8
EVENING- LEP&ERPHILADELFHIA, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 1918;
1&til$tt
ttctt(ttg
PUBLIC LEDGER COMPANY
u ctnws ir. it conns, viunttit. ,
fchatlea It. t.udlntton, VlcePrt-ldnt: J6hn 0. Martin,
tfl-ereury and Treaaureri Philip S. Colllne, John B.
Wllllamn, Director
EDITORIAL nOAHD I
Cic 21, K. Ccans, Chairman.
' IT. tt. WIiALEY Executive Editor
VI i i t i i i i l i , ", i .1, i ...
JOHN 0. JtAnilN .Qeneial Buatneia Manager
- -
Published dally at rcitlo ttDotn nutldlnr,
Independence Square, Philadelphia,
Ltooro CiNTsit,, ., . ,,,.,, .Dread and Chettnut Streets
AttAimc Cur. ,..,,.,! t.rrtis-Vnlon Building
Naw Tonic. . . . . i 1T0-A, Metropolitan Toner
Cinotno 81T Home Inaurance Building
London. ,...8 Waterloo Dace, Tall Mall, 8. W.
NEWSBUnEAWBt
ITiaauauaa Bcnun... ......The ratHot Tlulldlnr
Washiioto Hoiiao...... . ..... .The Pont Building
Niw ITodk Iltltnt)., .,....., The Time llulldlnt
Him IN nnuD i ,.00 PrledrlchitraMa
Lonmn BciciVi 2 Pall Mall East, 8. W.
Plan Bonrju.. ...... ........32 Hue Loula 1 Qrand
, ' StlDSCniPTION TERMS
. ,i Br (carrier, Daily Onli, six centa. By mall, poatpald
outside ot Philadelphia, except where forelrn postage
required, Diitr Ott.i, one month, twenly-flva centa:
DULY ONLT, one rear, three dollara. All mall aub-
crlptlone payable In advance
rlX,3000 WALNUT
KEYSTONE, MAIN S000
BV JLiidrttt all communications to Evnlnp
Lfdgtr, Initftndtnet Bqttart, Philadelphia.
airexsn at n rniLiDtu-niA roiTorncs ai kon-
CLiSS ilAIt, UATTOI.
Hi' ' ' ' . '
rnlLADELPIHA. MONDAY, FEOnUAAY IS, 1915.
lr 1 '
HVy to tell the truth now and then. You may
act uted to it.
KoraoYo West Philadelphia's Chinosc Wall
KIRKBRIDB HOSPITAL, stands llko a
Gibraltar in tho way ot tho progress ot
West Philadelphia. It was built to tako ad
vantage of country air and conditions. A
city has grown up about It. It Is a had
situation for the hospital and the hospital an
Intolerable handicap to the proper develop
ment of a great municipal section. It closes
atreots, it lengthens distances, It is entirely
ut of place.
With this conclusion, It seems, tho man
gement of the hospital Is In agreement. An
appraisal Indicates that the whole, property
can be acquired for Jl, 350,000. It might bo
on attractive investment for private capital
'at the price. It ought, however, to bo ac
quired quickly by the city, a part of it be
et oft for a park or stadium and tho re
mainder sold, under definite restrictions, for
building purposes. Opportunity and neces
sity walk hand in hand on this proposition.
Tho Kirkbrlde Hospital Is In the way; It
must bo got out of tho way.
As Spineless as a Shoestring
WHETHER "Billy" Sunday could bring
about the reform or not Is an open
question, but thero Is no doubt that Repre
sentative Dies was speaking words of sober
ness and truth when ho attacked his col
leagues In Congress for their lack of nerve
to oppose measures In which they did not be
lieve. Ho was speaking particularly of a
proposition to increase the pay of rural mall
carriers.
" The ref usal of Congressmen to vote against
measures which a largo body of their con
stituents approve Is a trivial offense In com
parison with tho surrender of the legislative
functions of Congress to the President, It is
notorious that the ship-purchase bill is not
favored by more than a dozen Senators; but
the Democratic majority has surrendered Its
Judgment and la merely obeying orders. If a
majority of tho Senate really favored the bill
it could be passed in spite of the filibuster of
the opposition, as Senator Lodge remarked
the other day. But the majority, without the
nerve to say what It thinks of an indefen
sible proposition, is forcing an extra session
of Congress upon tho country with its po
tentialities of continued unsettlement of
business. McKInley, according to Colonel
Rposevelt, had the backbone of a chocolate
eclair, but thfs Congress is as spineless as
the President's shoestring.
Dr. Brumbaugh Agrees With Stevenson
There is an idea abroad among moral
people that they should make their neigh
bors good. One person I have to make
good; myself. But my duty to my neigh
bor Is much more nearly expressed by say-
lng that I have to make him happy If I
may. Robert Louis Stevenson.
DOCTOR BRUMBAUGH, In his address
commemorating 100 years of Anglo
American peace, Sunday afternoon, put this
truth in another way when he said that
"Every man who desires to make this coun
try strong and good must begin by behaving
himself"
There Is no sounder gospel preached any
where under the sun. If you want to make
Philadelphia prosperous, begin by hustling In
your own business. If you want to make the
Government of the city decent In nil Its
branches, begin by voting for decent m,en.
If you want to drive the gangsters from
power cast your ballot against every gang
candidate. If you want your church to be
a centre of sweetness and light, a beacon in
the -wilderness, begin by making yourself that
kind of a man or woman.
This is the sort of Individualism which
raises the mass, and the mass can be raised
In no other way.
The New Woman In St. Louis
THE St. Louis women do not want to be
shown. They propose to do the showing
themselves. There is no uther explanation
for the determination of the Women's Coun
cil, composed of 64 organizations, to finance
and build an office building for the use of
women. They evidently intend to demon
strate that women can plan an office build,
ing that is so far superior to anything yet
arranged by a man that no woman will be
willing to occupy an office in qny other build
ing Jf she can find quarters In the new one.
And when it cornea to management of the
completed structure, they will do some stunts
In housekeeping that will make the occupants
of the otrycture the envy not only of all the
rest of St. Louis, but of all other office ten
ants from Eastport to Brownsville, If nol
to Petrograd and Pekin. And they can do
tt, Jf they seriously set about It.
Here's to Camden Town Today!
NO QNB ever thought of Camden as a
"boom town." Yet its growth In the last
M years has been almost as rapid and much
more wholesome than the growth ot many
Western towns which have filled much space
In tho newspapers. It was chartered as a
Hy on February ?, 1828, and is 8T years old
today. Its population had Increased to only
li,m In W. It grew to M.000 In 18T0, and
iluuled within the next 10 years, and Jn 1890
It bad risaa to 68,080. The census of 1800
rtowa a xifWUttlon of 78,000, and, according
t tint lMt MHW, StOOO porWea lived within?
ttt IfcMjMteri-. An uaoftltHaj estimate, mad;
tftut (Uinur, jhUs the population at 1,G
T tnariHi hs to 49 ir ont lot 14
M WMMa tft mme ported th value? g i
tft jwsMfw tt it ft4rle has tnmtof I
ttom $li i0,e is rutty Um,W. m aw.r'
xut omi rscord, vfc export oi- the prt-
vato Industrial statisticians and the worldwide-
spread of Its famo In the advertise
ments ot tho men doing business there, alt In
dicate that it Is ono of tho most enterprising
communities In tho United States. Its elder
Bister on this side of tho Delaware extends
to It today tho assurance of Its' most distin
guished consideration, and the Evenino
Ledoer proposes tho famous toast of nip
Van Wlnklol "Hero's your good health, and
all your family's, and may you live long and
prospcrl"
The Battle for Food
THE avowed navnl program of Germany Is
largely a battle for food. That Is revealed
In tho latest presentations made to tho Amer
ican Government by tho German Ambassa
dor, In which ho frankly states that the dis
position of tho Wllhelmlna'fl cargo will havo
a vital bearing on tho enforcement of tho
German war zono order.
Tho German position Indicates plainly that
tho food situation Is becoming critical In tho
Fatherland. So, too, In Franco and England
It Is a matter of prime consideration. Most
of tho Governments nro decreeing tho prices
at which foodstuffs must be sold. In Ger
many bread Is obtainable only by ticket. It
Is In tho United States that there Is no of
ficial prote-tlon of the supply,
Tho President should bo authorized to de
clare an embargo on wheat and other food
stuffs whenever, during tho progress of tho
war, It appears thut tho United States Is
being dcplotcd of Its supply and actual scar
city threatens. Ho would nover havo to put
tho order Into effect. His mere authority to
act would automatically keep prices within
reasonable bounds, dampen tho enthusiasm
of speculators, preserve a proper proportion
between exports and tho domestic supply
nnd prevent absolutely six-cent bread In a
year of bumper wheat crops. Thero Is noth
ing radical In precaution and providence. Our
own poor must bo assured of supplies at fair
prices beforo wo can permit endless cxpor
tatlons for tho relief of whole nations abroad.
Endless Sorics of Investigations
A MAJORITY report at tho Gridiron Club
dinner In Washington declared that "It
Is unfair to put a rich man In Jail. Ho
should suport himself." That is what a
famous correspondent used to call "Grld
lrony," but It Is a good approach to a fact
of some Importance. Tho public would bo
willing to stand tho cost of keep If a few
rich fellows were put Into cells, but what tho
public Is getting everlastingly tired of Is tho
endless series of Investigations of rich men,
each ono costing a little more than tho ono
before It, and all ending In nothing but fat
tened bank accounts for tho Investigators.
A man Is Investigated If ho Is charltablo
and ho Is investigated if ho is not. His only
escape from cross-examination Is falluro and
poverty. But tho Investigations go merrily
on, tho most useless and disturbing things In
our whole system of government. We might
oven get rid of somo of tho "war" taxes by
first getting rid of the army of tax-eaters
who thrive on Investigations.
McAdoo's Blow at the Merchant Marine
WHEN Alexander R. Smith told the City
Club that tho law providing for discrim
inating duties In favor of goods brought to
this country In American ships should be
enforced he failed to reckon with tho power
of William R. McAdoo. Tho present Con
gress passed the law and made tho discrim
ination with tho deliberate Intent of en
couraging American shipping. Discriminat
ing duties have tho support of Democratic
theory and practice. But when Congress,
after debating tho provision with tho full
knowledge of the Treasury Department, put
the discriminating duties In the bill and
passed it, and after the President had signed
the bill, some one discovered that the Presi
dent and the Senate, acting Jointly as tho
treaty-making power, had signed away tho
right of Congress to pass revenue laws to
suit Itself. And Mr. McAdoo, thereupon,
Issued an order to all Collectors of Customs
to disregard the law! He constituted him
self the Supremo Court nnd exercised its
power to Invalidate an act of Congress.
Tho Board of General Appraisers, however,
has not recognized tho binding force of the
Judicial decisions of the Secretory of tho
Treasury and has decided In favor of tho
claim of an Importer who demanded that his
goods brought hero In American bottoms be
entered at the lower rate of duty. And tho
Treasury Department has appealed. The
case Is now awaiting the pleasure of the
courts.
It Is of much greater Importance that the
Administration rush this case to a final deci
sion than that It use its Influence with Con
gress to force tho passage of tho ship-purchase
bill. If Congress has tho power over
the revenue laws, to the extent of favoring
American shipping by discriminating duties,
it can do much to counteract the effect of
lower wages and cheaper ships enjoyed by
foreigners, and thus encourage the expan
sion of the merchant marine by making it
profitable to American capital. This is bet
ter than spending Government money for old
ships to sail on unprofitable routes.
This Is only a false alarm. Spring Is not
here yet.
One thing Is certain either there will be
more Belgium after the war Is over, or no
Belgium at all.
Director Taylor apparently Is a man who
Is determined to "fight it out on this line If
It takes all summer."
- 1 1 1 i.
The young girl who found It "so easy to
steal" has dlscoyered also that the easy way
leads to hard places.
No one will object to the enlargement of
tho Harrlsburg Capitol If it does npt mean
enlargement of the opportunity for selling
furniture by the lineal foot.
Spain thinks that it is about time the
Mexican turmoil ended; but Mr. Wllspn has
sent another personal representative down
there to find out whether there is anything
wrong. p
The exhibition of tha.t interesting pam
pnlat entitled, "History of William Penn's
Conversion From a Gentleman to a Quaker,"
repalls the old aphorism, "A Quaker id
ajwaya a gentleman, although a gentleman
a not always a Quaker."
Hpnry van Dyke la formally a$erdHd an
Utuisttr to Lwxewburg, as wrJas to the
JfWhurlawls. Interference with him in the
MHdtto mT tab offieo wt do the German ibIM
tr MtehtfebtiMftt n gmA. and it may do
Um many a lot of barm.
IN THE HURRICANE
OF BLOODY BATTLE
1
Thrilling Description of a Charge of
the French Soldiers The Fury 'of
Carnage, the Sights ancf Sounds in
the Thick of the Fight, the Capturo
of the Guns.
From the French of Charlea Tnrdleu, In the Tarla
Figaro.
HOW CAN I make you see, with' the aid of
mero words nnd a few poor literary arti
fices, a thing which Is alt movement, all
transport ot tho soul, all fierceness and nil
clnmorl Music alone could glvo an approxl
mato Idea of battle and Its tumult, but oven
music could not represent Its Intoxicating
realities. I do not hopo to make you smell
the powder or tho heavy odor of blood, nor
to enable you to perceive the rumblings, tho
splendors, tho hcrtvlngs of this dull and cruel
strife. I would only bring beforo your eyes n
corner of France, and a soldier In tho midst
of tho hurrlcano of bullets, of shells, of bay
onets, of scrcamtngs, of groanlngs and of tho
thud of marching foot.
It Is necessary, as tho commander says, to
take the trench.
Ho docs not put It In words, but wo dlvlno
In his accent, In his gesture and In his glance,
that, cost what It mdy, tho order mtlst bo
executed: "Conquor or die." Thcso words,
which formerly had for us only a certain
vague, Ideal and heroic meaning, take upon
themselves n sudden weight of significance
now that we aro really faco to faco with tho
Comrade.
Tho Ico Is Broken
An artilleryman running up hnnds a fold
ed paper to tho commander. He rends It, his
brows knit, ho scribbles a word with a pencil
nnd gives tho noto back to the man, who dis
appears toward tho rear. Somo minutes slip
by broken by Intermittent volloys.
"They" evidently were on tho watch. Wo
cannot hope to surprlso them and wo nro
scooped, that Is certain. Bah! Our parts aro
cast; tho first skirmish has prepared us. As
a timid bather tries tho water with his feot
wo havo taken tho temperature of combat;
the lco Is broken between danger and our
nerves. Every ono smiles and Is rendy.
Tho stretcher bearers como up after carry
ing away tho last wounded. Tho commander
goes up and down the lines hurling advice at
us In crisp words:
"Don't flro; throw yourselves down at each
halt; run toward tho mitrailleuses after each
blast! Courago, my children, and silence till
you got to the lines of wires."
Beforo ho stops 75 men havo consented to
bo hurled to death. Tho moment has come!
The eyes of tho chief flash. With a quick
gesturo ho pulls his rovolver from his
sheath.
For France, Forward!
"My children, bayonet or cannon! For
France, forward!" and ho leaps out of tho
trench, followed by us nil.
Thirty metres nro cleared In as many sec
onds; but our movement has been seen, for a
terrlblo fusillade throws us upon our
stomachs.
Our hearts beat and strain within our
breasts and our breath comes short. Tho
knapsack Is troublesome; some have already
thrown It away.
My Algerian has not quitted me. He holds
In one hand his rifle nnd In tho other his
Bhears, and Is prepared to follow mo.
Tho laying waste has not yet begun. They
fire high and tho hullets mako their familiar
music above our hends. Some Marmlto shells
flash out hero and there without doing any
damage. Wo await orders and gain a llttlo
ground on our hands and knees. Tho fusil
lade stops I look at those about mo. They
have become men of deeds and havo passed
tho ago of rash temerity and thoughtless
nudaclty. Tho heat and noise of combat
have flred their brain. Yot nn unshaken
resolution makes tho muscles of their hands
stand out and hardens their faces.
"Do not fire! Forward!" cries a volco.
We run llko mad for the woods, and'among
tho branches which lnsh our faces. Wo take
off our kepis and hnng them on the skirts
of our coats.
Ta, ca, ta, ca, tn, cata, ca ta! From right
and left tho mitrailleuses patter upon the
underbrush. It Bounds llko a hailstorm on
tho leaves. Wo throw ourselves to the
ground, panting for breath.
Vacant places havo already appeared In
our line, but they havo been filled at once
by new faces. Wo aro anxiously waiting
whllo our temples throb beneath the storm
of grape. Our elbows touch In tho narrow
aisles and the human smell Is strong.
Going to the "Fete"
I know not what my neighbors are think
ing; but an obstinate question Is In my mind:
Dare I plunge my bayonet into tho body of
a man, even up to the hilt? That square
blade which pierces the flesh, a Bpurt of red.
tho frightful grimace of a man transpierced!
I have seen heads fall. Without any emo
tion I have seen Llabeuf, Callemln, and their
like of sinister memories, die. But not like
that!
Tacataca, ta, ca, ta! Pluh, Pluhl Xzz, vzz,
vzz, yzz! Boom! Boom! What a hubbub!
But 76 of our men are slain. It Is our turn
to go to the fete now!
"Forward! The wretches!" shouts the
commander, ten metres In- advance, bare
header, superb, with dlBheveled hair,
Beneath the tempest' of Iron, with teeth
clenche'd, and breast throbbing, we hurl our
selves forward. The ranks thin put, The
men. slip down as It they stumbled over a
tree root, "bnt none utters ia cry or raises
himself. The wounded! fall to the earth
without moving. I recognize only two or
threa' faces about me; but my sharpshooter
Is always there. He has pjit his rlfja' In his
bandoleer and his right hand grips his shears
firmly. The-last rush has carried us. nearly
to the clearing. Scarcely 60 metres separate
us from tho enemy's trenches from which the
storm of lron-ip pouring.
How can we contain ourselves? The sec
onds seem like hours; we are exasp'erated,
maddened with the desire to Are, to strike, to
finish it. Without thlnklnW we fire furiously.
Capturing the Guns,'-'
Suddenly wo tremble from'heajd to foot
With a magnificent dlscorl which even
brings a smile even to our lips, 'a-trumpet
squnds the charge. Then 'a formidable cry:
"Forward! With the bayonets!" repeated
from a thousand throats as If mad, while the
metallic notes pierce the heart and rush us
on irresistibly.
There is a drop to drink above!
Tbr 1 a drop to drink 1
Howling like demons, no obstacle can
cfemk u- Who falls? No one knows!
Tfcr to m 4ro to drink bwej
FaJtftR Hue, woven mwUiW. mvblW)
bote Uuit uik us atuaW, wirt wblt
, " ' ' "tviriOiiw SyrftwMavVwA iNlliTKk iMJitiowfipiWwra , ,'.. ,'...'.' '" "' " J-i'Jazzi li
cntnnglo us, these aro not enough to chock
our onward rush.
There la a drop to drink
With a glanco of tho eye, which only 15
years on tho football field can glvo to a man.
I tako In tho battlefield: There aro somo
trenches about 100 metres long, with two
mitrailleuses at each end which sweep the
earth with tticlr last gusts, and scarcoly 30
Wcstpliallans all that two officers could
hold at tho point of tho rovolver rush out
of the trenches, firing as they run. The rest
havo lied beforo our bayonets, stampeding
the reserves In their panic.
"To tho mitrailleuses! To the mitrail
leuses!" Twenty men hurl themselves for
ward. A corporal gets thero first and beats
tho sub-ofllcer down on his own machine
gun. The other "coffee-mills" aro seized,
too. But the trumpet Is not still. It sounds:
Thero is a drpp to drink above!
Tho handful of Westphallans defend them
selves courageously. A formidable sergeant
of murines, with a gesture quick as thought,
plants his bayonet in tho breast of a big
devil who falls, vomiting a red flood. Tho
blade has penetrated so far that In trying to
pull It out It Is twisted Into uselessness. Then
thero- lsa horrlblo melee in which the drip
ping bayonets aro plunged Into bodies, where
clubbed rifles boat upon heads, where men,
each Intent on his own task, aro hurled to
gether, breath to breath, p. tangled, biting,
strangling, kicking mass, from which como
oaths and prayers, groanlngs and tho death
rattle. Two men throw themselves upon each
other with so much fury that their blades
disappear in their bellies even to tho hilt.
They fall side by side with the death sob In
their throats. Ono of tho Westphallan offi
cers, still on his feet, hurls himself upon one
of oyr men who has Just disentangled him
self from the wires, but, In his turn, he
makes a falso step and falls upon his! adver
sary. The two men struggle silently, when
suddenly the soldier, disengaging himself,
seizes the officer's sword and pins him to the
earth.
Victory!
"Go It! marines!" shouts an old soldier of
Tonkin and Morocco, brandishing his rifle
about in his arms as beautiful as a statue.
Defeated, the few remaining Prussians
threw themselves on their knees: "Com
rades! Comrades!" they cried, but the fury
of carnage was on and the bayonets and
rifles did their terrlblo work, butchering the
last with awful cries.
Wo Jump Into the captured trench, covered
with sweat and blood, our oyes staring with
horror, our throats dry, almost out of breath,
but with the heart swelling with Joy. We
feverishly mako ready to fire upon the. fugi
tives. The night falls. With a bloody arm thrust
into a tunic, and his face bleeding from a
wound In the cheek, the commander leaps up.
"Twenty men to the front. Use up your
cartridges. The others fortify the trenchl"
Every one understood. In the flash of an
eye the tools were out ot the knapsacks and
shovels and picks were moving the earth
whllo the firing began again.
Fool Legislation
From the New York World.
The bill In the Massachusetts Legislature to
exempt Harvard's "crimson banners" from the
operation of the statute forbidding red or black
flags in processions, furnished a choice Illustra
tion of the present legislative tendency to pass
laws in haste for amendment at leisure.
No one has ever associated the Harvard Col
ors with anarchy, yet, thanks to a stupid
statute indiscriminately classing alt red flags
as Hedltonary. the college must now receive
special legislative permission to display Its ban
ners at football games. Not often, indeed, are
the absurdities ot halt-baked legislation so ob
viously apparent. Yet Is this foolish Massachu
setts legislation worse except In degree than
that which mars the work of other Legislatures
at every session? Perhaps there Is some cause
for satisfaction in the fact that the amount of
hasty and Ul-adv.ied legislation is pot greater,
in view ot the zeal of legislators to put as many
new and undigested laws as possible on the
statute books.
It will be good to have the Harvard crimson
purged of sedition. But It can hardly be said
that this example of rush-hour law-making In
Massachusetts will help increase the popular
respect for legislative enactments.
Court Without Lawyers
From the Kanaa City Btar.
As to that, Chicago "court "without lawyers,"
th lawyers will tell you that it violates, sev
erally and collectively, the following things:
Magna Chartsr, the Bill of Rights, the Federal
Constitution, the Illinois Constitution, the
Chicago city charter, the 11 th Amendment, the
6th Amendment, the law higher than the Con.
atltutlon, the "twelve tables," the Decalogue
and "the law of Nature and of Nature's Qod,"
Another War?
From, the Springfield Republican.
It mF b easy for alsrmlsU to show that
tbt. tJtfgreat nations will not ba Incapacitated
tor woollier war ba th jsaj question is
wW.th3' r uk,Iy tl want another war
whet tela cm is done.
THE DAILY GRIND
tx WHliSasas:5:5 'Urn'
THE LAST TOLL
Toll Roads Cost the People of
j. nun J-iiey sray ab uie
for This Long
By HENRY
THE existing system of toll roads Is a tax
on transit which obstructs the freedom
of Intercommunication. The people of this
Commonwealth expressed tholr preference at
tho recent election for a man with decided
views on this question. Doctor Brumbaugh,
during his campaign, repeatedly declared that
"every toll road In this Commonwealth should
be abolished."
Agitation against toll roads is not of recent
manufacture, nor has it been confined to this
country. A volume of "Notes on Toll Re
form," published in London in 1856, concludes
that "this system of taxation is the most per
nicious, tho most corrupt and tho most un
English of all forms; In fapt, tho only rello
of the detested Star Chamber yet remaining."
The present tendency of road legislation
throughout tho United Ctates Is toward cen
tralization. This tendency Is illustrated in
tho 1013 laws of Illinois and Iowa, as well as
In tho New Moxlco law of 1912. Centraliza
tion Is also provided for in tho recent New
York State law. Provision was mado in
Pennsylvania in the Sproul law, enacted
In May, 1911, for the purchase of the toll
roads by the Stato. It was provided, with
certain limitations, that these roads should
be taken ovor at any time, when, In the Judg
ment of the State Highway Commissioner,
they "tend to lnterfero with or Inconvenience
travel."
From Ablngton township comes the most
recent declaration of such Inconvenience In
tho form of a petition declaring that tho Ger
mantown nnd Willow Grove toll road "Is an
obstruction and hlndranco to business and
the improvement of that portion of Mont
gomery County, and that tho collection of
tolls' is onerous, vexatious and burdensome."
That the toll Is "vexatious," the necessity for
tho petition proves. It may be equally con
tended that tho burden is "onerous." The
toll charge for the six miles from Philadel
phia to Willow Grovo Is 15 cents, or 2V5 cents
per mile. Tho charge for automobiles from
Paoll to City Lino amounts to considerably
more than the railroad fare between the same
two points. Tho average toll charge through
out the State Is a trlflo less than Vt cent per
mile.
Should those who travel toll roads bear the
entire burdenT Any such theory can hardly
bo applicable In a civilized community, where
each individual must bo benefited by the fa
cility of communication. My food traverses
roads I never saw. Should the price of that
food be affected by the occasional Intrusion
of the toll road?
Governor Flower, In his message to the
New Tork State Legislature In 1893, said, In
part: "The plank road has now become
practically obsolete, and it is hoped so has
the toll gate. With the expiration of the ex
isting charters of turnpike corporations in
time will go this monopoly of our highways,
Whatever monopolies or trusts' may be found
In the future, our public roads should be left
untouched by the all-deslrlng greed for gain,
unrestralnably free as the air we breathe
and the water wo drink."
Pleasure and Business Mixed
Unquestionably the automobile has has
tened the abolition of the toll road. The di
rect tax is objectionable to the horse-drawn
vehicle, but even more so to the motorcar.
It would seem that the automoblllst is enti
tled to serious consideration In road matters
In this State, when he points to the fact that
he directly supplied 75 per cent, of the appro
priation to the State Highway Department
during the year 194. Although the toll
charges are an item for the pleasure car,
even more to be considered are the vexation
and incalculable cost of changing gears
caused by tho frequent Btops.
But roads are becoming, with the develop
ment of the motor truck, an important factor
in commercial transportation, it is an appre
ciable cost to truck owners to have their
whole equipment held up, not to count the
extra, wear and tear on the truck. These
commercial interests prefer to pay their
share of the road upkeep from the office so
as to have -ther trucks continually in mo
tion. Often the holding up of the investment
and tb time of the men amounts to more
than the toll paid. Such practice la eoonoml.
cally unsound.
The 700 odd mttm ot toll roads ar being
held at s, high. p?fce Uy their owstn, net be
cause they aro so WUW to otrM. but
OF THE TURNPIKE
Pennsylvania Much More Moim
jtcilc vviiau is tne UUie
- Standing Evil?
G. HODGES
becauso of tho opportunity of purchase bf th
State. Toll road corporations aro ncglecuai1
in many instances to provide proper maiiul
nanco for their roads, counting on 'early;
transrer.
A Program of Expenditure
Thomas R. McDriWPll. Hl!nnrlnnAnt i
Roads for Chester County nnd secretary 6il
mo uiuuu XIUUU UIIUIUSS10n OI 1SU.1, fjUgg0!UJ
tno ronowing plan for tho distribution cii
total moneys available for the State Hlriiwie!
Department:
"Thft nrnt llan niui.'ll.. m.. .1 -..i.'.'fl
....... ..w.. uu,. tIIa uiwtoi tuiiatieucoi
of tho Stato Is to provido the Eft per tHtJ
rebato promised tho townships. This Trtllj
distribute a largo sum of money among anl
Increasingly Intelligent and Interested todH
of men known as road supervisors. ThJs
effect of this would bo to raise the standlrf
of maintenance, oven in the remoter ruril
districts.
"The second call upon tho funds ot th
Highway Department Is for Stato aid rouJ
to be apportioned to tho several countlei, ir
at present. This State aid money should be
expended for local Improvements', agre
upon by supervisors, County Commlsslonii
and tho State Highway Department,
"Tho third demand on the State Highway
Department, which should Include the biK
anco of moneys available from tho appronrla'
tlon and automobile license money, sboiiil,
be for tho maintenance, Improvement anl
construction of said system of State high
ways."
Finally, It may be contended that ltf tH
manner of annronrlatlnir moneva for- tni
State highways, and their Incidental chatjuj
thero should bo several profitable slmpjlflclj
tlons.
What Pennsylvania Pays
The State will save the Highway Depttk
ment much embarrassment by providing lift
erally for reconstruction, as well as maln
tenanco of toll roads, at the same liins a
their mtrnhnnn Iq rrnttrtr.A ffw Ao YiinHrnA
before, many toll roads nro receiving InaiJeJ
iuuiu uiiciuiuii, une engineering anu v.u;
tractlng Journal of last month estimates HuH
,VU.m 44UM1UCIB W1U UUBl, Ul tUttU U.j
tenance will approximate a cent a vehtjto
per mile each year." It further comnienW
that economical maintenance Is only poaalMj
on properly constructed roads, and that i
construction of a neglected road Is not mg
tenance, but tho correction of a blunder. Tbl
same Journal gives the maintenance coslioj
roads in France as nnnrnYlmntnlv $770 a mil
a year; in England na U00 a mile a y"
and In Massachusetts as $850 a mite a y
Pennsylvania's cost for this service darlsj.
1914 amounted to approximately 1175 Pr jnJJJH
Provision for maintenance even under P
ent condltons is far below the average, 5
the Legislature to buy the toll roads and nJS;
lect to provide for their proper care w
bring only added discredit to the departjnw
Toll roads hnvo Inno- heon n minted WitlTA
serious economto Illness. This Illness
bee,n intensified by legislative legal cop.pl
tons. It remains for a legislative ihuuv
dose of sufficient strength to administer
death blow.
THE PEOPLE'S SONG OF PEACE'
The. grass is green on Bunker 11111,
The waters sweet in Brandywlne;
The sword sleeps in the scabbard stilt.
The farmer keeps his flock and vine;
Then who would mar the scene today
With vaunt of battlefield or fray?
The brave corn lifts In regiments
Ten thousand sabers In the sun.
The ricks replace the battle tents,
The bannered tassels toss and run
The neighing steed, the bugle's blast.
These be but stories of the past.
The earth has healed her wounded breajt,
-j.ne cannons plow the fleia no mwfi
The heroes rest! Oh, let them rest
m peace along the peaceful nor'
They fought for peaqe, for peace they Jt
The.y sleep In peace and all Is well.
The fields, forget the battles fought,
The trenches wave in golden grain:
Shall we neglect the lessons taught
And tear the wounds agape again
Sweet Mother Nature, nurse tho las
And heal her wounds with f entle nan
Lo! peace on .earth I Loi flock ijdfM!
Lo! rich abundance, fat Inettue,
And vaJleva clad In ihuan of KO.i'
Oh, rlM and !nf a, song of p'
For Thew raftiuu tb land na nvwav
Aa4 Juiitw rests wttfc rustvd if'- , , .