davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

ter, and that the best interests of Am
er;can agriculture and the American peo-
rle Us a, whole demand the. construction
Of good roads. and that money wisely ex
Eended for this purpose is sure TO return.
PRINCIPLES WHICH SHOULD GOVERN
LOCATION AND TREATMENT
OF GOOD ROADS.
Road making Is perfected by practice.
experience and labor. Soils and clays,
send and ores, gravels and rocks are
transformed into beautiful roads. streets
and boulevards by methods which
conform with their great varieties
of character and with natures laws.
The art of road building depends largely
Cor its success upon its being carried on
ir conformity with certain general prin-
ciples.
Ii is necessary that roads should be
haYd, smooth, comparatively level, and
fit Tor use at all seasons of the year:
that they should be properly located, or
laid ont on the ground, so that their
grades may be such that animate or in
animate power may be applied upon
them TO the best advantage and without
great loss OF energy; that they should be
properly constructed, the ground we'll
drained, the roadbed graded, shaped, and
rolled, and that they should be surfaced
with the best material procurable; that
they should be properly maintained or
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

many parts of che country during the
winter season.
Road drainage is just as essential TO
a good road as farm drainage is TO a
good farm. In fact, the two go hand in
hand and the better the one the better
the other, and vice versa. There are
thousands of miles Of public road in the
United States which are practically i'm
passable during some portion of the year
on account of bad drainage, while for
the same reason thousands of acres of
the richest meadow and swamp lands lie
idle from year in to year out.
Surface Drainage.-The wearing sur
face of a road must be in effect roof
that is, the section in the middle should
be the highest part and the travelled
roadway should be made as impervious
TO water as possible, so that it will flow
freely and quickly into the cutters or
bitches alongside Gig. 81. The best shape
for the cross section Of q road has been
found to be either hat ellipse or one
made up of two plane surfaces clipping
uniformly from the middle to the sides
and Joined in the center by a SMALL cir
cular curve. Either of these sections may
be used, provided it is not too fiat in the
middle for good drainage or too steep at
the cutters for safety. The steepness OF
the slope from the center to the sides
should depend upon the nature of the
surface, being greater or less according
20 its roughness or smothness. This
slope ought to be greatest on earth roads,
perhaps as much in some cases as 1 foot
in 20 feet after the surface has been
thoroughly rolled or compacted by traf-
fic. This varies from about ! to 20
in to so on a macadam road to / to 40
or in so on the various classes of pave
ments and for asphalt sometimes as low
as l in so.
Where the road is constructed on a
grade or hill the slope from the center
to the sides should be slightly sleeper
than that on the level road. The best
cross section for roads on grades is the
one made up from two plane surfaces
sloping uniformly from the center TO the
sides. This is done so as to avoid the
danger OF overturning near the side
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

side, and it is not dangerous to wagops
and foot travellers.
Where the road is built on a grade
some provision should be made to pre.
vent the wash of the cutters into great.
deep gulties This can be done by
paving the bottom and sides OF
the cutters with brick, river
! rocks, or field stone. In order to make
! the flow in such side bitches as small as
possible 1t is advisable to construct out
lets into the adjacent fields or to lay I'M
der ground pipes or tile drains with
openings into the bitches at frequent in
teryals.
The size of side bitches should depend
upon the character of the soil and the
amount of water they are expected to
carry If possible they should be located
3 feet from the edge of the Travelled
roadway, so that II the latter is IA feet
wide there will be 20 feet OF clear space
between bitches.
To make a ditch with even, faring sides
so as to produce a neat job, it is good
policy TO use rough gauge The gauge is
like that shown in fig. s. The gauge ia
made of light strips of wood about
inches liz width and / inch thick. The
upright strip should be about feet long
OF the horizontal strip should be / foot
inches in length, measured from the left
side of the upright piece to the point of
the gauge on the extreme right. The top
OF the horizntal strip should be l foot
from the bottom point of the gauge This
gauge should be provided with a plumb
and line, and by means Of the upright
strip is held vertical while the slope is
made to correspond with the edges OF
the diagonal strip.
The bottom of the ditch may vary in
width from to IL inches, or even more,
as may he found necessary in order TO
carry the largest amount of water which
is expected TO flow through 1t at any one
time. Sometimes the only bitches neces-
sary to carry off the surface water are
those made by the use of the road ma
chimes or road graders. The blade Of
the machine may be set at any desired
angle, and when drawn along by horses
tcuts into the surface and moves the
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09
BY M. Eldridge Acting Director S. Office of Public Roads,

lines OF the farms regardless OF grades or
direction. Most of them remain today
where they were located years ago, and
where untold labor, expense, and energy
have been wasted in trying to haul over
them and in endeavors 10 improve their
deplorable condition.
The great error is made of continuing
to follow these primitive paths with oug
public highways. The right course is to
call in an engineer and throw the road
around the end or along the side Of steep
hills Zig. u instead of continuing 10 go
over them; or 10 pull the road UP on dry
sslid ground instead of splashing through
thA, mud and water of the creek or
swaenp. Far more time and money have
Eeenswasted in trying to keep up single
mile Of enc of those pig track sur
veys than it would take to build and
keep ngepair two miles of good road.
Another and perhaps greater error is
made by some persons in the West who
continue To-Day out their roads on sec
ton llEes.N These sections are all
square, with Sides running north, south.
east and wesS person wishing to
cross the country in &ny other than these
directions must necessarily do so in rec
tangular zigzags. Ut also necessitates
very often the crcssng and recrossing OF
hills and valleys, which might be avoided
if the roads had been constructed on
scientific principles.
In the prairie State Of Iowa, for ex-
ample, where roads are mo worse than
in many other States, there is a greater
number of roads having much sleeper
grades than are found in the mountainous
Republic of Switzerland. In Maryland
the old stagecoach road or turnpike run
ming from Washington to Baltimore
makes almost ''bee line" regardless Of
hills or valleys, and the grades at places
are as steep as 10 or Il per cent, where
by making little detours the road might
have been made perfectly level, or by
running II up the hills less abruptly tue
grade might have been reduced TO or y
Ter cent, as is done in the hilly regions
of many parts Of this and other coun
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

Bad roads constitute The greatest
drawback TO rural life, and Cor the lack
OF good roads the farmers Suffer more
tran any other class. 1t is Aobvously
unnecessary, therefore, TO discsss here
the benefits TO be derived by. thepa from
improved roads. Suffice it TO say that
those localities where good roads have
been built are becoming richer, more
prosperous and more thickiy settled,
while those which do not possess theSe
advantages in transportation are either
at a standstill or are becoming poorer
and more sparsely settled. II these con-
6itions continue, fruitful farms may be
abandoned and rich lands go to waste.
Life on a farm often becomes, as a result
of 'bottomess roads, isolated and bar
rem of social enjoyments and pleasures.
and country people in some communi
ties suffer such great disadvantage that
ambition is checked, energy weakened
and industry paralyzed.
Good roads, like good streets, make
habitation along them most desirable;
they economic time and force in trans
! portation of products, reduce wear and
tear on horses, harness and vehicles, and
enhance the market value Of real estate.
They raise the value Of farm lands and
farm products and tend to beautify the
country through which they pass; they
facilitate rural mail delivery and are a
potent aid TO education, religion and So
ciabilty. Charles Sumner once said,
THE road and the schoolmaster are the
two most important agents in advancing
civilization.
The difference between good and bad
roads is often equivalent to the differ
enc, between profit and loss. Good
roads have a money value 10 farmers as
well as political and social value, and
leaving out convenience, comfort, social
and refined influences which good roads
always enhance, and looking at them only
from the almighty dollar side, they
are found to pay handsome dividends
each year
People generally are beginning to re-
alize that road building is a public mat
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

have never given it a fair opportunity
to run out of the dirt and find its level
in other places. We can not make a
hard road out of soft mud. and no
amount OF labor and machinery will make
good dirt road that will stay good UNI
less some plan Is adopted TO get rid of
the surplus water. Gig. ~. Water is
heavy, limpid iuid, hard to confine and
easy to let loose. 1t is always seeking
for a chance to run down a hill; always
trying TO find it's lowest level"
An essential feature of good road Is
good drainage and the principles of good
drainage remain substantially the same,
whether the road be constructed Of earth,
gravel, shells. stones. or asphalt The
first demand of good drainage is to at
tend to the shape of road surface This
must be crowned" or rounded up toward
the center, so that there may be q fail
from the center to the sides, thus COM
polling the water to flow rapidly from
the surface into the cutters which should
be constructed on one or both sides. and
from there in turn be discharged into
larger and more open channels. Further
more, it is necessary that no water be
allowed to flow across a roadway; Gull
verts, tile, stone. or box drains should
be provided for that purpose.
In addition to being well covered and
drained, the surface should be kept as
smooth as possible. that is, free from
ruts wheel tracks, holes, or hoIlows. If
any of these exist, instead of being
thrown to the side the water Is held back
and Is either eyaporated by the sun or
| absorbed by the material of which the
road is constructed. In the latter case
the material loses its solidity, softens and
yields to the impact of the horses feet
and the wheels of vehicles, and, like the
water poured upon a grindstone, so the
water poured on a road surface which is
not properly drained assists the grinding
action of the wheels in rutting or COM
| pletely destroying the surface When
water is allowed to stand on a road the
holes and ruts rapidly increase in num-
Der and size; wagon after wagon sinks
deeper and deeper, until the road finally
.becomesl utterly bad Gig s. and some
sMes nApassable, as frequently found in
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

1t is therefore seen that when the
grades are l foot in "A feet or 120 feet
10 the mile horse can draw only three
fourths as much as he can on a level;
where the grade is / foot in "a feet, or
200 feet to the mile. he can draw only
one-half as much, and on a 10 per cent
grade, or 500 feet to the mile. he is able
to draw only one-fourth as much as on q
level road.
AS a chain is no stronger than its
weakest link, Just so the greatest load
which can be hauled over road is the
load which can be hauled through the
deepest mud hole or up the steepest hill
on that road. The cost of haulage is,
therefore, necessarily increased in pro-
portion to the roughness of the surface
or steepness of the grade. 1t costs one
and one-half times as much to haul over
a road having a per cent grade and
three times as much over one having 10
per cent grade as on level road. AS a
perfectly level road can seldom be had,
it is well to know the steepest allowable
grade. If the hill be one of great length.
it is sometimes best to have the lowest
part steepest, upon which the horse Is
capable of exerting his full strength, and
I make the slope more gentle toward the
summit, to correspond with the continu-
ally decreasing strength of the fatigued
animal
So far as descent is concerned road
should not be so steep that the wagons
and carriages can not be drawn down it
with perfect ease and safety. Sir Henry
ParnelI considered that when the grade
was no greater than l foot in 30 feet
/ vehicles could be drawn down it at a
/ speed of 12 miles an hour with perfect
safety Gillespie says:
ssJt has heen ascertained 49, horse
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

edvantageously increased TO avoid an
accent by at least twenty times the per-
pendicular height which is thus to be
avoided-th is, to escape a hill 100 feet
highA it would be proper for the road to
makeE such circuit as would increase
its length 1000 feet" The mathematical
axiom that "a straight line is the short
est DISTANCE between two points is not,
therefore, \the best rule to follow in lay
ing out road better IS the proverb
that 1.-The longest way round Is the
shortest wayhome.
GRADES.
The grade is the most important factor
to be considered in the location Of roads.
The smoother the road surface, the less
the grade should be-
Whether the re ad be constructed OF
earth, stone OF Gravel steep grades
should always be avoided if possible.
They become covered at times with coat
ings of ice or slippery soil, making them
very difficult TO ascend with loaded
vehicles as we'll as dangerous to descend
They allow water to rush down at such
g. rate as to wash great gaps alongside
or TO carry the surfacing material away
AS the grade increases ih steepness
either the load has 10 be diminished in
proportion or more horses or power at
tached From Gillespie we tinS that If
d horse can pull on a level 1000 pounds,
on q rise OIL
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

earth from the sides toward the center.
forming cutters alongside and distrihu-
ting, the earth uniformly over the trav-
eled way Zig. 2S). Such cutters are
liable TO become clogged by brush,
weeds and other debris, or destroyed by
passing wagons, and it is therefore bet
ter, when the space permits, 10 have the
side bitches above referred to, even if the
read be built with road machine.
SUBDRAINAGE.
In order to have good road it Is just
as necessary that water should not be al
lowed TO attack the substructure from
below as that it should not be permitted
10 percolate through it from above. Es-
pecially is the former provision essential
in cold climates, where, If water is al
LEVIED to remain In the substructure the
whole roadway is liable to become
broken up and destroyed by frost and
the wheels of vehicles. Therefore,
where the road runs through low wet
lands or over certain kinds OF clayey soils
surface drainage is not all that Is neces-
sary. Common side drains catch sur
face water and surface water only. Isaac
Potter says:
MANY miles OF road are on low, fiat
lands and on springy soils, and thousands
OF miles of prairie roads are, Tor many
weeks in the year, laid on wet subsoil.
In all such cases, and, indeed, in every
case where the nature OF the ground Is
not such as to insure quick drainage, the
road may be vastly benefited by under
drainage An under drain clears the SOIL
OF surplus water, dries it, warns It, ana
makes impossible the formation OF Deep
heavy, frozen crusts, which are found IN
every undrained road when the severe
winter weather follows the heavy rail-
rains. This frost causes nine-tenths OF
the difficulties OF travel in the time OIL
sudden or long continued thaws
Roads constructed over wet undrained
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

bitches, which would necessarily be in
creased if the elliptical form were used.
The slope from the center TO the sides
must be steep enough to lead the water
into the side bitches instead of allowing
it to run down the middle of the road.
Every wheel track on an inclined road
way becomes q channel for carrying
down the water, and unless the curvature
is sufficient these tracks are quickly
deepened into water courses which cut
into and sometimes destroy the best i'm
proved road.
WATER BREAKS.
In order TO prevent the washing out Of
earth roads on hills it sometimes be-
comes necessary to construct water
breaks; that is, broad shallow bitches ar
ranged so as to catch the surface water
and carry it each way into the side
bitches Such bitches retard traffic to a
certain extent, and often result in over
turning vehicles; consequently they
should never be used until all other
means have failed to cause the water
to flow into the side channels neither
should they be allowed TO cross the en-
tire width OF the road diagonally, but
should be constructed in the shape of the
letter " This arrangement permits
teams following the middle of the road
10 cross the ditch squarely and thus
avoid the danger of overtuTning, These
bitches should not be deeper than are
absolutely necessary to throw the water
off the surface, and the part in the cen
ter should be the shallowest,
Unfortunately farmers aud road mas
tiers have fixed idea that the one way
to prevent hills, long and short from
washing is to heap upon them quantities
of those original tumular distractions
known indifferently as 'thank-you-
ma ans" breaks" or "hummocks" and
the number they can squeeze in upon q
single hill is positively astonishing.
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09
ysggga
earth roads the lower ~ -
pe
SO run of quickly

lands are always difficult to manage ana
Gpensive TO maintain, and they are
liable to be broken UP in wet weather or
after frosts. 1t will be much cheaper ia
the long run to go TO the expense OF
making the drainage of the suhjacent
soil and substTucture as perfect as pos
sible. There is scarcely an earth road
in the United States which can not be
so improved by surface or subdrainage
as 10 yield benefits to the farmers hun
bred times greater in value than the cost
of the drains themselves.
Under drains are not expensive. On
the contrary, they are cheap and easily
made and if made in a substantial way
and according to the rules of common
sense 4 good under drain will last for
ages. Use the best tools and materials
you can get Gigs. and 10); employ them
as we'll as you know how. and wait result
with a clear conscience. Slim fagots OF
wood bound together and laid length
wise at the bottom Of q carefully graded
drain ditch viii answer fairly we'll
IL stone or drain tile can not be had, and
laid on springy soils"
Subdrains should be carefully graded
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

per cent grade. On this slope, however,
he would be compelled TO double his or
binary exertion to draw a full load. and
it would therefore be the maximum
grade"
DRAINAGE,
Mr. Isaac b. Potter an eminent au
thority upon roads. says;
DIRTY water and watery dirt make bad
going and mud is the greatest obstacle
to the travel and traffic of the farmer.
Mud is a mixture of dirt and water. The
dirt is always to be found in the road
way, and the water which comes in rain,
snow, and frost, softens it, horses and
wagons and narrow wheel tires knead it
and mix it, and it soon gets into so bad
q condition that a fairly loaded wagon
can not be hauled through it.
eve can not prevent the coming of this
water and it only remains for US TO get
rid OF il, which can be speedily done if
we go about it in the right way. Very
few people know how great an amount
of water falls upon a country road, and
ii may surprise some of us TO be told
that on each mile of an ordinary country
highway rods wide within the United
States there falls each year an average
of 81 900 tons of water. In the ordinary
country dirt road the water seems to
stick and stay as If there was no other
place for it. and this is only because we
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

kept constantly in good repair
All the important roads in the United
States can be and doubtless will be ma
cadamizad or otherwise improved in the
not distant future. This expectation
should govern their present location and
treatment everywhere. Unless changes
are made in the location Of the roads
IL many parts of the country 1t would
be worse than folly 10 macadamize them
ANY costly resurfaaing of the existing
roads will fasten them where they are
for generations" says Gen. Stone. The
chief difficulty in this country Is not
with the surface, but with the steep
grades, many of which are too long to
be reduced by cutting and filling on the
present lines, and if this could be done
If would cost more in many cases than
relocating them.
Many of our roads were originally laid
out without any attention to general to-
pogranhv, and in most cases followed the
settlers path from scabin to cabin, the
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

TO traffic and commerce. The great
drawback to the laying out of roads on
the principle referred &c is that Of the
necessity. in come eases. of building
them through the best lands, the choicest
pastures and orchards, instead, as they
do now, of cutting around the farm line
or passing through old worn out fields OF
over rocky knobs. But if farmers wish
PEOPLE 10 know that they have good
farms, good cattle, sheep or horses,
good grain, fruit, or vegetables, they
should let the roads go through the best
parts of the farms.
The difference in length between
straight road and one which is slightly
curved is less than one would imagine.
Says Sganzin: iii a road between two
places ten miles apart were made to
curve so that the eye could see no farther
than quarter of mile on at once,
its length would exceed that of a per-
fectly straight read between the same
points by only about $50 yards. a Even If
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09
SIDE bitches.
Quoting Mr.. Isaac B. Potter

Quoting Mr. Isaac B. Potter
side bitches are necessary because the
thousands of tons of water which fall
upon every mile of country road each
year, in the form of rain or snow, should
be carried away to some neighboring
creek or other water channel as fast as
the rain falls and the snow melts. so
as to prevent it's forming mud and des-
troying the surface of the road. When
the ground is frozen and heavy rain or
sudden thaw occurs the side ditch is the
only means of getting rid OF the SURFACE
water, for no matter how sandy or por-
Gus the soil may be, when filled with
frost 1t is practically water tight, ana
the water which falls or forms on the
surface must either remain there or be
carried away by surface bitches at the
sides OF the road.
"a side ditch should have a gradually
falling and even grade at the bottom,
and broad. fiaring sides TO prevent the
caving in of its banks. 1t can be easily
cleared OF snow. weeds and rubbish; the
wafer will rim into It easily from each
The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-02-09

er, it is often more economical to con
struct it that way than to go over and
Hecessitate the expenditure of large
amounts OF money in reducing the grade,
or a waste of much valuable time and
energy in Transporting goods that way
Gillespie says that. as a general rule,
the horizontal length of road may be