Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1897-12-24
agricultural.
POOR STONE ROADS.

Interest in the movement for better
highways shows itself most strongly 10
the growing custom Of using crushed
stone for road improvement The stone
crusher companies have evidently been
doing an excellent business, for both in
the cities and in the country do we find
that stone has been used as road ma
teriai.
1t is greatly to be deplored, however,
that while so much excellent material
is being employed the methods adopted
are so very faulty. In too many cases
the men having the work in charge are
content simply to deposit the stone upon
the highway, frequently throwing it
right into muddy spot, aud doing
nothing further after the material has
been put in place and spread. In many
Of the towns and cities where road
roller can be afforded the officials un-
dertake to finish their work by placing
a layer Of gravel on top Of the stone,
and then rolling it until the entire ma
terial is packed and hardened.
All of these attempts at building mac
adam roads are failures. when regarded
from the standpoint Of intelligent and
scient ifc road construction. The val
liable feature of stone or macadam
road is its absolute compactness, and
the principal aim in building road by
the use of crushed stone should be to
thoroughly pack and firmly unite every
part Of the material used. The only
way to accomplish this is to roll every
layer of dirt, stone, gravel or other ma
terial separately. Before any of the
stone is deposited, the subsoil should be
thoroughly hardened by rolling with
heavy roller A layer Of stone, if 1t is
to properly pack and form hard road
bed, must have, above all, a solid foun-
dation Stone deposited upon loose
gravel, or soft ground, or in bed Of
mud can never be successfully packed,
either with q roller or by travel.
So, too, if it is intended to place
layer Of gravel, or smaller crushed stone,
or screenings on tho surface, the layer
of crushed stone beneath should first be
thoroughly hardened and packed. 1t is
a mistake to suppose that the two can
be packed aud rolled together. Material,
to be thus compscted, must be uniform
10 character and size, and, while the
angular pieces Of stone will shift about
under the weight of the roller until they
are all firmly wedged in place, round
particlea of gravel, or smaller pieces,
loose dirt or sand, when mixed with
these angular pieces, will prevent their
being thus crowded together and COM
pacted.
The above explanations are the result
of careful study Of the instructions
issued by the State highway commissions
of Massachusetts, California. New Jer-
sey and Connecticut, and indicate the
principles followed in those States in
the construction of roads by State aid
The same principles are laid down 10
treatises upon macadam roads as built
10 Penney lvania, Alabama, New York,
North Carolina and Ontario, and they
constitute the fundamental rules laid
down by experienced road engineers all
over the world.
The building Of macadam roads offers
opportunities for manifold mistakes and
for an enoi nous waste Of public funds.
II ever it be true that what is worth do
ing at all is worth doing well it is en-
phatically true in the building of stone
roads. A macadam road, when once
properly constructed, needs little re-
pairing and lasts for generations. as has
been indisputably aud repeatedly proven
in England aud on the European CONT
nent A stone road, poorly built, for
want of successful rolling, even with ex
client material. is but a poor highway
at best. Many so-caIed macadam roads,
,ecently built by inexperienced men, OF
without the proper use Of good road
rollers, are continually going to pieces
by the wearing of ruts aud the subse-
quent combined action of water aud
travel Every good macadam road tes-
Ii6es to the value of durable highways,
while every stone road improperly built
throws u shadow of doubt upon the
movement for better highways, Those
who believe in good roads cannot afford
10 have their work thus discredited
OTTo DoRNER