The Madisonian. (Richmond, Ky.) 1913-1914, 1914-05-05
The King Road Drag.

and hard. they are not only difficult
to work, but the work Is unsatisfac-
tory when done. Earth which Is loose
and dry will remain dusty as long as
the dry weather lasts, and then turn
to mud as the rains begin. By using
the road machine in the spring while
the soil is soft and damp, the surface
is more easily shaped and soon packs
down into dry hard crust which Is
less liable to become dusty in sum
mer and muddy in winter.
Repairs to roads should be made
when needed and not once a year
after crops are laid by. Because Of
its simplicity, efficiency and cheap
ness, the split-log drag or some SIM
liar device is destined to come into
more and more general use. With
the drag properly built and its use
well understood, the maintenance of
earth and gravel roads becomes a sim
pie and inexpensive matter Care
should be taken to make the log so
light that one man can lift 1t with
ease, as light drag can be drawn by
two medium sized horses and re-
spends more readily to various meth
DDS of hitching and the shifting posi-
ton Of the operator than a heavier
one The best material for the drag
is dry cedar log, though elm, wal
nut, box elder or soft maple are ex-.
cellent- Oak, hickory or ash are too
heavy. The log should be from seven
to ten feet long. and from eight to-
ten inches in diameter. 1t should be
split carefully as near the center as
possible and the heaviest and best
slab chosen for the front. When the
soil is moist, but not sticky, the drag.
does the best work. AS the soil in
the field will bake If plowed wet, so,
the road will bake If the drag is used
on it when it is wet. If the roadway,
is full of holes or badly rutted the.
drag should be used once when the,
road is soft and slushy.
The earth road can best be crowned
and ditched with road machine and
not with picks and shovels, scoops,
and plows- One road machine with.
a suitable power and operator will do.
the work of many men with picks and
shovels, and in addition will do 1t bet
ter. If the road is composed of fine.
clay or soil it will sometimes pay to,
resurface it with top soil from an adj,
jacent field, which has sand or gravel
mixed with It This method, called
the top soil method" is now IN sue.
fr7l IN, T.kya xfr
Storm water should be disposed Of
quickly before 1t has had time to pene
trate deeply into the surface Of the.
road This can be done by giving the,
road crown or slope from the CEN
ter to the sides. For am earth road
which is "a feet wide the center
should be not less than six inches
nor more than II inches higher than
the outer edges of the shoulder. The
narrow road which is high In the mid
die win become rutted almost as
quickly as one which is too fat. for
the reason that on narrow road all
the traffic is forced to use only mar
row strip. Shoulders are often
formed on both sides of the road,
which prevents Storm water from
flowing into the side bitches, retain
ing It in the ruts and softening the
roadway. These ruts and shoulders
can be entirely eliminated with the
road machine or spfit-log drag
The width Of the earth road VIII
depend on the traffic AS rule, Is
or 80 feet from ditch to ditch is
sufficient If the road is properly
crowned. Ordinarily the only bitches
needed are those made with the road
machine which are wide and shallow.
Deep narrow bitches wash rapidly. es-
pecially on steep slopes The earth
read should not be loosened, dug up,
or plewed up any more than Is ALSO
lutely necessary.