2 BULLETIN 284, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



show to the various communities the best and most economical meth- 

 ods of road and bridge construction and maintenance. 



The work consists in furnishing upon the request of the local 

 officials the services of one or more engineers to make surveys, esti- 

 mates, and specifications for road improvements, and to supervise the 

 construction, in addition to giving practical advice to the local 

 authorities, who must furnish all machinery, materials, and labor. 



WORK OF THE DIVISION OF CONSTRUCTION. 



The work of the Division of Construction, of which Vernon M. 

 Peirce is chief, comprises the following projects: Construction of 

 object-lesson roads, construction of experimental roads, construction 

 of post roads, superintendence of county roads, design and inspec- 

 tion of bridges and culverts. 



OBJECT-LESSON ROADS. 



Short stretches of various kinds of roads in different communities 

 have been constructed, upon application from local road authorities, 

 as object lessons, for the purpose of demonstrating the proper ma- 

 terials and methods of construction in the respective communities. 

 Forty object-lesson roads have been built during the period from 

 July 1, 1913, to December 31, 1914. A detailed account of each one 

 follows, given in order of the tj^pe of construction, the more ex- 

 pensive forms first. Under these types the roads are given alphabeti- 

 cally by States, counties, and towns. 



CEMENT-CONCRETE ROAD. 



Prince Edward County, Farmville, Va. — Work was begun on a cement-con- 

 crete road extending from Farmville toward Hampden Sidney on September 25, 

 1913, and completed October 18, 1913, with a loss of one day on account of rain. 

 The surrounding land is rolling and the soil a red clay. The road was graded 

 24 feet wide in both cuts and fills for a distance of 1,450 feet. The earth was 

 loosened with plows and hauled with slip scrapers, wheel scrapers, and wagons. 

 A steam roller was used on the subgrade. 'The road was surfaced with con- 

 crete 16 feet wide for a distance of 515 feet, making an area of 916 square 

 yards. The thickness is 7 inches at the middle and 5 inches at the sides. The 

 mixture used was 1 part cement, 2 sand, and 4 gravel. Expansion joints of two 

 strips of two-ply tar paper were placed every 25 feet. 



One 18-inch 2S-foot corrugated-iron pipe culvert was placed at a cost of $32. 

 The total cost of the work, excluding the pipe culvert, was $1,413.13. or $1,137 

 per square yard. Labor was $1.50 per day and teams $4 per day of 10 hours. 

 The principal items of cost were: Excavation and embankment, $537.40; rent 

 of roller, five days, at $5 per day, $25; 3 tons of coal, at $4.35 per ton. $13.05; 

 cement, 170 barrels, at $1.83. per barrel, $311.10; sand, 50 cubic yards, at $0.10 

 per cubic yard, $5 ; loading and hauling sand to road. $0.66 per cubic yard, $33 ; 

 gravel, f. o. b. cars at siding, 125 tons, at $1.60 i>er ton, $200; loading and haul- 

 ing gravel, 1* miles, $0,379 per ton, $47.3S; rent of concrete mixer, six days, at 

 $4 per day, $24; coal for mixer, 2 tons, at $4.35 per ton, $8.70; mixing and plac- 



