The Van Buren press., 1893-11-04
WORKING THE ROADS
Psessss sysssa - Repairing II Case 81
Labor Lost.


Fsess.s sysss. u Repairing II Case sf
Labor Lost.
As general thing the country roads
ON this continent have been 80 badly
located that to build costly pavcnents
upon the present lines and previously
provide elaborate systems Of drainage
would be dreadful waste Of money.
As it is ordinarily beyond the means Of
country people to do more than improve
the present condition of their roads
this is the task that they should under
take as soon IS possible
In beginning such . task the first
step to be taken. in my opinion. IL to
stop that which has gene. ally been the
custom of this eountry-that is, work
ing the roads Working tine roads, Is
it is usually practiced in this country.
consists in calling ont in each road dis
trict = gang of men who work ont"
their road tax under IN overseer elected
by the people. The labor is worse than
thrown away, for it is rare indeed for
either the overseer or the men under
him to have any clear comprehension
Of what is needed
Fortunately for the wcll-being Of our
roads these men do not work very hard,
but rather choose to regard the few
days on the road IS . kind Of holiday
outing. = picnic frolic and . means Of
getting rid of certain amount of tax.
II they really worked with all theis
might they would make the roads al
most Is impossible in the summer as
they now arc in the winter and early
sprinR. With some kind Of glimmer-
ing idea that bitches ON each side Of .
road are good to have, they pillow mp
these bitches. together with tho sod
that grows down into them, and pile all
Of this muck in the middle of the road.
This material, it may be said. has
most excellent fertilizing value. and il
il were put upon the fields instead Of In
the roads it would amply repay the
far mers who carted it away. But in the
roads it is . sad and an immediate
hindrance to travel Luckily the friend.
" spring rains usually wash it hack
into the bitches, where 1t stays until
there Is some more tax TO be worked
out When these rains are not sufi-
cient to wash away these impediments
that have been deliberately placed in
the roads, the consequences are very
dusty roads during all the dry season.
In some neighborhoods little more
ambitious than those generally to be
found they mend the roads by placing
gravel and broken stone upon them.
Then the overseers say that they are
macadsmizing the roadA Without
thoroughly draining the roadbed. TO
put either broken stone or gravel upon
it is merely q waste of money and
labor. and the ambitious neighborhoods
SO doing prove in the end no wiser than
those who cover their roads with
muck But it is within the means Of
every neighborhood in the United.States
to materially improve their roads Ut
once-improve them 30 much that
where the traffic is not extremely
heavy and continuous the roads will be
in tolerable order nine months in the
year and very much better than Ut
present. even when the frost IL coming
out of the ground at the beginning OF
spring. And this can be done in three
or four or five years without spending
one penny more than is now spent in
the hurtful methods mentioned. -Har-
per's Weekly. -s.fI