236 MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



Table II. 



Cost of Kepairs of one league of Road. 



Bj' old way of so doing, 

 in florins. 



By system of continual 

 repairs, in florins. 



1835, . 

 1840, , 

 1845, , 

 1850, , 

 1855, , 

 1860, , 



1,002 

 1,086 

 1,170 

 1,254 

 1,339 

 1,423 



1,002 



1,086 

 975|e 

 965|| 

 835^6^ 



eTT 



978|$ 



These figures are taken as given by the chief engineer of the 

 Baden Public Works, Mr. Keller. He quaintly adds : " These 

 tables give clear evidence in favor of the reduced cost by the 

 adopted system. That roads are better now than they formerly 

 were, everybody knows." Another German engineer expresses 

 himself to the same effect in a little different way. " It costs 

 no more," says he, " to keep the roads in repairs now (1864,) 

 than it did twenty years ago, when this method (of continual 

 repairs) was not in use, although labor is now three times and 

 materials are twice as dear as they then were." There seems 

 to be no doubt of the superiority of the continual repair system 

 in every respect, producing very much better roads, and at the 

 same time costing less. It need only be tried with us to be 

 thenceforth adopted. 



How TO Repair Roads on the Continuous System. 

 We suppose the material for the road-covering to lie in reg- 

 ular measured heaps, all ready to be used, at the storage places, 

 once or twice above mentioned, as being 200-250 feet apart 

 alongside of the road, but not encroaching upon it. Then, for 

 every two or three miles of road, a so-called road-keeper is em- 

 ployed to do the necessary work and repairs. An enumeration 

 of his duties will comprise at the same time an essay on the art 

 of road repairing. 



