82 RURAL CONVENIENCES 



only worn-out dirt roads, over which merchandise had to 

 be carried almost wholly by pack animals, and on which all 

 travel was by horseback or in favored districts by a 

 slow coach toiling along four miles an hour behind six 

 horses, with an occasional overturn in one of the many 

 mudholes. 



Then, a hundred and fifty years ago, England began to 

 build turnpikes between a few important cities. At first a 



STONE CRUSHER. 



turnpike was merely a dirt road where the earth was turned 

 in toward the middle, so as to " crown " the road and let the 

 rain water drain off quickly into ditches at the side. In 

 places, gravel or crushed stone was added to improve the 

 surface; and new ditches, when needful, drew the water 

 away from the sides of the road. It was found that if 

 water was not allowed to stand on the road or at its side, 

 the surface would not easily be cut into ruts by ordinary 

 travel. 



Then, in 1810, John MacAdam, a Scotch engineer, built 

 a few miles of road that made his name famous. He 



