The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1853-01-29
rrufn Street.

Main street,.
We call attention to Us communication
relative TO improving NJ lin street. His re-
marks are practical and well timed. II is
unnecessary to describe the condition OF
VI in street for the purpose of exhibiting the
necessity of its speedy improvement. To
sum up the whole Of its miserably dark fea-
lures an one expression--its condition is
disgrace TO the city-and it is very hard for
any one street to disgrace place. wherein
al the streets are but elongated mud holes.
But Main street is the prominent thorough
far of Evansville, and on the completion OF the
Canal there will be just about twenty We
hicles passing over it, 10 where there is one
now. 1t must be placed in travelling order
ere that time, and submit Us reflections
in view of the fact.
As ]. remarks, the planking of Main street
has proven failure. We were one who
strongly urged the planking of this street,
as matter of economy, elegance, and CON-
iort,-but by plansins we did not mean the
cheap strewiDg 4 a promiscuous lot Of
boards on earth, according to the very eco
nomical plan upon which the business was
done. We were advocating such plan as
would give us beautiful thorousLfare like
the planked streets Of Cleveland and of Sc
veral other places. This experiment has
proven a failure and now it rests with the
Council to adopt some other plan to improve
the street. With J. we urge speedy action.
IFor the Evansville Journal
1t must be apparent to every citizen tina,
something must be done to improve Main
street before next autumn. The experiment,
of planking it has proved failure, and a
rather costly one too. Plank was put on
because it was cheaper than stone. 1t wa;
only cheaper than stone because the neces
sary expense to make it substantial was moi
incurred. Had plank, three inches thick by
six wide, been well spiked down to stills fou
by eight, each plank resting on three stills
and the whole resting on bed of gravel ST,
inches deep, the street would have beer
good until the plank wore out or decayed.
But this would have been no cheaper thar
stone. Gravel, stills and spikes, will be ne
cessary to keep the planks now on the stree
firm in their place, and it can hardly be ina
gined that any citizen would propose to incu
the expense.
Then the question is, what shall be done
1t is believed that none would favor MICA.
damiziRg with broken stone. We must there
fore cover the street with broken stone o.
pave it with stone or boulders. Gravel woul,
be cheapest, and probably boulders the mos
costly, but pavement made of small boul
ders is so far superior to one made of an,
other material to be had in the West, a
to justify the additional expenditure, f no
be, the means of the parties directly in
terested
do not pretend to any scientific informa
ton on the subject, nor to have had means @
extensive observation, but " i'll venture tn
opinion, that with screened gravel (such ora
vel as can be procured on the oppcs tie side c
the rlver) the street can be made as good.
not better than by paving it with stones in tn
orIiniry way. twill be more ao eeable 4
the eye, less noisy, smoother, not more dust
in sumner nor muddy in winter, and. VIII
the same expenditure for repairs, quite as du
rable, il not more so than the besi stone na
vement.
Pave Main street from first to eighth, wit
stone in the ordinary way, and cover Locu:
street, from FIRST to eighth. with gravel, whs
on horseback, or in buggy, or omnibus, q
what drayman or cartman, would take Mai
street from the depot to the wharf or iror
wharf to the depotl The inhabitants of Mai
street would not be much annoyed by the
noise and confusion, unless business require
them to 60 there.
If stone pavement is made, the whole COS
must be incurred at once. Gravel, six incbs