The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1905-08-10
ROADS OF SANDY-CLAY
How These Highways are Built in
Southern States.

Gin states are 10 ne lOuuu stretches
of sandy-claY roads never known to
be bad, says w. L. Spoon in the year
book of the department of agricul-
ture. This fact has led to a study
of the reasons why such roads are al
WAYS good. Numerous experiments
have been made with varying results
but all indicate that the essentials to
success in sand-clay road building
are pudding and saturation. What
is meant by pudding or mixing may
be clearly understood by any one ia
miliar with the operations in the pro-
cess of brickmaking. The clay must
be rendered homogeneous, and this
can be done only by the addition of
water during the process until the
clay becomes plastic, like dough.
The second essential is the addition.
of sand to the point of saturation.
but not beyond.
No sandclaY road can satisfactor-
lily Withstand the severity of public
travel without having first been re-
duced to a compact homogeneous
mass Of sand and clay. Each grain
of sand should be in touch with other
grains on all sides. Such a condition
cannot be secured without the agency
OF water. 1t is useless to roll a dry
sand-clay road before it has been rem
dered homogeneous by the pudding
process and the grains of sand have
been brought into contact, with only
the interstices between them filed
with clay as a binder. The first OPP
Grafton is mixing; the second is roll
ing as the mixture dries. This forces
the particles of sand together, and
excess of clay tends to rise to the sur
face, rendering it sticky. This clay
muslin turn be sanded and the OPP
erations repeated until the surface
has become hard and compact
Many failures have been made in
the building of sand-clay roads, and
a few of the more common causes for
these failures will be pointed out.
The first cause of failure is the want
OF perfect drainage. The imperfec-
lions may be in the cross sectional
drainage, the side bitches or the
drainage of the subgrade or roadbed.
1t is customary to give to a sand clay
road little greater crown than is
usually given to q macaGam road, es-
pecially where the grade is above 3
per cent. The subject of side bitches
should have more careful considera-
ton than is usually given in case of
macadam roads. If the subsoil up
on which the road is built is clav it is
important that the bottom of the
side bitches should be eighteen inches
or more below the crown or middle of
the travelled track If on the other
hand, the land is rolling and the sub
soil is sand of considerable depth,
thus giving perfect natural drainage
to the roadbed, little or no ditch will
be required
Perhaps the most common error in
drainage is the failure to drain prop
erly and thoroughly all places where
there are wet weather springs. If
necessary, the roadbed must be
changed so as to locate it upon dry
ground, as even the deepest side
bitches practicable may fail to give
relief where such springs exist. 1t is
important to avoid deep cuts and to
carefully consider all probable sourc-
es of trouble. The writer has often
seen old roadbeds with water oozing
from all parts during rainy season
in spite of sufficient side bitches, the
water even rising in the center of
twenty foot roadbed and standing on
the surface or slowly running along
the wheel tracks to the nearest mud
hole. 1t should be remembered that
water, beyond very limited amount,
adds nothing of value to the sand-clay
road after it is completed. If water is
always present, sand should be used
without clay. Sand and water make
a.better road than sand and clay and
water. In proof of this statement
attention need only be called to the
numerous places where water crosses
the roads in sandy districts. Such
fords are always comparatively solid.
Another cause of failure is the want
of thorough mixing There NAV be
proper amount of sand. and clay may
be placed upon the road, yet if it is
not thoroughly puddled and mixed
to saturation in every place the road
is not likely to withstand public tray
ell. Some sections will break and be-
come loose sand, while others will be-
come muddy in wet weather and
hard in dry weather. Such variations
may occur every few feet and even at
the same place one wheel track be-
ing in loose and the other in mud.
In northern sections frost is anoth-
er cause of failure and one more diff
cult to deal with than any heretofore