1916] RURAL ENGINEERING. 583 



" Dynamite is unequaled for breaking up hardpan or layers of impervious 

 subsoil, which not only prevent the roots from going down to the subsoil but 

 interfere with the drainage. It is most effective on heavy clay and hard lat- 

 erite soils and least effective on light or loose soils which offer no resistance 

 to the explosion. It might be profitably employed in holing previous to plant- 

 ing, especially in heavy soils, half a charge of dynamite being sufficient for this 

 purpose. It may be successfully used in breaking up logs and tree stumps in- 

 fected with termites in rubber clearings. The value of dynamite for cultiva- 

 tion is not doubted, but the high cost of the explosive prevents its more gen- 

 eral use." 



Stump removal, G. Lundberg {Skogsvdrdsfor. Tidskr., No. 5 {1915), Sup. 1, 

 pp. 40, flffs. 25). — This report deals with stump breaking and removal and 

 describes and illustrates methods and machinery used In this work in Sweden, 



The American road, I, II, J. I. Tuckeb (Norman, Okla.: Author, pts. 1, 

 1915, pp. 34 + [5]; 2, 1916, pp. 35-S2-\-[4'\, figs. 5).— Questions and texts pre- 

 pared for the extension division of the University of Oklahoma are given. 



Road laws of Ohio iColumbus, Ohio: Bd. Library Comrs. Ohio, 1915, pp. 

 XXXIX-\-335). — The texr of the laws is given in three parts. 



Part 1 includes the Cass highway act, which is a codification and revision of 

 the aaore important road laws that were in force previous to its enactment. 

 Part 2 contains sections of the general code relating to the duties of various 

 county and township officials in connection with roads and the provisions rela- 

 tive to tax levies and the limitation of the tax rate. In many instances cita- 

 tions are given to court decisions. Part 3 presents the law relating to motor 

 vehicles. 



Good roads year book, 1915 ( [Off.] Good Roads Year Book U. S., 1916, 5. ed., 

 pp. VIII+UO).— This is the fifth number of this book (E. S. R., 29, p. 388), 

 containing information regarding road improvements under federal, state, ter- 

 ritorial, and local control ; historical notes and technical details of road con- 

 struction and maintenance ; and European road systems. Miscellaneous infor- 

 mation regarding highway bonds, state geologists, and manufacturers of road 

 machinery- and equipment, engineering equipment, and road-building materials 

 is included, together with a bibliography of 249 treatises on road, bridge, and 

 culvert construction and allied subjects. 



Proceeding's of the Pan-American Road Congress, held at Oakland, Cali- 

 fornia, September, 1915 (Proc. Pan-Amer. Road Cong., 1915, pp. XV-{-416, 

 pi. 1 ) . — These proceedings contain the following special papers : 



The History and Future of Highway Development, by L, W. Page; The 

 Relation of the Road to Rail and Water Transportation, by C. J. Tilden; The 

 Benefits and Burdens of Better Roads, by S. E. Bradt ; Road Building in the 

 National Forests, by H. S. Graves ; The Essentials of Proper Laws for High- 

 way Work, by E. A. Stevens ; Federal Aid to Rural Districts, by C. L. Mac- 

 Kenzie ; Proper Road Location, Its Importance and Effects, by W. R. Roy ; 

 Road Drainage and Foundations, by G. W. Cooley ; Highway Bridges and 

 Structures, by W. S. Gearhart; Highway Indebtedness, Its Limitation and 

 Regulation, by N. P. Lewis; Organization and System in Highway Work, by 

 A. B. Fletcher; The Educational Field for State Highway Departments, by L. 

 S. Smith ; Roadway Surfacings, by F. F. Rogers ; Resurfacing of Old Roads, by 

 W. D. Uhler; Street Pavements, by C. Hill; System in Highway Accounting, 

 by S. D. Gilbert ; Uniformity for Highway Statistics and Data, by H. E. Reed ; 

 Engineering Supervision for Highway Work, by P. Hubbard ; The Determina- 

 tion of the Justifiable Outlay for Specific Cases of Highway Improvement, by 

 C. Richardson ; How to Take the Roads Out of Politics, by R. H. Dana ; Con- 



