Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1910-01-17
eLpoRA ANo EAGLE GROVE TO PAVE.

Iowa towns. But what are they going
to pave with and what is it going 10
cost? That is the question. If their
city councils adopt brick al So per yard
the cost will be $4,000 per city block of
street twenty-four feet wide and the
pavement Will be durable, easy TO re-
pair but very noisy and hard on horses.
If their city councils listen 10 the
siren songs of the smooth gentlemen
who sell patented pavements they may
order "bitulithic"" at s2.25 per yard.
'granitoid' at So per yard, "Hassam
block creosoted block and what not
and the cost will run up for pavenents
which in fact are nothing but ordi-
nary concrete with patented wrinkle
which is designed principally TO com
mand fancy price.
If their city councils are composed
OF shrewd business men who will in
vesugate the paving question on their
own account without being content
with what they can see on some jun
1eting trip paid for by the promoter OF
the patented pavement they will dis
cover, for instance, that fine con-
crete pavement, equal to brick in dur
ability and practically the same in ali
essentials as the patented pavements,
can be laid in Iowa and is being laid
In other cities for $3.50 to s1.40 per
square yard. Here Is a saving in ex-
pense OF $500 TO 500 per block Of street
pavement twenty -four feet wide and il
is a pavement which any local side
walk mason can repair at any time,
Concrete pavements are neither new
nor experimental They have proved
durable and altogether practicable in
such large cities as New Orleans, Bos-
ton, Buffalo, Lynn and Worcester,
Mass, Portland, Ore, and Portland,
Me, Gary Ind, Knoxville, Tenn, ST.
Joe and Springfield, No. But as a
rule they have been called by some
city the foundation five and one-half
inches thick OF crushed rock rolled viii
be filled with a thin grout Of cement
and sand poured on and then top
layer or wearing surface about one ana
one-half inches thick VIII be laid OF
sand, gravel and cement mixed in equal
parts. This will be called by a fine
name and will enable the promoters
thru some straw bidder to rake off from
$500 to 500 per city block OF pavement
more than a legitimate contractors
profit on the actual work done.
Then they will in other places lay
this same foundation five and one-half
inches thick Of seven parts sand and
crushed stone TO one part cement mix
ed dry; then wet and rolled just as
cement sidewalks are laid but with d
top layer or wearing surface one and
one-half inches thick mixed according
to some patented formula OF crushed
stone in varying sizes with cement: the
different sizes being necessary to make
a perfect bond without sand where any
ordinary concrete mason would take
sharp, washed river sand and make a
top surface that would never wear out
At Fond du lac. Mich, last summer
a concrete pavement was laid for sl.32
per square yard which will be durable,
clean, and successful. They used a
base five inches thick one part cement,
two and one-half parts sand and five of
stone, mixed and laid as any concrete
should be laid. on top of this was
placed A wearing surface one and one
half inches thick mixed OF equal parts
of cement, sand and granite screenings.
the surface brushed rough with a
coarse street broom and with expansion
joints every sftv feet.
But when the "bithulithic" expert
lands job the ordinary concrete base
Will be laid and a wearing surface put
on top of it of a patented asphaltum
street but which will always be very
difficult to repair, can never be as dur
able as straight concrete and incl
dentally the patentee will get more for
his two inch patented wearing surface
than the whole pavement cost at Fon
du Lac and the property owner will
have to pay for the concrete foundation
or main part of his pavement besides.
The city of LeMars, Iowa, has q
block of ordinary sand and cemen,
pavement in use on its principal bust
ness street for several years which
could be laid in any town in Iowa fol
about s1.25 per yard. 1t has been ex
amined and endorsed by the enginee.
ring department of the big cement mill.
1t Mason City and last summer. undel
suggestion from the cement engineers
< the city council of Mason City adopted
specifications for a concrete pavemen
which has, the endorsement OF the en-
4ineering department. at Ames College
y They call for = base five inches thiel