Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1892-04-08
Dirt Roads.

aSeAsA> ~ SNt-A sAtS AN4 - IA a.
By this term is meant those roads
which are formed by the natural soil
found in the line of the roadway. They
are so common as TO he almost our only
roads outside of town and city limits,
and will for many years be used largely
in country districts. and especially on
the lines Of crossroads which connect the
main highways. Dirt roads, at their
best, are greatly inferior to macadam
and Telford roads in every essential Of a
good highway; in durability. cost of
maintenance, drainage, tractiye qual.
titles. and, in many locations, in point
OF economy also. But the
dirt road is here, and, the public hand
must be directed to its treatment The
first and most important thing necessary
for the maintenance Of dirt road may
be stated in single word-drainage 1t
is the one thing that can neither be dis
pensed with nor neglected. Most dirt is
soluble, and is easily displaced under the
softeniDg Influence of rain, and this pro-
cess is fastened in the dirt road by the
passing OF heavy wagons over the wet
surface. On every mile of roadway
within the nited States there falls each
year an average of q 900 tons of water
a heavy limpid fluid, always directing
itself to the nearest outlet, and seeking
the lowest level. Water is hard to con-
ine and easy to release, and yet. through
sheer neglect Of the simplest principles
OF drainage, water is the most active
destroyer of our country roads.
In providing for the drainage Of a dirt
road we should first consider the mate
rial OF which the roadway is composed.
If heavy, viscous clay predominates,
the ordinary side bitches should be Of
good depth, and will even then, 10 many
cases. be inadequate for thorough drain
age without the addition of cent re-
drain running midway between, and
parallel with the side-ditches. The CEN
tire drain should Of course be filled with
loose irregular boulders, cobble- stones,
broken bricks, or similar filling. cover
ing line of tiles or fascines at the bot
tom, and should be connected with the
side bitches by cross drains carrying the
water outward from the centre drain at
proper intervals along the .length Of
the roadway. Centre-drains,
though often greatly needed for the
improvement OF country roads, are not in
common use. They add somewhat to
the cost Of the roadway, but, in most
cases, considerable more to its value, and
should be employed in all situations
where sand or gravel cannot he had to
relieve the heayiness and er-holding
properties of the clay. If gravel, sand,
or other porous material can be con
veniently or cheaply obtained, the centre
and cross drains may often be dispensed
with by mixing the gravel or sand in
plentiful quantities with the clay road.
way, so as to insure as nearly as possible
| a porous and self.lraining surface layer,
which should not be less than ten inches
10 depth, and should be laid on the
rounded or sloped subsoil so as to in
sure easy drainage into the side bitches.
In locations where the prevailing ma.
terial is Of loose, sandy nature, the
difficulties of drainage are more easily
overcome, and side bitches, il found
necess airy at all may be made OF mod
| crate depth and left open, without incur
ring the risks and dangers of travel that
prevail where the deeper open bitches
are used for draining heavier soils. But,
on the other hand, the light and shifting
| nature of sandy road material destroys
| Its value as surface layer for an earth
| roadway, and its deficiency in this re.
spect is most easily remedied by the ad
dition of stronger and more ten
| acious substance, such as stiff clay.
When mixed with sand in proper pro
portions which in each case depend
upon the nature Of the clay and sand
| used. and which can best be determined
by experiment. this composition affords
many advantages which make it superior
to roadway composed of either sand or
clay when used alone. The sand serves
to quicken the drainsge and to destroy
the sticky, tenacious qualities of the
clay, while the clay supplies the quality
Of cohesion in the substance of the road
surface, counteracting the shifting quail
ties OF the sand, and making the road
way more easily packed and rolled, and
more likely to retain its proper grade
and slope.