The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1895-07-04
WIDE TIRES.
A Sensible Plan for Making Instead Q
Breaking up the Roads.

A sensible Plan far Making Instead Of
Breaking up the Roads.
We are behind the times. With very
few exceptions our public roads are in
no better condition than they were one
hundred years ago. There is such q thing
as being too conservative. The world is
progressing while we are standing still
just where our ancestors were q hum
dred years ago. There never was any
justice in requiring the man who was
too poor to ride to do the same amount
Of work on the road that was required
of the owner of a hundred vehicles and
thousands of acres of land. The sys-
tenn was bad in many respects-so bad
that the law has become a dead letter,
and the roads are not worked il all or
worked in such way as To do no good.
OF course ali roads should be worked
by taxation. But to my subject. What
is the use Of putting q road in good
condition if it is to be cut to pieces
and made almost impossible by heavy
loads Oh narrow wheel tires. The
wagons should be SO constructed, and
can be SO built, as to be road makers
instead of road breakers. Ii their tires
are from three to five inches wide and
especially If the front axle is shorter
than the rear one, the dirt roads will
be improved, instead of ruined BY use,
and the rock roads will not be cut into
ruts and holes as they are now by the
narrow tires. On the dirt road, or on
farm, horse can pull heavier load
with wide tires than he can with mar
row ones, and the farm is not injured
by the cutting of the wagon wheels.
In Austria, France, Germany, Swift
erland, Canada, as well as in Michigan
New York, Ohio, Indiana, Vermont
Massachusetts,, and in certain cities in
the United States, the width of tires
is prescribed and regulated by law, and
whenever this has been done it has
been of great benefit.
The time will come when all our con.
! victs, instead of being sent to die OF
have their health permanently i'm.
paired by the malaria of the Roanoke
and where they are of no service to tn,
State, will be put to work on the road!
OF the State, but that time is some dis
lance ahead of US; and in the mean
time we have it in our power, at littl,
or no expense, to greatly improve Oul
roads, simply increasing the width o
the tires of all vehicles carrying n
much as thousand pounds.
This is an important matter. Ou
wretched roads retard the progress
and seriously Interfere with the pros
perlty Of our country. There ar,
periods of the year, perhaps months
when it takes four horses to pull a two
horse load over some of public road
within three miles of the ca pital of Ou
State; and and if this is SO within
sight of the capitol, how must it be il
sections more remote?
Let us get together in our differen
neighbOrhOOds and talk about thi
matter; make experiments and see TO
ourselves how much more q team cal
pull across our fields or along our dir
roads with wide tired wheels of from
three to five inches, than with tn
tires we now use, and my word for
these discussions will end in the uni
versal use of the wide tire.
1t is well to talk about the polite
Of the day, the free and unlimite
coinage of silver and gold monometal
: ism, national banks, high and 10,
tariff, the internal revenue system:
is well to keep an eye on our politics
leaders; but we should study and dis
cuss other subjects also. Religion, his
. tory, science, and especially the scienc
OF farming, roads and road maxim
should have some of our thought.
Free and unlimited coinage of si
: ver." L like that. 1t sounds wei
4 Free and unlimited. The prefix {
: these words will make anything soun
h well. Free and unlimited religion
! l feel like shouting when 1 think ,
= such a possibility. Free and unlin
tied air, and health if we can only e
: rid Of that free and unlimited maIar
: made by the Raleigh water worI
pond, and the free and unlimited des
It horse that sweetens our city waite
d Free and unlimited coinage Of silye
u that's settled (spell it with a little 9
o We are all in favor of that; we ha'
= read Coins Financial school n
q talked and talked about that uni
q there is nothing left to say. and =
l. just have to sit down and see the O
i politicians rushing in hurrahing
), free and unlimited coinage of silver
d q grand race to see who shall get
o the United States Senate first. O
what pretty race it. is-some on VI
low horses painted white, and some ,
II horses so covered with mud and fos
l. you wouldn't know the color IL {
n rider hadn't said it was white: and
le we SIT and look we have unlimited III
70 Again say, let US all put our hea
i. together and see il we can't have
t. free and unlimited improvement
-, our public roads.
rs SPIER WHITAKER