An Estimate Of The Cost

tvii ininr 'stinp article on country road ut is published i:i Tlio U'heel. ;i of "'Viator," which cannot fi.il to ' ■ ' ■ . : -I farmers who apaign for ,. The most sal ent pointsof ■'. iator's" argument aro given below: rican mimi ia nothing if not cal. The subject of road improvegained so flrm a hold on the attention of our people that it issimply nou ;i question of time, economie taetliod and lluancial ibiiiïy wben the roads of t':o country at large will bo macadaI: in otherwords, oiir ordïnary disgroceful, wasteful, dirt roads will have foundation roads."' To promote ■ msummatioo devoutlyto be wiahcd," ii. is only necessary aow lo demónstrate the practicability of Uie reform, anO to show that it is within the financial ability of the average township to havo, without delay, first classroads to an extent conimensurate witb. tbcir necessi; It. hos been settled by long, pationt, itific experiment that the motive power of a horsc on a "foundation" i r iken Btone road is exaotly doublé that of the same animal on an earthroad in verj good oonditlon. Tbe experimenta of Morin in 18oS-41 have cstablished that beyond question. The saving in time is rnucli greater. The writerhashiniself receutly Been a pair of ordinary horses trotting at the rate of bíz miles per hour over a macadam road, liauling a wagon containing 7.000 pounds (more than three gross ton;;) of crushed stone on a level grado. IIow, tlitu, is it practicable to procure such roads - at least in the majority of our older We will BUppose that the arca of tho average township is equal to three miles minare, and that to put in touch with the great country road, and especial! y with markets and railroad stations, it i. necessary to give it twointei "foundation" roads, making in all twelve square miles of mproved rond. Of course the existing roads would be utili.rd, but cm this principie it may le assumed thai these roads can be completed for 4,000 per mile, and kopt in repair for 5 per cent. annually of their lirst cost. This would give $48,000 as the sum needed for which i issue bonds. The yivuly charge would then be ." per cent. interest on $48,000- $2,400; Binking fund, 1 per cent. annually, for thirty yeare, sio; total, $3,880. " The repaire are not hore included ia the annual because they are needed i;i any event, but imder the present pystenis are completely wasted. Theoutcomeof the plan here indicated would be that as the staking fund would liquídate the bondsat maturitythetownship at the end of Ihirty yeara would I havo at least twelve miles of thorou good road uütl for, and which could be always uiaintained at a lesa cosl than i,i now expended on roads that are sometimes well iiiiili impassable. l?ut this is an infinitesimal part of the benefit arising from the improvement. [n i cases the only reason why i-ty bu men do nol reside in i ice localiUes is that they cannot have the pleasure of dri ving over good road;;. Thir sottlement in any rural di nce causes the valué of property to iccrease. InCrease of population bring ers to the farmers' doors for milk, buttcr.i fruit and vegetables. It establisbes churc.lies, schools, postoffices, Ii!r. and, iinally, villages. So that i:i the pro forma case of twelve miles under consideration the certainty would bethatbefore themalurily f the thirty y car bjonds at least doublé the mileage would be demanded and built. The estimated price of $4,000 per mile heregiven is intënded to apply to six inch inacad:;ii! roads ba led on the 63 ience of building in New Jersey. But this figure is meaut for roads that ■. constructed by machinery, The demand for such roads has developed the tact that they may be so built by bringing together macbinery that hitlierto bus bcon used sepavately and not to the greatest advantagc. It isnowseen tliat traction engines may be used in conjunction with automatic ston machines and steam rollers in one continuoua train, so as to actually build and perfect a miie of macadam road in froiu i io a week, according to the distance over whioh the material ha ile !. A construction train would consist of first, a seven ton traction engine in the lcail a.s houlcr; next, ten t.i tweüty stone spreadin wagons, containing twenty to forty tons crushed stcne, according to the amount of motive power cmployed; third, a Qfteen ton stearn roller, used partly as a pusher, which thoroughly compacta tlie stone just spread by the machines ahead of it. C. Popequi tes Professor Jei thoiiiy for the si thal 'ïthe Iiünois roada cost $15,346,0 10 in extra bauling, and reduce the vahie of farms at a distance from railway depots by $i(i0,000,000. If Illinois sn.'nt $850,000,000 on good roads. the total interest on this sum would stil] lugh of the suin now spent on hauiirig to build a uew state capítol every yi I roads would save the sstate its state taxes every year.