Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1897-04-14
THE ROAD QUESTION.
A Practical Discussion of This Timely Subject
The Present Method of Road Making Farce
ana Burden Upon the Tax Payers.


ANA Burden Upon the Tax Payers.
DIR. j. |. Cawley, of Springtown, Pa.
read the following practical and inter.
esting paper on the "Road Question" al
the farmers institute held at Spring.
town on Monday and Tuesday, March is
and 49,:
Ihat the plan of ruadmaking employ
ed on our roads is n farce is admitted by
everyone having al ordinary share Of
intelligence. Many intelligent persons
go further and give it n harsher name,
because 1t imposes burdensome taxes
when give no adequate returns. The
dissatisfaction with our present methods
Is becoming greater each year, and for
the hest OF reasons. Years ago when the
farmer was prosperous he paid less at.
tentlon to the matter of taxes: he gave
no thought to the cost of transportation
OF his products, and he looked upon bad
roads as an unavoidable evil which had
to be endured. With the slump in the
prices OF real estate of late years, which
has been so serious that farms now are
frequently sold for less than the cost of
the improvements thereon, the poor mar.
kets and worse prices of farm products,
and the scarcity of money among all
classes, has the thoughtful farmer been
brought to realize the fact that he is nav.
ing an enormous sum Of money for roads
without corresponding improvement
OF them; that he can get his products to
the markets no cheaper; that the wear
and tear of his teams is no less; that in
spite ofnewly invented carriage springs,
he derives no more comfort, and that
this condition of the highways, with
steadily increasing taxation, must con-
tinue indefinitely, unless there is q radi-
cal change in our system of roadmaking.
In this country the general Govern
ment enacted laws for the building of
national highways as early as 1900. Du.
ring the 20 years following a number
were projected, and some were wholly
or partially constructed. One from the
frontier of Georgia TO New Orleans, one
from Nashville to Natchez, one in Fla,
one from Detroit to Chicago, while one
was projected from Maine to Georgia,
1900 miles in length. The most celebra-
ted of these is the Cumberland road. 1t
was projected in 1902 and was begun in
1906 at Cumberland on the Potomac. The
road extended through Maryland into
Pennsylvania back into Virginia 10
Wheeling, thence into Ohio, and west.
ward to st. Louis. Work was continued
on the road until 1877, and the road built
to the interior of Ohio. This magnificent
highway was 66 feet wide, it had no
sleeper grade than five degrees, the road
bed of 20 feet was macadamized with ls
inches of fine stone in the middle taper
ing to Il inches at the sides, put in sew
eral strata of various sizes of stone and
thoroughly rolled with ten ton roller.
The sides of the roads were of earth
thoroughly rolled and of sufficient slope
to carry off the water during rainy
weather. On each side of the road were
storm bitches of sufficient depth to Sc
cure perfect drainage. These were kept
in good repair
This road was such a delightful sur
prise to the people using it and of so
great commercial value that it enlisted
the favor of all. Henry Clay, who was
one of its companion, stated that it re-
duced the journey from Baltimore to
Wheeling.
These highways were laid out by corps
OF competent engineers, and the work
done by contract according to specifca.
tions. That this work was not completed
is due to the fact that other roads were
built with much energy and success
about this time, until America soon had
the longest and best roads in the world.
But they were railroads, and America
now has more of them than all the rest
of the world together
What, however, does most vitally con-
Germ us is what to do with our own mud
paths which we call roads; the numer.
Gus roads, which ramify every town.
ship, which we use daily in the course of
our business upon which our horses and
carriages go to wreck and ruin and our
own persons suffer the tortures of the
inferno. Upon which we risk drowning
in mud in spring and suffocation by
dust in summer.
Let us pass in brief review the story of
our roads, their treatment and the result
attained. Our oldest roads, in respect to.
location, are by far the best, though en-
gineering skill was evidently not en-
ployed upon them. They were originally
rude wagon paths through the woods
which later attained the dignity Of roads.
While the grading of these roads could
be vastly improved upon, yet, when we
consider that they were forced through
a wilderness with no thought given to
their permanency, they display re-
markable degree OF wise judgment, as
compared with those laid out at later
day, within the memory of persons now
living.
Where the road should be two horses
could haul load Of two tons with the
same effort that they will draw one half
ton over the road where 1t is, and they
will do it in one half of the time. You
will, therefore, see that it will cost Just
eight times as much to haul two tons
over the road as it now is than it would
cost IL the road were where it should be.
The enormous cost that these have been
and the personal misery inflicted on
long suffering people is something ap-
palling. What could have allied our
worthy ancestors when they located
these roads is difficult to imagine.
The instances noted are only samples
OF many-far too many-roads all over