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PARK AND CEMETERY. 
Massachusetts State Highway Commission 
has carried on very extensive experiments 
to determine the proper thickness of ma- 
cadam, and from these experiments has 
derived a formula for determining the 
thickness, which it is thought unnecessary 
to reproduce here. 
In Massachusetts the thickness of state 
aid roads varies from 4 to 16 inches, 
and the standard for crushed stone roads 
with macadam foundation on well-drained 
sand or gravel is 6 inches, which the com- 
mission concludes is sufficient for ordi- 
nary traffic. In New Jersey the depth of 
macadam varies from 4 to 12 inches, but 
is generally 6 inches. The advocates of 
a small thickness of macadam often cite 
the experiment at Bridgeport, Conn., 
where some 60 miles of road having only 
4 inches of macadam were constructed and 
gave excellent service, even under heavy 
traffic, but in this case all the conditions 
were extremely favorable for a thin road. 
For the roads in our national parks I 
would recommend a minimum thickness of 
6 inches of macadam and a maximum of 
about 9 inches. The thickness, of course, 
should depend upon the class of rock to 
be used in the macadam and the class of 
binder it is possible to obtain, and the 
proximity of the material to the site. If 
the best available rock is comparatively 
soft, and the binder is not as good as it 
should be, I believe it would be wise to 
use the maximum thickness in such cases. 
In the construction of roads in our na- 
tional parks I believe that the department 
should have available in so far as possible 
standard specifications for construction 
equipment — such, for example, as standard 
designs for crushing plants, including the 
type of crusher, type of screen, and type 
of bin construction. This data could be 
sent out to the superintendent, who could 
remodel them so as to suit their peculiar 
local conditions. There should be also a 
standard type of road roller, carts, wagons', 
etc. After a piece of work in any par- 
ticular park is completed it might be pos- 
sible to transfer the construction equip- 
ment to one of the nearby parks, provided, 
of course, the cost of transportation were 
not too great. There should also be stand- 
ard plans for highway bridges and cul- 
verts. 
After a road has been properly con- 
structed and the surface has been made 
compact and smooth it is very essential 
that it should always remain in this con- 
dition. The general impression is that a 
stone road is a permanent construction 
which needs very little attention after it 
is finally completed, but the best we can 
do is to approximate an indestructible 
road; therefore, proper maintenance or up- 
keep is equally as important as good con- 
struction and a system of maintenance 
whereby every small defect is corrected 
before it has time to cause serious dam- 
age. Among highway engineers there are 
two general methods of maintenance : 
First, continuous maintenance; second, pe- 
riodic maintenance or repairs. In the first 
system the waste caused by the grinding 
of the wheels under traffic is supplied 
gradually as it is worn away and carried 
Residents of East Dallas, Tex., recently 
appeared before the Park Board and of- 
fered to advance the money for the pur- 
chase of at least five acres of land on Vic- 
tor and Caroll for an additional park for 
the city. The monthly report Playgrounds 
Supervisor Edward A. Werner, of Dallas, 
for July showed that 2,859 baths were taken 
and 22,385 admissions to the park were 
recorded. 
Two proposed extensions of Philadel- 
phia's parks and parkway system have been 
formulated by the City Park Association, 
which is preparing to urge their develop- 
ment. One of the most interesting pro- 
posals which has been made by the asso- 
ciation provides for a revision of streets 
at the intersection of Hartwell avenue and 
Lincoln drive in order to provide a circu- 
lar park and to create what is called 
abroad a “garden city’’ around this loca- 
tion. The success of this enterprise de- 
pends upon the vigor with which the prop- 
erty owners of the affected section enter 
into the scheme. The other scheme pro- 
vides for an extension of the Wissahickon 
drive along Kitchen Creek toward German- 
town. This will tap a region not now pro- 
vided with parks. On the map prepared by 
the association are also shown a number 
of playgrounds which are already in use, 
together with various proposed extensions 
of the Wissahickon drive which have been 
advocated by the association from time to 
time. 
The Board of Park Commissioners of 
San Francisco has voted not to allow the 
erection of the statue of Father McKin- 
non which has been executed for a local 
organization. In arriving at this decision 
the board was influenced by the opinions of 
two experts whose advice had been solic- 
ited, one being George W. Kellan, sculp- 
tor, and the other Edgar A. Matthews, 
architect. The plaster cast of the statue, 
which has been on exhibition in the park 
for some time, will be removed. “I know 
it is a delicate matter to deny the Father 
McKinnon statue a place in Golden Gate 
Park, particularly when it is not much 
worse than the McKinley monument at 
the entrance of the Panhandle,’’ writes Mr. 
Matthews in a letter to W. H. Metson, 
president of the Board of Park Commis- 
sioners, and adds : “However, if the lat- 
ter is bad it is not sufficient reason for ad- 
to the gutters by the wind and rains: by 
adding a patch here and there and thus 
maintaining the full thickness of the road. 
By the second method the road is per- 
mitted to wear thin and then an entire 
new surface is added. 
To be Concluded ) 
mitting the former.” Matthews says fur- 
ther in his letter to Metson that he thinks 
no more monuments should be erected in 
public squares or parks until the United 
States produces some really great artist or 
sculptor, and holds the opinion that only 
buildings of a necessary nature, such as 
police stations, etc., should be built in pub- 
lic parks, as is the case in Boston. He 
suggests, however, that the plaster cast of 
the McKinnon monument be allowed to 
stand in the park for a period of six 
months or so, in order to give the public 
ample opportunity to study it and thus be 
placed in position to render intelligent judg- 
ment as to whether or not the real statue 
should have a permanent place there. After 
the board had rejected the McKinnon mon- 
ument, the following resolution, proposed 
by Commissioner Curtis H. Lindley, was 
unanimously passed : “Resolved, That the 
superintendent of parks be instructed to 
investigate and report upon the advisabil- 
ity of setting apart an appropriate area 
within Golden Gate Park wherein there 
may be placed such statuary, monuments 
and other works of art as may be tendered 
to and accepted by the Board of Park 
Commissioners, and wherein the board may 
order assembled such monuments and stat- 
uary as are now installed in said park, 
which, in the judgment of said board, 
should be removed from their present 
sites.” 
Residents of Ravenswood and Sheridan 
Park, Chicago, are signing petitions to the 
Lincoln Park Commissioners to have a 
park established in East Ravenswood. It 
is proposed to buy the block bounded by 
Clark street, Leland, Ashland and Law- 
rence avenues. 
Charles M. Loring, first president of the 
Minneapolis Park Board, and for more than 
half a century active in the work of beau- 
tifying that city, recently made a forceful 
appeal in the Minneapolis Journal for more 
tree planting and gave some excellent prac- 
tical suggestions to tree planters. “To say 
that the trees of Minneapolis are worth 
$3, COO, 000,” said Mr. Loring, “is putting a 
conservative estimate on their value. There 
are about 50,000 trees in the city, and I be- 
lieve that every one is worth $60 and some 
of them are worth much more. A tree 
planted now at the expense of a few dol- 
lars will in ten years be worth $100 to the 
MU. 
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It 
PARK NEWS. 
