252 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



This one hitch seems to be the hardest to learn. The others sug- 

 gest themselves. 



3. Position of the Driver on the Drag. To move earth. In 

 a soft spot, stand on rear slab; on a hard spot, stand on front 

 slab and drive slowly. If the drag clogs with weeds, sod, or 

 mud, step to a point as far as possible from the ditch end of the 

 drag.. To drop earth in a low place, step quickly from ditch end 

 to other extreme. To fill a low place or mud hole nicely is the 

 severest test of skill. 



4. Presence or Absence of Sharpness or Dullness of the 

 Steel. The steel may project half an inch below the wood at the 

 ditch end of the drag but should come up flush with the wood at 

 the other end of the drag. 



It is not enough to give the roadbed the proper crown to 

 take the water from the middle of it. The water must be taken 

 off and kept off. The side ditches at all times must be open and 

 free from trash. They must have proper fall and must be di- 

 rected at short distances from the grade of the road or the vol- 

 ume of water will at times become so large as to wash deep 

 ditches. It is not necessary that the side ditches be deep and 

 dangerous in order to serve their purpose, but when water stands 

 along the side of the road, something is wrong. 



Sometimes tile is needed on one or both sides of the road 

 to secure the proper drainage, but in most places this is not nec- 

 essary. Grass should not be allowed to grow between the road 

 proper and the side ditches. This catches sand and trash and 

 soon the water does not reach the side ditches. 



On steep grades water breaks are usually constructed across 

 the road to prevent the water from flowing down the middle. 

 These are somewhat of a nuisance and if the road is well crown- 

 ed will not be necessary. If they must be built, they should be V- 

 shaped so that they will not cause such inconvenience when heavy 

 loads are hauled over them. 



The matter of grade in roads is one of considerable import- 

 ance. The more highly a road is improved, the smaller should 

 be the maximum grade; and as roads approach an ideal, all 



