MICHIGAN ROADS AND FORESTS 



11 



DISCREDITS OPPONENT OF GOOD 

 ROADS. 



Taxpayers of Bennington township, Shia- 

 vvassee county, have petitioned the state high- 

 way commissioner for the construction of two 

 miles of state reward road in that township, 

 and it is thought the road can be built this 

 year ii' the township board acts favorably. This 

 is something of a surprise in view of the hue 

 and cry that went up during the recent county 

 system campaign in Shiawassee county. 

 One would have thought then that about every 

 sound thinking citizen in Bennington town- 

 ship was opposed to an unutterable degree to 

 the whole state highway system and its output, 

 says a correspondent. The Bennington road 

 has been condemned repeatedly because it fail- 

 ed to come up to specifications it was alleged, 

 and was declared not nearh- what it should 

 have been for the price. Yet. with this piece 

 of road for a sample citizens are petitioning 

 for more, and will probably get it. 



The petitions ask for two miles of gravel 

 road to be divided as follows: One mile north 

 beginning from the west extremity of the pres- 

 ent reward road; one mile a mile east of the 

 place designated, on the so-called number six 

 road. 



When State Highway Commissioner Earle 

 received the application he chuckled. 



"This is the township," he said, chuckling 

 some more, "which Rep. Whelan took as an 

 example a few weeks ago when he wanted to 

 do away with the highway department entire- 

 ly. He said that up in Bennington township. 

 Shiawassee county, they built roads out of 

 stumps and that they had no use for state road 

 direction. 



"I wonder what Mr. Whelan will say when 

 he sees this letter right from that dear Ben- 

 nington townshio. the very same which he 

 used as the shining example of stump roads?" 

 More chuckles. 



CHEAP ROAD TOOLS. 



Deputy State Highway Commissioner Frank 

 F. Rogers, who visited Grand Traverse county 

 recently, says: 



"The thing that particularly attracted my at- 

 tention was the considerable stretches of newly 

 gravelled roads, on which, for the most part, a 

 good quality of pravel has been used. Nearly 

 all of these roads have wheel tracks and shal- 

 low ruts from one to three inches deep, but 

 outside of the tracks there is plenty of loose 

 gravel. I saw an angle iron float and a con- 

 crete roller in one of 'the townships. Xow. if 

 this float or drag could be run over these roads 

 before they became hard and dry a sufficient 

 number of times to fill the ruts, and the drag- 

 ging followed by a good rolling, an excellent 

 gravel road surface would result. It is true 

 that later rains will soften the surface some- 

 what and slight ruts again be made, but once 

 or twice over with the drag before the road 

 dries out will again restore the surface. The 

 ruts, after a few such draggings. will disappear 

 and a gravel road surface will be produced by 

 the time it is thoroughly dried out that will be 

 hard and smooth and capable of resisting wear 

 in high degree. 



"Ft" the township does not have the tools 

 above referred to. a satisfactory float can be 

 made by framing together two pieces of hard 



wood bridge planks. These planks should be 

 ten or twelve inches wide, three inches thick 

 and of hard wood. The planks should be six 

 and one-half feet long and framed together so 

 that the two pieces are parallel to each other 

 and two and one-half feet apart. This tool can 

 be hitched with a log chain so adjusted that 

 the drag is drawn at an angle of about 45 de- 

 grees with the center line of the road. In 

 using it the team should straddle the wheel 

 track and haul the drag so as to crowd the 

 loose material towards the center of the road. 

 The cost of such a tool is the price of a bridge 

 plank and about an hour of some man's time. 



"Home made concrete rollers have been 

 made in many places in Michigan as follows: 

 A piece of an old boiler shell is secured, which 

 is three and one-half to four feet in diameter 

 and four or four and one-half feet long. A shaft 

 is centered in this shell, held in position with 

 light iron braces. It is then turned on end on 

 a wooden platform and filled with concrete. 

 After the concrete becomes hard the roller is 

 taken to a wagon shop where a frame is made 

 and a tongue put in it. The cost of such 

 rollers has usually been between $55 and $60. 



"liven though the roller cannot be had, the 

 floating referred to will accomplish almost the 

 same results if done oftener. Any road which 

 is composed of soil that is at its best for road 

 purposes in dry weather will be greatly im- 

 proved by floating as above directed." 



PROGRESS IN ROAD BUILDING. 



In accordance with our usual custom, we 

 have endeavored during the past few weeks 

 to secure information for the benefit of our 

 readers concerning the amount of work done 

 in road construction in 1908 in the several 

 states, and the prospects for the approaching 

 -c"io n of 1909. 



There are now 23 states which have some 

 plan of state aid in road construction. In some 

 of these the laws are of recent enactment, so 

 that statistics are not available for report. We 

 find, however, that 16 of the states which send 

 reports have constructed during the past year 

 approximately 1.703 miles of macadam road, 

 (J'.io miles of gravel and 81 miles of other roads, 

 at a total cost of $18,692,431. In a majority of 

 cases the amount reported by the individual 

 state represents state money only, and takes 

 no account of the amounts spent by counties 

 and townships, either in the payment for their 

 share of the macadam or gravel road, or the 

 amount spent locally on earth or other local 

 roads. 



The prospects for 1909 indicate a healthy 

 growth, and an increased interest in good 

 roads. It is too early in the year to give fig- 

 ures, even approximately, as the legislatures of 

 most state aid states are still in session at the 

 time of going to press, with the appropriation 

 bills not yet enacted. From every quarter, 

 however, comes expressions of anticipation 

 from highway officials reciting the great inter- 

 est taken by legislators, and predicting in- 

 creased appropriations and more comprehen- 

 sive laws. 



It is certain that the good roads movement 

 is going forward with rapidly increasing force. 

 In a number of states comprehensive plans 

 have been adopted, contemplating the expendi- 

 ture of many millions of dollars during a series 

 of years. Some other states will enact such 



legislation this year and stil others will require 

 another year or two to think it over. But the 

 good roads idea, like all the dominating fea- 

 tures of our modern civilization, is contagious, 

 and the state which does not take action oo 

 the subject in the near future of its own voli- 

 tion, will soon find this particular element of 

 progress sweeping across its borders from more 

 enlightened states. Good roads are among the 

 essential features of modern existence. They 

 are the visible representation of the intelli- 

 gence, the perseverance, the aiming after per- 

 manence, and the vital prosperity of the Ameri- 

 can people. Good Roard Magazine. 



IMPROVEMENT IS NEEDED. 



The Florence Iron Company of Florence, 

 Wis.. is greatly in favor of improving the 

 highway from Florence to Crystal Falls, 

 Mich. A new road ought to be put in from 

 Stager to the Brule river and alongside the 

 railroad bridge. A new highway bridge is 

 needed across the river. The company ex- 

 pects this summer to repair the road from 

 Florence to Twin Falls which will meet the 

 Twin Falls road at this point. The Twin 

 Falls road is macadamized from Twin Falls 

 to Loretto and there is a good road from 

 Loretto to Menominee and Green Bay. The 

 present road from Stager to Florence is quite 

 long and has some very bad sand plains and 

 hills. The cost of repairing this road and 

 putting it in good condition would amount to 

 as much as a new road. The only extra ex- 

 pense would be the bridge. Along the line 

 of the new road, as suggested, there are some 

 fine gravel beds and the road could be built 

 from these gravel beds, which is almost if 

 not quite as good as macadamized roads. 



The Twin Falls bridge is to be replaced 

 this summer and the old bridge might do for 

 the shorter span across the Brule. This 

 would give good connection between Flor- 

 ence, Crystal Falls and Iron River and also 

 a much shorter road from Crystal Falls to 

 Iron Mountain. 



MICHIGAN ROAD NOTES. 



Thirty-six farmers living southeast of Xe- 

 gaunee have petitioned the council of that city 

 for the construction of a wagon road. The 

 distance to be covered is about two miles, the 

 road starting from a point where the Lake 

 Superior & Ishpeming and Chicago & Xorth- 

 western railway lines meet at the Blue mine. 

 From there it will pass through sections four 

 and nine to the city limits. The petition asks 

 action at an early date, that the road may be 

 completed this year. 



Commissioner of Highways Charles Mug- 

 ford and Overseer of Highways Alex Silvola, 

 of Calumet township, Houghton county, have 

 taken office. Commissioner Mugford is push- 

 ing road work already, and states that he is 

 going to see that all of the township highways 

 are put in first-class condition. A large force 

 of men are already at work. 



Vernon township, Clare county, is fortunate 

 in having capable men in office who are inter- 

 ested in improved highways. The township 

 has voted $1,000 to gravel the road leading 

 south from Clare. In addition the highway 

 tax will yield $1,475 additional. The roads to 

 be improved will be state reward roads. 



