FAKMEES' INSTITUTES. Ill 



Grades. 



We will call yonr attention for a few minutes to the subject of grades. Cus- 

 tom allows us no opportunity to use discretion in the location of roads ; we are 

 required to follow the section or quarter section line, whether it goes over hills 

 or across valleys, whether through swamps or over rivers. 



We can not deny but what this custom leaves our farms in better sliajie, as 

 the lands were originally parceled out and are now generally owned in the form 

 of sections, or halves, quarters, or eighths of sections, but it seems to me in 

 many cases that we follow this custom so closely as to entirely lose sight of the 

 more imj^ortant interest. 



I know of one instance in Avhieh it is twice as far over a steep hill as it is 

 around its base. Now, if a hill rise only one foot in going 20, the draft of the 

 load will be doubled ; but a rise of 1 in 20 does not make a steep hill, and a 

 rise of 1 in 30 is admissible on a first-class road, so that in such a case the dis- 

 tance and also the draft Avould be doubled. In order to convey the same load 

 without increasing the number of horses, the time of going over the hill would 

 be four times the length of the time required in going around the base on an 

 equally smooth road. But it is generally further around the base than 

 over the hill, though not so much as it seems, for ''the bale of a kettle is no 

 longer when laying down than when standing up," no matter how it appears. 

 But it will generally pay to go around hills, even though the distance be consid- 

 erably greater than over them, for it will be seen that grades increase the draft 

 very fast, and consequently require either a corresponding increase in the power 

 or in the time to pass over them. ISTow, as sooA as the waste of time in passing 

 over a road will pay any sort of interest on the compensation a man should 

 receive for the privilege of running a road through his farm, then without any 

 delay should the road be turned to its natural course around the hill, and the 

 waste of power of ascending saved. 



Eoads should be perfectly level, but since that is in many cases not only 

 imj)ractical but impossible, the question at once is raised, How steep a grade 

 is admissible? 



It is claimed l)y many good authorities, and denied by many equally as good, 

 that undulating roads are less tiresome to horses. 



The following table, taken from Gillespie's Roads and Railroads, shows very 

 clearly the detrimental iniluence of grades, calling a full load on a level, 100 

 per cent : 



in 100 a horse can draw 00 per cent. 



81 

 75 



" " 54 



" " 50 " 



1 " 10 " '• 25 



The truths of the statements in this table are shown very clearly by the fol- 

 lowing experiment: Loading this miniature wagon and then allowing a 

 descending weight to pull it over this board, which can be set so as to represent 

 all the inclinations referred to by the table, you see when the board is level a 

 very small weight moves the wagon, but if the inclination of the board is 



