The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1903-07-28
GOOD-ROADS
CONVENTION

Good Etca4- Convention. ana Mr. L II
Syk~. s. chapel iii. aetei a. Sgess
tary
Prot. y C. H.l4diek. = tae : ana n
College. then stated that TIE meeting
would be very glad 20 hcar ,rsu eHy .uc
vito haI hai actual cxrSreuse ln rssd-
building. lie sid me original intent ga
had been 10 organize = Saaety 8. I.aa4
Builders ot the State.
First Nh " l.. spoon. the Government
expert III charge 81 the Wotk rs TINS and
several other Southern state read Ia
per Oh The Retirement of tHt Common
Public Roads. IL bcgtu ~ d~ae.aug
upon tie Vital import ne o the question:
t. all citizens. and moro especially IS tie
farmers.
Every business. profession. tr.d, or -
eupatIon ! Interested, and should TAX
part IN the expense ST building tn4 kecI-
ing UP the roads. We are tua pots To-
allow amy one To use Tire roads without
paying FOR them, THAT IS. by taxation 81
labor.
But to talk Of -maoaJamlzcl ra..l, lgr
all sections i 4 mistake. We must book
t. the most economical Ny II g-lus both
the money and the labor 1T hand. Fer
instance. III the East, where sand ana
mud prevail q good road may IS made
by mixing sand ana clay, a. ha~ been
done there with great success
Then why not have these same sand and
clay roads IN the middle ~cctIon2 A. a
matter OF fact. we can have them. for
tho sand j. even better here than I'M The
east. But, besides tins. there i- abuud-
ancc Of gravel III middle and Piedmont
North Carolina. Accordingly, Wc can an
get good roads, if we only vii put i Ittlc
money ana labor and intelligence INTO II.
We must use our energy, III ot il. both
man and beast, il wc desire t. materially
improve the public roads 81 North QUO
lima. We must unite our forces.
This State j. ~abundantly supplied with
good sharp sand, clay and gravel.
Competent men are needed To locate aud
grade the road. This VIII be economical
III the end. After that anybody can 20
ahead and make the road bct.
MI. Spoon urged strongly upon his
hearers TO make experiments with sand
and clay and use wide tires. Let the
school teachers try it on the footpdths to
the schools, the children's feet viii pack
it, and the school houses viii be kept
cleaner.
Asked as to cross drainage, Mr.. Spoon
said that where stone was plentiful he
considered a stone culvert the best. In
other localities, a sewer pipe or wooden
bridge drain was the best. The bridge
style was much better than the old box
~culVert.
Then Mr.. Hanes called on Mr.. w. p.
Bachelor, Of Wake. to talk about wide
tires. He began b. pleading guilty to be-
ing a crank on the subject.
t The first thing he had found was that It
5 actually lightened the draft. He first tired
the wide-tire wagon, with a load Of over
} 1900 pounds of cotton seed. On ploughcd
ground two mules took this load easily.
and the tires sank only to their own
depth. When they got on to the farm
road they struck a trot with that load.
The next trial was on the county road,
and that was before it was improved to
his farm. He put on a load Of 6 bales
instead Of the usual four bales. That load
was taken to town In less time than it
:, used TO take with four bales. SO the vide
tires saved 80 per cent. OF his mule power.
One of the essentials Of getting good
roads was a little brains. Once get good
roads and our boys will STAY on tho farm.
, As it Is now, we can't blame them for
cnvying the town boys.
One of the principal advantages of good
roads is they get people together 20 rub
lIliOlCi dSdiHSt Ia IIlhittI. -
very amusing story Of how Mr.. Bachelor
once saved $500 by listening to a tramp,
gave a practical example OF the good de-
rived from the exchanging Of opinions.
One great advantage Of the wide tire
was that il packed the road as it went,
and also saved the wear and tear on the
wagons. He recommended from four to
SIX inches as the width of the tire.
He thought a wheel tax graduated ac-
cording 10 the width of our tire would
! be a good thing.
Prof. Riddick thought it would be a
good thing for some one 10 take an agency
in this State and recommend these Wid"
!, tires, for the trouble seemed TO be that
people did not know where these wide
tire wagons could be gotten.
Mr.. Bachelor said his wheels were
: solid, without spokes. Several present SAID
/, they had tried wide tires with spokcs and
they did not work because the clay
: clocged 50 thickIy that it wore out the
teams.
Mr. Spoon said thai that was one rca-
son why sand must be mixed with the
clay.
Mr.. W. G. Allen, Of Wake, declared
that the sand and clay mixture did not
work in this county. He claimed the only
way to make roads in this county was t.
change the beds of the old roads.
Change the beds of the old roads,
1 he said was the cheapest way TO get good
roads. 1t would cost a great deal more
to try to build a new road on top Of the
old one.
Mr.. spoon said Mr.. Aliens argument
was proof OF the utility Of the sand and
clay road; for by laying out new roads
alongside the old road-beds you get a
: road that had already been drained INTO
the old road.
Then Mr.. Warren. Of G~uiliord, was call
ed upon. He said their bond issue started
long ago, and the first thing to do was TO
educate the people. They commenced
with one road, to macadamize 1t. This
they did by going to the property owners
and getting subscriptions. In this way
: they got three roads started. This con
| verted the people.
Mr.. King, Of Guilford, being called
upon, said they were peculiarly well stu