The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1917-01-06
DIRT ROADS TOSTAY
State Engineer Doesn't Look
For Many Paved Highways
in the Near Future.
THE WORK NOT PERMANENT
Bad Reputation of Earth Roads Due
to Poor Management, w. S.
Gearhart Believes.


real road problem of Kansas, since it
is not likely that more than a very
small per cent of the highways will
be paved in this generation, asserts
w. S. Gearhart, professor of highway
engineering in the Kansas State Ag-
ricultural College and state highway
engineer.
Practically all the work done on
an earth road, except reduction of
grades, correction of horizontal align
ment, building of drainage structures.
and elimination of railway grade cross
ings, is temporary and should prop
erly be considered maintenance" said
Mr.. Gearhart.
Doing permanent work is a COM
paratively easy matter, for when once
it is done correctly it will last for
number of years. The maintenance
of an earth road, however, is never
ending Job 1t is like milking the
COWS and doing other chores, for the
builder knows that the work of main
tenance will have to be done over and
over again and can never feel that it
is in any sense permanent.
For this reason the earth road has
a bad reputation. The trouble is not
so much with the material of which
the road is composed as with our sys-
tenn or lack of system of management.
Other types of roads when treated as
we treat the earth roads are much
more expensive and serve the travel
ing public little if any better. The
vast improvement that can be made
on our present earth roads by inte1li-
gent direction in their construction
and maintenance is little realized by
the public, and the serviceability of a
properly maintained earth road is not
appreciated when compared with 9TH
er types of roads as to cost of con-
struction."
X x x
Dynamite In a Wreck-Eight cars
of Missouri, Kansas & Texas freight
train dropped from a 20-foot trestle
eleven miles east of Columbus recent
", and although one of the cars was
loaded with dynamite, there was no
explosion. The train, a local freight,
was making about thirty miles an hour
when it hit the trestle. The engine
and fourteen cars had passed over
safely when a gasoline car jumped the
track and the car of dynamite and six
others, most of them loaded with coal
and cement, followed. The dynamite
had been saturated with gasoline.
X
Coal Shortage at Atchison.-Atchi-
son is experiencing coal shortage, so
far as the electric light and street
railway plant is concerned. The short
age of coal at the power house has
caused several plants depending on
electrical power to shut down, and
street railway traffic has been reduced
to half the number of cars usually
operated.
Woman Pioneer Dead.-Mrs. Sina
Rivers, 80 years old. a resident of
Kansas for more than fifty years and
of Jefferson county Eor the last thirty
eight years, died on her farm near
Perry Christmas day.
x x x
Rusty Nail Caused Death.-C1yde
Prick, son of G. P Frick, Rock Island
engineer, died at Pratt recently from
1ockjaw caused by stepping on rusty
nail
x x X
Mexican War Veteran Dies.-James
Fisher, 81 years of age, a veteran of
the Mexican war, died at his home
near Fredonia recently. He is the
third of four Mexican war veterans
residing there to die recently.
X x
Hurt in Auto Accident-Erie G.
Schneider is in critical condition in
an Atchison hospital on account of in
juries received when his motor car
overturned near Effingham. The base
of his skull was fractured and his left
arm broken. Two other men in the
car at the time, Charles Brown and
Martin Woodland of Effingham, were
slightly injured.
More Pay to Street Car Men.-The
Wichita Street Railway Company has
arranged for a 2-cent an hour advance
for all car men beginning January l.
which means an expenditure of $4,000
annually in salaries.
x x
Accident May Prove FataI.-Lester
Holloway, near Lebanon, lost his left
arm recently by the accidental dis.
charge of both barrels of his shotgun
while he was out hunting. He may
die.
x x
Pastor Called to Ohio.-The Rev.
E. E. Stauffer, pastor of the Trinity
Lutheran Church at Lawrence, has
been called to the pastorate of the
Walnut Hill Lutheran Church in Gin
cinnati, %. He has not decided
whether he will accept the offer.
X X x
Wreck Injured 13.-Jarrett 1. Upte.
grove, conductor of Kansas City
Southern passenger train. was severe
" injured when the train was wrecked
at Curranville, six miles north OF
Pittsburg recently. A dozen passen-
gers were injured, none dangerously.
r + +
All Bodies RecoVered.-Reeovery OF
the bodies of Mr.. and Mrs. Frank
Ferris accounted for the last persons
missing in the fire which destroyed
the Kansas Masonic home at Wichita
with loss of five lives. Funeral ser