The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1912-01-16
FargON Now in Hands Of Grain Growers Of Northwest

land which makes the road tax less Of
a burden to the land owner. Drain
age of Itself improves the roads, and
permanent bridges and culverts can
not be economically constructed until
the drainage systems are completed.
Many of the rural road men are not
aware of the fact that the building of
a high road across wet land is only a
make-shift for drainage, that a good
tile or open ditch would remove the
cause for the grade. that water stand
ing along a road grade saturates the
foundation OF the road to the level of
the standing water, and then is raised
by capillarity to the surface Of the
road and in the end destroys the road
regardless of its surface covering,
To secure a road which has the re-
CURED qualities, it is necessary to
have a solid foundation which will
not become soft by moisture or de-
stroyed by erosion, and then an inn
pervious covering that viii shed the
storm water and carry it to the side
bitches. The securing of material for
the covering is the bone of conten-
tion among road builders and is the
problem that confronts many of our
agricultural communities. 1t is here
that local conditions should be studied
and the road builder use his ingo-
nuity and experimental abilities to
find at hand a material that will an
swer the purpose and be within the
pocketbook of the district. Various
materials are now used and approach
in greater or less degree the ideal
road s~urfacing materials, according
to the locality where they are used
and the care in, construction and
maintenance.
Common earth by developing its
pudding properties and keeping it in
good shape with the King road drag.
A mixture Of sand and clay.
Burning clay on the road where fuel
is plentiful.
Shells along the coast.
Gravel and coarse sand as it Is found
in natural banks.
Broken stone of the more common
geological rocks.
roads, and sawdust, bark. straw, etc.
for sand.
Oil and tar as Z binder on sand
| SEdN0A ana pToken rock.
Such materials, while they are not
what might be desired, vet have
proven satisfactory in many localities
but it should be clearly understood
that the method of treating a road
with any one of these materials III
one locality may not be satisfactory
in another. consequently the necessity
of careful experimental work with roat
~surfacing materials in new localities
Another item of road education ii
agricultural districts is a method Of
systematic and thorough maintenance
for roads, like nearly all other works
of man, require constant repair or they
rapidly d~isinfegrate. The success 81
many OF the cheaper road sirfacins
materials depends almost entirely or
the care with which they are main.
tanned. If a community can be edu-
Gated to properly prepare q road BEE
by draining and grading, and ther
in a proper system Of maintenance
the road problem il practically solved
for the road will be surfaced by TIL,
best materials obtainahle as rapidly
as there Is a demand for better roads
than natural conditions afford.
TO interest the agricultural com.
munities in road Improvement Otter
appears a hopeless task. That bette
roads are needed Ii readily admitted
but hoxs pay for them ii til,
stumbling ek After watching TN
road problem Tor a number OF year
IT is the writer's opinion that man.
Of the road enthusiasts and agitator
make a mistake in advocating q sud
den change from d pioneer road Il
q high-class macadam road at on
step. with the result that the expens
frightens the land owners The aver
age farmer listens to q description o
i European Or New Jersey road