62 BULLETIN 393, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGEICULTURE. 



Fort Covington line niakes two trips a day and charges $1 for the 

 round trip. They have a regular schedule as to time of arrival and 

 departure from terminals and intermediate points, and a schedule of 

 rates for intermediate points. 



DALLAS COUNTY, ALA. 



An object-lesson road constructed in 1909 under the direction of 

 the Office of Public Roads of the United States Department of 

 Agriculture started the movement for better roads in Dallas County, 

 and in May, 1910, an election was carried for the issuance of $250,000 

 in county bonds. This sum was supplemented by an additional bond 

 issue of S 100,000 in July, 1912. The economic studies were made 

 in March, 1911, April, 1912, April, 1913, April, 1914, and a short 

 study m October, 1915. 



The county is in the central part of the State and has an area of 

 940 square miles, or about 612,480 acres, of which about 256,000 

 acres constitute improved farm land. The principal product of the 

 county is cotton, but about 40,000 acres are in corn, hay, and forage. - 

 Most of the county is level or gently rolling, and a small portion is 

 hilly. The sod in the eastern part of the county is a sandy loam, 

 while the western part is m the prairie section or Black Belt, which 

 takes its name from the fact that the soil is very dark. The popula- 

 tion of the county in 1910 was 53,401, of which 13,649 were comprised 

 in. the population of Sehna, the county seat and principal city. 

 There are about 1,000 miles of public road in the county, of which 

 217.9 miles, or 21.7 per cent, have been improved up to the year 

 1915. (See PL XXVI.) 



HOW THE IMPROVEMENT WAS FINANCED. 



The first $250,000 of bonds voted were sold in two lots of $100,000 

 and $150,000, respectively, on November 9, 1910, and July 3, 1911. 

 The first issue brought a premium of $4,847.20 and the second issue 

 $7,875. The $100,000 of bonds voted m 1912 were sold July 8, 1912, 

 for a premimn of $4,255. Thus the county had a total to apply to 

 its road system of $366,977.20. The bonds all carry 5 per cent 

 interest and run for a term of 30 years under the sinking-fund method. 

 As no provision had been made to the close of 1915 for a sinking fund 

 it is difficult to forecast just what the tax burdens will be to meet 

 the indebtedness. It is understood that the county commissioners 

 plan to buy up the bonds as fast as a surplus accumulates in the 

 county treasury rather than maintain a sinking fund. This method 

 would be far preferable to the maintenance of a sinking fund, pro- 

 vided the holders of the bonds are wiQing to surrender them at the 

 amount of the original purchasmg price, but this is an uncertainty, 

 since it does not appear that the bonds have been issued subject to 



