priated $2,000 for the same purpose. In 1909 the last Territorial Legislature of New Mexico appropriated $600 toward this work, and in 1911 the Legislature of Missouri appropriated $3,000 to this purpose. In the meantime, the question of establishing and adopting a Cross-State Highway had arisen in Missouri, and there was sharp competition by three rival lines, with the result that the State Board of Agriculture adopted the Central, or "College Route," as the First Cross-State Highway. This route, while substantially following the route of the Boonslick and Santa Fe Trail across the State, varies at many points, some times for several miles. In Howard County, for instance, two rival lines were adopted, and there was no thought or pretense of adopting the Santa Fe Trail in its original integrity as part of either of these alternative routes. In April, 1912, the National Old Trails Road Association adopted in Missouri the "First Cross-State Highway" from St. Louis to Kansas City (approximating the Boonslick Road, Old Santa Fe Trail.) The marking and monumenting as provided for in the Act of the Missouri Legislature did not pretend to follow the line of the First Cross-State Highway, now the National Old Trails Road-the road which has been permanently located and signposted from Los Angeles to St. Louis, and is being permanently constructed. The Act appropriating the money for marking had reference only to the Santa Fe Trail, and in many places the monuments are miles away from "The Old Trails Road," being as much as 15 to 18 miles south of the Western terminus of the N. O. T. in this State. In Kansas the "National Old Trails Road" varies at many places from the Santa Fe Trail, owing to the topography of the country, etc., and the marking or monumenting in that State also follows the "Santa Fe Trail" substantially, but not accurately, regardless of the National Old Trails Road. Now, why not remove these monuments and place them where they would serve some useful purpose? CHAPTER XXII Dedication of the Boonville, Missouri, Bridge. Address of J. M. Lowe, on the Occasion of this Great Red Letter Day in the History of Booneville and of the State. Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen-I congratulate you upon this red-letter day in the history of Boonville. Some of you, no doubt, have looked forward to this great day with fond but doubtful anticipation for a great, great while. If there be those who pay little regard to celebrations and dedications like this, I do not agree with them. If there be those who deem it unwise to mix "sentiment" with the every-day-affairs of life, I do not agree with them. If there be those whose sordid souls never rise above a very limited horizon, and regard "Idealism" as only fit for the indulgence of women and "visionaries," I do not belong with them. If there be those backward looking, pessimistic souls whose horizon is limited by their front dooryard, I do not agree with them. 66 On this occasion you will recall, no doubt, that great August day in 1907, when you met in Jefferson City in one of the greatest conventions of any character that ever called the people together, and resolutely fought out and won the location of the cross-state highway." What a wonderful day that was, and how we love to to recall it! From that day on to this, some of us have fought and struggled day after day looking toward the accomplishment of the great project then inaugurated. And some of you also attended that other red-letter day in the history of this road, when we met in the most remarkable road convention, perhaps, ever held in the United States, at Kansas City, Mo., on the 16th and 17th days of April, 1912, and there launched the first National Organization pledged to the building of a great paved highway from Washington City to Los Angeles on the Pacific, and christened it "The National Old Trails Road." So we were first in organizing a State Good Roads Association; we were first in the organization of a National Association which had for its purposes the building and maintenance of a great National Highway System throughout the length and breadth of the United States, in April, 1912. The historic mile-stones of this old road are worth recalling and commemorating, together with the great work you are today dedicating. Let me recall them briefly in their order. This road was first Conceived by George Washington prior to 1800. Financed by Act of Congress admitting Ohio into the Union in 1802. Established by Act of Congress by almost unanimous vote and approved by Thos. Jefferson in 1806. Extended by repeated Acts of Congress to the Mississippi River at St. Louis; built and maintained by Act of Congress 1806 to 1837. Extended by Act of Congress by an Act introduced by Thos. H. Taken over, adopted and christened "The National Old Trails Road," at Kansas City, Mo., in convention assembled April 16-17, 1912. Completely paved to St. Louis 1923. It was the first and only National Road ever built and maintained by the Government. It is the first and only National Road now established by Acts of Congress nearly entirely across the Continent. It is completely paved across the first six statesor one-half of the states through which it runs. Its memorial character is also worthy of consideration. Our purpose always has been and is, that it shall remain a memorial for all time to come to the Soldiers of the American Revolution, the Soldiers on both sides in the great Civil War, to the Soldiers, Sailors and Marines of the great World War, and to the Pioneer Men and Women who blazed its way and left the impress of their feet. upon its surface which a thousand years will not be able to eradicate. And yet, while I hesitate to say anything on this gala occasion that might seem out of place, yet there be those whom I have described above, in a general way, who would now hawk at, desecrate, and destroy this great work in which we, and a great host of others, have labored so long to develop and perpetuate. But on this occasion we have met more expressly for the specific purpose of dedicating this bridge, one of the essential links in this great Highway. It is with profound pleasure that in this connection I mention the Banquet in Columbia in that memorable gathering when the first steps were really taken toward the construction of this splendid and magnificent bridge. At the close of a brief and eloquent address by your great citizen, Col. T. A. Johnson, Superintendent of the Prize Military School in the United States, he announced that he was ready to subscribe $10,000 toward its construction; and we came so near tearing the house down with the applause which followed that I knew the question was settled, and that this bridge would speedily follow. The funds were readily subscribed and steps were immediately taken for its construction. It has been stated in the Press that the State of Missouri, together with the Federal Government under the Federal Aid Act, had financed its Construction. Let me state 66 with emphasis that this is not true. The State of Missouri from its $60,000,000 road fund, or from any other source, has never contributed one dollar toward the building of this bridge, or either of the other three bridges now in process of construction at Glasgow, Waverly and Lexington. On the contrary, it is but fair to claim and to state the truth, that they were financed by the National Old Trails Road counties and towns through which the road runs, and by individual contributions, together with Federal Aid. Is it too much or improper to claim that but for these facts the Missouri River, which has 'Rolled unvexed to the Sea" ever since. the "Stars sang together at Creation's Birth," is now being spanned by this bridge, and the three other magnificent bridges along side the National Old Trails Road between Boonville and Kansas City, a distance of about one hundred and thirty miles, and that another free bridge will soon be acquired at Kansas City, with the prospect of soon taking over the Toll Bridge at St. Charles and making it free-thus tying together not only the Interstate roads crossing the State, but the entire road system of the State? What, let me ask, has materialized these great movements, except the Idealism of the people who so early enlisted in this great campaign, and who have adhered to it until its consummation is well nigh complete? The pessimistic, non-sentimental crowd above referred to, or their descendants, will no doubt, when the Great Arch Angel Gabriel shall stand with one foot upon the sea and one upon the land and shall declare that time shall be no more, will declare that "This is entirely too sudden! The country is not prepared for it! Its cost will be prohibitive! The people are not ready for it!" and will demand a postponement to a better and more opportune time-"A more convenient season. But they will be swept away into that oblivion to which they are so well entitled. This brood of spineless individuals who finally crept into the band wagon have always sought to block the onward march of Christian civilization in both material and spiritual affairs. They are the blood clot on humanities brain. They are the laggards and drones who forever hang on the outskirts of the march of civilization. They are men who have never won a victory on any of life's great battle fields. They never gave birth to a great purpose, nor added anything worth while to the general good of humanity. They never offered cool water to parched lips, nor planted hope in the hearts of the dying. They never cut the brambles and thorns, nor smoothed the rough places in life's pathway. They never inspired a line worth remembering nor added anything of value to the world's literature. If the principles which dominate them had been the only ones to escape from Pandora's Box-if optimism, hope, faith, imagination, "Idealism," if you please, had not opposed them from the beginning, the world would have indeed and in fact been nothing but a mad house. All the joys of life, all the hopes of the future would have been destroyed. The greatest Idealist that ever walked the earth was the Immortal Nazarene, whom we all worship. Man, now but little lower than the Angels, would then have been but little higher than the brute. Let the Idealist go "With his head in the Clouds, hugging to his heart the primitive flower engendered by a Noble Ambition," as stated by Balzac, if you will; it is infinitely better than to be like the "Eyeless Mole," which ever burrows in the earth. I would, had I the power, drive it out of the hearts of all and back to its native hell, its congenial habitat. "Keep your eyes toward the sunrise, and your wagon hitched to a star," is the only safe and sane rule of life. The man without sentiment, without ideals, without vision, is practically dead, and had as well have never lived. Victor Hugo's hero of the French Revolution, walking his dungeon cell the night before his execution, exclaimed "My motto is: Always forward-if God had wanted man to go backward he would have put an eye in the back of his head. Let us always look toward the Sunrise, Development, Birth." It is the Sunrise of Hope which has no night. Standing by the side of this Old Road and looking down toward the "end of the Trail," I see it paved at least fifty feet in width, widened by the addition of at least one hundred feet in depth on either side of it; splendidly parked and ornamented with trees, shrubbery, and flowers; monumented and marked along its borders with appropriate devices. A great writer has said, "What kills propaganda, (in general) is the obvious purpose behind it. One little admixture of self interest and your effort is wasted." This was the foundation principle upon which our Association has stood from the beginning. Some small people have said in criticism of us: "It is true that they stand for the construction of one road, but we favor an enlarged system of roads." Why, bless their hearts, this Association introduced the first bill in Congress since 1824, declaring in favor of establishing a great splendid system of National Highways to be built and maintained forever by the Government throughout the whole of the United States. Then, we stood staunchly and earnestly for the $60,000,000 bond issue in this State, to be applied to the building of a great State System of roads, and now, when a final campaign is on to increase the Automobile Tax fifty per cent, and to levy a two cent per gallon tax on gasoline for the purpose of raising an additional fund to go. toward the completion of this State System, we appeal to those |