The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1903-12-02
ROADMAKING In GERMANY
The Highways in that Country Compared
With Those in America.
OWNED BY THE GOVERNMENT.
Country Roads as Good as City Streets. Fruit
Trees Planted along rhe Roads.
No "Spring" Breakers.


of the American traveller in Ger.
many, tits it's beautiful highways.
One Is astonlshed at the patience
of the American people, to travel
such miserable, imperfectly con-
structed, horse killing and life
endangering roads, such as we
have in America. There may be
some fairly good roads in some
parts of the United States, but
we know that they are most
wretchedly bad in Pennsylvania.
especially in our own county. If
we even have many shortstretches
of solid stone road, between two
given points, we must still gauge
the load to be able to draw it over
the worst part of it, even if it is
but a short distance. Regardless
of the law to remove all loose
stones once month, during the
summer season, the roads are
constantly strewn with them. To
draw load over a loose stone, is
like drawing it up an incline of 45
degrees, and we know how it
wears the poor beasts to do this
necessarily. The people of Amer
ica must build better roads or
hide their faces in shame before
Europe.
Some of the highways in Ger.
many are of greataniquity. When
the Romans first set foot upon
German soil to conquer it, Ger
many was an impenetrable for.
est; now, the Romans were ex.
perts at road building. They had
built many good roads already
One, the Appian way, leading
from Rome to Padua aud far ther
south, a distance of $50 miles. is
even at this day, better than any
modern built roads. The first
thing they would do towards
permanent occupancy of a newly
acquired country, was to build
good highways for easy commu.
nication with the home country.
Thus road building commenced
in Germany,and generation after
generation kept on at it; so that
to-day, Germany has the finest
roads in the world. 1t is an un-
deniabIe fact that the success of
Germany in it's defensive wars
with France, aud it's we'll known
prosperity in manufacture inter
nal trade, and in every depart
nent of business, is greatly due
to it's many we'll built and well
kept highways.
Before Germany became an
empire there existed in that
country no less than thirty diff
ferent states, each ruled by po-
tentate who lived in capital city
and kept standing army. From
each of these cities radiate fine
highways IN every direction to
the end of their domain, connect
ing with the highways of the
neighborlng capital. So an end
less chain of roads almost as per.
feet as city streets runs through
all Germany.
If you visit one of these cities,
for instance, Darmstadt, and fol
low one of It's beautiful main
streets to the end OF the city, you
will only see bef IRE you contin
uahon of that street as high
way, not much inferior to the
street itself, and that will bring
you to the next city. The roat
may be forty feet wide, the cen
ter being raised about twelve
inches for drainage. Eight fee
on one side for pedestrians, eigh
feet on the other side for eques
trans, and the middle space TO
vehicles. Low curb stones mari
these three divisions, and tn
prescribed use of these differen
paths is very strictly enforced.
The road is smooth and soli
and no loose stones. The heav
est loads make no impression uT
on IT, the tires Of all kinds OF W
hicles being broader than in tn
United States. On each side Z
the road thirty feet apart ar
'ruit trees planted, apples, pear
and cherries of the best varietlel
It's q pleasure W walk beneat