Lower coast gazette., 1913-08-09
Progress on the Shell Road.

wo understand that the she'll road from be-
,a;r DOWN is scarcely practicable, owing 10 the
deem rrts making many places lmpasSap1e'
% most impassable other than on horseback; As
somn Of rs are getting a little ola Tor .long
horseback rides. we are earnestly hoping wa.
a better condition will soon come aoou1. TN.
paIa;r 70 the upper line of the parish a Few
nan arn emploved in smoothing up tne SUES
n = 4ha yoadhed wherein the shells 40 not ne
nd in+nntting in c~ulverts. The putting IN Oh
tha cnlverts after the road has been completeu,
~ at least completed in the ESTIMATION VI I!e
contractor, is bad feature OF the WORN, as ~
{ is simply impossible for two Things 70 occupy
the same, space at the same time. a ten "
twelve-inch culvert put across tlie ioaum"y o nJ
cupt 20 ' If Il makes a hump in the road which
will last indefinitely long and throws the WORK
o,t of ;ts nroper alignment and not IN accord
onca with the contract specifications. Quite a
number Of the ~culverts that are already IN nave
49, ,ot had the concrete work done at tleli
nds hui this can be done without mucn uls-
mrbance of the rest OF the WORK.
We note that the drainage ditch on the Woou
.;do If the road does not drain the water away.
We should think that the contractor snoulo De
oomnelled TO make this drainage e%t1ectlVe' as
= would only REQUIRE going back two or tnree
hundred feet into properly-chosen exlstlng
d;tches to oct fall enough to drain these shallow
rnad bitches to the bottom. AS it is, some OF
tham are now half full of water and this is a
very had condition in which to nave them, oaln-
ag;no az Il does the road bed itself ana damag-
inc also as it does, by it's retention u Ihe wa'e1'
the entire levee system OF the parlsh'..f
Wa understand, however, that the highway
engineer will require the contractors oe aoad
final settlement, to turn over the roau III = goo -
condition and in full compliance VIII oil =
the conditions Of the contract.
a r,,mor comes to- us that on some u en'
road below Belair only two layers Oh shehS ; nay az
been used instead of three, and tnat, WINE w
quantity, so far as thickness is concerned, mlgn
be competent, still there is q varlatloh LII hoa,
the specifications and the snells nave only w ~
rolled with the light rollers that are singular
inogect;ve from any bodybuilding point Q
Vow with which we have been familiar an
which we have seen in operation various QUE
narts Of the State. The State engineers, IN u
present instance, took the precautlon 10 HISS
IN ten-ton rolling Of each layer, and we Dellev
th.t the contractor himself admits that ne ha e
not done this and is, perhaps, endeaVorlhg
saddle the responsibility off on to- the nlghWa
anr;neer claiming his consent TO a teauce
,veioht. Of the rollers to less than one,nai an
the reduced number Of rollngs eHeceeu.
Some little time ago the highway engine !
was Ds expecting to have the road completed a,
tho first of August. The rainy WeatneI, no,
aver has interfered more or less with inc w.
and the rice harvest will soon be ! on M; Us al anu w >
are led, therefore, to infer tn ma 1T IL a WI a de VA
lahor SIMPLY. The scarcity OF labor IN Do1Il : .
parnard and Plaquemines is a serious eVn a
apparently apparea an increasing one s;,a To o. carry sf fbs on La =
! ip,ra!ae' Canal, the management !, being be- ,g So dom MA,
pered for labor, is compelled t to carry yra a1wi !
supply daily from the .s city m an : spsela and brett retu,
i ;na i s fhe evening. All Of this would lndlc'
ing thst Y the e!l labor problem will interfere seriou u
with with tn the progress Of the shell shell road issas ana I'M =
dees highway engineer insists, as he should
the rapid completion Of the work.