Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1906-08-09

among farmers, especially In New
York, which Is to go into road-build
ing on a scale hitherto unprecedentet
in this country. That the macadan
road is the best, IL properly made, few
will deny. But In many parts OF tn.
state and country the earth road mus
remain the farmers sole dependence
Here the question Is how to make al
earth road that will endure the ordi
nary wear and tear of travel, and no
be turned in bog at the first rain.
We have spoken several times o.
the road drag devised by D. Ware
King of Missouri, and less than 6
year ago published cut Of three plans
for making 1t, with instructions
adopted by the Iowa highway commits
sion. We wish now to call attention
to the excellent application of this sim
pie and cheap method of road preser
walton and improvement which has
been made by Clark Allis. fruit
grower Of Orleans county. But a
few words first about the origin of the
drag itself may be of interest.
AS the reader is doubtless aware.
the whole secret of using the King
drag is to use it when the roads are
wet. The longer the road is dragged
after each rainy period, the harder
and more durable will be the crust or
shell that forms as the road dries and
protects it from damage. To keep
this shell intact, 1t Is necessary to
drag the road after every rain. Mr..
King got the idea of the drag In the
first place through noticing how hard
the surface of road was after It dried
80 hard that harrow or cultivator
would make little impression on It.
Yet 1t was so rough and rutted that
there was no comfort In using IL
until 1t had been scraped or graded.
This scraping, however, was its ruina-
ton, for the soil that was thus moved
into the center of the road was pull
verified and worked up loose and mel
low-just right for planting, but In
the poorest possible conditions for the
surface OF road. Nothing would
pack 1t again once 1t was thoroughly
dry.
AS we don't wish to plant gardens in
our roadbeds, we should follow in
roadmaking, Mr.. King reasoned, a
course precisely the reverse OF that
which Is best adapted to garden-mak-
ing. AS the aim Of the cultivator is
TO form a kind of wash-basln OF his
soil. to induce It to catch and hold as
much moisture as possible. the aim Of
the road-builder should be to upset the
wash-basin. to get the water to run as
quickly as possible after making the
slightest impression. What was poor
farming practice would therefore be
good road-making practice. II the
road could be smoothed and rounded
while II was wet. nature would do the
rest.
Mr.. King began operations with a
log eight feet long and foot In di-
ameter; this he split In halves; bored
three two-inch holes In each half, one
at each end and one In the middle:
joined the halves set on edge, the split
sides forward and about three feet
apart, with strong cross pieces driven
into the holes and securely wedged.
On the cross pieces a piece Of plank
was laid on which to ride. One end OF
chain was fastened to an end stake,
carried over the top of the slab, out to
the whiffletrees, and back to the other
end OF the slab, where II was fastened
by passing the chain through a hole
bored in the slab three or four inches
from the end, and slipping an old
bolt or spike through one of the links.
The whifiietrees were attached so the
drag would draw at an angle OF about
as degrees.
After the next rain, while the water
still stood in the mud, holes and ruts,
and the surface OF the road was OF the
consistency of fresh mortar. Mr.. King
drove with his improvsed scraper up
one side and back the other Of the
half,mile of highway in front OF his
own farm, working the mud toward tho
center of the roadway to give 1t an
oval form. The holes and ruts were
filled. and the water that had been
standing in them ran down into the
bitches over the smooth surface left By
the drag. AS his mud pie began tu
bake and harden under the suns rays
he went over the road once or twice
more filing in the fresh ruts caused
by the travel that had passed before II
had hfrde-ed sufficiently to pack. AS
the mud became more solid the
wagons helped 10 pack II instead cut.
ting through II, and each time fresh
material was scraped into the depres
sions made by the wheels II helped
raise them 10 or above the level of the
road outside the wheel tracks, so that
the wheel tracks did not constitute a
trough To hold the water from the next
rain. When the next rain came the
water ran OFF and a light shower had
no effect except to wash the worn GU,
surface dust into the ditch where II be
for~nd