Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1899-10-06

improved roads you want to have or
that you should improve them at all,
put IN case you want to improve your
conditions on that line will endeavor
to give You information which arises
from my practical experience in road
construction. and that will meet with
your conditions. We can not always
have the best thing this country affords,
for the simple fact that we haven't the
means to pay for them. 1t would be the
height of folly for man who was only
worth $4,000 to put up dwelling house
that would cost $4,000, however desira-
Bile 1t may be to have such house to
live In. We must be governed by com
mon sense in these matters, and improve
our roads, as we have means to pay for
them, getting all the help and assis-
lance we can from all the people that
have the use of them and are benefited
In any way by their use. This is the
plan adopted in the east, and is famil-
larry known as the state system. where
the state aids by the payment of GER
tain cost of the road, as it does in New
Jersey and Connecticut by the payment
of one-third. in New York by the pay
ment of one-half, in Massachusetts by
the payment of three fourths. The
state taxes in those states are princi-
pally, and in some cases altogether
raised by taxes on corporations, rail-
roads, manufacturers, banks, trust cons
Ipanies and personal property. Another
advantage of state system is that it
places the road construction and main
ltenance under better supervision, as the
state government will not pay their
share of the cost OF the roads unless
properly constructed and maintained
This method relieves the real estate of
a considerable burden, and tax on farm
land is in many cases less under this
state system than it was under the To-
cal system. 1 am not here to tell you as
a government official that Iowa ought
| to change her system, but in case. she
wants to, to tell you what methods are
best calculated to distribute the burden
of the cost more equitably among all
the people benefited by roads, and light
en- the burden on the farming commu-
nifty and at the same time giving the
| producer and consumer the benefit of
better roads.
Your common country roads can be
much improved without great eX-
penditure of money. You do not have
to expend large sums for the purpose
Iof cutting down high hills or filing up
deep valleys: there being an absence OF
fast. hard rocks in the roads, they can
! be dressed up by a road machine and
put in fairly good shape. Before this
| is done. however the road should be
/ drained, using the common tile drain
| ing, such as is used on farm lands.
the road has only the ordinary country
travel one drain in the center Of ths
road will be sufficient. 1t should b
1 placed in the part of the road where
is most travelled and placed from twe
to three feet below the surface. Where
there is sufficient grade the fall should
not be less than three inches to the 100
4 feet. with discharges at convenient
/ points into an open ditch al the side
the road. In long distances of appar-
emily level road way it may be neces-
4 sary to have an additional drain at the
side for the purpose of emptying the
4 drain from the middle. This side drair
should have a fall of not less than one
4 inch to the 100 feet from the place OF
beginning to the place of it's discharge
In this way the drains in the middle OF
the road can be kept at a depth of no
lgreater than four feet. The advantage
of having drain pipes near the surfac,
is so as to induce as rapid flow o.
water az possible after the rain watel
has entered into the soil. For this pur-
pose 1t is better when practical to fiji
around the thing in the drain with
broken stone. brick bats or any coarss
material. filling the ditch near 10 tbs
surface, so as to get the water TO flow
through the drains as rapidly as pcs
sible. When the roadway Is thorough
~ drained there will be little or NJ
lfreeZing, as it is the water that remain:
lin the road after rain storms tina
freezes, and the difficulty OF deep
muddy roads in the spring or warm
spells of winter is avoided After tn
drains have been laid and the ditche:
filed the ditching should be done in tn
spring of the year. the road machine il
proper hands can dress up the roas
and make it round, so that the waite
will flow from the center TO both side!
of the road when the bitches Will car
~ the water to the nearest natura
waterway. Care should be taken tina
all weeds. grass and vegetable matte
be removed. These things do not max
good hard roads, but on the contrary
when they are decaying, add to tn
muddy condition.
While the road is being dressed Vi
a roller should be used to compact it a
Thoroughly as possible. Loose dirt onl.
acts as sponge to hold the water
while the horses feet and wagol
wheels grind it up into mud. BY com
lpacting the ground thoroughly in tn
: spring of the year the water will tloy
off to the sides. and the road will b
lfairly good until the freezing time set
in in the fall
I'm sections of the country wher
there is travel and it does not cost to
! much to haul it, this roadway can b
dressed with gravel SO as to make it
fairly good hard road for quite lon
time. The gravel should be put on il
courses of three inches and each cours
thoroughly rolled. Two or three course
will be sufficient. Where gravel canno
be obtained and course, sharp sand ca
be had a single course of three niche
thoroughly rolled will greatly mprov
your common roads The ideal har
road for the country is that made O
+ stone, broken by a crusher and sepa
rated into sizes by revolving screer
The coarser size. which is two to tw
: and a half inches in diameter, shout
be placed on the earth foundation
J (which has been previously prepare
land hardened by a heavy roller to tn