Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1912-11-27

subject of such vital Importance to the rural
communities of the United States at
present as the improvement OF its country,
OF, so called, dirt roads, those avenues over
which all, or nearly all, the products OF
| the farms must be transported.
The condition Of the public roads in the
United States is probably worse than in
| While we, as nation, are thousand years
in advance OF the old countries in the
hustle and rush OF business, in the ac-
emulation of wealth, in the arts and
sciences, in literature and in everything
that goes to make up a high standard OF
| life, yet we are thousand years behind
those countries in the improvement of our
roads. This all persons who tour the old
world repeatedly youeh for.
| But enough OF this. Every patron
within this hall knows thst our roads are
| very, very bad had almost said a dis
| grace to us. Without my going to much
length to prove the fact, rather let as see,
IL we can. Why such conditions should ex-
ist in Maine. Certainly not because we
have no material OF which to construct
| good roads, nor yet because we have been
niggsrdiy In our appropriations for high
way purposes. for the State of Maine, in
the past 100 years, has squandered enough
money to substantially improve almost
every mile of road within her borders. SO,
after much thought and observation,
have decided to put the blame on our sys-
TEN Of road building and maintenance.
The system in vogue for the past 100 years
OF the roads, without any thought or re-
gard for the future. just so it will do for
this year, and let the next road commits
sioner ami the next generation Look oct
for themselves.
THE ROAD MACHINE.
j am not alone when / make the state
rnent that our roads, in many instances,
have deteriorated since the advent OF the
modern road machine. Now, | am not
condemning the road machine; on the
contrary believe it to be the best tool
connected with our road management,
when inteliigently and scientifically used,
but rather / condemn the method in
which it is used.
For instance, there is a certain piece Of
road the condition of which has been
passed along to the commissioner in no
uncertain terms and oftimes in very strong
language. So, to appease the residents Of
this part Of the town who are Obliged to
do ali their marketing, their going to
church and their pleasure riding over it,
he starts out with the machine, six strong
horses and any number Of men up to .
dozen, to "build them piece of road.
He sets the machine into the shoulder
of the road, If any shoulder there be, and
he scrapes into the place where the road
should be all the debris there is in sight
sods, weeds, grass, mud, brush and rocks
until he gets within two or three feet of
the bottom OF the original ditch, tells the
boys to turn the sods and throw out the
coarsest OF the stones, and the road is done.
And here you have it, q double set OF
bitches on either side and a windrow of
sod in the middle. The next spring the
selectmen and the new road commissioner,
for OF course we could not think it profit
able to keep the same man for q term of
years, no matter what his education and
experience may have cost the town, / say
they are puzzled to know why that piece
OF road that sam" built, did not stand up
better, and they decide there will have to
be little more done to IL, so ''BiIi" takes
his six horses and the machine and goes
out TO ssslick it up a iittleH, and when be
gets through with it there is another set
of bitches (making three, and 3 windrow
of rocks and mud, for he rarely ever stops
to throw out the rocks this time.
My brother, did you ever see q piece Of
road like the one described, and after q
little thought will you kindly tell me who
is to blameds Is il your money that is
paying for this kind OF road making,
And do you feel that you are getting any
thing for your money!
LACK OF ATTENTION.
One OF the chief causes OF deteriora-
tion and ruin OF a road after it has been
fairly well turnpiked with the machine,
is lack of attention. The following four
or six months after the work is done de-
termines the life and condition OF the road
for the next few years. Usually quite dry
when the work is done, the road fails to
| Fcttie until We nave rams samcitut 10
thoroughly soak them through and
through, as at the time of repairing
the settling or impactiug influences
are through working for that year, so
when the rains come, IL there is much
traffic, especially heavy traff,e, the wheels
immediately commence to burrow into
the soft dirt, leaving trench or rut
and at the same time throwing up a core
or ministure dixie ON either shoulder, 30
that by the time the road is again dry we
have two nice little canals waiting for the
next storm to commence it's work OF de-
struction.
Now right here is where the King drag
gets in its best work. II that stretch OF
road could be intelligently and faithfully
dragged about three or four times, and
more if there has been much rain or much