Evening Republican, Volume 59, Number 92, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 May 1917 — Good Roads and What They Mean. [ARTICLE]

Good Roads and What They Mean.

A gentleman from the north eml of the county was a caller at the Republican office today, who had driven to this city in an automobile. Naturally the conversation turned to roads and we found that the gentlemans in question was very much disgusted with wihat he had to put up with on his way to this'place. In many places the roads were almost impassible. “Poor roads b.-twaen Rensselaer and the other towns of the county are losing for the Rensselaer business men hundreds of dollars a year,” he stated. Residents of the north end of the county find it a great deal more convenient and quicker to go still further north to Lowell and Valparaiso to do their trading. According to our informant the magnitude of business .being enjoyed by cities outside of Jasper county from this county is almost inconceivable, and this condition is due alone to some of the miserable roads that still exist within our boundaries. When told that a great number of new roads were to 'be built right away connecting Jasper county with the north end of the county and that many other sections of the county would also have new thoc oughfares, he remarked that the habit formed by shopping people of goin" to the north where they could dnjoy the wonderful roads would be hard . to overcome and would take a long time. “The sooner you get those new roads the better off your merchants and your town will be. The peopje must have the goods bat they are going where it is most convenient for them.”

Jasper county has borne the reputation for some time of having bad roads and there has .been criticism both ''ust and unjust. There are places in the county where everything possible has been done to better the conditions, but it has been a Herculean task and all the ingenuity of road builders has been used in an attempt to better them and it is confidently expected that the new roads that have been voted will do away with the present state of affairs and connect up the entire county in such a way that the business that should be ramsacted entirely within ur own boundaries will cease to go to other points.