Grand Rapids Herald-Review Newspaper, August 13, 1913, Page 5

| ] ' PAGE FOUR Brand Rapias Weraid-‘Review Pub! ed Every Wednesday By KILEY @® SPENCER TWO DOLLARS A YEAR IN ADVANCE Entered at the Postoffice at Grand Rap- ids, Minn., as Second Class Matter. Official Paper of Itasca County —_—_———— We are so. taken up with the subject of good roads just at pres- ent that we are liable to overlook a very important bet. Everyone knows we need the roads and most everyone believes we are going to have them, so we will let the mat- ter rest long enough to take up another subject. The greatest state fair in the world is going to, be held at Hamline on September 1 to 6, inclusive, and Itasca county should be represented to the very best advantage. An appropriation of $300 has been made by the coun- ty commissioners. for exhibit, but the sum is insufficient. At least $500 is required in order to secure the material for the showing Itasca county is capable of making this year. With this sum those in eharge say they are almost willing itee that they will return prizes. an to gua with some of the higher The advertising value of the dis- play would be worth this sum this kind of a crop is above the average. An at- get the 2 the ap- year, as nearly every tempt will be made to commissioners to inereé propriation, and if this is done the men in charge of the exhibit prom- ise to put Itasca county 50 near the top of the column that people will mot have quit talking about it until it is time for another fair. ———- IVERSON MAKES STATEMENT. State Auditor S. G. Iverson, has issued a statement denying that he has made any agreement with the state organization by which he will run for auditor again and not oppose Governor A. O. Eberhardt for the nomina- tion for governor next year. “In the political column of The Journal’, said Mr. Iverson, “appeared a statement to the ef- {entire matter could be given FURTHER EXPLAINS | ROAD PROPOSITION County Auditor Spang Clears Up Many Matters in Which the Voters are Interested. CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE | oucsticn' The Laws Covering Every Phase of the Proposed Undertaking Ex- plained So All Can Fully Comprehend. It seems to be a generally re-| cognized fact that the proposed building of a system of interlock- ing public highways is a wise move on the part of our board of county commissioners and as election day draws nearer, the opposition to the proposed bond issue to con sumate the plans of the county} board in the building of the trunk | line road seems to grow less and| less. We do not want to be under- | stood as saying that there is no opposition to the plan, because} there is considerable, but as the purposes of the board be- come more familiar to the voters that. opposition dimin-| ishes. Last week, the Herald-| Review gave its readers the re-| sults-of a lengthy interview with our County Auditor, and talk Mr. Spang gave the people some’ very important data bearing|to the people for their on the whole question. In fact, the whole ground was gone ever, and we fail to see how a comprehensive resume of more tne to our readers. Mr. Spang showed con- clusively that the county was prac- tically out of debt; that we would|law because certain of these roads have a goodly balance in’ our county funds if it were possible to induce the holders of our outstand- ing bonds to present them for re- demption; that the burden placed upon the taxpayers by reason of the issuance of the $300,000 road and bridge bonds would be ex- ceedingly small, being for the next four or five years something like 6 cents yearly for every one thous- and dollar valuation of the tax- fect that I had hoped to become the! Payer; and that if the county val- ‘organization’ candidate for govern or next year, in place of Governor Eberhart, but that, as there is no likelihood of such an opening. I had decided to again become a can didate for state auditor. I desire to emphatically deny any and all rumors and reports of that nature. I have not been in the past, am not now, and in the future will not be in the confidence of the ‘organiza- tion’ referred to. I have authorized no one to speak for me about my political plans in the future. The people of Minnesota have been very kind to me, and in due time I shall publicly announce any hopes or ambitions I may have, in such clear and definite terms that there will | be no misunderstanding.” ———.—_—_ St. Louis county is to vote soon on a proposition to expend $10,- 000.000 on roads. Our neighbor has also discovered the folly of at- tempting a road program piece- ‘meal. uation did not increase during the entire period the bonds would run, no taxpayer in any one year would be called upon to pay 54 cents on each thousand dollars of taxable property he possessed into the bond and interest fund. Mr. Spang very truly put it that it was a ridicu- lously ‘absurd proposition to figure that ‘the assessed valuation of the! county would remain as it is to-day and in very emphatic terms gave it out that he looked forward to a period of great growth in Itasca Counfy—he was sangine that the building of the proposed roads, and the feeders that would year- ly be built into these main public highways, would result in a rapid advancement of the county's agri-| roads. culttiral’ vesources. He predicted that ‘wifh the upbuilding and de-| velopment of our farming resources! the wealth of Itasca county would} multiply many fold, and in em- phatic terms said it was progress | that made wealth, and wealth that made greater valuation of taxable property, reducing the proportion we all contribute to the count} cof fers for the up-keep of the county. So exhaustive was the interview “DULLER THAN A HOE” 3 Is an expression you may have heard in connec- tion with an edge tool that was not in condi- tion to do good work. It may have been because it was not properly ground, but more likely it was the fault of the Steel in not having the right quality to hold a sharp edge. Keen-Kutter Tools 3 Are made from extra hammered crucible steel with the right amount of carbon and properly tempered to retain a keen cutting edge. Call for Keen-Kutter Tools and accept no sub- stitute. H. D. POWERS lity of voting jof improvement of all roads in the in that|suance of bonds for the purpose of ;or improve the same in accordance that Mr. Spang need not. be called upon for further information in the premises, but—and that one word signifies the stock argument of those who believe it is their one mission in life to continually and persistefitly knock évery measure for public weal that comes before the people—we feel that perhaps a few words from Mr. Spaing will remove some doubts that a few have inn the matter of advisabil- “yes” next Tuesday on the bond matter. So the Herald- Review has propounded a few to Auditor Spang, and herewith gives to its readers the interview: Auditor Spang was asked: “Is the whole of the proceedings in the matter of the proposed bonds be- ing conducted under what is known as the Bob Dunn law of 1913?” “No, sir, it is not. When it was proposed by the county commis- sioners to issue the bonds under Chapter 235, General Laws of 4913, known as the “Bob Dunn Good {Road Laws,” it was found _ that there was no provision made in the law for the issuing of bonds for the building of state roas by the county. The only instances where authority to issue bonds is found in subdivision 5, section 30 and 58, wherein bonds are author- ized for macadamizing and build- | ing of county and town roads. This being a fact, the county attorney was asked to secure an opinion from the attorney general -of the | state, as to the rights of the coun- | ty to issue. bonds for the purpose | county, resulting in an opinion ; that the county was authorized un- der the General Laws of 1905 to submit the proposition of the is- improving any-road in the county action thereon. The interviewer said that he |took it that the reason the ques- tion of raising money for the im- provement of roads im the county ‘could not be brought to an election under the provisions of the Dunn ‘it is proposed to improve have been already designated as state roads, and have been approved as state roads by the highway com- mission. | The Auditor answered that such was undoubtedly the case. The road from Wawina to Ball Club, ‘the ill City-Grand Rapids {road; and the Deer River to Nort- |home road, are now state roads, and no authority is found in the Bob Dunn laws to raise. money by the issuance of bonds to improve those roads, and it was desired that all the roads in th® proposition shhould be included in the bond is+ sue proposition. Being asked whether or not it would be necessary to issue the bonds under the old law, and there- |fore that all proceedings had should | jbe under that law, both as to the issuance of the bonds and the build. ing and construction of the roads, Mr. Spang said: “Certainly, every | requisite of the law in the issuance lof the bonds must be followed in the issuance of these bonds, and it is equally true that every provi- |sion of the Bob Dunn law must be followed in the construction of the The county commissioners are merely asking the people to au- thorizing the issuance of $300,000 road and bridge bonds, and asking them to authorize the division of that money into certain specific amounts to be used for the build- ing of certain specific roads. That authority having been given and the money raised thé county board, as a matter of public expediency, proposes under section 18 of the Bdb Dunn law, to designate each of those specific roads as state roads. That section reads: “Any county board may, with the | consent of the highway commission designate any established road, or specified portion thereof, in its county, not within the corporate limits of any borough, village or city, as a state road, and construct with the regulations of the state highway commission relative to state roads.” ; Mr. Spang was asked why is it advisable to have these roads designated as state roads, and ans— wered that the Bob Dunn law makes the provision’ that the state shall give aid in the up-keep of | all state roads. ' Being asked whether or not; in- asmuch as these roads have been designated as State Roads, they would pass under the supervision of the Highway Commission, the auditor replied: “I take itithat they practically do. Section 21 of the Dunn Law pro- vides that “whenever the county board of any county shall deter- mine to build or improve any state road for which aid is tobe claim- ed, they shall proceed as follows: If the estimated cost of such work exceeds $500.00, the said county shall eause surveys, plans and specifications therefor to be made by an assistant engineer and sub- mit thessame to the highway com- mission for approval, and when such plans and specifications are approved, the said county board shall proceed to do said work by contract or day labor. The work shall be done under the supervi- sion of an assistamt engineer, who shall in all matters pertaining to such work act under the rules and regulations of the highway com- mission and the imstructions of the state engineer.” Being asked to specify more clear- ly what is meant by an assistant engineer in the above paragraph, Mr. Spang quoted Section 20 of the! Dunn Law, which reads: “The highway commission shall appoint as many assistant engineers throughout the state as they may deem necessary for the purpose of superintending all work done on state roads. Such assistant emgi- neers shall devote their entire time to their official duties; may be assigned to one or more counties as deemed advisable, and’ shall act under the instructions of the state engineer amd the rules and regula- tions of the highway commission. It shall be the duty of said assis- tant engineers to make all neces- sary surveys, estimates and speci- fications for work to be done on state roads amid for that purpose they shall ‘have the co-operation and assistance of the state engi- neer or any of his deputies or as- sistants.” . Being asked what was meant by the term “state aid” in connection with these roads, the auditor re- ferred us to section 12 of the Dunn law which provides for state aid in the construction and improve- ment of public highways. It stipu- lates that there shall be levied annually a state tax of one mill together with the interest derived from the states’ internal improve- ment land fund, said funds to con- stitute the general™ state road and bridge fund. Section 13 provides for the appropriation of $150,000 from the state treasury to pay the ex- penses of the eommission and its evorps of engineers for the fiscal year ending July 31, 1914, and the same amount for the year ending July 31, 1915. Section 15 provides that from the state road fund there shall be annually apportioned to each of the counties having state roads, not less than one per cent or more than three per cent of the state road and bridge fund avail- able in-any year. Section 16 pro- videsthat 20 per cent of the amount so allotted to the county yearly shall be used ONLY FOR THE MAINTENANCE OF STATE ROADS. The same section pro- vices that it shai’ he the dit. of the county commissioners of each county in which state roads have heretofore or may ehreafter be con- structed or improved, to provide for the proper maintenamee of the same in accordance with the rules and regulations to be prescribed by the highway commission, the cost of such maintenance shall be paid by the state from the propor- tion of allotment to each county for maintenance purposes above specified, to an amount not ex- ceeding the proportion so made available for maintemance purpos- es. Having his attention called to the fact that the maintenance of these roads seems to be the stumbling block upon which some of our peo- ple rest their ‘opposition to the bond issue, the ‘auditor explained that the state highway commis- sion has given Itasea county offi- cial notice thatthe’ amount for state aid available in’ each year will be in the ,neighborhood of $1,400.C0,and inasmuch as no county can receive’Jess than one per cent, hor more than three per cent Itasca county will receive not. Jess than $14,000 nor more than $42,000 for any one year, and of this amount 20 per cent must be expended in the maintenance of the roads, or from $2,800 to $R,400, each year. Then the Bob Dunn law allows a levy for road and bridge purposes of 3. mills, instead of 2 mills allowed heretofore, net- ting Itasea County some $25,500 more next year than she has ever received in her road and bridge fund before. Then, again, it being mandatory that these roads shall be maintained, and it being highly improbable that the state ‘high- way commission will give any state aid unless the roads are maintain- ed, it would seem thal there can absolutely be no questiom of the up-keep of the roads. There having been some slight confusion concerning the provi- sions of the Gunn law and those of the Dunn law, Mr. Spang said, that he did not believe the former should be repealed. It contains some splendid provisions, among them that a competent surveyor -The fall issue of. “Butterick Fashions” is now on sale. For your sake you should spend a few minutes and-run thru this splendid num- ber. There is somuch that is intensely interesting’ in fashions now that you | will be more than ever anxious to get authori- tative information and see these smart designs for autumn clothes. Every style of grace- fully draped design is lavishly displayed in this Fall Book. Draped skirts, draped coats, and ns BUTTERICK FASHIONS) i. £ draped blouses are illustrated in profusion. An assort- ment of cutaway effects, lifted up, draped and peg top skirts, soft blouses, girdles and sashes, etc. Another splendid feature of this Fall “Butterick Fashions” is the big display of fashionable accessories. The price of this fashion referendum is really only 10c as for the 25c you pay for it you also get any one of Butterick Patterns free of charge by presenting the coupon at our store. Next Saturday— Saturday Special—arcus tom we place on special sale a lot of new dresses in light and dark colors, all button down the front; only one will be sold to each customer Saturday only at 59c ITASCA DRY GOODS CO. shall be appointed and elected as superintendennt of highways; that it shall be his duty to inspect all roads, bridges and ditches con- structed by the. county, upoh re- quest of the county board; that no monies shall be paid out by the county until‘he has filed a certifi- cate of inspection; that the coun- ty attorney shall certify that such payment is due and in accordance with the terms of the contract for such work; that if the superin- tendent fails or neglects to do his duty the board of county commis- sioners may do the inspection, ets., and it provides for the com- pensation of the superintendent to be $5.00 per day for each day’s ser- vice actually rendered. The Gunn law was approved Ap- ril 44, 1913, just four days before the Dunn law was approved—and the latter law provided that all laws and parts of laws inconsos- eent with the provision of the Dunn law are repealed. Thus, if there is anything in theso called Gunn act that is inconsistent with the Dunn act, then, that part of the Gunn act is null and void. ‘And in this connection it is well to note that the Dunm act does provide who shall have supervision over state roads, and thus any provision of the Gunn law that provides for superintending over state roads was absolutely repealed by the Dunn law. Thus, in a nutshell—we are rais- ing $300,000 under one law and are expending certain amounts upon specific roads, under the provi- sions of another law. To Secure state aid for the maintenance of these roads that have not already been designated as state roads, they must be so designated to have them come under the law which provides for state aid. It is purely a business proposition, and there absolutely can be no question but that.at the proper time they will. be so designated as state roads. There is every reason and induce— ment to have these roads desig- nated as state roads, one of which is that it relieves the towns through which they pass, of the obligation to keep them up. There being nothing that would mot be highly beneficial to Itasca County as a whole in having them designated as state roads. Where could you find five men who would not see that the proper steps are taken to have them become sub- ject to state aid? Certainly the board of county commissioners as at present constituted, will have no hesitency in enacting such meas- ures as will draw not less than $14,000 per year from the state funds to the county road and bridge coffers. While garnering a particularly fine ercp, do not forget that it is your duty as a good citizen and a EK coster to s\nd samples of it to the secretary of the Itasea Coynty Agricuitural association. ing, Fall Styles for Ladies... ee | Are now on hand. Have your clothes made by practical tailovs —that know how. connection. PAY LESS AND DRESS BETTER. ae Wear-U.- Well Store EDWARD L. KELM - - Manager Samples 0 Dry clean- pressing and repairing in ' Kemet tripe