ROAD ENGINEERS. 33 



Mr. Loudon McAdam came to this country from 

 America in the year 1783, at a time when many 

 new roads were being made in Scotland. He was 

 appointed a commissioner of them, and in that capa- 

 city studied the subject of road-making. He after- 

 wards removed to Bristol, and took charge of the 

 roads in that district as surveyor in 1816, because it 

 enabled him to carry his principles into practice, and 

 make the necessary experiments for establishing them. 

 His improvements have been generally conducted 

 under his own direction, or that of his sons. He 

 considered that by a proper application of materials a 

 good road might be made in every county. 



He and his sons had the superintendence of more 

 than three hundred miles of road, and twice as many 

 more were improved by their advice and assistance. 



The grand object of all m-odern roads is the accom- 

 modation of vehicles, and in order to accomplish this 

 the most essential requisite is to have the surface as 

 smooth, hard, and level as possible ; hence in a soft 

 road, where the wheel sinks in deeply, the draught 

 becomes exceedingly heavy. But whether a broad or 

 narrow wheel were the most advantageous seemed to 

 be an unsettled question, as the narrow wheel might 

 often run between stones, where the broad wheel 

 would have to pass over them; and a very accurate 

 practical road-maker said that a good road never 



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