Most of the roads of Santo Domingo can be called roads only by courtesy. They are generally little more than trails of greater or less width. The larger receipts enjoyed by the government since the customs collections were taken over by Americans in 1905, have caused a little improvement. Thus, a first-class macadam road has been constructed from Santo Domingo City to San Cristobal, a distance of sixteen miles; the old trail from Santo Domingo to San Pedro de Macoris has become available for automobiles; and the royal road in the Cibao from La Vega through Moca and Santiago to Monte Cristi, a distance of about 100 miles, formerly a horror, has been converted into a fair dirt road. The amount of work to be done appears all the more appalling when it is considered that in the small island of Jamaica, less than one-fourth the size of the Dominican Republic, there are 1000 miles of fine roads. The American authorities in the island are giving considerable attention to the improvement of the principal highways around and between the more important cities, and valuable work is being done. By an executive order of November 23, 1917, the military governor appropriated $650,000, to be expended on portions of a trunk road which is ultimately to connect Santo Domingo, La Vega, Moca, Santiago and Monte Cristi. The majority of the roads and trails have scarcely been touched since their course was fixed, centuries ago. Occasionally the abutting property owners or an energetic communal chief cut away encroaching vegetation or drained an unusually bad bog or threw dirt from the sides of the road to the middle in order to raise it above water level in the wet season, but such instances of civic thoughtfulness have been only too infrequent.