Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1906-04-10

Il
GOOD MEETING HELD AT SOUTH PARI
IN CHARGE OF STATE COMMISSIONED
4 SARGENT.
| That there is good interest In tn.
Iquestion Of improving the roads Is evi
dent from the number that assembled a
the court house last Thursday, whel
State Commissioner of Highways Pau
Id. Sargent of Machias held his frs
public meeting for this county. Besides
the three county commissioners their
were present nearly forty town roat
commissioners and selectmen, repre-
senting in all fifteen or sixteen towns
at all distances, from And0ver in thu
north to Fryeburg in the west.
The meeting was called to order sooI
after the arrival of the forenoon trainl
by r. L. Taylor, chairman Of the count!
commissioners, and Commissioner Sar
gent was introduced by him. Mr.. Sar
gent gave practical address, moi
lengthy, on road building, having por
ton of it in manuscript.
In opening his remarks Mr.. Sargent
said that the Office of state commissions
of highways has been established fol
purposes of investigation and recon-
mendation 10 the matter of road build
ing and to lay . foundation for better
system of building. The results of thu
first years work have been embodied IL
report, certain portions Of which arr
repeated in this address.
If were elected road commissioner,
would remember that held an impor
tant position; important first, because OF
the large expenditure which is directed
by that officer, and second, because the
results of the work affect every person
in the community.
Plans should be made for the seasons
work. and the roads should be studied
In the administration of the Office there
are three points to consider: the
method of administration, the time to
do the work, and the records to be kept
of the work done.
As to the method of administration,
the work should be done by an organized
force. Keep efficient labor when it is
trained in road work, as a business man
The best time to do road work is in
May and June. Work done then is
much more profitable than that done at
other times.
Keep record of the work done.
Make daily record, and you will be
surprised to see how often you will refer
to it for information. These records
should be deposited with the town
records, for the benefit of future town
officers. Contractors in general do their
work more economically than public
work is done, simply because they are
systematic about it.
A study of the roads will develop the
fact that proper drainage work will do
more than any other one thing to pre-
serve the roads. Study the surface drain
age problem when the water is flowing.
A live road commissioner has no bust
ness under cover in rain storm. Study
the problem of underdrainage when the
frost is coming out in the spring. Fix
the worst places first.
Mr.. Sargent here explained the details
of a section of standard state road, a
plan of which he had posted on the wall.
The specifications for this were adopted
BY state convention of county COM
missioners. The width of this road bed
from ditch to ditch is 81 feet, with a
slope of one foot on each side from the
crown of the road to the ditch. A width
of twelve feet in the middle of this road
way is excavated and filled with some
surfacing material, which will generally
be gravel. The depth of this may vary
according to the nature of the earth un-
derneath, but in the plan as shown it is
s inches deep in the centre and inches
at the sides or shoulders, with surface
slope of one inch to one foot.
Besides the form of cross-section of
the road, and proper understandings,
there are to be considered the questions
of longitudinal grade and kind of surface
material. Noperfectly level road should
be built. The longitudinal grade, for
the sake of surface drainage, should not
be less than six inches in 100 feet, and it
should not be over six per cent, or six
feet in 100, if it is possible to keep under
that.
For surface material macadam or
crushed stone is the best, but it is expen-
sive. Gravel is quite plenty, but of
various grades. Use only the best. The
United States Department of Agriculture
will test samples of gravel or other road
material free, and in case of several avail.
able sources of road material this should
certainly be done. Whatever is used fol-
surfacing should be screened and put on
in courses, beginning with the coarse
and ending with the fine.
For sub-drainage porous tile is the
best material, though coed stone drain
or what is called blind drain, made OF
stones graded in size from larger at the
bottom to smaller at the top, may be
used instead. A sandy road needs no
sub-drainage. On soft soil Telford
pavement, made of stone blocks, may be
necessary to support the surfacing ma
terial.
The general grading of this road, in
Guiding the excavation of the centre to
receive the surfacing material, can be
largely done with the road machine. The
cost of such road, built in good shape,
where undertaking is not necessary,
will average from $1,000 to $500 pei
mile. The specifications adopted should
be followed as closely as practicable,
experiment. Some people say our roads
are growing no better, but believe there
| is gradual improvement, and If we will
work intelligently along the lines sug.
gested believe that Improvements OF a
good common sense kind will result.
Following Mr.. Sargent's paper nearly
an hour of the forenoon session, and an
hour and half in an afternoon session,
were taken up with general discussion,
in which questions were asked, expe-
riences given, and comments made. Ger.
tain points regarding the Interpretation
and administration of the state road law
and possible Improvements in it occu
pied some time, and then quite wide
range of topics connected with practical
road building was covered, much of it in
rather informal way. A query by
some one as to whether it pays to haul
gravel half a mile to surface a road
brought out the fact that in some towns
gravel is hauled two or three miles, and
this is regarded as good business prop
osition.
1t would be difficult to cover thorough
ly all the points brought out by the dis
cussion. Good results were reported
from mixing clay into the surface of
sandy road, and likewise from mixing
sand into the surface of clayey road
A sandy road was shown to be the cheap
est to put i'll good condition, because II
drains itself and no foundation work II
necessary. But the one fact demon
strated by the experiences given is ths
one stated by Commissioner Sargent
early in his paper, that proper drainage
work will do more than any other one
thing to preserve the roads. Many o.
those nresent related instances where {