The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1896-01-17

teams, but was so much better than
the old dirt roads that people were
satisfied. These same roads are now
wide and comparatively level.
Not long siuce l asked gentleman,
who had been a resident of Mankato
for the past 30 or 40 years, why the
people did not gravel the roads which
lead into the city, or at least the
back streets of the city, and he re-
marked that travelling was still an
experiment and they were waiting to
see how it would wear. This, of
course, is absurd, for gravel roads
have been in use for half century or
more, and in states where they are
subjected to much severer tests than
they would be in Southern Minnesota
The hardest test on gravel road is
an open winter and heavy hauling
We seldom experience here such an
open wintir as is common in Indiana
and Ohio, where the ground may be
frozen for week or two then followed
by thaw. These are the conditions
which will test road and what hap
pens every winter in the states above
named, where gravel roads are so pop
ular. GlenwOOd avenue is all the ar
gument that is necessary to convince
us of the success OF gravel roads in
Minnesota.
1t seems that more favorable condi-
tiOns could not be found for the con-
struction of gravel roads than those
which surround US. 1t has been re-
marked that there is not sufficient
quantity OF gravel at hand to allow of
the building of these roads, but, [
think the statement is ungrOunded.
There are now at least half dOZe n
places around Mankato where there
is gravel in plain view, and, if investi-
cations were made, there would
doubtless be many others which are
now unknown. Such was the case in
Indiana; hills which were thought TO
consist entirely OF clay were found to
be made up of excellent gravel.
Gravel can be hauled by team profit
| ably distance of four miles to build
roads, although the nearer the pit the
cheaper the former can be construct
ed. Indiana has law by which
gravel can be taken wherever found
| for road purposes, providing the owner
is paid damages. Ordinarily the
owners of pits sell the gravel at from
to 10 cents a cubic yard, depending
upon the quality of the gravel and the
demand for it. The best gravel for
road building is that of medium fine
ness, varying from sand to pebbles as
| large as a walnut but averaging the
size of cranberries. That which con-
tains cement in the form of lime and
iron is preferable and this is just the
kind of gravel that is found in the
pits around MankatO.
Granted that gravel roads are prac-
tical for our community and probably
| the best that could be built under the
circumstances, there remains but one
thing to be considered, and that is
the method by which we can succeed
in securing these roads.
In both Indiana and Ohio gravel
roads were first built by stock COM
panies and a toll OFF, to cents mile
was charged for each team that
| travelled them. These stock compan-
les were composed mainly of the far
mers living along the road, and the
amount of the stock was generally
| paid in labor. 1t was considered that
the amount invested would generally
enhance the price of the land along
which the road ran an equal if not
greater amount than the expense in
CURED, and, besides this, there was
generally enough dividend from the
tolls to pay the tolls of the stockhOld-
er. No toll roads were built except
on those thOrOughfares where there
was considerable travel.
| The toll gravel roads were consider
ed such an improvement over the
old mud roads, as they were called,
that the road supervisors instead of
having the road tax and the regular
time required of each man spent in
grading, devoted most of this time
time and money to the hauling of
gravel and in graveling the poorest
roads in the district.
For some time Indiana has had a
law which provided for the building
of gravel roads by the county; and, as
| remember it, portion of the ex-
penses of building such roads falls on
the property Immediately benefited
and the remainder on the county at
large. Under this law, about all of
the old toll pixies have been purchased
and are now free. Gravel roads are
now secured by a petition from the
owners of the land along such roads,
ard after they are built they are kept
in repair by the county. The expense
of keeping such roads in repair is not
as great as that of grading the dirt
roads each year.
The county plan is by far the most
desirable. but, rather than not have
gravel roads at all, let US have few
toll roads which will sooner or later
become free and result in the con-
struction of gravel roads throughout
the country generally.
We could build macadamized roads
in Minnesota but it seems to me that
they would not be practicable on ac-
count of their expense, and, moreover
our limestone is not as desirable as
the granite pebbles found in the
gravel, bence l shall refrain from dis
cussing their construction.
For the city, there are several diff
ferent kinds of road building that
might be considered practical. Any
one of these would be a blessing to
Mankato, for, if there is any one
thing that disgusts stranger who
comes here, it is our miserable, muddy
streets. Coming as did from east
ern Indiana few years ago, where
buggy riding can be INDUCED in with
comfort at any season of The year on
any of the main thoroughfares, you
90 oui no INV inf i'm of A.