Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1899-03-24
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EVERYTHING FOR EVERYBODY
VIRGINIA COUNTRY ROADS.
We Need Legislation First, iheh
Money and Trained Engineers.

To the Editor of the Dispatch:
/ have been much interested, and often
amused, this winter by the agitation or
The roads question in the State papers.
That omnpresent individual. the oldest
inhabitant," has never seen the roads so
bad as they have been since the middle
Of December. / am not an Oldest inhaoi-
tant, but | have seen worse roads IN
Prince Edward county between Hamp-
den-Sidney and Farmville. But that IS
not compliment 10 the ROADS OF TINS
winter. There are no worse roads in the
county than some within the corporate
limits Of Farmvile A few days ago |
met a farmer going 10 Farmville with
load Of tobacco. He said he had discoY-
cred a new route from Lunenburg to
Farmville: II came under ground all the
way" he said.
No wonder the roads are bad, almost
impossible Even an intelligent farmer
hauling a load of tobacco 10 market can
not accomplish the impossible Put
wagon carrying from 800 TO $500 pounds
OF tobacco, or any other dead weight,
and with tires from ~ ~ '~ohos wide
on a dirt road, and the tires will surely
cut into the road Such tires will soon
wear out a stone or brick road. This will
happen this summer, when the roads are
dry and hard; so how can one expect
ANYTHING else than bad roads when most
Of this heavy teaming Is done In winter,
when there is more rainfall and less heat
10 dry the roads? The remarkable thing
is. not that the roads are bad, but that
anything without wings can get over
them.
In summer, when the roads are hard.
it is an easy 40-minute drive with good
horse, pulling a buggy from Hampton
Sidney To Farmville-seyen miles. For
three months il has been hard igor z
hour drive. and q llk-hour ride on a good
saddle-hOrse. In three months there has
not been a week when two horses could
bring more than half a ton Of coal from
Farmville 10 Hampden-S Sidney. There are
holes in the road two feet deep and as
big as bed. \ narrow tire dropping
into a small hole scoops out a bucketful
Of dirt and as each succeeding wagon
with narrow tires comes along the hole Is
enlarged. Those par,s OF the road that
are best In summertime red clay-are
worst in winter. \ clay road cannot be
well drained I'm wet weather, and there
is no such thing as good road when the
drainage Is imperfect. But wide tires do
not cut into road like narrow tires, and
more than this, they help 20 smooth down
the rOuSn places, 50 AutN ti4N't VIII DS
fewer holes 10 hold water.
The first move for good roads must be
through legislation, and the first legisla-
ton should be a wide-tire law. 1t has
been shown by careful and repeated eN-
periments that except in thin slush less
power Is required TO haul a load on wide
| than on narrow tires. Ii has been shown
also that wide tires help keep roads good
by acting as rollers, especially when the
law requires, as in Pennsylvania. that
the double-trees shall be long enough 10
make the horses walk Immediately In
front OF the wheel, So that the wide
wheels may roll out the horse-tracks
| Thus there are no tracks TO catch water
and the wheels make no ruts.
In England. and on the Continent where
they do have good roads, wide tires are
| COMPULSORY. and In many cases, | be-
! ueve the law requires axles of different
| length. There one horse walks 10 market
easily with u load that would stagger
TWO and even three. horses on an ordi-
narlly good American road. switzerland
reouires 6-inch tires for heavy tranlc
wagons. Austria tires at least 4l-S inches
wide and France from 10 10 Inches. d.
rector waters, OF the Missouri Agricul-
tural Experiment Station. says that .
inches is the best width for compina'