The state chronicle. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1883-1893, 1884-02-16
ROCK Cru SHING.
How Ballast for the Raleigh and Gas-
ton Road is Made--A Ride Through


Franklin.
Special Correspondence Of the Chronicle.
FRANKLINTON, February IA long
ride through Franklin county the other
day demonstrated the fact fully to my
mind that the old county's people, though
not in possession OF enough railroads, are
fully awake to their own interests, and
keep well posted to the actions of the
outside world. On the table of almost
every house in the county can be found
some OF the leading papers and periodicals
of the day, and the best sign Of progress
and refinement people can boast. is to
be surrounded by newspapers.
OF one thing l have to complain-the
wretched and almost impossible roads 1t
would seem that the yearly recurrence OF
this same evil would have demonstrated to
the people the necessity Sf building
railroad from this place to the county seat.
The distance is about ten miles, but in the
present state of the road, it is something
indeterminahle. The "Jehu' that drove me
over, when I asked just before starting if
the roads were bad. replied that they were
mot so very bad.'' We had not gotten =
mile out of town when the buggy broke,
the horse banked, and our joints so sore
from plunging and pulling back and forth
in the ruts and holes of this mot very
ence. l want to know what the people
can become accustomed to if that road is
not very bad The mud is very nearly a
foot deep, sticky like putty, and of pc
culiar red color that nothing save strong
soapsuds will erase from clothing. My
overcoat has been & iven to the Ladies'
Missionary Association at this place. l do
not know what disposition they will make
of it..
One of the objects Of interest in and
around our town is the rock crushing ma
chine about mile up the railroad from
this place. The Raleigh and CASTOR Rail-
road are ballasting their road bed with
the rock crushed. In company with the
polite Mr.. Horton, engineer of the train at
the crusher, I went to look at the machine
and appurtenances. had formed an idea
that the rock was ground into loose pow
der, as corn is, between two rapidly re-
volving surfaces. Such is not the case.
The mill does not revolve at all. It is a
solid cylindrical shaped piece OF iron,
| placed in circular iron box, sloping at the
| sides like a funnel. The solid piece of
| iron, or the crusher, is moved back aud
! forth with slight horizontal movements
! inside OF this iron box, and catches the
! rock between it and the sides of the box.
| The sides being oblique, the rock breaks
into small fragments by reason Of the
pressure. One would expect to see a very
complex and unwieldy piece Of machinery,
whereas, in fact, it is much more simple
!
pacity of the machine is about one car
load of the ballast each forty-five minutes.
1t is propelled by 25-horse power en-.
| gine. Dynamite is used in blasting and
| loosening up the rock, and the reports OF
! the explosions are sometimes distinctly
| audible at a distance Of twelve or fifteen
| miles.
| Business in the town Of Franklinton is
''picking up" as the travellers term it
It is to be regretted, however, that much
OF the selling trade that is done i. on time
and that, too, on the mortgage system
The mortgager is held down to pretty
close limits, still it is = baneful and evi
eystem that ought to be eradicated. The
farmers are compelled to resort to the
method Of mortgaging this year. There
are no provisions scarcely in the county
and the crop of the past year was 81
nearly a failure that there is no money t
buy with. S.