The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-11-19
ONE GOOD COUNTY ROAD.
WHERE rot CAV WALK TEy MILES
AND NOT SOIL YOUR SHOES.
gent Work VIII 10 for BETTER
Highways-Pancheo and Cow
cred With Gravei-Dfrty Roads

81 livs eight miles from Redmond on
the best country road ia King county"
was the proud remark of Hector Mccall
lam, a farmer AZ Albvn and road super
visor Of his district. who IS ST the Dilisr.
You can walk seven miles along IL and
hardly soil your shoes 1t Is part OF the
road. twenty-nine miles long. which runs
from Kirkland TO North Bend My BROTH
er Duncan McCallum. bsilt these seven
miles under contract in issD and 1884. and
although practically no repairs have
since been made on 1t. the entire stretch
Of ten miles is in good condition still.
This road is practically level sixteen
feet wide in the clear and rounded so
that 1t is eight inches higher at the crown
than al the sides. In all the wet places
II was puncheoned and for the whole dis
taDce it Is covered with gravel foot deep.
II cost 17s per rod. but the work was
done below cost In order that we might
get road sooner. Rain or sunshine IL is
equally solid. and you can haul all a
wagon viii bear over 1t without a sign OF
sinking. There is not q mGd hole the
whole length Of it,
What Is the difference In cost between
hauling over gravel road and over a
common dirt road?"
1T costs ten times as much TO haul over
a dirt road in wet weather as over a
eraveled road. Before this road was
built we had an old road OF nothing but
mud. barely passabie for a wagon, and 10
nay knowledge not a wagon went over it
for two years. while on the new road.
wagons pass every day. We now get
more produce to market. for we can put
it right In the wagon and go ahead. be-
cause we have an outlet.
we have given up building dirt roads
in our part OF the county. AS district road
supervisor, I have just completed a new
branch TO Issaauah. to take the place OF
an old dirt road The old road had grades
of Is 10 80 per cent. and went over bluff;
the new one goes around the BLUM and
has maximum grade OF per cent.
and is thoroughly grayeled The difference
in length is only seventy-two feet.
1T is a disgrace TO d civilized country
like America 10 have dirt roads. We are
miserably deficient in highways"
How would yoa improve the present
SYSTEM
las far as my experience as supervisor
goes, all taxes should be paid in money
direct into the county treasury: all work
should be let by contract and done under
the supervision OF practical engineer.
Let that engineer act as county surveyor,
and let him have a practical road-builder
under him to go over and inspect all work
under construction. I believe the state
ought 70 build all main trunk roads, and.
the counties through which they run. to be
kept up in the manner / have described.
think that after the county had a good
road built it would naturally keep IL In
order.
"Our system is the same as they had in
Scotland LOO years ago. Now I'm Scotland
they have county council. which collects
the taxes and turns those for each dis
trict over to the district board of road
II
and serves without pay. This board has
a practical road-huilder under H. whose
duty IL is TO oversee the work. The dis
trict Is divided into sections, In which the
work is let out by contract for the wear
The road-buiider reports to the trustees
what is needed on each road for the fol-
lowing year. and the trustees draw up
specifications and let the contract GEN
orally 10 the lowest responsible bidder The
surveyor will go over the read and see II
the work Is done in a proper manner and
TX so, he VIII allow the contractor GER
tain percentage, always holding back
enough TIL the end OF the year Then, IL
the contractor has done his work in good
faith. according 10 the specifications he
is paid in full; II not. the trustees viii put
men on 10 do the work under the super
vision of the road surveyor. and deduct
the cost from the contract price. The sur
veyor is generally the most practical man
they can find.
Under some good system In this country
there Is nothing to hinder tbs from having
good roads. especially in Western Washing
ton. for here We have the material neces-
sary. Gravel Is abundant: anywhere you
wish 10 place a culvert or make puncheons
there is the cedar 10 last for generations:
there is plenty of fir 10 build bridges. and
Icy getting Surveys in the proper places
easy grades can he obtained anywhere"
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