Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1914-04-09

that should be done and then see that
they are done. 1t won't cost a lot of
money to do these little things. but such
expenditures will bring large returns
by way of satisfaction to the general
travelling public
L have spoken of these little things
first, because 1 feel they are so impor-
tant and have been generally over
looked in the past that l desire to give
them especial emphasis.
Now. just a word as to the duties and
commissioners with respect to road
work. DO you realize that collectively
you have direction of the expenditure of
about 81 500,00000? That is the annual
road budget of Maine besides the
amount spent on state roads.
In a majority of the towns the road
road work. that the total highway
expenditure in which you are interested
is not far from s2,o0o,0O000 An ex
hpenditure of that amount certainly calls
for careful planning and / want to say
just word along this line. Careful
planning and good supervision. will al
for economical results. The more limit
ed our funds the more need there is for
careful planning in advance.
To be specific with respect to planning
work in advance | would suggest that
the road commissioner, or whoever has
charge of the road work. should spend
+ IFOI1 one TO TWO weeks III the early
spring in going over all of the roads In
his town with note book in hand taking
careful notes on the condition of every
that during the last two weeks in March
or the first two or three weeks in April
when the frost is leaving the ground
you can see road conditions at their
worst You can tell exactly where ev-
cry quagmire is located; you can deter
mine it's length. and if you look care
fully enough you will be able to deter
mine the source of the trouble You
cannot find these things in June. July
or August. Conditions have changed
the roads have settled. the water has
run away or been evaporated and places
on the road which We're nearly impass-
able in April will look all right.
In the early spring when the snow is
melting and the spring rains are on you
also have a chance to find out whether
bitches and .culverts are doing the work
they were designed to do. This is an
other thing that you cannot determine
in the dry. warm days of summer or
the early autumn.
/ A trip over the roads in the early
part of the season will determine all
these matters. Besides making notes,
every location where there is trouble
should be marked by a stake in some
other way so that the places needing
attention can be readily and accurately
found when the season comes for doing
the work.
| do not think for a moment that you
would be able to remedy all bad con-
ditions found in any town in any one
the matter little careful thought the
i selectmen and road commissioner could
decide on a few extremely bad places
4 when could be permanently improved
each year
/ Again in executing your road work.
have some good reason for everythn
/ you do; don't. for example, put the road
machine on a piece of road that is fairly
+ good and turn the refuse from the gut
i ters on the surface of the road, thereby
spelling the surface. because that is
what you have always seen done; don't
/ have as reason for doing anything the
fact that last years road commissioner
didn't do II; study each piece of road
and give it the treatment 1T demands
/ If a dirt road needs to be thoroughly
road machine is probably the most use
full piece of apparatus you can employ.
When undertaking work of this charac-
ter don't 80 away leaving 1t half or
/ three-quarters done, keep at 1t until it
is finished. Turning a road of sods and
/ refuse into the middle of the road and
/ leaving them for traffic to smooth down
is not the right way to do road work
f In fact we have law now which pro-
hibits the placing of turf sod. or any
other vegetable matter, upon any high
way, and the highway commission is
directed to withhold state aid from any
town where such work is done
When d considerable job of this kind
is undertaken you should that all
material of the kind Just described is
removed from the surface of the road
I A good way to finish a road after doing
heavy grading with the road machine
is to run harrow end then split log
drag behind the machine In this way
you get the material pulverized. broken
up and in condition Tor the drag to
smooth it and level it. 1t is entireiy
possible to shape and grade and finish
a road and leave it in good condition
simply by the use of the machine, but
most men who handle road machines. do
not take time to thoroughly complete
the work they undertake,
The renewing of the surface of earth
roads must necessarily be done by draw
. 4 L. IL
and this can be most economically done
by the use of the road machine and tire
drag, and after such road has once
been graded in good shape the use q
the drag will suffice for several seasons
to keep the surface good and smooth.
While the road machine is used on
some sections of roads which probably
should receive light re-surfacing ar
a little patching, many other sections
of road where the road machine could
be used to advantage, do not receive
attention
A road which is properly built should
thereafter need only TO have the surface
renewed from time to time by drawing
on material. This statement applies
particularly to surfaced roads; that is
roads which have been given gravel
or stone surface.
have touched briefly on some of the
small things which all selectmen and
road commissioners should keep in mind
and put into practice in their road work,
Every speaker has made valuable suG-
gestions. carry them home. Put them
lHLp Practice q
/ want to say for the state highway
commission and for myself personal
that we appreciate the interest you har-i
/ shown in attending this convention and
We hope you will feel amply repaid
for the time you have spent and that
some of the points which have beei
brought out during the sessions will be
found applicable to your own problems.
Americans will have to continue TO
admire G. K Chesterton from afar IT
feel about going TO America much as
! l feel about going to the north pole.
says G. K. c. Il am sure America is
very interesting, but I can see that !
from here. And none of the Europeans +
who do go to America seem to be able :
to get any further than this fact,
which is already known TO me Ii
could fly across TO America this in
slant on a fairy carpet l do not be-
lieve | should understand II any more
than | do now, For there are SEINE
mysteries that do not reveal them
selves easily TO the eve. And Il IS