The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-04-02
Costs 2 1-2 Gents a Square Yardan Needs No Sprink-
 ling for Six Months
OFFICIALS TALK ON
 COST AND THE RESULTS
knnsas City Made Remarkable Saving in Street SprinIling Bill By Build Ing Oiled DrIveways Through
 Her Park System

Why do you not try to interest Bir- mingham in the use of oil on the streets as dust preventive?' asked R. C. George yesterday, a man who has property in- terests in Galveston and has spent much of his time in that city. Galveston peo- pie were skeptical at first, but | would like 10 see some one try to convince them now that oil on the streets is not a good thing.
 They thought it would be dirty and that the odor would be unbearabe, but they have learned differently. oil was introduced after the commission form of government came in, and it worked won ders In the way of preventing dust It made ideal streets and dust is a negligible quantity. Washington City is using oil on all It's macadamized drives, and the result Is delightful. Of course, the downtown streets are kept so clean that the oil Is not needed there to lay dust. but it will be found on all the outlying driveways.
 Birmingham ought to make the ex- pertinent"
 Something About Cost
 'The regular road oil or liquid asphalt can be laid down in Birmingham for about 41s cents gallon,' said Charles G. Davis, president of the Alabama oil com pany. yesterday. Usually about one gal lon to three square yards of surface is used. Its practlcability has long ago been demonstrated. We are now doing a large piece of work for the Birmingham Realty company on Thirty-second street in the Norwooo section. and when 1t is finished would like to have people call and see the results that can be accomplished by an ciled surface"
 About Use of Oil
 ''The dust situation in Birmingham seems to be getting serious," said D. H. Bohler, assistant to Special Agent E. L. Pauley of the Standard oil company, yes- terday, speaking for Mir Pauley, who was out of the city 'Lades are calling us up constantly and asking us to make house to house canvass to induce people to put oil on their streets to lay the dust
 Our company prepares a special oil for dust-laying purposes which Is 50 per cent petroleum asphalt. This is used entirely for that and not as a binder. It costs de- livered in Birmingham in tank cars Az or cents a gallon. The best results are obtained by using half a gallon to the square yard. The city could put it down at total cost of about 21a cents a square yard. Two oilings a year are ample to Keep the dust down at all times.
 Avenue F, in front of our office was oiled about eight months ago, and we have not the slightest troable with dust. The company plans to bring a road oil expert here in the near future to give some demonstrations. We have sold mil lions of gallons of this road oil in New England and the eastern states, but if has never been used much in the south.
 That there is increasing interest in its use here Is shown. however by the fact that we recently made private sale Of 3O00 gallons to some people who put it down in their neighborhood at their own. expense.
 Evidence of Utility
 There is no longer any doubt of the oils utility as dust preventive. Take this extract, for instance, from the annual re- port of the superintendent of parks to the board of park commissioners at Kan sas City for 19oS Here is what he says:
 Undoubtedly the most important item of road maintenance for the past fiscal year has been the remarkably good re- suits obtained from oiing
 Continuing the experiment with oil on rock roads, begun in the summer of 1aOs the entire system of driveways was in 1907, treated with residuum oil, now com monly called road oil.
 I attribute our success, in a large measure, to the fact that we had we'll built macadam roads to begin with. dem onstrating that, when to perfectly built macadam road with a solid foundation and hard smooth surface is added the road oil for a dust preventive and pro- lection to wearing surface, an inexpensive treatment is given that proves remarkab in its results.
 ' Our roads today are in excellent com dition, have gone through the winter with less breaking up from freezing and thaw- Ing than usual, and without a particIe of dust after having been once oiled ana without attention beyond the ordinary sweeping.
 Aside from it's value as a dust nre- ventive, the oiled road shows this inter- esting Item or reduction in maintenance expense:
 . 'Sprinklng driveways with water for the fiscal year ending April 15, 1907, cost N4,01l .S2, or an average of 2.4 cents her square yard The area of pavement to have been sprinkled in 1907 (had not oj been applied) would have cost s16. POI. .a2
 The total cost of oiling for the year was $l0671. A. direct saving in the one item of sprinkling of $55S5 5.8S, or s4 her cent r
 : I believe with an occasional lirbt an. plication of oil through this season upa will still improve the wearing surface If our roads and eventually obtain an ideal dustless pleasure drive.
 '' The damage to wearing surface comes largely from attrition of the grit on inc roadway oil compacts this grit orr dust and immediately checks deterioration from this source, preventing any dam aging effect from automobile travel.
 NEW COMPANY EOuwur