Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1907-04-12
VOL TX.

1t is generally conceded that one Of,
if not the most important, matters be-
fore Mississippians today, is the improve
ment of public read conditions. There
is not man, woman or child but what
will agree that our roads are miserable
farces in many respects, and that i'm
provement is badly needed. But when a
man is asked to name a remedy there
is no great rush for position in front.
We generally are prompt to condemn
and slow indeed to suggest something
to remedy the evil.
The writer has made some study of
road conditions and the suggested meth
DDS of improvement. While there is still
great deal for all to learn, if the sub
ject is not agitated and some effort made
fifty years from now viii find us in the
same rut. 1t is unquestionably better
to make an effort, though some mistakes
may be made, than to sit still and do
nothing but complain. If each county
would try an experiment in road buil1-
ing of only few miles, the result would
be worth a great deal in the way of edu-
cation. Four miles of good road would
in short time encourage the building
of more. If it was only partially good
20 begin with, the cause for partial fail
ure would be apparent and the cause
remedied. 1t might not be well to spend
a large sum in trying to build roads all
over a county for it is likely that great
deal of money would be wasted, but if
a few miles were built this year and
few miles the next, profting by the ex-
perienee gained in the past, it would be
only matter of a few years until che
county would be supplied with fairly
good highways from center to edge.
For some years yet, the only road
that can be considered must be of dirt.
Makes no difference how that roaa may
be built and maintained, we will not
consider expensive construction for some
time, and the very best dirt road will
be in general use. The contract system
of building and maintaining roads is
coming into pretty general use ana has
proven generally satisfactory. Of course,
some, counties where the contractor is not
made to comply with the contract, it
has not worked well, but in a general
way the contract system is proving sue
cessful and more counties are adopting
the system every year. By this means
the roads raised in the center some ten
or fifteen inches and the water drained
away from them. In a majority of cases
this plan is good, however, there are
gumbo stretches and sand beds where
other means must be employed. Where
gumbo and sand can be found in or
dinary close proximity, either can be
made better with the use of the other
A gumbo stretch surfaced with sand and
mulehed together can be made reasonably
good and the opposite treatment for a
sand stretch. A contract or graded road
can be improved greatly by the use cf
the drag as described in the road bull
letin issued from this department. It'll
is safe to say, that with an intelligent
handling of our roads in Mississippi,
they can be made reasonably good at a
minimum expense for construction and
maintenance with the dirt which under
lies them.
ss There is another matter in connection
with the lettering of our roads that Is
deserving of attention. 1t may seem a
little startling to say that it is probable
that our people are spending several
times as much making roads as they are
in trying to make good ones. Investiga-
tion win bear out this assertion. We are
doing more for the. destruction of roadsi
than we are fer the construction of them.
The expense incident in the use of nar.
row tires for heavy loads, both. in thel
cost Of transportation as veil as IN tiel
destruction Of roads, Is greater than the
money expended IN trying to make them
better. Experiments have shown that
earth roads properly JIbailt better
under six-inch tires than gFaYeled roads
under one landCone- -halfinch tires. The
narrow tire acts as "a srooter or sabsoaer
for the road, tearing it up deeper each
trip while the broad tire JBasf Just the
opposite effect, rolling It sfowH smooth
and hard, ethe road getting sbetterabys com
stant use. Tests made at the A. & NJ.
College of Missouri prove thatsthc power
necessary to draw a given load over
a road for a period of time is less with
a fve-inch tire than with one and one
half inch tire. There are various tests
that can be shown in support of this
contention. and it goes without eontr1-
saiction that the broad tire is better for
all classes of roads and more especially
no for dirt roads.
81 This is a subject that should be care
fully considered by our citizens. Our.
roads must be improved. Public senti-.
ment demands that something be done,
snd this can only be disposed of intel-
ligently after careful consideration and
investigation of the means to be employ
Leland is growing 20 fast that many
improvements are needed and the citi-