The Van Buren press., 1899-01-07

Oil as a Road Material.

American tne following mover lued,
which appears very plausible, and at
small expense could be tried here. just
think if it proves what is hoped from il
at what a small expense Van Buren
could have good streets
To the Editor Of the Scientific American
The great interest that is now being
awakened in all parts of our country in
the Good Roads movement is born of
necessity. In the keen competition IN
all the markets of the world, America
is at disadvantage, commercially, by
reason of bad roads. much as the rail
roads have done to bring the producer
and the consumer close together The
best Investigations yet made on the sub
| ject show that it costs ON an average p
cents per ton mile to market the pro
duce of our farms over the country
roads, often much more. or. the farm
ers spend as much for one mile as the
railroads ask for IS miles of haulage.
Great areas of our prairie farm eoun
try are remote from any supply of good
road material. and the outlook for good
roads in these sections is discouraging
on account of the expense. Some cheap
substitute for stone, brick or gravel if
it could be found, is most desirable
venture to suggest to your readers
that possibly cheap oil may be one solu
ton. and offer this paper in order to
induce others to multiply the expert
ments | am now making On certain
clay road in Pennsylvania, which lay
deep in dust in summer and deep in mud
in winter and spring. there was an oil
pipe line by the side of the road, which
on certain occasion sprung leak and
spurted considerable quantity of oil
onto the road. An observer noted that
for space of several rods. to which the
oil was transported by horses feet and
wagon wheels, this road showed a
marked improvement. The dust in
summer did not rise, the mud in spring
and winter did not exist. The explana
ton would seem to be that the oil
formed a water tight covering to the
road, and the earth beneath being dry
no ruts or mud could form and the road
became good.
At the recent Good Roads convention
in st. Louis, Mo. the writer brought
forward this idea and offered it as
possible help to improving our dirt roads
at small cost oceasioning considera
BILE comment. 1t seemed rational and
at least easy to try, and many asked
questions not easy to answer, for want
of sufficient knowledge rs to method of
applying the oil, the best kind of oil to
use, the quantity to put on the road,
etc.
AS confrmatory of the value of oil on
roads, the following observations were
made: A gentleman from California
said that near Santa Barbara, where he
lives, they have oil wells and have used
the oily sand from the borings to fill
holes and ruts in the road, and in places
the sand has even been distributed over
the roadway. In all these places the
road is free from dust in the dry season
Ga great curse ont there) and perfectly
hard and firm in the wet season; and
he now thinks it must be due to the oil
in the sand, Another gentleman said
he used to handle oil at Austin, Texas.
in years gone by; he remembered the
lot, of perhaps quarter acre, where
he had his depot became sprinkled with
oil from leaky cans, and was always
hard and firm despite the weather, and
he thought it must have been the oil
that did it. Another road builder
from Missouri, said that on muddy
road leading into his town man let a
barrel of black oil fall from his wagon,
breaking it and spilling the contents
Ever since then he had noticed there
was firm piece of road near that place,
where it did not get muddy or rut, and
he thought same was due to the oil A
railroad man said the Pennsylvania
Railroad began spraying their roadbed
with oil to lay the dnst, and now found
it not only laid the dust. but shed water,
kept down the weeds, and preserved
the ties.
The present experiments are being
made through the liberality of the
Standard Oil Company, who. by Mr..
Rockefeller orders, placed tank of
crude oil at the disposal of the writer.
On November the Goth the writer coated
a newly graded piece of dirt road with
oil, distributed by means of an impro-
vised sprinkler, over strip about 10
feet wide by 200 feet long
A second part of the roadway was
sprinkled more lightly about 300 feet
further. making 500 or 600 feet in all,
and used eight barrels of oil in the ex-
pertinent. The day after the sprinkling
was done and before the oil had time to
become absorbed, for it soaked in very
slowly. heavy rain fell. The road
was examined during the rain, and
quite marked difference was seen be.
tween the oiled and unoiled portions.
Where oiled it was evident that the dirt
beneath the surface was still dry and
retained its supporting power, while on
each side of the oiled portion it was
muddy and rutty. A heavy freeze, with
the temperature at zero, followed the
rain. aud on the 25th the road was again