The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1904-08-04

side OF that road there was a margin oi
SIX or eight inches OF the surfacing ma.
terial that the oil had not touched The
: ram passed over the oiled surface, and
when 1t came to that which was moi
oiled 1t cut it rightout Upon the same
road within the city limits OF Pomona
: the road was surfaced with decomposed
3 granite, packed down hard, and very
NICE road during the summer, but It
Q mad not been oiled. The same storm
! cut it all to pieces. On one stretch of a
| quarter Of mile the road material was
7: fairly washed out into the fields along
side the road"
} OBJECTIONS TO USE OF OIL ON ROADS.
When they first began to use oil on
J roads in California there was much
speculation as to whether it would NOT
be found objectionable; but when prom
erly applied, and suitable precautions
we're taken not to use the road before il
was ready, the theoretical objections
vanished. When oil was placed upon
the surface of the road, if vehicles were
allowed to run over it before it had
sunk in and become thoroughly incor-
porated with the road material the
wheels picked up the oil and threw it in
all directions, injuring clothing and
everything else OF delicate nature
upon which it fell. After experience
has taught how to avoid this, no further
serious difficulties manifested them
selves.
There does mot appear to be such a
thing as dust from an oiled road. of
course, dust from outside may blow on
to an oiled road, but this soon adheres
to the oiled surface and ceases to rise.
10 determine whether oiled road ma
terial would produce stain the writer
repeatedly scraped up some from the
surface Of road which had been treated |
some months before and placed it in |
clean, white handkerchief. Taking the
corners of the handkerchief in the left |
hand, the ball Of dirt was turned by the |
right hand, so as to compress the con-
tents as the housewife does her fruit
pulp when making jelly. After turning
until the compression was carried as far
as the strength of the handkerchief
would permit, the ball was manipulated
by the right hand for a moment or two.
Then retaining one corner of the hand
kerchief in the left hand, the others
were dropped and the handkerchief
thoroughly shaken. None OF the ma
terial adhered to the handkerchief and
no discoloration could be detected.
The mud from oil-treated roads, after
the oil has become thoroughly diffused
through the material, does not appear
TO be more Objectionable than ordinary
mud.
Diligent inquiries about the effect of
oiled roads on rubber tires failed to dis
close any complaints, except in cases
where the tire had come in direct con-
tact with the oil. So far from being
the claim is made by some
that, the resiliency of an oiled road
surface and the protection against the /.
sharp edges of sand and gravel increase !
the life OF rubber tires very materially.
1t has not been uncommon for asphalt
payements in cities to become softened Z
by the heat OF the sun to such a degree :
as to be injured by tine wheels of heavily =
loaded wagons. No difficulty of this II
character is ever experienced with the
surface OF an oiled road. 7
For a-short time after oil is applied :
here is very perceptible odor, which u
Ioon disappears almost entirely. While u
t lasts it is not essentially disagreeable, =,
md many people rather like it. !
An incidental advantage of oil on o
oads is the help to the eyes. The
of the sun from white road :
urfaces and the dust blown into the u
yes are both very trying to the eyesight % ~
bling gives the road seal brown color. q q
In California oil is found to be very III
Elective in preserving the planking of -
looden bridges. A liberal coat is first n'
iven to the wooden floor, and upon VI
his is spread layer of sand about | sc sc
lch deep. A very light sprinkling of ~ ?,
Il is then given to the SAND, which ~
inds together and forms layer that is "
OF only waterproof, but protects the pu
OGDEN surface from direct contact with ln
he wheels of vehicles. oV
The growth of oil in popular favor in :,
,uthern California has been steady M
nd rapid. Many of those who have lu'
ad most experience with it have come 9e y;
regard its use in dry region as the ul' t
ost important discovery ever made in III
'ad making. Quite considerable
lmber OF people have said to the writ
!, "We could not 90 back 10 the old
if we had TO give up our we
led roads we would move away" an
PREPARATION OF THE ROAD. up ra,
When a road is to he treated it must the
st be prepared to receive the oil. 1t COT
ould receive crown of about half un
ch to the foot on a l6-foot roadway fisi
is would leave each side four inches fon
wer than the center. Careful atten- an(
IN should De given 10 the drainage, so ira
at water can quickly run on and not abe
ak into the foundation of the road
I'm the sides. The oil covering when
ally made will be imperyious to water, \
It if the foundation is water soaked it nm
jes its firmness and ability to support eco
3 road surface under travel, and tbo
Uses it to break through in spots for,
After the road has been properly 90 M ;,
aped it should be given a thorough oo', ',r
liking with road sprinkler and rolled : ~" Nv
th light roller. The purpose of this p,no : s'
to insure uniform consistency and a ea,, Sav
N foundation. 1t should then be ~ y ~
undisturbed, if possible, until the clo, . m
ter dries out. Many roads have been tbe tho
ed and excellent results obtained Iii,
,hout any wetting or rolling, but the tha
Ictice described is the best where the tror N
ilities are obtainable. dOI snoI
soil which after being wet tends ali I
der travel to pack firmly, but is still M M +,
fciently porous to let water drain a 90
ough, is ideal for treatment with oil. : nro, -~
LAY that bakes and then pulverizes RR;el
o fine dust under the wheels will
y give good results when some ma
ial is added, as explained later.
Ifter the road surface has become
it is feasible, to run sharp-toothed u VI
row over it, so as to loosen it to new
'th Of three inches. The aim is to go't
lre an oil crust three inches thick. lead
he road surface can he made IN aI. friel
b oil to that depth, tfat is the sim Coll
1t way to get the crust. If this sur HouI
, is hard and will not readily yield to thre
harrow for depth of Ihr,c inches, com
practice is to build it up by adding Worl
erial after the oil is applied. Oy I
REPAIRS To OILED ROADs