Omaha daily bee., 1911-01-29

water off quickly into the bitches keep
the bitches clear, and If you have pre-
viously built your road of proper material
you will always have good road One
| thing l would like to call your attention
to, do not make your drags too heavy,
they are not intended for grading a road,
only for keeping It in condition. one pair
! Of horses is enough; II your drag is too
heavy for one team 1t is unnecessarily
heavy. Send to the office of the public
roads at Washington for drag pamphlet
and read it up. You may not find very
much in 1t that you did not know before,
but II you get one new idea and put it
into practical use the whole people will
get the benefit of it, and you Will have
the satisfaction of knowing that your work
has the endorsement OF men who have
worked on the roads themselves for many
years
Must Have Secure Foundation.
mo matter how unimportant a struc-
ture be, whether building or a highway
1t cannot be expected to endure the wear
and tear of occupation or travel unless
the foundation is secure and permanent.
Without such security the superstructure
must fail, either Immediately after the
work is put into commission, or within
buNA a bhOtl ldpco VI llAlo dS " uSllAbh-
strate the folly of an inadvised and in
competent beginning.
Roads are built for all time. not for a
day or for year. and when once located
are very seldom changed. 1t would seem
advisable then, that all work done on
them should be so done as 20 render It
unnecessary to rebuild; but we find thou
sands of miles of our public roads con-
struoted without due regard to these pri-
mary principles which have to be en-
tirely rebuilt before they can be put into
proper condition to carry a permanent sur
facing.
In all the roads Of continental Europe,
as well those in the Scandinavian pen
insula, one rule Is absolute and invariably
enforced, that no perishable material Of
any nature is allowed to be placed in the
roadbed. so important is this requirement
considered that the utmost care is taken
during the construction to remove all such
material and all sod containing vegetable
matter that may be turned out in grading
the side bitches is carried away for other
purposes and only the solid earth used
for carrying up a grade. This care in
the preliminary work OF providing suitable
drainage through careful engineering and
the construction OF a solid. substantial
RNsoAbAN
tries Of the old world to secure a system
OF highways that has excited the admira-
ton Of engineers and travellers from all
other nations. II has done more; II has
provided an object lesson for us and placed
before us an example worthy TO be fol-
lowed IL we would secure as good a sys-
tenn OF highways as is enjoyed by the peo-
pie OF less favored lands.
Need New Methods.
THE methods now in vogue IN this
country, on a large percentage Of our
road mileage, are simply a continuation
Of those methods adopted when we were
without experience In road building; since
the Introduction Of road machinery much
better work has been done. but In many
cases a lamentable lack Of intelligence and
experience in the use Of such machinery
Is indicated by the condition OF surface,
vastly inferior and less adapted for travel
than before It's application, and Il Is the
common experience Of those who use the
highways to avoid those stretches which
have just been subjected 10 a so-callsd
Improvement. This condition arises as
much from a lack Of Intelligent super
vision as from any other cause. and sunh