The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1899-12-22
MAINTAINING ROADS.
CONSTANT CARE NEEDED TO KEEP
THEM IN REPAIR.

b OF '" l0e Tires.
State Engineer Bond of New York
is paying great attention to the matter
Of construction of good roads and has
issued a bulletin calling attention to
the necessity Of great care in keeping
/ the roads after they have been con-
structed. He says:
Roads In the country are continual.
ly subjected to the action Of the ele-
ments, the wear Of the wheels and
horses feet and the continual pound
ing they receive from passing loads.
Therefore, after road has been ac-
ccpted by the state engineer as COM
pieted and turned over to the officers
Of the county, 1t is then that the duties
OF the officers really commence, and
1t depends on their efforts as to what
the life of the road will be whether
they will spend the money wisely on
maintenance or allow the road to de-
teriorate and make expensive repairs
necessary.
LAS no provision has been made in
the Higbie-Armstrong bill for such
maintenance, aside from the provisions
in section Is, All persons owning prop
erty abutting on such road so improv-
ed OF residing thereon shall thereafter
pay oil highway taxes assessment
against them in money, in the manner
now provided by law it may be we'll
to consider the various methods In
vogue by which roads can be kept from
deteriorat ting.
'This subject Is SO well understood
In European countries that we need
look no further for the cause Of the ex-
cellence of their roads. Three systems
eXist-first, by contract with private
parties; second, by the aid Of the
rural populations; third, by the men
employed for that purpose by the COM
munity.
"Of those three, only the third prop
osition is the proper one. That is the
system used by France and Germany.
the objection to No. being that 1t has
been tried and found wanting; to No. 2,
the aid given by the rural population
is not applicable to the maintenance Of
an improved road, as such n road needs
the supervision Of n man perfectly ia
such n one can only gain that familiar
ity by being constantly and permanent
ly employed. Men who have been CIV
Ell charge Of piece Of road soon be-
come interested In 1t and will strive en-
arScticaNy and intelligently to make
their portion OF the road the best. 1t
would seem advisable, therefore, that
the third proposition should be adopt
ed by the supervisors of the county in
which the improved road is situated
that is. man should be appointed and
employed permanently who should
have the road, or a certain portion Of
1t, in his charge and who. under the SUI
pervision of the officers Of the county,
should be responsible for Its mainte-
nance.
"The total points In the care Of
road are as follows: First, keeping the
surface Of the road free from all depos-
its, dust or mud, horse manure or other
rubbish; second, filling Of ruts and de-
pressions; third. cleaning bitches end
seeing that all culverts and water
courses are free from distractions;
fourth, sprinkling the roads in dry
weather.
'To carry out properly these abso-
lutely necessary operations the county
officers must supply their roadmen
'"h such appliances and tools as are
WI, I'D. After road has been hand
requir> = the care Of the supervisors
ed over I. immediately order suffl-
they should !. It the material to be
cient quantity = and depressons.
used In filling ruts Il trap rock and
They will therefore nee, ILL cost less
limestone screenings. ItN. ~op this
per mile Of road kept one yea. and
system than 1t will under the OIL. al
bad system Of semiannual or annu.
repairs. Without continual attention ,
there can be no such thing as a perma-
nently good road. The material should
be placed In regular piles or storage
places along the side Of the road. 200
to $50 feet apart. but in no case should
1t lie on the road or encroach upon It.
"It would appear that a mile Of road
Of good material. with heavy travel.
would need about 80 yards Of material
a year, and piles Of stone placed 200
feet apart. say feet long. 3 feet wide
and 11s feet high, would be ample to
supply all needs. Such q pile would
contain one cubic yard and could be
easily measured at all times. BY plac-
ing them 200 feet apart 26 Of such
piles to the mile would suffice.
1.-THE next thing to be purchased by
the supervisors Is a kit Of tools to be
used by the man in whose care the
road Is placed. He should be furnished
with n wheelbarrow, pick, shovel.
brush broom, hoe. rake, profile board.
level, line. bush hook, spade. four
pound hammer and road rammer
about inches in diameter and weigh
ing about IA pounds. Every road should