Xo. 4.] HIGHWAYS. 209 



paces. Perhaps the Roman soldier took a longer stride 

 than his modern comrade in arms ; for the Roman mile, 

 though shorter than ours, was 1,G14 yards. Or perhaps 

 the computation was made from his double-quick, Avhich 

 was of course longer than his ordinary route step. It is 

 worth while to note how unlike in length are the miles 

 of the modern world. The Norwegian mile is 12,000 jards, 

 — almost seven times as long as that of the English- 

 speaking nations, who fix it at 1,760 yards; the mile of 

 eight of the European divisions exceeds 8,000 yards ; Spain 

 most nearh" matches the Roman mile, with her 1,522 yards ; 

 Holland is the lowest, with only 1,094, that is, about five- 

 eighths of an American mile ; the unit of Ital}" is the nau- 

 tical mile, or one-sixtieth of an equatorial degree, 2,025 

 yards. 



English Roads. 



In England after the Roman -occupation was over the 

 imperial roads w^ere neglected, and gradually fell into 

 decay. Through the middle ages, and even down to the 

 middle of the eighteenth century, British roads were the 

 worst in Europe. It has been stated that in 1736 even in 

 London and its vicinit}^ it was a two hours' journey from 

 Kensington to St. James palace, and carriages were often 

 mired even on the most frequented roads. When George 

 III. came to the throne, in 1760, conditions were not much 

 improved. Indeed, nearly all the great work which has 

 resulted in giving the British Islands to-da}' one of the best 

 systems of roads in the world did not seriousl}^ begin until 

 after the opening of the nineteenth century. ]\Iacadam and 

 Telford were the first to apply scientific principles in a large 

 and successful way to the construction of roads ; and to 

 these men, more than to all others, is due the success of 

 modern road building. The fundamental principle of both 

 is thorough drainage. Telford paid much attention to the 

 foundation for the broken stone. ^Macadam disregarded it 

 altogether, contending that the sub-soil would carry any 

 weight if made dr}^ by drainage and kept so by an impervi- 

 ous covering. The Roman precedent of straight roads was 

 abandoned, and easy grades were sought for, without much 



