=Office of Public Roads Inquiry.=--A very few lines of the Congressional Record serves to introduce the beginning of a great instrumentality for good roads in America. On January 26, 1893, Representative Deborow introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives, “instructing the committee on agriculture to incorporate in the agricultural appropriation the sum of $15,000 to be expended for the purpose of making investigations for a better system of roads.”[134] On the same day Representative Lewis presented a similar resolution “instructing the committee on agriculture to incorporate in the bill making appropriations for the Agricultural Department a clause authorizing the Secretary to make inquiry regarding public roads.”[135] Both resolutions were referred to the committee on agriculture. As a final result a statute carrying an appropriation of $10,000 was approved March 3, 1893. Under this statute the Office of Public Roads Inquiries was instituted, October 3, 1893, with “General Roy Stone, of New York, recognized as a superior civil engineer, and thoroughly identified with the popular movement toward the improvement of the highways in the several states, in charge.”[136] The Letter of Instructions of the Secretary of Agriculture to General Stone upon his appointment summarizes the statute and defines the object and scope of the inquiry to be made. The last paragraph of the instructions shows that the old theory of “state sovereignty,” still had a place in the mind of the Secretary, and it was not for several years that this office did more than the mere collection of information relative to roads. The letter follows:[137] U. S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Secretary, Washington, D. C., October 3, 1893. Sir: You have been this day appointed to supervise and carry out the investigations pursuant to the statute approved March 3, 1893, which has four branches: (1) To make inquiries in regard to the systems of road management throughout the United States. (2) To make investigations in regard to the best method of road-making. (3) To prepare didactic publications on this subject, suitable for distribution. (4) To assist the agricultural colleges and experiment stations in disseminating information on this subject. It will not be profitable to enter upon all of these points at first. The work under the appropriation will need to be of gradual growth, conducted at all times economically. Therefore, it is not expected that there will be any considerable force of clerical help, and aside from your salary, no considerable expenditure for the present. It is understood that you have at your command the data for a compilation of the laws of several of the states, upon which their road systems are based. It should be your first duty, therefore, to make such collection complete, and prepare a bulletin on that subject.