Omaha daily bee., 1903-06-15
TALKS OF BITULITHIC PAVING
John Grant Gives De ais Of Material He
Proposes FOR Omaha Streets
SAYsr IS MOST SUITABLE AND DURABLE

Combines All Advantages of Asphalt
and MRcadsm with None Of Their
Disadvantage and IL Cheap
est I'm Ions Run.
"Since the papers announced several days
ago that a new paving plant had been
started that would lay bitulithic as well
as asphalt pavements. 1 have been asked
from five to twenty times a day what
bitullthic pavement IL and whether or not
1t will last" said Contractor John Grant.
What seems to be the most important
point with all property owners now IL
whether a pavement will last continued
Mr.. Grant. "or whether 1t will cost a good
deal moro to keep It up. and keep on cost
ing more each year. than II did to lay H.
And considering the condition OF most OF
our streets, and Omaha has not yet had as
much experience In this line as some other
cities. the question is a very natural one.
80 far as bitulithic or bituminous
macadam pavements are concerned 1 can
say that IL the process Of laying them
had been properly worked out thirty years
or thirty-hve years ago, asphalt pavements
would have been unknown today. There
is as much difference between the btu
lithic pavements which are being laid now
and for the last couple OF years and the
first bituminous ~pavements laid back In
the sos and early '70s as between the
equipment and operation of an up-to-date
1903 railroad and the old tram roads or
seventy-fve years ago. And yet the ofh-
cial records of Washington city and other
cities show than on an average the poorest
OF the bituminous ~pavements did not go
to pieces any faster or cost any more 10
repair than much of the asphalt pavement
which has been laid in the last few years
while some Of them have a good record
for lasting quality which is not equalled
by any other paving ever laid In this
country.
Much Depends on Contractor.
lone thing which the people of Omaha, as
well as other cities, have discovered, ana
so 1 may just as we'll mention 1t here,
is that in all paving it makes a great deal
OF difference who does the work. We all
know that some asphalt pavements are
much better and last much longer than
others, but no advocate of asphalt pave
ments can show one which has lasted for
thirty years. or even half that time, at a
cost of keeping in repair of one-half OF ]
cent per yard per year. And that can be
shown regarding some of the bituminous
pavements laid thirty or more years ago.
One very important fact regarding such
pavements, especially in Washington city
and Pittsburg, is that they were laid by
| only certain men. Samuel E. Scharf, Filbert
& Crawford, N. r. Abbott and myself, and
the paving cement for them was distilled
by E. B. Warren, uncle of the two War
rens who have, within the past few years,
perfected the laying of bituminous pave
- NJ NNTo--a, for,tIr hos ho0r
prominent in the paving business for two
generations and Warren Bros. have laid
more asphalt than any other concern in
the country. But since they and the War
| rensselaer, company quit laying asphalt, as
| have also a number of other old hands at
the business, it would seem as II the way
of laying 1t so as to get the best results
is not known. Bot then some people in all
lines don't want to do work which will
last.
Experience at Washington.
THE United States government reports
show that there were in good repair In
Washington City in January 1908. twenty
six pieces of coal tar pavement laid from
is to 81 years which had never been resur-
faced and which had cost from absolutely
nothing, no repairs whatever having been
made upon two OF the streets, up to 36
cents per square ydTu u year 10 TSpdlTt Wilt
the exception of one street which for some
reason / do not know Is down In the report
as having cost Is cents per yard to keep in
good condition. But as against It is several
OF the other streets, as can be seen by any
one who cares to send for the last report
OF the engineering department for the
District Of Columbia, cost less than ! cent
per yard per year. OF this paving the
shows tina AZ yards yards were 81 years
old; 1884 30 years old; 1858 yards % years
old; 4,42 yards 26 years old; 1864 yards
i6 years old. and II, 453 yards 10 years old.
making a total Of "A. Ts4 square yards in
use from Is to 81 years. Washington is diff
ferent from every other city In the country
In the matter of taxes, and about every
kind Of pavement ever proposed has been
tried more or less at the expense of the
general government, and none OF them
show the record made by the bituminous
pavements. The first cost of these pave
ments was from $1,97 per square yard, |
when there was something of a paving war
on. to $500 per yard.
Opinion of an Expert.
'In the March, 1908, number of the Munic-
ipal Journal and Engineer. Prof. Allan
Wade Dow. for the past 10 years govern
ment inspector OF asphalt and cement for
the District of Columbia, has an interesting
article on the coal tar, or bitumlnous pave
ments laid in Washington City. Before he
was appointed government Inspector Prof.
Dow was first assistant chemist Of the
Barber Asphalt Company, New York, and
on account OF his investigations he has
been recognized as an authority on asphalt
and bituminous paving. A short time ago
when he announced, as one result of his
Investigations, that Trinidad asphalt. so
long considered a standard OF quality. was
unfit for use In paving except 1t was freed
from its soluble salts. there was a great
deal of comment in the paving world, Prof.
Dow in his article tells OF the different
patented pavements which the government
tried some 80 years ago and from what we
now know It Is hard to understand how
such ridiculous mixtures or compounds
could ever have been used. One formula.
for example. prescribed a certain proportion
OF wood saw dust and sulphuric acid, the
latter being used to dissolve the sand and
color the saw dust. I superintended the lay
ing of several Jobs of paving under this
patent. though ! did not follow the
directions as can be seen from this extract