Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1896-08-01
FARM AND GARDEN.
STEEL VERSUS DIRT ROADS.


thoroughfares lies in the steel high
way" said Gen. Roy Stone, who is in
charge of the road inquiry office, agri-
cultural department. Gen. Stone Is
probably the best authority on the road
question in this country. His office
bears an advisory or educational rela-'
ton to the road commissioners of all
of the state and territories
..Undoubtedly, the wearing surfaces
of all highways connecting our great
cities and traversed by wagons and
light vehicles are to be fat steel rails"
Gen. Stone continued. There is no
greater propriety or economy in run
ming a wagon than there would be il
running railroad train over a rough
surface of earth or stone. Horseless
vehicles will undoubtedly develop metal
roads The cost, to begin with, will
be higher than that of stone or concrete
reads, but with the present low price
of steel the saving in wear would much
more than compensate for the differ
ence in cost. At the same time the saw
ing in the expense of hauling would be
from so to 80 per cent"
t|What is your idea as to the way such
a steel highway should be built?'
1T should consist of double line
of track, with a carriage road at either
side. Wagons with heavy loads could
follow one another upon it in a straight
line either way, while lighter and faster
vehicles could pass them by turning
out occasionally into the side road
Flat rails laid upon stringers should be
the style of track used. They should
be laid level with the roadway, so that
wheels might pass onto or off them
without difficulty. The general form
Il II, H.
with fiat bottom, and outer edges raised
only enough to give gentle guidance
to the wheels. The width should be
suited to the gauges of all vehicles. l
find that in New York and vicinity
where there is perhaps the greatest
variety of road vehicles, the gauges of
wagons and carriages range from four
feet ten inches to six feet. rail ten
inches wide would therefore be neces-
-sary to accommodate all of these gauges
comfortably"
''Have steel rails ever been used on
highways?'
Yes. In Glasgow about so years ago
fiat rails eight inches wide were used in
this way. They were very successful IN
diminishing traction. Then only OBJ
lection to them was that the horses
sometimes slipped and fell when step
ping upon the smooth surface of the
rails. Such a danger will be avoided
if rails are rolled with indentations
every few inches belo the general sur
face. As long as our highways are to
be used by horses this will be necessary,
and it will not roughen the track for
wheels. Deep web rails, similar to
those now used on the best street car
tracks, could not be rolled with such
indentations. The deep web rails will,
however, make much the better road
way when they can be used.
These steel highways will connect
all our large cities. They will he
crowded with vehicles, such as arc now
seen only in exhibitions in trial trips
In the recent trials of horseless vehicles
those driven by electricity have been at
q disadvantage for want of facilities for
recharging their storage batteries
My idea is that the electrical horseless
carriage will be more economical and
satisfactory than the others varieties
when the storage battery is frightened
and improved to the extent that it
probably will be. The trolley could not
well be used upon the steel railway.
Its difficulty would be that one
vehicle could not be passed by an
other except upon sidings. fiat oil
slightly concave steel rail only a small
fraction of an inch below the genera
surface of the highway would be the
perfect track for bicyclists. They coul6
easily follow rail of this kind ter
inches wide. If not they would have nc
difficulty in turning off. Many CT tn,
riders in the city prefer to ride over the
slot of the cable cars. There would bt
no necessity for switches if each car
riage had its independent motor. TIL,
heavy wagon would have wide tires anC
could safely turn out into the ston
road for passing slower vehicles, espe
cially on down grades"
Gen. Stone showed the writer SOM
interesting suggestions for steel roa.
building received from road authorize
in different states. MIR. Martin Dodge
state highway commissioner of Ohio
proposes to lay rails for the use, bot
of ordinary vehicles and electric rail
ways, and to let every man run his owl
private trolley car on these lines. III
says that it will cost one-fifth as mucl
per ton per mile it would over tn
best macadamized road that could b
built He further states that com
bined wagon road and railway is to b
put in practice in the vicinity of Cleve
land, o., to test the merits of the sys
tenn. The timbers holding the rails i
place will afford board walk for tn
be about one-half that of maca6an
lied road.-W Star.