Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1900-08-03


Steam - what TO DO with the
stone--Grading and Draining.
The process OF improving n dirt road.
says f. q. Harrison in Rural New
Yorker, is this: First. 90 over the read
with the road machine. adjusting It 50
as to take OF the grass, weeds, leaves.
loose stones. etc. Then cart this to
some dump. Do not lc.ye any on the
road surface. The ST, rs might be
separated to fill up deep holes or wash
es. Then with the machine draw the
earth to center Of road. 81 aS JO form
a crown. If there are still loose stones
or grass SodS. leaves. sticks etc. found
mixed with the earth, use a common
steel tooth harrow 10 draw them in
piles. and this narrowing will also mix
the earth, sand and clay. Having got
rid Of loose stones and trash. put on
the roller and roll until the surface Is
hard aud Iirm, increasing the weight
as the rolling proceeds.
The crown of the road depends upon
the grades and width. on level or
nearly so one-half to threc-quartcrS Of
an inch fall to every running foot from
center Of road to side bitches. on
grades increase the fall. So aS to have
il greater if possible than the grade Of
the road longtudinally. This is nee
eSSary To cause the storm water To tlbw
off the roadbcd to the side bitches and
does away with CruSSways or water
breaks, excepting on grades Of ten feet
rise in the luu feet Of length As wa
ter is the destroyer of roldbodS. II is
very important to keep the road at all
times well crowned up and hard as
possible. This cannot be done we'll
without a road machine and roller
The side open bitches should he deep
and wide enough to carry OF all storm
water and kept at Il grade so IS 10 car
ry off all the water. No water should
be allowed to remain in these dtches
as 1t will In a Shnrt time be likely 10
seep under the ruadhci and soften 1t.
Ii the earth is light aud sandy. It
may have what is called natural Drain
agr-that IS. M open soil under the
surface consisting of coarse sand or
pebbles or loose stones. II the earth
should be found to be- more compact
and solid underneath the surface. thrn
the storm water falling on the road
bed which does not flow to the side
bitches will soak downward until II
comes to the more compact earth.
where the voids in the earth are fewer
than at the surface. and will remain
there The teams will work this into
mud.
In this case artificial drainage is nee
essary. This is done by putting a
drain in the center of the travelled road
way, or, better, two. about eight or ten
feet apart. Land draintile is found to
be the cheapest. The drains should be
from two to three feet deep, with n
grade of three inches fall to the 100
feet of length. 1t is better to discharge
the water into side bitches about every
400 or 800 feet. Three to four inch
common earthen drain tile will answer.
If stones are plentiful use them to fill
hB lttNt tltNlA'N ~ il'ti llt Abl'. NN' =
this fact in mind: Drainage of storm
water from the road differs from storm
water land drainage In this reSpeCt-in
land drainage only what is called su-
periiuOus water is carried off by drain
tile. therefore the tile are put in four
feet deep and wide apart, so that storm
water is retained in the earth to nour,
sh plant life, and all that is not neccs-
sary for this is carried off by drainage.
On roadbsds all water may be called
superhuous and should be removed as
quickly rs possible; hence downward
or direct drainage is the most effective.
Spring or underground water is that
which comes to the rOadbed from un-
dcrgrOuEd streams. Sometimes these
have their rise at q considerable dis
tance from the road. coming from land
more elevated than the roadbed. Some
times they are at the sides of the road
and in the roadbcd itself. When they
come from the high lands along the
road or on the roadside. n drain should
be placed along the side of the road
from which the water comes, and thus
cut it off from the roadbed. When the
springs start apparently from or in the
roadbed, they can generally be cut off
by a ditch cut nearer the source, as
spring water flows along through a
stratum the dip of which is found to
run with the grade of the hill or land:
we go up the hill or grade from the
spring or wet place in the road, and
cut off that which makes the wet or
soft place in the roadbed, and run the
drain to the side bitches or nearest
natural waterway.
In all cases the draintile should be
laid before the roadhed Is improved, as
first meutioned, and it should be don4
some time before, so as to allow for
settling of earth which fills the bitches.
When there is no good material for
artificial covering for roadbed and the
cost is too great for their construction,
the common earth roads can be greatly
improved as above indicated. The cost
will depend upon the amount of work
to be done and price of teams and
labor.
Road machines can be purchased
from $175 upward, according to style
and weight. Horse rollers, weighing
two to five tons, cost about $100 per
ton. Steam rollers are not desirable
for country dirt roads. They generally
weigh from 10 to 20 tons and are too
heavy. In practice we find a 3l2 ton
roller, which can be weighted to 81
tons, to be the best for country roads
Four horses will draw such a roller
increasing the weight as the ground
hardens. These two articles, with