The Green Forest tribune., 1894-03-01
Road Management and Road Making.

Road Management and Road Making.
WAsHINGToN. d. G, Feb. 27.-The
inquiry being made by the Agricultural
Department into the system Of road
management and road making methods
in the United States is meeting with
favorable results. Among other things
the cooperation of practically all of tie
principal railroads i'll reducing freight
rates on road materials has been St.
cured. The edition of 5000 copies of
bulletin No. / on "Recent Road Laws
of the Various States,o has been eX-
hausted and a reprint has been order
ed. Information is being gathered for
further publications, for which many
applications are now on file. Concern
ing some of the results reached, Gen,
Roy Stone, who is in charge of the in
vestigation, said to day:
1T appears that while many short
sections of good highways are being
built in various parts of the country
with a gratifying general cheapness in
cost and freedom from burdensome tax
alton, yet in some Of the States ser
ious setback to the movement has oe-
Cured throu gh the failure of legisla-
ton intended to advance and relied
upon for great results. The optional
country road laws passed in 1898 have
nowhere proved acceptable to the
county boards. except with two coun-
ties in Michigan. Yet these boards
are in close touch with the people, and
doubtless voice the popular verdict of
the people on this legisla ton. II is
clear, therefore, that these laws are
either in advance of public education
or at variance with the public iudg-
ment in the States concerned, and that
new departure must be taken to in
sure any prompt and general ad vance
in highway construction in those
States. Under these circumstances the
department has asked fer information
and suggestions regarding other lines
of legislation. Fortunately, it has been
able to point to the remark able success
of the State Aid and Local Option law
of New Jersey, and to commend it with
certain notifications TO the considert-
ton of other States. That law proceeds
upon the theory that while the comfy
as Il whole may be unwilling to embark
in road building, those smaller COM
munities which are themselves willing
to contribute fairly to the improvement
of their highways may justly demand
county and State aid in carrying on
such Improvement. The law provides
for survey and estimate of the cost
of building road when petition,
signed by owners of not less than one
half of the lands abutting on the road
is presented to the county board of sll
pervisors 1t will be the duty Of the
board to construct or improve the road
whenever the petitioners file with the
board a map or description of the lands
which they will be benefited, together
with the written consent and request
of owners of three fifths of the lands,
as we'll as the personal property in the
district, be assessed for the COST
State Geologist John G.. Branner of
Arkansas has submitted report to the
department on road making materials
in the State. The State, he says. is
we'll supplied with good road materials
in the aliuvian bottom lands in the
eastern parts, and even their available
gravel may be found in stream beds.
When the Telford system is used
almost any hard rock will answer for
the bed rock of the roadway, but only a
few kinds of rock are tit to be used as
dressing or road material. Lime stone,
clay shales, spenites or granite, and
clean sandstone are cited as inferior
materials. The materials best adapted
for road making having wide distri-
button in the State are arenaceous
shales, flint rock, novaculite, and
grayels.