The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1912-07-11
URGES ISSUE OF ROAD BONDS
Shows Deep Interest That is Being
Taken in Road Building in Other
Parts OF Country and eed of Such
Efforts for Roads in This County.

Editor Telegraph-Courier:
With the liberal subscriptions made
by Mr.. Jeffrey and others for lake
shore drive, am prompted to publicly
express a keen interest in the good
roads movement.
Several years ago [ sent letters to the
chairman of each town board of super
visors in Kenosha county offering rail
way fare and expenses to the National
Good Roads meeting at Menominee
where the late Senator Stout built a
maeadam road from the city to acounty
building a mile or more away. Only
one official accepted the invitation. This
object lesson, under the supervision of
Gen. Harrison, of the U. S. Agricultural
Department, demonstrated the best
country road makable at that time.
Crushed granite from hard heads =
near the river bed, screened, sorted,
scientifically laid and steam-rolled made
as perfect roadway as one could wish
for at that time. In an address by Gen.
Harrison at the meeting, he claimed
that water was the only enemy to a
road and he advanced good reasons sus-
tanning the point. Now the general
would oubtedly admit two roadde-
stroying agents--one natural and the
other artifcial--both come to stay
namely; water an1 automobiles.
Country road making, then, must
meet both enemies, in fact, must ignore
the former and proudly say of the lat
ter, I'VE have met the enemy and it is
ours The automobile or auto-truck
will become just as essential for the
farmer as for those who dwell in the
cities.
Now that Wisconsin has tardily (per-
haps Providentially) slowly fallen into
line with the Good Roads Movement, it
becomes US as good citizens, fully agreed
as to the desirability and economy of
permanent highways, to decide two per-
tinents questions, namely: How shall
we construct them? 2-When?
First-How? The manufacturers of
steel few years ago discovered a
by-product of their mills most-readily
and cheaply converted into Portland
cement. Tar, asphalt and even mo-
lasses have been used as binders for
mixtures of sand, gravel and crushed
stone. Cement has been demonstrated
to be the best, the cheapest and most
durable Of all binders, the two qualifca-
tions together considered A binder is
just as essential to the building Of a
road constructed today to meet the two
enemies as lime is to make mortar that
bricks may be shaped into houses. To
construct limestone macadam is to
invite destruction under the wheels Of
automobiles as surely as to attempt a
sky-scraper with bricks made Of straw.
Witness the Sheridan Drive north of
Chicago full of holes and a menace to
safe driving! Look at the strip Of
road-the Salem ve.~driye-rutty and
rapidly going to destruction.
To go further, the state of New York
in 1906 issued fifty million dollars in
bonds for good roads and is about to is
sue another fifty millions. Instead of
10000 miles being constructed no more
than 5000 were built and now the main
tenance under present conditions follow
ing the old-style methods of construc-
ton has in some instances reached an
annual outlay of 81 100000 per mile Mil
waukee county has lately paid out twice
as much for maintenance as for con-
struction of highways. On the other
hand, properly constructed cement
roads are practically indestructable.
cement, ITSELF is not road material;
it is simply binder for the materials
sand, gravel, stone filing the voids,
covering all surfaces, converting the
puddle into a solid monolith. IF chalk,
dirt, soft materials-even limestone
subject to friction or attrition-adulter-
ate the mixture. disintegration is in
vited. 1t follows then that the future
road bed must be as nearly indestruct-
able as possible to be economical as
well as serviceable.
The theoretical stage in roadmaking
is past. More than seyenty.fve miles of
concrete highways will be completed in
Wayne County, Michigan, at the end Of
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