Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1909-04-22
GRAVEL ROADS IN CONNECTICUT,
Native Of That state Thinks Gravel
Beats the Macadam.

We have learned, here In Connect
cut, that good gravel will stand the
strain that falls on country road bet
ter than macadam. and is vastly easier
kept In repair. I say this after an ex-
perience OF many years In building
gravel roads, declares r. s. Human,
In Country Gentleman. Much de-
ponds on the manner Of putting
on gravel and the time. II the
road is through the country. where
teams do not drive side by side, a
single-track road is best. II It be
sandy, the later In the fall the work Is
done the better.
To properly put gravel on sandy
road, having found your gravel, which
should contain. II possible. cobbles as
large as goose eggs and little loan,
estimate the number OF rods that can
be covered in day and dump the first
load at the limit. With a garden rake
or potato hook, rake all the large cob
bles back on the sand, leaving as many
as possible in the wheel track. and
dump the next load SO that 1t will
cover the cobbles and lap little on to
the preceding load. Continue In this
way back to where the Improvement
Is to begin. AS each load is dumped
the empty cart should be driven
straight over the gravel, not turned
around on II. The next day lay Sout
another days work, and the loaded
carts will 60 over the new gravel and
pack It pretty solid. When the heavy
loads have thrown up a shoulder out
side the wheel track, have this shov-
eled into the middle of the road. A
new man will want to fill the wheel
tracks, but insist that II 60 in the mid
die.
The road Is now all right for use,
but'a little too rounding. A few weeks
travel when the frost is out will rem.
edy that. The cobbles in the bottom
make binder, and not being mixed
promiscuously in the gravel will stay
put. II a little gravel is thrown with
shovel In the horse track In the mid.
die Of the road once in two or three
years, you will have a good road for
an indefinite period.
The late Chief Justice Torrance of
Connecticut rode bicycle over roads
that built, and said that, while the
road was all right, I had Numbered in
saying that It could be built for one
dollar per rod, as people would not
believe that good read could be built
for that price. l admit that in build.
ing nearly mile in that way at that
cost ! did not allow for my own time,
as l only looked on enough to see that
the work was properly done. That
road has been travelled by all sorts of
vehicles. heavy loads and autos. for
seven or eight years without a dollar
being laid out on it. and, aside from a
little following in the middle, Is an
excellent road. Some people, II they
see new gravel on road, will turn of
1t II they can, no matter how solid It
is packed. The only way know to
stop that is to put some of the largest
cobbles in little piles so that any one
turning out of the track will bob over
them. Only very stupid driver will
so over more than two or three piles
before turning on to the gravel and.
finding 1t all right. will stay on 1t.
After two or three weeks these cob
bles can be thrown into a cart and
dumped where they will not be un.
slightly.
The road for an eighth Of mile by |
my house I built in the manner de-
scribed more than 20 years ago, and |
The town has not laid out any money
On 1t since. The. only trouble with 1t |
IS that, being smooth and solid, auto
mobiles 60 by at an unlawful rate of |
speed. and we have to keep the chick
ems and dogs off the highway to save
heir lives.
The only time to cheaply do away
with mudholes. Is when the mud is
deepest in the spring. For this pur-
pose / have used stones as large as a
our-quart measure anything that
will sink out of sight when travelled
,ver. When as many big stones as
possible have been thrown 1t. use
smaller ones until they show above
he mud as evenly as may be.