CO-OPERATION IN HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION
•'FEDERAL AID FOR STATES AND STATE AID FOR COUNTIES WILL SECURE i	ADEQUATE SYSTEMS FOR NATIONAL DEFENSE .
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By Win. F. Cocke,
State Road Commissioner of Florida.
Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen:
The subject of "Co-operation of Counties in Bridge Building" has been assigned me for this occasion, but in view of the present national crisis I will go beyond this limit, if you will permit me, and I will attempt to point out why, at this time in particular, compulsory co-operation is just as important in highway and bridge construction and maintenance as compulsory military training and service.
All must recognize that in a time like the present individuality must, to a large extent, be set aside and be replaced by a firm co-ordination of all available forces.
Carrying out this principle, the State must be subservient to the control of the National Government, and the county, in turn, must be subservient to the control of the State.
At this time all private and local interests must be lost sight of, and such Interests must be merged into the common interest,
welfare and defense of the State and Nation.
MILITARY FUNCTION OF ROADS In this connection I will read the following extract from
the leading editorial in "Good Roads" magazine of May lk, 1G17, under the caption,"Seacoast ahd Border Highways for Military Purposes:"
"More than once during the past few years attention has been called in these columns to the military function of roads. A few weeks ago it was pointed out also that the highways were important in war for other than strictly military purposes - that no small part of the increased production and better distribution of food stuffs would depend upon the existence of adequate road facilities.
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