Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1899-05-19
GOOD ROADS.
Windham County Board Meeting

Attendance, with Two Hours of Prac-
teal and Helpful Suggestion and Dis
cussIon.
The first meeting of the Windham coun-
ty board of road commissioners, as con-
stituted under act No. IS of the laws of
1898, was held Tuesday forenoon i'm the
selectmen's room, Brattleboro, State Com
missioner Wall meeting the board as pro-
vided in the same act. Only two of the %
commissioners were absent This is the
list of those present:
Athens, James Brown, ir.; Brattleboro,
E. e. Stockwell; Brookline, NJ. +. Barnes
Dover, o. K. Hill; Dummerston, A. E.
Robbins; Grafton, A. G. Rice; Guilford,
M. A. Thomas; Halifax, Norton Thurber;
Jamaica, w. f. Foskett; Londonderry,
II. j. Stewart; Marlboro, b. NJ. Whitney;
Newfane, G. X. Stedman; Putney, II. l..
scott; Rockingham, G. f. Osgood; STRAIT
ton, A. j. Pike; Townshend, J. o. Fol.
lett; Vernon, L. II. Akley; Wardsboro,
j. Z. Tibbetts; Westminster, K. G. But
terrified; Nottingham, c. A. Barker;
Windham, d. II. Edison.
Mr.. Wall called the meeting to order.
after which A. G.. Rice of Grafton was
chosen chairman and j. o. Follett of
lownshend secretary. Upon the formal
opening OF the proceedings Mr.. Wall stat
ed the object of the meeting, which was
10 get the commissioners of the several
towns together for conference and ex-
change of views. Many of the old COM
mlssloners, Mr.. Wall said knew more
about road building than he did, but he
would answer any questions that were
asked so far as he was able. He called
the attention of those present TO the circu-
lar letter recently issued by him, stating
what would be considered and accepted as
permanent highway work under the law.
Inc essential thing was not the kind or
amount OF roads built-but to get start
IN the right direction. Let each town
build piece of good road, no matter If il
is only 30 feet, or 80 rods, according to the
size OF the town. This must be on some
man thoroughfare, preferably on road
leading toward some centre.
Following the method used in the meet
lngs in other counties the roll was then
called, each commissioner responding with
a statement of what he had done or was
doing in the way of permanent work A
large proportion said in substance that
their principal work in the way of perma-
nent Improvements had been that of Gov
erlng or Milling low, wet, or clayey places
with gravel, making better drainage, and
building new culverts or sluiCes Among
those in this list were Brown of Athens,
Robbins of Dummerston, Thomas of Gull
ford, Tibbetts of Wardsboro. Butterfeld of
Westminster, Barker of Nottingham and
Edison of Windham.
Stockwell of Brattleboro said he had
used the state money in putting in macad-
am roads eight inches deep, and in dig
glng out mud holes to a depth of two feet,
filling with stone and putting a coat of
gravel on top. This makes a good road.
Work of this kind done last year wont
have to be touched this year. In answer
to an inquiry from Mr.. Wall Mr. Stock
well said he had kept the work done with
the state money entirely separate. He
could tell to foot the length, width and
depth of every bit of such work done.
Then you have come the nearest to
complying with the law of any man have
met" said Mr.. Wall.
Barnes of Brookline said his permanent
work last year (his first year as commits
sioner) was in filling washouts with stone
and covering with gravel.
Rice of Grafton said he had to confess
that his first years work (Which was last
year, was in great part a failure. The
money was not laid out properly in perma-
nent work, because the main idea was ''to
beat the other fellow" He Acknowledged
the mistake and was going to try to cor
rect it this year. Some gravel was used
and permanent runouts built.
Foskett of Jamaica had used the money
mostly for general repairs. This was nee
essary because there was a large mileage
and the grand list was small Mr.. Wall
called attention to the fact that if, six
years ago, the town had begun to use its
5000 year for permanent work it would
now have $4,000 worth of such work to
show for the money.
Stewart of Londonderry and Pike of
Stratton each said this was his first year;
they had nothing to report, but understood
what the law required.
Whitney of Marlboro said his work had
been blasting rocks out of the road where
1t had never before been done, opening
bitches where there was rock, and cover
ing low places with gravel, or filling in
with stone. Had used his best business
judgment and common sense.
Stedman of Newfane had blasted out
rocks and put in stone sluces.
Scott of Putney told the story of work
on the piece of road a mile long between
the village and the railroad station. 1t is
a very bad piece of road, deep with mud
spring and fall. Four years ago the town
began to improve it by digging out and
then filling in with stone the full width be-
tween the sidewalks. One thousand dol
lars was spent in this way on a short sec
ton in two years. time. But this had
proved the worst piece of road in town. In
the wet time it simply filled full of water
and mud, and there it stool, I'd. Mr.. Scott
took the office last year. He concluded he
didn't want any more road of that kind.
He found he had bed of gravel near, got
teams and drew on the gravel thickly,
dumping it in loads and leveling it about
little. This spring the road was in good
shape and dried up the quickest of any
road in town. He meant to continue the
same kind of work this year. He spent
last year S263 in drawing gravel on that
depot road and used the balance of the
state money in putting in sluices.
Mr.. Wall said, by way of comment, that
the trouble with the stone road evidently
was the lack of drainage, which Mr., Scott
admitted. Mr.. Wall thought the trouble
could have been avoided by building on
top of the old road, and laying the large
stones at the bottom so as to make kind
OF blind drain or sluice in the centre, with
suitable outlets.
In discussion which then arose over
drainage 1t was conceded that as a rule the
ordinary farm or drain tile was very unsat-
isfactory, freezing and breaking up. The
new steel or iron tile costs about the
same and is much better.
Butterield of Westminster told of a
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