The new enterprise. (Madison, Fla.) 1901-1908, 1904-10-13
NYhere Gravel nonds Are pracLicnble.

~ AZ 10 Npll bNlA bAdltS GtllAle
q III 8 when hard roads are dis
4 Il r cussed, He at once sees
>mopr visions Of Increased taxa
ton and inadequate returns Being
naturally conservative, he objects to
the expenditure of large sums OF money
unless he Is thoroughly satisfied that
adequate profits will result.
As rule this conservatism is wise.
Much money has been wasted in at
tempts to secure hard roads. and The
matter should be thoroughly investl-
gated before improvement is under
taken. Where gravel or stone is not
available excellent earth roads eau he
secured by thorough dragging. leyeljng
the road carefully, then grading or
dragging sufficient number Of times
during the season TO keep the surface
level and prevent water standing. This
has been demonstrated over and over
again, and attempts to force hard road
legislation upon such sections will
never avail.
On the other hand, in many locali-
ties. good gravel suitable for road maxi
ing is available and should be used,
The expense Of hauling must Of course
be carefully considered. As n rule this
can be done by the farmers themselves
when work is slack. They can, in fact,
work out their road tax in this way.
The mistake has frequently been made
by using gravel containing a large per-
centage Of clay. OF course some clay
is. desirable, so that the material will
compact firmly and make a solid bed
Too much, however, viii result in q
muddy surface and tendency to stick
mess after every rain and particularly
in carly spring.
After Securing the gravel spread II
on the surface at least eight feet wide
and one foot thick, going over with q
heavy roller and compactlng as COM
pletely as possible. A medium which
will result in q solid bed will be salts
factory Sometimes smoothing har'
row can be used to advantage in con-
nection with the roller. As travel pro
ceeds and the gravel becomes compact,
watch the road carefully, filing up all
holes and leveling down any elevations.
This must be attended TO promptly and
continuously until the road is solid and
level. Neglect of this results in an un-
even surface which never can be made
quite satisfactory.
In some sections gravel Is simply ap'
piled to the surface little wider than
the ordinary wagon. This will answer
fairly well and is Of course more in
expensive method. However, 1t is
much better to have an eight-foot road
so that wagons can pass in wet time,
without getting out into the mud.
For best results the gravel should be
graded, and the large coarser parts ap-
piled first, the second grace next and
the third or finest applied TO the sur
face. Roll after each application. If
the gravel is Dry when it is put on
water ought to be applied when the
rolling is being done This can be cas-
lily accomplished by the use Of an ordl-
nary tank, such as is used for convey
ing water 20 traction engines
In many localities the gravel is sim
ply applied to the road as it comes
from the pit. The results are not Of
course quite as satisfactory, but the
cost Of construction is much smaller,
In few localities in the Central West
ii may pay to brea' stone and make
roads with that material, They, Of
course, are much more durable than
gravel roads, but are very much more
expensive. AS stated in the beginning
each locality must devise its own road
system. M WF 900 Wa W