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House JOINT RESOLUTION No. 59.—Mr. DODGE. 
 Authorizing the Governor to appoint a Commission Sor the purposes therein ee 
 
 named. Can 
 Whereas, The Governor of Obio, in his jagt annual message, ‘most: ee 3 
 earnestly asked the consideration of the General Assembly to the subject of good 3 
 
 roads; and suggested the appointment of a Commission to investigate and care- 
 fully consider all plans proposed and experiments being made, and to submit ee 
 report with recommendations in time for the meeting of the ss session of the > gas 
 next General Assembly; and 
 Whereas, /t is the opinion of many engineers and inventors that electtic ee 
 and other artificial powers may. be successfully applied to the country POAMS SS = 
 when properly prepared, so as to reduce the cost and time of transportation, 
 both on freight and passengers, far below that which can ever be attained by 
 the continued use of horses and other animals; therefore, eee 
 Be it Resolved, By the General Assembly of the State of Obio, That the 
 Governor be and he is hereby authorized to appoint a Commission, composed 
 of four suitable <itizens of the State, two of whom shall be chosen from each of 
 the two political parties which received the largest number of votes in this State 
 at the last general election, whose duty it shall be to thoroughly investigate the = 
 whole subject of road construction and the cost of transportation over the 
 various kinds of roads, including those operated by steam power and-electric =~ 
 power as well as those operated by horse power. Said Commission shall 
 make report to the Governor what the average cost per ton per mile now 1s by . 
 horse power, and what the approximate cost would be. if artificial power should iy 
 be suhstituted for borse power; and especially whether it is possible and advis- 
 able to.construct country roads so that both cars and wagons can pass over the 
 same road, propelled by either. horse power or artifictal-power; also the estimat- 
 ed cost of such combination roads. as. compared, ugith: the cost of roads established ‘ 
 for horse power only, together with whatever: recommendation they have to make ee 
 as to the road laws of Obio; or as: i: the CHACINIERL of any new laws by the Sie: 
 Legtslature of the State. The reports conteining the’ findings, conclusions and . eke 
 recommendations of such commission shall be transmitted by the Governor to ~ 
 the General Assembly, together with such “comments as he may by message see 
 fit to make thereon, and such additional recommendations as be may desire to 
 make. Said Commission shall conclude tts investigation and file its red: 
 with the Governor, as aforesaid, on or before the 21st day of December, 1893. 
 LEWIS C. LAYLIN, 
 Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
 
 ANDREW L. HARRIS, 
 Adopted February 28, 1893. President of the Senate. 
 
 Reet Lie 
 ps Ae 
 
Hon. WILLIAM MCKINLEY, 
 GOVERNOR OF OHIO: 
 
 The Road Commission, appointed by Your Excellency under authority of 
 H. J. R. No. 59, passed February 28th, 1893, was directed “to thoroughly in- 
 vestigate the whole subject of road construction and the cost of transportation 
 over the various kinds of roads, including those operated by steam power and 
 electric power as well as those operated by horse power. Said Commission 
 shall make report to the Governor what the average cost per ton per mile now 
 is by horse’power and what the approximate cost would be if artificial power 
 should be substituted for horse power; and especially whether it is possible and 
 advisable to construct country roads so that both cars and wagons can pass 
 over the same road, propelled by either horse power or artificial power, also 
 the estimated cost of such combination roads as compared with the cost of 
 roads established for horse power only, together with whatever recommendation 
 they have to make as to the road laws of Ohio, or as to the enactment of any 
 new laws by the legislature of the State.” 
 
 The Commission has held several meetings and has entered into corres- 
 pondence with parties all over ihe State and has gathered such facts and figures 
 as were obtainable in the limited time allotted it for its labors. As a 
 matter of history and for reference for future laborers in the cause of 
 road improvement, it may be here noted that the agitation for good roads is not 
 - confined io Ohio alone but in a greater or less degree prevails all over the 
 United States. Starting in a small way it has almost assumed a National 
 character. Foremost among the agencies that have been active in promoting 
 this agitation is the National League for Good Roads, whose constitution and 
 list of officers are appended to our report. This League held a convention at 
 Chicago, Illinois, October 20-21, 1892, and another convention at Washington, 
 D. C., January 17-18, 1893. The proceedings of both Conventions have been 
 
 published in pamphlet form and we file copies of the same for reference with 
 
 our report. 
 
 Another means for promoting knowledge on the subject of good roads was 
 found in the organization known as the League of American Wheelmen. This 
 is an Association composed of bicycle riders and others interested in bicycling and 
 has branches in every State of the Union and numbers its members by the thous- 
 ands. Under its auspices the publication of a monthly periodical was undertak- 
 en, entitled “Good Roads.” A special number devoted to the State of Ohio, 
 was recently issued, and we file a copy of the same with our report. Articles 
 have appeared in various periodicals on the subject of good roads, too numerous 
 to mention. 
 
 One of the labors of the Commission has been an investigation into the 
 
 1414762 
 
laws enacted in other states relating to road construction. Among recent en- 
 actments on the subject we note the following: — 
 
 A law was enacted in New Jersey in 1891, the distinctively new feature of . 
 which is that one-third of the cost of making the roads provided for in the law 
 should be paid out of the State treasury. The amount that can be withdrawn 
 
 from the State treasury under this law is limited. A previous law provided — x 
 
 that one-third of the cost of building County roads should be paid by the. 
 cities, towns, townships or boroughs in and through which said road passed, and 
 two-thirds of the cost should be paid by the county at large. Under this law 
 great improvements were made in the roads of Union County, New Jersey. 
 
 The State of Massachusetts on June T0th, 1893, passed a law providing 
 for the appointment of a permanent Highway Commission consisting of three 
 members whose term of office shall be three years. The Commissioners. are 
 paid a salary of two thousand dollars each annually and are allowed their 
 travelling expenses in addition, The Commission is to compile statistics re- 
 lating to the public roads, may be consulted without charge relative to road con- 
 struction, shall make maps showing public roads and location of material suit- 
 able for road building, and shall hold one public meeting each year in each © 
 County of the State. Upon petition as prescribed by law, the Commission 
 may build new roads or convert existing roads into State highways. In all 
 cases the roads shall be graded at the expense of the County or Counties 
 through which they run. It is evident that this law practically puts the entire 
 cost of constructing and maintaining the public roads on the state at large. 
 
 We have also made an inquiry into the present condition of the roads in. 
 each County of the State of Ohio and the results are tabulated in Appendix A 
 attached to our report. From this table we learn that about two-thirds of the 
 Counties in Ohio have nothing better than common dirt roads, over which to 
 transport goods and merchandise. 
 
 The two largest factors in the problem of improving our common roads 
 are, first, the enormous cost of such improvements in the aggregate, if the sys- 
 tem is co-extensive with our territory, and, second, the excessive cost of trans- 
 portation over such roads, if animal power is to be applied. The mileage 
 
 of common roads in the State of Ohio may be approximated at 80,000 ae! 
 
 miles. The cost of suitable improvement would be, in some sections 
 $9,000 per mile; in others it may cost as little as $3,000 per mile. If we — 
 have an equal amount of each kind, that would make an average cost of $6,000 
 
 per mile. Supposing this could be reduced to $5,000 per mile on the average . 
 
 it would still cost the enormous sum of $400,000,000 to improve all the roads 
 in the State. The Governor of New York, in the North American Review for 
 November, 1898, in speaking of a national system (which he condemns on ac- 
 count of its excessive burdens), says: “ The cost would be inconceivable. 
 
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 The task of constructing them would overwhelm the Government. It would 
 necessitate the employment of a larger army of men than was engaged in the 
 War of the Rebellion.” 
 
 Such a burden should not be undertaken by the State, in aid of transpor- 
 tation, unless it is reasonably certain that the benefits to be derived from it are 
 greater than the burden to be assumed. It is not so easy to estimate the bene- 
 fit of road improvement as it is to estimate the cost, for these benefits are 
 mostly indirect, appearing in the increased value of land and the increased com: 
 forts of life. They add greatly to the social and moral influences which make 
 
 ' for higher civilization. 
 
 But the comparative benefits of these road improvements may be had by 
 reference to the cost of transportation over steam railroads and electric street 
 
 _ railways—the one adapted for the long haul, the other for the short haul. It 
 
 will appear that the steam cars and the electric cars have already contributed 
 more to cheapen transportation without the aid of public money than the wagon 
 road improvement has done with the aid of public money. It has always been 
 the policy of our people to contribute freely of the public money in aid of trans- 
 portation. The rivers and harbors have been deepened by appropriations made ~ 
 by the General Government; and the waterways, connecting the Great Lakes, 
 have been deepened by the same means, while the State and Counties have con- 
 structed and maintained at public expense the canals and the public roads. 
 The idea of improving the “National Road” by the General Government- was 
 not abandoned until it appeared that no amount of public money expended for 
 such a purpose and in such a manner, could contribute so much to cheapen 
 transportation as the steam railroad could do without the aid of public money. 
 
 But, when it was discovered that the cost of transportation over a free 
 wagon road built and maintained at the public expense was more than ten times 
 as much, both in time and money, as the cost of the same transportation over 
 a railroad receiving no public aid, the “National Road” soon became a thing of 
 the past. The fate of the “National” Road will be the fate of the State Roads. 
 It would be a mistake... policy for the State to improve wagon roads between 
 distant places with a view of cheapening transportation when the steam roads 
 have already cheapened transportation between these places more than can be 
 done by wagon roads with any amount of public money. 
 
 Another important and unforeseen change has taken place since the wagon 
 
 toad system was laid out. They not only provided for State Roads and Na- 
 
 tional Roads but they provided roads for a people uniformly distributed over 
 the surface of the country. It now appears that about one-half of our people 
 live in cities and that the other half desire the most direct means of commun- 
 ication with them. The following extract is submitted from the United States 
 Census Report of 1890: 
 
 Se see 
 
4 
 
 Census Years. Population of the Population of cities. Inhabitants of cities 
 United States. in each 100 of the 
 total population. 
 
 1790 3,929,214 131,472 3.35 
 1800 5,308,483 210,873 | 3.97 
 1810 7,239,881 356,920 4.93 
 1820 9,633,822 475,135 4.98 
 1830 12,866,020 864,509 6.72 
 1840 17,069,453 1,453,994 8.52 
 1850 23,191,876 2,897,586 12.49 
 1860 31,443 321 5,072,256 16.13 
 1870 38,558,371 8,071,875 20.93 
 1830 50,155,783 11,318,547 22.57 
 1890 62,622,250 18,235,670 29.12 
 
 “It will be seen that the proportion of urban population has increased grad- 
 
 ually during the past century from 3.35 up to 29.12 per cent., or from one- 
 
 thirtieth to nearly one-third of the total population. The increase has been 
 quite regular from the beginning up to 1880, while from 1880 up to 1890 it 
 has made a leap from 22.57 up to 29.12 per cent., thus illustrating in a forcible 
 manner the accelerated tendency of our population toward urban life. The 
 number of cities having a population of more than 8,000 increased from 6 in 
 1790 to 286 in 1880, whence it has leaped to 443 in 1890. : 
 “This urban element is distributed very unequally over the country, as is 
 shown below by geographical divisions: 
 
 Geographical Divisions. Urban Population. 
 
 Urban Populat on. 
 
 Per cent. of entire ~ 
 
 Total 18,235,670 100.00 | 
 North Atlantic division 8,976,426 49,22 
 South Atlantic division 1,420,455 7.79 
 North Central division §,791,272 31.76 
 South Central division 1,147,147 6.29 
 Western division 900,370 4,94 
 
 “The North Atlantic division contains nearly one-half the urban population = 
 of the country, while the North Atlantic and North Central divisions together 
 contain nearly five-sixths of it. of 
 
 “In the North Atlantic division 51.58 per cent., or more than one-half the 
 entire population, is contained in cities of 8,000 or more inhabitants. During 
 the past ten years the urban element in this division has increased 43.53 per 
 cent., while the total population has increased but 19.95 per cent. This relative 
 increase is well distributed among the several states of this division with the 
 single exception of Vermont, whose urban element has increased but little. In ag 
 Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts and New York the numerical increase in the 4 
 urban element is greater than the increase of the total population, so that in =” 
 these states the rural population has actually diminished in number. This me 
 rapid increase in the urban element of the North Atlantic division is due to the =~ 
 
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 equally rapid extension of the manufactures and commerce, requiring the 
 aggregation of the inhabitants into compact bodies. 
 
 “In the North Central division 25.90 per cent., or a trifle more than one- 
 fourth of the inhabitants, are classed as urban. In the past ten years the 
 number of the urban element has nearly doubled, while the total population 
 has increased but 28.78 per cent. The number of cities has increased from 95 
 in 1880 to 152 in 1890. The increase in number of urban population, viz., 
 2,766,593, is comprised mainly in a few large cities; thus the total increase 
 in the eleven largest cities, comprising a trifle more than one-half of the urban 
 population of this section, is 1,446,089, or more than one-half, the entire gain 
 in urban population in this division.” 
 
 It also appears that there are 70 cities in Ohio, each having a population of 
 over 4,000, and all containing about one-half of the people of the State. These 
 centers of population are the natural centers of the road system of the future. 
 
 The demand for additional legislation is one that the Commission does 
 not favor. Among a certain class of reformers, it is the custom to invoke the 
 law-making power upon every possible occasion. They start by proposing 
 Some. end desirable itself and then commit the mistake of supposing that 
 because the object to be accomplished is good, the means proposed must 
 necessarily be laudable. In our judgment, the case of good roads affords a 
 notable object lesson in this respect. To improve our country roads and bring 
 them to a more perfect condition than those in some foreign countries is cer- 
 
 tainly a “consummation devoutly to be wished,”—that the way to accomplish 
 this result is by placing new laws on the statute books does not necessarily 
 follow. The history of road-making in Ohio will bear us out in this, asser- 
 tion. We have in Ohio to-day in some localities miles upon miles of excellent 
 pike roads built under existing laws. What has been done in one locality can 
 be done in ‘another under the same circumstances. Why, then, are not good 
 roads built everywhere in the State? The reasons are two-fold. First, because 
 the inhabitants do not Sufficiently appreciate and desire good roads, and, 
 Secondly, because good roads are too expensive. There are, undoubtedly, some 
 Places in the. State where material for road-making is sufficiently abundant 
 and cheap, but where the character of the population is such that they prefer 
 the discomforts and loss occasioned by defective highways to the trouble and’ 
 €xpense required to improve the roads. It is manifest that no legislation can 
 or should alter such a state of affairs. It is not the province of legislation 
 to change human nature, and where a community deliberately prefers to adopt a 
 course of action that is opposed to its best interests, it should be left to its 
 Own devices. On the other hand, there are localites in Ohio where the materials 
 for road construction are almost, if not entirely lacking and the cost makes it 
 practically impossible to transport them. No legislation, short of making other 
 
6 
 
 parts of the State pay for building roads in these localities, would be effective 
 
 in such cases. This proposition has, indeed, been advocated by some and has 
 been adopted in New Jersey, where in certain cases, the State pays one-third 
 of the cost of constructing a road. In the opinion of the Commission, how- 
 ever, this plan is not advisable. This question naturally leads to a discussion 
 regarding the proper unit of territory to which should be committed the task 
 
 of road improvement. There are those who advocate National, State, County | . 
 
 and Township control, and also various combinations of these, such as National 
 or State financial aid under local supervision and actual construction. With- 
 out going into an exhaustive discussion of the subject, we are convinced that 
 National or State aid is unwise and that with the govermental machinery exist- 
 ing in Ohio, the County authorities are the proper ones to manage road con- 
 struction, and that the necessary funds should be raised within the limits of the 
 County where the roads are built. The community of interest in a County is 
 such that it may properly be considered a unit in the matter of road building, 
 and the fairest plan for all concerned is, perhaps, to assess a portion of the 
 cost upon the abutting land and place the balance upon the general tax dupli- 
 cate. 
 
 The tendency of legislation in Ohio of late has been to pass special laws 
 -authorizing townships and counties to construct roads, and placing the greater 
 part of the cost upon the general tax duplicate. 
 
 There seems to be a general dissatisfaction with the law by which road 
 taxes are worked out by the citizens living along the roads. This is a custom 
 surviving from early days and yet we are unaware of any plan that could be 
 substituted and meet with approval from those directly interested. The trouble 
 here, perhaps, is not so much with the law itself as with the manner in which 
 it is executed. With efficient officers, better results could, no doubt, be obtained. 
 It is undeniable that the time, labor and money expended in “working” the 
 roads, if properly used, would put our roads in far better condition than they 
 are. It might naturally be supposed that men repairing the roads in front of 
 their own farms, would be stimulated to obtain the best results from their 
 labor. This reasonable anticipation, however, in a majority of cases is disap- 
 pointed. Upon inquiry, we have learned that paying the taxes entirely in 
 money to be expended under the supervision of some public officer has not 
 worked well in practice. Such officers have been accused of favoritism and 
 corruption, and a return to the old system has followed. It is difficult to see 
 what legislation can be devised to remedy such a state of affairs. 
 
 In all movements of this kind there is a great deal of uncertainty in the 
 proposals made. Legislation to be effective must not be too radical a depar- 
 ture from what has preceeded. Custom is more powerful than law. Hence a 
 
 study of European laws is not of any great utility except as they are grafted 
 
 4 
 
(sf 
 
 by degrees upon our customs and laws. The conclusion to which the Com- 
 mission has come, is to recommend no legislation. We do this for several 
 reasons. The time at our disposal has not been sufficient to properly prepare 
 and digest a law in the manner that we consider to be necessary. 
 
 The proposed laws submitted by others to the members of the Com- 
 mission have all been opened to objections that are considered by us to be 
 fatal. In addition, there did not seem to be any wide-spread demand for 
 new laws in reply to the inquiries we sent out upon this subject. 
 
 The most essential thing at this time is an intelligent agitation of the 
 question of improving highways. If those, most directly interested, can be 
 persuaded that good roads pay and they are willing to bear the cost, any 
 necessary laws can be obtained with little difficulty. Laws enacted in advance 
 of public sentiment on the subject will be ineffective. 
 
 The unexampled development of railroad facilities has made the problem 
 of highways entirely different from what it was before the advent of the 
 locomotive. The dream of our earlier statesmen of uniting this country by 
 means of National Roads traversing it from East to West and from North to 
 South, has been realized, but in a manner different from what they imagined. 
 Railroads have been found cheaper and more effective than pikes. The cost 
 of transportation on steam cars has been greatly reduced within the past few 
 years, so much sq that the average rate is but little more than one-half cent per 
 ton per mile, while the maximum rate in this State for the short haul is but 
 five cents per ton per mile in car load lots. On the contrary, there has been but 
 little reduction in the cost of transportation with horses and wagons over common 
 roads, either paved or unpaved, for, while there has been some improvement in 
 vehicles and in horses, there has been an increased cost in the labor required for 
 Such purposes, also an increase in the expense of feedin g and maintaining animals; 
 So that what is gained in one way is lost in another, and the average rate of 
 transportation with horses and wagons still remains exceedingly high, being 
 probably twenty-five cents per ton per mile on the average. This great dis- 
 parity between the cost of transportation upon steam cars and with horses anp 
 wagons makes it forever impossible that the latter could be a successful com- 
 petitor with the former, except for very short distances, so that the question of 
 the long haul is already settled and the horse and wagon is not a factor in the 
 problem. 
 
 _The changed condition of the population by which one-half is concentrat- 
 ed in certain centers of population makes it undesirable, if it were still possible, 
 to compete with the steam cars, for the universal tendency( of the people 
 outside of the centers of population is to communicate directly with these 
 centers of population which are not far removed. 
 
 The Census Report of 1890 shows that twenty-eight Counties in the 
 
8 
 
 State have a smaller population than they had by the Census of 1880, and — 
 that seven hundred and .sixty Townships and innumerable villages, have fi 
 shared the same fate. It is also true that there no longer remains a single 
 village’in all the State, of any considerable size, that is not located at a railway 
 station. Much the larger part of the one-half of our population which live in 
 cities, live in a few large cities, and the desire of those using horses and wagons 
 for transportation is either to go to the smaller villages situated at the railway 
 stations and then use the steam cars to transport themselves or their products 
 to the main centers of population, or, in case they live sufficiently near the main 
 centers, to transport immediately with horses and wagons; so that any system 
 of roads to be built in this State, so as to best serve the wants of the people, 
 must radiate either from the great centers of population to the circumjacent 
 _ territory, or else from the railway stations of roads leading to these centers of 
 population. These facts would indicate that the wagon roads are and must 
 
 - continue to be more a matter of local interest and local benefit than of State 
 
 interest and general benefit. Rightly considered, the question is a local one, 
 pure and simple. The people who use a road are those living in the immediate 
 neighborhood. Statistics are not at hand.and, perhaps, could not be gathered, 
 but it is safe to say that the average haul on our roads is not over five or ten 
 miles at the outside. No one would pretend for a moment that a pike between 
 Cincinnati and Cleveland was necessary or desirable on account of the through 
 traffic between those cities. Further, it is largely a matter of indifference to 
 the citizens of Cincinnati whether there are good roads leading into Cleveland 
 or not. They are only concerned with the condition of the roads about their 
 own city. Therefore, it cannot be asserted with any degree of truth that the 
 building of roads is a concern of the State at large and that the State as such 
 should raise money by taxation to be expended by her in improving the roads 
 where good roads are lacking. There are two valid objections to this: In the 
 first place, there are Counties in Ohio that have improved their roads at their own 
 expense in the past; they have borne the burden willingly and are now enjoying 
 the benefits. To tax these Counties again for the purpose of building roads in 
 localities where the people, through lack of enterprise or inability, have failed 
 to secure good highways, is unjust and is discouraging to enterprise. Why 
 should Logan County or Hardin County or Union County in which turnpikes 
 have been built by local assessment, be required to contribute money for the 
 purpose of building roads in Geauga County where there is not a single mile 
 of turnpike. It is sometimes urged, in answer to this question, that backward 
 or poor communities should be put on an equality in this respect with their 
 richer and more fortunate neighbors. This argument appears to us utterly 
 fallacious. Charity is an excellent thing and its exercise should not be dis- 
 couraged, and whenever the farmers living in a region already piked, desire, ai 
 
9 
 
 through love of their less fortunate brethren, to donate money for the purpose 
 of improving their means of transit, no one can object to their doing so. This, 
 however, is an entirely different thing from the power of the State being used 
 ‘through taxation in forcing the former to build roads for the latter. Stripped 
 of its disguises, it amounts to levying a forced lvan to be spent away from home. 
 
 There is a second objection to building roads by the State. Every law 
 enacted on this subject will of necessity be permissive and not mandatory. If 
 a community shall express a desire to improve its roads, the law will be so 
 framed as to secure State aid in doing so. The most enthusiastic advocate of 
 road improvement will hardly contend that a community should be forced to 
 build good roads. What will be the practical effect of such a law? Evidently 
 not that the poorest sections of the State will enter upon an era of road build- 
 ing decause the same reasons that keep them from paying-the entire cost will 
 hinder them from assuming part of the cost. In all probability the same com- 
 munities that now build roads and pay the entire cost themselves, will avail 
 
 _ themselves of the opportunity to put part of the burden upon others; and thus 
 
 we shall have the strange spectacle of the poorer sections of the State being 
 taxed to aid those parts of the State that need no aid. The advocates of State 
 
 _ aid in building roads are, therefore, in a dilemma. Either they compel pro- 
 
 gressive communities to aid backward communities (which is manifestly unjust), 
 or they force the latter to aid the former, which is even a still more glaring in- 
 justice. Such persons are, therefore, forced to maintain that the whole State 
 is vitally interested in the improvement of highways in any part of the State— 
 a position we have heretofore shown to be untenable. 
 
 Another objection to State control and construction of highways lies in 
 the creation of additional offices. This tendency is one to be discouraged. 
 There are enough offices in existence now. It is practically and physically 
 impossible for any man or any commission to superintend and oversee the 
 thousands upon thousands of miles of highways in Ohio. _ Either their 
 duties would be nominal, in which case they are useless, or if their duties were 
 real, they would be too numerous and too burdensome to be borne. No central 
 office can be aware of the needs of a community to the same extent as those 
 living in the community, nor could such an office or bureau look after the ex- 
 penditure of money so minutely as persons directly interested can. Besides, 
 with every new office created, there must be a system of checks and balances 
 devised, and the “red tape” thus necessitated, goes far to counterbalance any 
 good effects to be expected. 
 
 y We do not consider that a State officer or commission would be of any great 
 utility as a means of diffusing information relative to road building. The in- 
 habitants of Hamilton County do not need to be told by an officer stationed at 
 the State Capital, that her hills are full of an excellent quality of limestone 
 
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 10 
 
 that can be advantageously used as a macadam in building turnpikes. Hardin ni : 
 County would not, for the first time, become aware of. her gravel banks by : 
 Seeing them located upon a State Geological map; and our unfortunate breth- P 
 
 ren, living in Counties where the mud is axle deep in Spring, could derive but Be 
 
 a melancholy satisfaction in having their lack of road material officially ™ 
 announced from the State House. Books, pamphlets, and numberless néws- — a 
 papers and magazine articles have discussed the theory and practice of road aS 
 building, and it would serve no useful purpose to have this information again . t 
 collected and published. Competent engineers already know how to build to 
 
 good highways, and a State Commission could not add to their knowledge on 
 this subject. 
 
 There is another consideration that should deter us from entering upon any 
 extensive scheme for improving our roads, requiring the expenditure of vast 
 sums of money. It is a significant fact, to which attention has been frequently 
 called, that the history of the developement of the means of transportation 
 shows no instance in which, after a better means has been devised, mankind 
 has gone back to a former method. Every improvement in the means 
 of transportation reduces the comparative value of the former means 
 of transportation and frequently destroys it altogether. ~The bridle path 
 and the pack animal disappear as soon as wheeled vehicles are placed 
 upon the common roads in competition. The oxteam is abandoned 
 for horses, and the post-rider for the stage-coach. These, in turn, all 
 
 \ give way and disappear wherever it is possible to introduce a steam car or an 
 electric car. lt is undeniable that the developement of the railway arrested the 3 
 building of wagon roads on a large scale such as the “National Road” running * 
 through Ohio. The horse-car in cities superceded other methods tor carrying 
 passengers, and the electric and cable cars have about rendered the horse-car 
 obsolete. With the advent of the electric car has come a developement along 
 a line totally unexpected, and that is its extension into the suburban and rural 
 districts. It is too early to predict the extent to which the building of electric 
 railways in the country districts will be carried. The franchises that are be- 
 ing granted for the construction of electric lines connecting different towns 
 would seem to indicate a possible expansion in this direction hitherto unthougnt 
 
 of. There is no reason why these railways should not be carriers of freight as 
 well as passengers, and it is not at all visionary to surmise that asthe steam rail- 
 way superceded horse power for long hauls, so the electric railway may supplant 3 
 it for short hauls. £ 
 
 The following diagram of concentric circles is submitted for the purpose of 
 showing the relative distances which freight may be carried for the same cost 
 by the different means of transportation now in use, that is to say, horses and 
 wagons, electric street cars, steam cars, and steamships upon the Great Lakes. 
 
11 
 
 The inner circle has a radius of five miles and the average cost. of carrying 
 a ton five miles with horses (which is the most expensive of any power in use) 
 is $1.25, being 25 cents per ton per mile. The second circle and the next larger 
 one has a radius of 25 miles and represents the distance which a ton can be car- 
 ried without additional cost by substituting electric cars for horses and wagons. 
 This is estimated at five cents per ton per mile. The third circle represents the 
 distance covered by the steam cars, the radius of the circle being 250 miles. 
 The average cost per ton per mile being only five mills. 
 
 The outer circle has a radius of 1,000 miles and represents the distance 
 which can be reached by the steamships upon our lakes, without additional 
 cost, that is to say the average rate of transportation per ton per mile is 1} 
 mills, which makes for 1,000 miles, $1.25, the same as the cost for carrying a 
 ton five miles with horses. ) 
 
 It will be observed that the proportion between the distances covered by 
 the different kinds of transportation in use is as follows: Beginning with 
 horse power, which is the most expensive and covers the shortest distance, and 
 we have: 
 
12 
 Horse power, 5 miles, cost of transportation perton . . - . $1.25 
 Electric ‘ A eda pete Re Be State at ace a 
 Steal Cars; 2 -2o00-. + pares % CN ten Sera ee 
 Steamships I 000 «ee « “« 81.25 
 on the Lakes} ~~’ Sao ane eae rae 
 
 In other words, by applying electricity, we can carry at the same cost five 
 times as far as with horses. 
 
 By applying steam to cars, we can carry fifty times as far as with horses, 
 and, by applying steamships to deep water, we carry two hundred and fifty 
 times as far as we can with horses, and all at the same cost. 
 
 No matter how much may have been expended for these various means of 
 
 transportation—whether of public money or private money—their value ceases 
 
 as soon as a bettter means of transportation is brought into existence. That 
 the steam cars and electric cars are both better means than horse power, so far 
 as they can be applied, is apparent to any observer. There can be no doubt 
 that the building of steam roads has been a mighty and controlling influence in 
 ‘massing the population as indicated above, and has cheapened transportation to 
 such a low point as to carry a ton fifty times as far as can be carried by horse 
 power at the same cost. 
 
 This may certainly be assumed: That we are only at the threshold of 
 the door that leads to a more extended use of inanimate power to take the 
 
 place of animal power as a means of transportation; that more electric roads 
 
 will be built, that they will be almost innumerable, in fact unlimited, is 
 evidenced by every indication, so that the problem of building the wagon road 
 is made easier and easier by reason of the shortened distances for which horses 
 may be profitably used for purposes of transportation. Five miles will prob- 
 ably measure the distance beyond which the horse cannot be used either for 
 pleasure or for profit. It should also be observed that the ordinary earth road 
 when in good condition, as it is during most of the year, is more suitable for 
 light purposes and pleasure driving than macadamized roads or roads made 
 hard with any kind of metal. By introducing the iron rails and inanimate 
 power for rapid transit, and to take the heavier loads, the. problem is solved. 
 
 This does not, of course, imply that the necessity for roads will entirely 
 cease, but only that their use will be greatly restricted and the extent to which 
 they need be built much curtailed. 
 
 In conclusion we would add that the plan of masterly inactivity may 
 well be adopted by the Legislature of Ohio in regard to general road legislation. 
 The enactments in other states are too recent to enable us to judge what will be 
 the results flowing from them. The times are not propitious for entering upon 
 
 experiments in this direction. There is no agreement among the advocates — ge : 
 
 of new legislation upon the features that should be incorporated therein. 
 
ide ae demand fee legislation and the main features of such eisation | 
 > clearly marked and defined, it is useless to place enactments upon the 
 tatute rolls. . . . We do not feel that such a period has arrived in the history: 
 ‘i he State of Ohio. 
 
 eae ee 
 
 ‘ 
 
 Respectfully subriitied: 
 
 MARTIN Doce, Presi, | 
 DAVID S. OLIVER, Secy., - salient er 
 J. R. DUNLAP, Commissioners. 
 
 D. W. SPRAGUE, J 
 
14 
 
 MINORITY REPORT. 
 
 HON. WILLIAM MCKINLEY, 
 GOVERNOR OF OHIO. 
 The undersigned minority of the Road Commission wish to. supplement 
 the majority report as follows: . . 
 
 It being the established policy of the people to aid in cheapening transpor- _ =. 
 
 tation by deepening rivers, harbors and channels, by building roads and bridges, 
 Streets and viaducts—all by appropriations of public money and by contribut- . 
 ing the use of streets and roads for electric cars—we see no reason why they 
 
 might not as logically and more profitably contribute to the construction of electric ii 
 
 railways,to be and remain a part of the common roads, as to the paving of 
 these roads to be operated with horses and wagons, if in any locality the 
 people should desire to do so. 
 We have already reached the maximum power of horses and other animals 
 for draft, speed and endurance. The only improvement that we could hope 
 to make to lessen the cost of transportation with these animals would be in 
 improving the road-bed. A comparison of the cost will show that the average 
 expenditure required to macadamize a road or make it hard and durable with 
 any kind of metal is fully equal to the cost required to lay down steel rails 
 over which not only wagons and carriages propelled by horses, but cars propelled 
 
 by electric power might also go at a greatly reduced cost in transportation. — ae : 
 
 Gilmore’s Tables show that the same vehicle can be moved over steel rails” 
 with one-eighth of the power that would be required to move it over a 
 
 macadamized road, and with one-eighteenth (1-18) of the power that would ? 
 
 be required to move it over a gravel road, and with one twenty-fifth (1-25) of 
 
 the power that would be required to move it over a common earth road in b, 
 
 good condition. Having given the cost of construction, which is the same in 
 each kind of road; and the cost of moving the vehicle being so much less over 
 
 the steel rail than any other kind of road, and knowing also that the cost of inani-- 
 mate power is less than the cost of animal power, it seems clear that the substi- 
 tution of steel rails for macadamized roads, and inanimate power for animal 
 
 power is destined to cheapen our transportation in the most effectual manner. 
 
 The profitable use of steel rails and the application of inanimate power can 
 
 only be limited by the convenience or inconvenience of terminal facilities, 
 
 because it will always cost much less to move over a smooth iron rail than 
 
 Over a pavement—whatever power may be applied. This advantage may be 
 
 neutralized by the disadvantage of loading and unloading—but that is the only 
 
 thing which, in the long run, will limit the application of this new power. 
 
15 
 
 _ The Hon. John M. Stahl, in a valuable article in the Illinois number of 
 “Good Roads”, has made a conservative estimate of the wagon freight of this 
 country for the year 1892, as 500,000,000 tons. He also estimates that this 
 will be transported over country highways an average distance of eight miles, 
 which would be equivalent to 4,000,000,000 tons one mile. At a cost of 25 
 cents per ton a mile, which would be required to move it by horse power with 
 ordinary vehicles, it would amount to the enormous sum of $1,000,000,000. 
 This may be stated as the cost of operating wagon roads. Now, if by substi- 
 tuting steel rails and inanimate power, there could be a saving of four-fifths of this 
 amount,—which would be much less than the proportion indicated by Gilmore’s 
 Tables,—the cost of moving this tonnage would be only $200,000,000 instead 
 of $1,000,000,000, leaving a gain of $800,000,000. This for a period of ten 
 years would leave a net gain of $8,000,000,000. 
 
 We have made great and unexpected improvements in the means of 
 transportation where we have substituted other power for horse-power, while 
 we have made but little improvement in the cost of transportation where we 
 have adhered to animals as the motive power. To this fact should be added 
 the other important one that millions and millions of dollars have been ex- 
 pended to aid in cheapening transportation with horses while nothing has been 
 expended to aid the means that have been most successful in cheapening our 
 _ rates of transportation; but if we should extend the same liberal policy to the 
 electric car, that we have extended to horses and wagons by providing a free 
 
 track for it to go upon as we have for other vehicles propelled by animals, the 
 _ rate of transportation would be still farther cheapened in the tuture as it has been 
 _in the past, and a lower rate can be so reached than by any other means. 
 
 It seems probable that the application of electricity to the cars upon our 
 streets and roads is destined to do for the short haul what the steam cars have 
 already done for the long haul. So far as electricity has been applied already, 
 it has shown that the cost of transportation by that means is far less than 
 upon the steam cars, which is indicated by the rate of charge for transportation— 
 the common rate upon steam cars being three cents per mile for passengers while 
 in many cases upon the electric cars, it is but one cent or even less per mile. What 
 has been done by way of cheapening transportation of passengers may be done to 
 a great extent in cheapening the transportation of certain kinds of freight, 
 especially the food products that are raised upon the farms and conveyed to 
 the markets for immediate consumption. This may be done either with or 
 without the aid of public money. Neither the steam cars nor the street cars, 
 up to the present time, have received the aid of public money; but one clement 
 _ in the cheapening of transportation, which has assisted the electric street cars, 
 is the use of the public streets and roads, which, though not money, is a con- 
 tribution as valuable as money itself. The cheap rates which prevail upon the 
 
 ~~~ 
 
ri 
 er 
 
 : ‘ saath tal x, 6 ids re. 
 PCS OPTI RE ; , y ; t ' 
 
 Rae PS EEC EEA nL ae 
 
 16 
 
 so that public aid, though not public money, has been given—and Proper e: 
 given—to cheapen transportation by that means. i 
 The economical advantages are so greatly in favor of steel rails and electric 
 power that no objection can be sustained against their introduction unless 
 it rests upon the supposed inconveniences of using this new means in the most 
 commodious manner. In all our great cities and most of our smaller ones, 
 double tracks are already laid and are being rapidly extended to the suburbs tor 
 considerable distances, from ten to fifteen miles; their use at the present time 
 is entirely confined to the matter of carrying passengers, but after midnight 
 passenger traffic is over, and from that time until five o’clock in the morning ~ 
 these tracks are idle and the streets vacant. During that time they could be 
 used to great advantage and with great economy for transporting freight and : 
 food products placed upon trail cars, to various markets and other places of 
 distribution in the centers of population; so that the question of introducing | 
 steel rails and electric power is only a question of extension. The nucleus 
 of the system already exists, and its use can undoubtedly be extended weg 
 great advantage. . 
 
 “The Iron Horse was fleet, but in the chase 
 The Lightning Steed appears and wins the race.” 
 
 MARTIN DODGE. 
 D. W. SPRAGUE: 
 
APPENDIX A. 
 
 4 z Cost of 
 = . . | = ‘ Amt. raised moving 
 KIND OF: - ’ IN Cost No. of miles y taxation Freight 
 RO ROR. p MATERIALS FOUND, 4 ocr mile, | Mecadamiocd. ie ane - ght 
 he ver mile, 
 aire: .......| Limestone, Lron Rock. $2560 220) 
 bie Seas |LaEMRESTOTIO vie aee trv ostacee.--6 1500 450 
 pieecaaee (TR VOUT cor tk caee vacc sess aoe wanes cvevense None 
 ..|Gravel .. Syuaer ranveenned None. 
 po SAS 8) eg ryeaie Sarees Limestoné, Grav., Sandstone 2500 15 
 eee ss | rave ..|Gravel-. Serie eeauaa 2500 350 
 . wr] Limestone weccccsescsesosceee 4000 to 6500 130 
 ics EOE bia essdaetecish ini vesetoe 2200 f 500 
 Ea Rapti Banger Te Sand, ‘Limestone. Re Si eee Very few. 
 PIMA RPOL cocoa spesasaniees 2500 Grav. Roads. 
 ws sesaeees ess. |Tavel, Lim stone .....- 2500 275 
 Cat hat Oe Stone, Gravel..... ... .-... 2000 500 
 tea ua Stone, Gravel.............. 2500 500 Gravel 
 PER ener Limestone, Grav. Sand)................. |. One half. 
 Ce Setes Le seg \.. |None (Grav.) 
 2500 ; 20 
 Binds ie tht wn aces None.” 
 1200 to 1500} 1000 Gravel. - 
 WE Best 10 or 12 
 2000 39 
 
 pasecctaeepe cneee | secs eeeees sas veeee freemen eeras. see seeeeel ie 
 
 1200: to 2000 None. 
 .| 2800 
 
 400 t 
 2400 108 (298 Grav.) 
 3000 8 or4 of Grav 
 
 Dirt and Gravel.. 
 Mac. — Grav... 
 
 Racha aapimeccdees or 
 cde veskaieees None. 
 
 i 
 
 1000 to 2000 6 
 
 rat 5000 700 
 AOD A fice svavcscuotaseuets 
 
 3000 300 
 
 5000 25 
 
 3200 35 
 
 Sete cece | teeees Fenee droves. ts vaveres [arrest seebes -peeessseseessesesesonse | ne aotsene eo reacns | vaseee see aestetieseee | sasesevesned seeneane 
 
 .| Limestone, Sandstone..|.................| "None. 
 
 tof Rete REN ee 7 Sandstone »ccccsiee~sseces “ 9000 
 Ryerss NOVI Rs ce tas saeco Heo eat None 
 4a eae Limestone 5000 121% 
 ashe Ne cmeaales TRVGR sense peinradlacesarvep | uesksaiat ckseser. None : 
 ROB OEE Dy x seas Roan cre ea ee Nae ea ON ae None. 
 Sandstone, Grav., Limestone 3000 ey (25 Grav:) 15000 10 to 203 
 Chrawek caccmcsc Sais coos taseieaes beste 29 (Nat. Pike) 23170 20¢ 
 Pe pM aoe Gravel... .{1500 to 3500/440 with G Grav}25000 to 30000}............ 
 saNe Hard na feta peng Cabana tn” FOO OO 15000 to20000) ..cseses eee 
 Mages Rasstnes Gravel ........ mY 1500 400 Gravel. QOOST rela eas : 
 rans PAGS ates gtoa | ae Wp Ma daels coo epee aa bege dks pole cee arise sneee ee iebny ONG al oa eek sees ER YAS ec 
 ‘Dirt and Gravel..|Grav., Blue Limestone 1500 ps, Nae ers [vanes ore nerg eee Geert SPs 
 .. |Dirt and Clay...... Sandstone, Grav.......... 7625 2 12000 to 15000)............ 
 {Dirt Gravel, Limestone....... 2500 400 Gravel 70000 8 to lic 
 RBTIGSLONG corsa coven srsteaevas coor eats None. MOOQO.s8shsecteas 
 «|Gravel, Stone.........0- 1500 632 ade 30000 18¢ 
 Limestone LPS PERERA fan Pest a8 1d sfikoue PaaS 
 Stone, Gravel .............. 2000 % of all roads|. BRIE te ae eta 
 Limestone, Spdrtone: 2500 to 4000 None. “SROBL Anh eee 
 Stone, Gravel. Py chi ceeas ie berearen pec kN ONG 12000 25 
 Limestone, Gravel....... 10000 43 195010 25¢ 
 Limestone, Sandstone.. 5000 12 12000 15 to 40¢ 
 ISOM Oa vrcteat ces netirtessas tos tide yack cotoesete 2 WR ie hreee ee ER Oe 
 INTO hese; sa camera vines tacdess ert sent On che ae None. 3500 10¢ 
 Gravel 1600 None. 27750 io to 20¢ 
 Stone, Gravel............... 1000 150 TLODQ0S Gases PS 
 Stone, Gravel 1800 5 PED OU: oar peo naa. 2S 
 xravel, Stone aati None. 25000 to 30000} 15e 
 Stone, Gravel . 2500 to 6000} 75. to 100 CD) Regen begets ot 
 one.. ik Pad 45 Sig pmeea i a 
 Limeston None PAU) 1S aie dl Hacer ee 
 tone, Grave 200 20000 25¢ 
 a BE Kinin UR a coaeiaeuies now ocd ZOOOO sree Be 
 Gravel 45) Gravel.-| 238000 10¢ 
 ped Sage 2 TO000 ieee keds 
 on aE pet any None. Bestk Caetitea ae eUe 
 Peery thinks: needed... 7000. | 2 SOO = ti otter Seti 
 ....{Gravel, Stone... 1500 8 to 10 10700 10¢ 
 Limestone Sandstone, Grav.) oo sce . None. ~~ 7000 25e 
 
 yA ase 
 43 (1800Grav.) 25000 15 to 20¢ 
 
 x 5 tes ateines ies 
 tabuegsteaee! one.. ¥ ) 20 to 30¢ 
 ae None. TBOOO at cae 
 
 16.3 wy GW 81 Tayeuil Neneiones We 
 
The following diagram of concentric. circles is submitted for the ditiee of 
 showing the relative distances which freight may be carried. for the same cost by 
 the different means of transportation ncw in use, that 1s to say, horses and 
 wagons, electric street cars, steam cars, and steamships upon the Great Lakes. 
 
 The inner circle has a radius of five miles and the average cost of carrying 
 a ton five miles with horses (which ts the most expensive of any power in use) 
 is $1.25, being 25 cents per ton per mile. The secord circle and the next larger 
 one has a radius of 25 miles and represents the distance-which a ton can be 
 carried without additional cost hy substituting electric cars for horses and 
 wagons. This is estimated at five cents per ton per mile, The third circle rep- 
 resents the distance covered hy the steam cars, the radius of the circle eee 
 250 miles. The average cost 1a ton per mile being only Hue malls. : 
 
 The outer circle has a badhis of 1,000 miles ae represents the distance 
 which can be reached by the steamships upon our lakes, without additional cost, 
 that ts to say the average rate of transportation per ton per mile 1s I 1-4 ‘mills, 
 which makes for 1,000 miles, $1.25, the same as the cost for car rying a ton ages 
 miles with horses. 
 
 It will be observed that the proportion between the distances covered by f the 
 afferent kinds of transportation 1n use tsas follows: -— Beginning with horse 
 power, which 1s the most expensive and covers the shortest distance, i we ha 
 
 Horse power, . . , 5 miles, cost of sepa per ton 
 BCCI NS io Cas ao hk ee x Me Oe 
 Steam cars S350. her 4 pases ee a ask 
 
 _ Steamship on the Lakes 1000 “ a Ro B: 
 
) ane 
 
 ‘Date Due 
 
 Bn 
 
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 * te Ap % : Ree! . 
 , q “ ‘ £ 4 oR Sl veh. reat 6 RY Fat St a Co P - ie 
 t ei , inp, yy rn ts ¥ a % _ ; \ ; ; 
 
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The Ohio State University 
 
 inulin 
 
 29 4 
 
 REPORT OF THE OHIO ROAD COMMISSION 
 
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