The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1907-04-18
FOR BETTER ROADS.
What II Means to Improve and Main.
tain Dirt Roads.

The chief thing to do in attacking
the road problem is to thoroughly
drain ard grade the roads and then
harrow or drag the surface, so that
the water will not stand. This being
done, the roads will be more satisfac-
tory during nine or ten months in the
year than IL they were coated with
gravel or broken stone. AS Is well
known, water is a great destroyer of
dirt roads and this must be removed.
Side bitches are nearly always pro-
vided. but experience shows that
these are inadequate. The best meth.
cd of draining a dirt road is difficult
to describe, because so much depends
upon the surface. Where water falls
upon a road, 1t must be carried of
the surface to one side or the other
for drainage.
The first thing to do In starting to
improve a dirt road Is to grade II
with some of the machines now on the
market for that purpose, says Orange
Judd Farmer. 1t should be slight
ly higher in the middle than at the
sides, 80 that when the water falls
upon It this will run to one side OF
the other. OF course, this grading
should be done early enough in the
season to permit the surface becom
Ing packed and hardened before
freezing weather sets in in the fall
The water which is carried off run.
to the open ditch on the side. II IL
undoubtedly most satisfactory to have
a tile along either side to carry of
this water and also remove the wate
from beneath the roadbed. This til,
should be three or four feet below tn,
surface and have sufilcient fall t
drain well. Some supervisors advis,
putting a tile down the middle of tn,
road, but II side tiles are properly pu
In, this will not be necessary. Their,
Is, however. no objection to the form
er plan, but most roadmen find tha
the side drain is sufficient. However
occasionally a road supervisor insist
that the middle drain should never b.
omitted. II the outlets are OF tn
right kind, and the tiles have tn
proper fall, all the surface and sui
surface water should be removed an
the road will remain In good condition
most Of the year.
With the drainage looked afte
properly, the care of the surface O
the road is exceedingly important
This matter has been before the pul
lie very prominently during the las
few years by those who advocate tn
use of the split drag log. This is sin
ply an instrument made by fastenfn
together two pieces of q split log an
dragging this over the surface to r,
move inequalities, fill up ruts an
holes and keep the surface level S
that all the water which falls upon
will run into the side drain. Thi
method has been practiced for man
years and where conscientiously use
the drag is great benefit. Th
smoothing harrow answers the sam
purpose and drag, with a strip {
metal along the front, answers eve
better.
The time of treating the surface
the road is in the early spring, whe
the frost is coming out of the grount
Whenever the surface is sufficient
dry so that the upper part of tn
ground Is mellow, go over the roa
with drag or harrow until the su
face is perfectly level. Repeat tn
every day until the road is packe
down solid. Continue the use of tn
drag or harrow throughout the seaso
and just before the ground freeze
up, and see that the top of the road
level, so that the water will run o
during the winter.
1t has been fully demonstrated
Illinois, Missouri, Iowa and Nebrash
that this method of road treatmei
will give good roads and removes IL
necessity of taxing farmers heavi
for hard roads. Farmers in this pa
of the United States will never subm
to the hard road law and there is Ii
tie danger of 1t being passed.