The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-08-03
Opposes Macadam streets.

To the Editor of the Indianapolis Journal:
1 lave been lately noticing the %herculean
almost superhuman-efforts the News has
been making from day to day to force a
macadam pavement on. the north end of
Capitol avenue. 1t has gone, and is going,
so far that no ones advice shoul nave any
weight but that of the News. and, in fact,
any one who entertains contrary opinions
is subject to midsummer attacks by that
paper; but, even with the terrors of it's aw-
full vituperation before me, l cannot refrain
from saying a word to the residents of the
north end of our street. Don't take too
seriously all that the News says on this
subject. A macadam driving street" is
the News's hobby. In discussing it's pet
hobby it makes up in the scarcity of it's
facts by the number OF it's articles. We
on the south end, about the time that sec
ton of the street was improved, had al
most daily doses of what you and the Board
of Public Works are getting about the
beauty, durability, ~cheapness, ETC., of mac
adam, with much about boulevard and
driving street" Well, we finally got it
(macadam), and l think if your people will
go from house to house along our driving
street" you will find that nine out of ten
OF those living on the street feel hat we
were "hoodooed" when we got it. We had
driving street rummed into us until |
think some of us thought that no fine driv-
ing would be done until it was finished, and
that as soon as this beautiful boulevard
was completed we would nave a procession
of hobby turnouts going by nearly all the
time; but no such thing occurred. Instead,
when we get anything we get big, heavy
wagons, trucks, carts, etc, with plenty of
dust when they don't sprinkle, ana plenty
of mud when they do, and always mud
when it rains. We got none of the fine
driving to speak of unless you call an oc-
casional race fine driving), about which so
much was written. Carriage owners com
our lovely street spots their carriages
viii not wash Off; but whatever
the cause, we got macadam, and we have
practically an abandoned street. You can
juggle with fine words and pretty phrases,
but come and look at the travel on our
street and compare it with others. We
have, besides, a good sprinkling assessment
every year to look after as a sort of COM
pensation, l suppose, for the cheap price of
1892 per foot that we paid for the so-called
pavement. When l figured up the losses
and gains between it and other pavements
l found that the "cheapneSs' was a delu-
sion and a snare AS to it's wearing quail
ties, 1t ought to wear a long time, for there
are not enough teams coming our way to
wear much, but when they do they are of a
kind that are unSlghtly to behold and so
heavy that the street needs repairing all the
time. ii is so cut up. We get almost no
bicycle traffic, and the driving on the other
streets that are not driving streets or
'boulevards' is so many times greater than
ours and so noticeable that we are begin
nlnS TO WOnder II q QflNlnS street is q
place where people do not drive. At one
time L got the impression that we could not
have a boulevard unless it were macadam
(and, indeed, many of the articles in the
News lately convey the same idea), but |
was in Chicago n short time since and in
riding over the celebrated Michigan venue
found a part of it made of wood blocks.
part of brick and part of macadam, and
regretfully confess that the macadam was
the worst of the three. / found Douglass
boulevard and Washington boulevard of
asphalt, and I was informed that Wash
ington boulevard was originally of mac
adam, that it was not satisfactory. and
they covered ii over with asphalt; and, if
you will believe me. l saw fine driving on
these boulevards and plenty of it.
a neighbor who lives near me has re-
Gently been to New York and found that
much of that city'A boulevards are not mae
adam. So l find that it is easy to be mis-
led. especially by one riding a hobby. A
prominent real-estate dealer recently told
me that we lost IS per cent. in value on our
property by getting a macadam street. So
be careful and don't get hoodooed.
PROPERTY OWNER.
indianapolis, July 81.