224 FARM MECHANICS 



the United States. To add to their destructive propen- 

 sities, all wagons in some parts of the country have the 

 same width of tread so that each wheel follows in paths 

 made by other wheels, until they cut ruts of consider- 

 able depth. These little narrow ditches hold water so 

 that it cannot run off into the drains at the sides of the 

 roadway. When a rut gets started, each passing wheel 

 squeezes out the muddy water, or if the wheel be re- 

 volving at a speed faster than a walk it throws the 

 water, and the water carries part of the roadway with 

 it so that small ruts are made large and deep ruts 



Figure 224. Heavy Breaking Plow, used for road work and other 

 tough jobs. 



are made deeper. In some limited sections road rules 

 demand that wagons shall have wide tires and have 

 shorter front axles, so that with the wide tires and the 

 uneven treads the wheels act as rollers instead of rut 

 makers. It is difficult to introduce such requirements 

 into every farm section. In the meantime the evils of 

 narrow tires may be overcome to a certain extent by 

 the persistent and proper use of the split-log road drag. 

 These drags are most effectual in the springtime when 

 the frost is coming out of the ground. During the 

 muddy season the roads get worked up into ruts and 

 mire holes, which, if taken in time, may be filled by 

 running lengthwise of the road with the drag when the 

 earth is still soft. When the ground shows dry on top 



