The Muskogee cimeter. [volume] (Muskogee, Indian Territory, Okla.) 1901-19??, 1907-07-19
BURNT CLAY ROADS.
Way In Which Some Sections Are Get.
ting Good Roads at Small Expense.

impervious to water when subjected |
to heat Clay has been SO far consid-
cred one of the worst road.building
materials. combining with the gentle
rain to form sticky mire destructive
of locomotion by man or beast. The
clay, however, may contain within it
self the very elements of the saliva
tion OF those regions in which it pre-.
dominates, as witness this from the
Southwest Magazine:
"A method has been discovered .cr
converting gumbo roads, long a dread
to those who have had to travel in
rural districts, into clay.ballasted
highways. The process which has
been conducted in the Yazoo Valley
of Mississippi has been not only sim
pie, but satisfactory and not costly.
After grading the road to an even
width between bitches, 1t is plowed up
as deeply as practicable. After the
plowing has been completed, burrows
are dug across the road from ditch to
ditch, extending through and beyond
the width to be burned. Across the
ridges formed between these furrows
which should be about four feet
| apart-the first course Of cordwood is
laid longitudinaly SO as to form a
| series of fues in which the firing Is
| started. From Is to 20 of these fues
| are fired at one time.
THE best and soundest cordwood
| Is selected for this course and should
| be laid so that the pieces will touch,
thus forming a floor. Another layer
of wood is thrown irregularly across
the floors, in crib formation, with
space left between, in which the
luHXrs of clay are piled in close
enough to allow draft for easy COM
bustion. After the clay has been
heaped upon the floor. another course
of wood is laid parallel to the first.
"The third layer is placed in exact
ly the same manner as the first, and
each opening and crack Is filled with
brush, chips, bark, small sticks or any
other combustible material. A top
layer OF clay Is placed over all and
! the finer portions Of the material are
heaped over the whole structure; the
latter being taken from the side
ditches. Finally the whole is tamped
and rounded off SO that the heat will
be held within the flues as long as
possible. When coal is available, the
two top layers Of wood may be omit
ted and the coal slack thoroughly
mixed with the clay.
1T Is necessary to get the Ares we'll
under way in the flues before the first
layer of wood is burned through. The
first action of the fire Is to drive out
the water contained in the clay before
the actual burning and clilkering can
begin. The firing should be begun on
the windward Side, and the best re.
suits are obtained by firing all the
flues OF a section simultaneously and
maintaining the combustion as even
as possible. In case the combustion
Is too rapid in any fiue. H. may be reg
ulated by banking the mouth OF the
fiue with clay.
after the firing is completed. not
only the portion of clay which forms
the top Of the kiln, but the ridges
between the flues should be burned
thoroughly, so as to form a covering
of burnt clay 10 to IL inches in depth,
which, when rolled down and COM
pacted, forms road surface of from
six to eight inches In thickness.
IF properly burned, the material
should be entirely changed in charac-
ter, and when 1t is wet 1t should have
no tendency to form mud When the
material is sufficiently cooled. the
roadbed should be brought to high
crown before rolling. This can best
be done with a road grader. The fin