ROAD. 



partment of the road-maker's bufinefs, efpecially in the more 

 northern parts of the kingdom ; but much is ftill left to be 

 accomplifhed, efpecially in the we (tern diftri<£ls of the fouthern 

 parts of the ifland, where an attachment ftill remains to the 

 original lines or directions. 



And it is fuggefted by Mr. Beatfon in the paper above 

 alluded to, that the bufinefs of laying out the lines of roads 

 may, in fad, be reduced to three fimple principles ; thofe of 

 fixing upon the JhorteJ, the mofl level, and the cbeapejl direc- 

 tions, for which, though apparently very eafy of execution, 

 from the frequent occurrence of circumllances that render it 

 neceffary to deviate from them, the knowledge and experience 

 of the furveyor are found requifite. Th*e firft requifite from 

 its being a ftraight line, is often neceffary to be departed 

 from in order to avoid the removal of expenfive obftacles, 

 fuch as hills, rocks, water, and moralfes. The fecond is of 

 vaft importance, and mould invariably be adhered to, if pof- 

 fible, even though the other two fhould, in a certain degree, 

 be given up ; for it is infinitely better to go a confiderable 

 way about to obtain a level road, than to go ftraight forward 

 and be obliged to take an afcent ; but it may, in fome cafes, 

 be preferable to afcend a gentle rife, in order to obtain a 

 good hard bottom, and a road eafily made, than to go on a 

 level through a fwamp, or piece of water, which would 

 require a much greater quantity of materials, be much 

 more difficult to keep in repair, and occafion a great deal 

 more expence. It is not the molt hilly line to appear- 

 ance that is always to be rejected as being the leaft 

 level ; for the fteeper and fhorter fome hills are, it will be 

 the eafier to obtain a level road in that direction, by cutting 

 down the fummits, and laying the materials taken from 

 them in the vallies or hollow parts, which, in many inftances, 

 may be done with great facility. And the third, or the leaft 

 expenfive line, is alio frequently given up, in order to obtain 

 one or both of the other two. It is therefore concluded, 

 that much depends on the fkill and ability of the furveyor, 

 who, before he finally determines on a line of road, ought to 

 make himfelf perfectly mailer of every part of the interme- 

 diate and adjacent country ; nor fhould he rafhly determine 

 at once, but fhould examine repeatedly, over and over again, 

 whether no other line would be better than that he firft 

 thought of. 



And with refpect to the parts or divifions of which a 

 public road fhould confift, it is obvious that they fhould 

 vary in fome meafure, according to the nature of the traffic 

 or bufinefs which is carried on upon them, the fituation in 

 which they are placed, and the particular circumllances of 

 the different cafes. It is, however, contended by the author 

 of the " Landed Property of England," that the plan and 

 formation of all public roads fhould be the fame ; every 

 public lane, or other fcite of a public road, he conceives, 

 ought, where the width and other circumllances will permit, 

 to be divided into three travellable lines, namely: I. A 

 middle road of hard materials, for carriages and horfes, in 

 winter and wet feafons : 2. A foft road, formed with the 

 natural materials of the fcite, to be ufed in dry weather, 

 to fave the unneceflary wear of the hard road, and to favour 

 the feet of travelling animals ; as well as for the fafety, 

 eafe, and pleafantnefs of travelling in the fummer feafon : 

 and 3. A commodious path, for the life of foot paffengers, 

 at all feafons. But in thefe cafes, he thinks, modern practice 

 has fimplified too much. Iullead of thefe three requifitescf 

 a public road, we generally find a parliamentary or turnpike 

 road (away from the environs of great towns), confuting, 

 fimply, of one uniform broaduay of hard materials ; upon 

 which horfes Humble, and carriages jolt, the year round: 

 while travellers on feot are feen wading to their ankles in 



mud, or in dufl, according to the ftate of the wind and 

 weather. His notion of what the nature of a public road 

 ought to be, is, that within the fences of a lane or road 

 there fhould be a raifed foot-path, a convex hard road, a 

 foft fummer road, and channels to carry off the water 

 collected by the carriage roads ; the foot-path being cut 

 acrofs, in proper places, to permit the water, which falls on 

 that fide of the middle road, to pafs off freely into the ditch 

 at that fide, as well as to prevent horfemen from riding 

 along the path ; the oppofite hedge-bank being perforated, 

 to let off, into the other drain on the contrary fide, the 

 waters which may collect on that fide of the lane or 

 road. 



And in regard to private roads it is contended, that where 

 they are much ufed, as in fuch as lead from a village or other 

 place to a public road, they fhould have a double carriage 

 path, fo that carriages may any where pais each other. But 

 that for fuch as lead merely to a farm-houfe or a hamlet, 

 a fingle line fufficiently wide to let a fingle or faddle horfe 

 pafs a carriage with occafional dilations for carnages to pafs 

 in, are only in general requifite. 



Form of Roads. — Further, in regard to the mofl appro- 

 priate form of roads, there has been a great difference of 

 opinion among the perfons engaged in this fort of work, fome 

 contending in favour of the convex form, while others are 

 inclined to think the concave fhapepreferrable in many cafes ; 

 and ilill others, that they fhould be either made perfectly 

 flat from one fide to the other, with inclined planes longi- 

 tudinally, or be -wholly fiat in every direction. But experience 

 fully (hews, that fome degree of the convex form is neceffary 

 in almoll every cafe, in order that the wetnefs and moifture 

 may be dilcharged with greater facility, and of courfe the 

 roads be preferved in a more dry ftate. And in fpeaking 

 of this form of road, Mr. Beatfon obferves, that the rife in 

 the middle is more or lefs according to the fancy or whim of 

 the makers, but in general it is a great deal too much. This 

 form is adopted on the idea, that whatever wet falls upon the 

 road will run off towards the fides into drains made there 

 for the purpofe of receiving it. If the roads were a perfect 

 fmooth hard furface, this theory would, no doubt, he thinks, 

 hold good ; but in practice it is found not to be the cafe, 

 for the wheels of carriages occafion fo many ruts, and fuch 

 a roughnefs on the furface of the roads in general, that 

 little or no water can run towards the fide-drains, howevei 

 convex the road may be. It confequently lodges in thoie 

 ruts, and every fucceeding carriage, he thinks, the more eafily 

 makes them deeper, and works the water and materials 

 together in fuch a manner, as very foon to render the road 

 extremely difagreeable. This frequently happens, he 

 aliens, even on roads that have been made molt incommodi- 

 oufly convex, for the very purpofe of keeping them dry ; 

 confequently, the convexity of a road has not the defired 

 effect of preventing water lodging upon the furface. Befides, 

 it is, he conceives, extremely inconvenient for all wheel 

 carriages, and deftruclive to the road itfelf, by making the 

 loading reft unequally upon the wheels, unlefs when go- 

 ing on the very middle of the road, for the lowett wheel will 

 always bear the greateft part of the burden, and therefore 

 will injure the road the more in proportion. If a cart or 

 any carriage with two wheels is loaded, we will fuppofe, 

 with two tons weight ; when that cart is upon a level from 

 fide to fide, the load is equally divided, and each wheel 

 fuitains the weight of one ton ; but if that cart is going on 

 the fide of a convex road, there will perhaps be the weight 

 of a ton and a half upon one wheel, and only half a ton 

 upon the other, confequently the lower wheel, in this cafe, 

 will do the road as much injury, as if the cart were loaded 



with 



