The Globe-republican. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1889-1910, 1890-11-05
ROAO.MAKlNG.
Soma Practical Hints on Very 1mpor'
tant subject.

Some Practical Hints on very A"P"'-
tant subject.
The following extracts from The En-
oineering and Building Records prize
ESSAY on road-making tby s. C. Ihomp'
son, New York;, contain many Valu'
able facts:
Aman can walk up slope OF loo In
100 and a horse or mule can ascend an
incline of 100 in It's, and it has oeen
found by experiment that a horse pull
ing his maximum load on lever can
mil but four-fifths as much if the slope
is made 1 in so. and this gradually
lessons until with slope of in ~ ne
can draw but one-fourth as much as his
level load. The maximum grade es-
tablisbed by the French Governments
board of engineers is l in 20. The Holy
head road in Wales uses 1 IN ~ as
maximum, except in two cases. Inc
road over the Simplon Pass averages
Log on Italian side, and to Il on SWISS
side. with one case of to r. and in this
State several turnpike roads are limited
by law to 1 in IL. In laying out road'
with regard to grades, have a coutlnu-
Gus inclination in one direction and 90
not allow any counter grades, Tor. In as
cending. each foot descended on coun-
ter grade means just so much more rise
to be overcome.
Where the roadway is too wide it usual
ly results in no part being kept in good
repair, while if it was narrowed the
whole could be kept in firsr-class condl-
ton at less expense. and well-kept
road of even twenty feet width is far
preferable to road but half maintained
of double the width. In laying cut it
may be advisable to take a strip con-
siderably wider than the intended road.
bed. SO as to provide for possible con-
tingencies in the future when the land
becomes more valuable. Lay out srfi1-
GENTLY wide, but build only SO much as
can be kept in thorough repair. The
essential requirements of good road
bed are that it shall be practically un-
yielding-smooth on the surface, and
impervious to water-and without these
requirements there can be but little
durability.
For surface draining, bitches should
be provided along each side Of the road
having sufficient fall to promptly carry
away any water that reaches them.
Where it becomes necessary to carry the
water across the roadway. culverts
should be provided. All drains should
have a continuous fall throughout their
entire length. and the size will depend
upon the inclination and the amount Of
water they are expected to carry. In
portions of the country where gravel is
easily obtained very satisfactory road
can be made by making the surface for
a greater or less depth of gravel.
Prepare the foundation SO as to allow
for prompt drainage, and shape as the
finished road is intended to be; make
the side of the road planes, and not
curves, and then roll thoroughly to get
a solid foundation. Put on layer of
gravel from six inches to eight inches
in thickness, sprinkle thoroughly and
roll until very compact and firm. Next
spread another layer from four to six
inches of gravel, and sprinkle and roll
until the desired hardness and smooth
ness are obtained. If the gravel has no
binding material in it, a sufficient
amount may be incorporated in the last
layer to cause it to take a good b ond.
Where it is possible to get blue gravel
or hard pan and clean bank gravel, the
two can be so mixed as to give surface
almost like concrete in hardness. When
the two are used together two-horse
grooved roller for the first layer will bs
found very effective, and the material
should be quite wet while rolling. The
surface can then be finished with a
steam roller, or with smooth roller
sufficiently loaded to give the requisite
weight. In completing the surface of a
gravel or other road where rolling is
required. the weight of the roller should
be as mu.h per inch as the weight per
inch on the tire of the heaviest vehicle
likely to pass over. it. For ordinary
traffic a very durable and economical
surface can be thus produced.