Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1916-01-15

expends its money on experiments, it
is serious enough; but when we mort
gage our homes or county for ex-
periments or for some purpose which
will not pay out before a longtime
mortgage is due, it spells folly and
ruin.
We hear much talk today about
making permanent roads by some
more or less hasty and so-called mex
pensive oil process with which it is
certain we are deluding ourselves.
Information from a number of author
tiles gives no satisfactory or encour-
aging replies on this subject. One of
the ablest men on the Illinois high
way commission has written as fol-
lows:
How long an oiled road can be
maintained in first class condition and
what the cost of such maintenance
will be, is question upon which our
department has no definite informa-
ton, neither have any other of the
state departments so far as we have
been able to learn, and we have in
CURED from them all.
Many people over the state Of Illi-
nois are claiming that they consider
the oiling of roads from year to year
to permanently settle the good roads
problem Personally, and l think l
speak for our entire department when
I say that we do not believe that oil
will be found to take the place Of a
hard surface on our main, travelled
highways. Even if fairly satisfactory,
I think the maintenance cost will be
found too high on such roads to make
it practicable We all admit that from
20 to 80 per cent Of our roads will
continue to be earth roads for many
years, and l believe that on those
roads, especially on that part Of them
that receives the heaviest traffic, oil
ing will be found desirable, but as I
have said, l do not believe it will take
the place of a hard surface on our
main roads, and our main roads are
the roads we are proposing to build
at this time"
Ability to Carry Heavy Loads.
The value of a road today depends
not so much upon the character of its
surface, as upon its ability to carry
heavy loads and upon the amount Of
maintenance required to keep it in
good condition. Experience shows
that whenever road is improved the
traffic on it is from three TO four times
heavier than it was before improve
ment This is because vehicles are at
tracted from every side to the new
improved road. The danger is that
the people in rural districts in this
state will be carried away by the tenn
porary virtue of an oiled road and
will lose sight Of the fact that even
this requires continual maintenance
and expense to keep in condition, and
cannot withstand the heavy traffic
which is SO rapidly developing upon
our country roads. Another consid~
Grafton is that oiled earth roads will
not be maintained by the state as
hard surfaces are, and a county which
goes in for oiled earth roads must re-
member that the burden of maintain
ing them will perpetually confront the
taxpayers.
No road can be real success unless
it is properly drained and graded, and
this requires time, care and good en-
gineering, no matter what surface
coating it may have. Neither oil, grav-
ell, brick nor what-not can be put on a
road surface with the idea of its hav-
ing the slightest permanency unless
the foundation, the draining and grad
ing be well done and settled. To put
oil on the average, ungraded, undraln-
ed dirt roads would be a waste Of
money except perhaps as a temporary
dust-layer.
It would appear that the only value
Of experiments with oil in this coun-
try would be to bring US all to a realiz-
alton of the economy Of permanent
roads.
The question which should be con-
tinually borne in mind, not only by
the supervisors, but also by the tax
payers, is, What have you to show
for your money after 10-year per-
iod?" According to the state highway
commission, it costs from $3.50 to $500
per mile per year to oil roads prop
erly. Five hundred dollars year
will pay the interest on the cost Of a
permanent road of brick or concrete,
which requires practically no main
tenance, and which will easily outlast
20-year bond issue AS a business
proposition and from financial stand