Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927, 1906-02-09
SOME PRACTICAL
ROAD SUGGESTIONS
Supervisor Gentner Tells His Ex-
perience in Road Building
Favors Cash System.

has on the road subject, he being
somew what annoyed over criticism
made of his road work by the New
Hope correspondent to the Courier.
Mr.. Gentner is road supervisor for
tile Murphy district and the cores
pondent had charged him with
neglecting the roads in the New Hope
part Of the district. Mr.. Gentner
says that as he has each year but
limited amount Of money and labor
to spend upon the roads in his district
he is compelled to better the worst
places first and that as the roads in
the New Hope section are oD dry,
sandy ground and always in fairly
good condition he had to let them be
as they are until the county will sup
ply more road money. Of the wash
ing out of a section OF road and the
destruction of large culvert in the
New Hope section, Mr.. Gentner stated
that damage was caused by some
pe son in cutting trees for wood falling
them 30 the brush of the tops formed
a dam in the large ditch by the road
side and turned the water during one
Of the big rains this Winter down the
road washing out the track and the
culvert. A little care by the farmer
in removing the brush from the ditch
would have prevented this damage to
the road, which amounted to fully
325.
Another prolific cause Of destruction
to roads, says Mr.. Gentner, are the
irrigation bitches. So frequently the
farmers neglect to shut the headgates
when the Winter rains begin. With
every big rain or snow these bitches
bring down a food of water and as
many Of the bitches parallel or cross
tho roads the overflow water gullies
out the roads and frequently carries
out the culverts. An instance OF what
irrigation bitches do in Winter floods
is told by Mr.. Gentner. Last year he
graded and put section of road in
good permanent shape for team travel.
During the Winter the flood waters
from one of the irrigation bitches tore
the road to pieces and made it almost
impassable. The seepage from the ir-
rigating ditches in many places keep
the roads full of mud holes even in
the Summer. Almost invariably
wherever the bitches cross the roads
a bad place for teams to pull over is
made. There is either u deep ditch
or mudhole to pull through, or the
ditch banked up on each side with a
rickety culvert over it and a sharp
pitch is made of 10 to 20 per cent for
teams to pull over.
Mr.. Gentner is veteran road
builder, having been supervisor in
his district much of the time for the
past 10 years. Has not accepted the
position for the profit or the honor
that came Of 1t, for there was neither.
He never got full pay for work he did
and the loss Of time from his farm
work, aud instead of honor malediot.
ions were heaped upon him because
the roads were not all made into turn.
pixies, while the farmers w-re to be
allowed their own leisure aud method
of working out their road tax. The
supervisor was blamed for all bad
roads when really many times it was
the county court that was at fault,
AS to methods of road work Mr..
Gentner holds that all road work in
Josephine county should be done dur
ing February and March rs the wet
earth OF the new grades packs with
the first dry weather and becomes u
hard roadbed II the work is done
in April or later the new grade at
once dries out and becomes dust
bank for the Summer and one great
mudhole the following Winter. An.
NNiVi iohtuio iaNNitbic W rthIuaiN y
work is that men and teams can be
hired then cheaper than later on
when teaming and farming has fully
begun. As to volunteer road work
Mr.. Gentner does not place great de-
pendence on that method Of securing a
road crew. Last Fall he had the
/ promise of Ia farmers TO come Ger.
tain day with their teams to haul
gravel to rock new section of road,
on condition that he hire men to dc
the loading OF the wagons. On the
day appointed he had the required six
shovelers on hnad, but only six of the
Ia teams We're on duty to haul gravel.
He thinks that il would be cheaper
for the county TO hire a regular road
crew and have them work as they
would for an indiviusl or a company.
The larger part of the soil forma.
tion Of Josephine county is Of q
nature that will make a firm roadbed.
without rock covering. If the road
is but graded up we'll. thoroughly
drained and firmly packed before
teams are allowed upon 1t. On al