Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1904-06-23
THURSDAY, JUNE ..
OILED ROADS.

Following are some extracts from
a paper on oiled roads, read by
John NJ. Bullock at a good roads
meeting in Kentucky. As good
roads are a much talked of theme
these days the paper will prove OF
interest,"
at was published in the daily pa
pers that was to deliver a lecture
here today upon oiled roads. have
read good many articles treating
this question and my company has
Experimental to the extent of buy.
ing machinery and oiling some.
what over mile of turnpike, but
just now am not prepared TO do
more than tell you of our expert
ence and even in that. my partner,
Major Ellis, is the one who develop.
ed the scheme and deserves the
credit for having carried il to sue.
cess. / have here a cut of the oiler
we purchased in CalifoFnia. which
is fitted to the great metal tank,
built for us by the Stude bakers last
summer. After repeated trials and
experiments. Mr.. Theodore +. White
of ST. Bernardino county, Califor.
MIA, invented the machine, the cut
of which you have before you. as
one of the best suited to apply the
oil to the roadbed. Another cut
shows you the oiler at work and
the way in which the oil is deliver.
to the surface of the road. We pur-
chased from the Licking Valley Oil
Company tank of crude oil, about
1000 gallons, which has 40 per
cent asphaltic base and this oil we
placed upon mile and quarter
of the Newtown turnpike on both
sides of the first toll gate. The en-
tire process was experimental upon
our part, but we followed closely
the directions of those who had
successfully treated the roads of
California, and although at first
there were some who were antagon-
istic to the oiled roads, believe the
residents on that road are now the
most enthusiastic supporters of the
oiling process.
THE oil was delivered to the road
from the tank and oiler as have as
l have shown you. half of the sur
face only being covered at time.
The oil ran ran freely aud the men
who managed the levers had no
trouble in cutting off the flow or
letting it run as he willed. Imme.
diately behind the oiler came two
wagons filled with sand and two
men to each wagon with shovels,
spreading the sand over the oil as
rapidly as possible. In few places
brooms were used to more effectu-
ally cover such spots. Where the
oil had but thinly spread itself, not
only did the oil and sand mix, but
the dust and loan on the road and
along it's edges become saturated
with the flow andoin the end served
to show how entirely the dust was
conquered by the process. BY the
next morning the road was In per-
feet order to travel. 1t was too late
in the season for the work to be per-
fectly done; it wouldhave been bet
ter had the oil or ground been hot.
As both were cold, the result was
not so successful. in that the oil
did not penetrate the roadbed to
such a depth as could have been de-
sired, but in keeping down the dust
the experiment far exceeded our ex-
pectation, and during the past win
ter neither snow or ice have remain
ed on that portion of the road that
was covered by the oil. The first
application of oil is the most i'm
portant, as it takes larger quauti-
ty than ever after, the second year
about one-half the original amount
being used, the third year only one
third, and after that very little oil