th. "That the constitution should be 

 amended so as to permit the paying of state 

 reward to townships, districts and counties 

 which should build good roads up to a stand- 

 ard to be fixed by law." The legislature of 



1905 submitted such an amendment to the 

 voters of the state and it was adr.pted by a 

 majority vote of 14:.'. :M:.', <n;e of the greatest 



P. T. COLGROVE, 



President Michigan State Good Roads 

 Association. 



majorities ever recorded upon any proposition 

 in Michigan. 



After this vote the same session of the 

 legislature passed the state reward road law 



which originated in Michigan, and which I 

 believe to be the most equitable state aid road 

 law in existence .today. Since this law was 

 passed, Michigan has beaten every other state 

 and country on the amount of good road built 

 for the small amount of money expended. 

 How was this done? Because we have the 

 best law, the material and the human stamina 

 which made it possible. 



At least one thousand miles cf good road 

 have been built in the state within the last 

 live years, live hundred and twenty-two miles 

 of which has been constructed under the di- 

 rection of the state highway department, and 

 all oi this \vth parsimonious appropriations 

 such as other states would consider hardly 

 sulficicnt to run a state highway department 

 alone, without paying a dcllar for state aid. 



I believe Michgan should economize in de- 

 partments which have no other object in view 

 than to give political positions to the faithful, 

 but there should be no scrimping in the ap- 

 propriations for state rewards reads. 



.Another thought which comes to me very 

 forcibly is that we can pass every other state 

 in anything we attempt to do provided there 

 is a necessity ahead and a will behind it. Thus 

 if the states of Washington, Colorado, Vir- 

 ginia. Maryland, Florida and ethers, can make 

 a success in utilizing convict labor to improve 

 their reads. Michigan can do still better. It 

 is not for me to say just how this shall be 

 accomplished, but the next legislature should 

 make a thorough investigation into the matter, 

 ami if it be found that it has proven wise, ben- 

 eficial and profitable to prisoners and people 

 alike, then some active steps should be taken. 



I suggest that in order to ascertain whether 

 or not the people of the state are in favor of 

 wr.rking convicts on the roads, the next legis- 

 lature give the voters of the state an oppor- 

 tunity of registering their opinion at the April 

 election in 1911, and if a goodly majority of 

 them vote "Yes," then that same legislature 



