“Vol 0, | 
his tafte; who fays, ‘ Poetry addreffes 
her precepts not to the reafon alone—the 
calls the paffions to her aid—the not 
only exhibits exsmples, but infixes them 
in the mmd. She foftens the wax with 
her peculiar ardour, and renders it more 
plaitic to the artift’s hands.” 

Ty the Editor of the Montbly Mazazine. 
SURe 
CME time fince, I received a letter 
from a-gentleman of Barbadces, de- 
firing my opinion upon the fubjeé& of 
wheel-carriages, 
view to the tranfport of fugar-hogtheads 
in. that ifland, I have, unforsaaately, 
lofi the gentleman’s addrefs, “Ig, as I 
make no doubt that the Monthly Maga- 
zine is circulated in the Weft Indies, I 
take this method of anfwering his en- 
quiries.— 
The writer of the letter which I 
allude te, appears to be perfeétly ac- 
quainted with the common theory of 
wheel-carriages, and with the common 
-defeéts in their conftruétion; he, with 
great propriety, has taken care to deferibe 
the roads of the country, knowing that, 
in faét, more advantage is to be obtained 
by improving the road, than by improv- 
ing the carnage that is to be employed 
upon it; I fhall, therefore, make fome 
obferyations upon the conftruétion of 
roads, before I {peak of carriages. 
For many years I have had opportu- 
nities of trying experiments upon this 
fubjeét—tacts thus acquired, form expe- 
rience which fhould not be confounded 
with practice—the latter means no more 
than mere facility, obtained by habit ; 
the former teaches us what we can com- 
municate to others. 
On level ground, roads fhould have 
no greater elevation in the centre, than 
what is neceffary to carry off the rain 
which falls upon it; but on hills, the 
ridge, or trunk, of the road fhould be 
higher in proportion to the declivity of 
the hill; this difference of form fhould 
be obferved, to prevent the effeét of fud- 
den and violent rain, which fometimes is 
fo copious, as to rufh acrofs the roads 
down hills, and which, ftriking in tor- 
rents againft an oppofite bank, is driven 
backwards and forwards, in a zigzag 
direction, tothe deftru&tion of the road— 
by raifing the road higher in the middle 
than is common, the water finds a 
paffage to the channels, at each fide, and 
paffes no farther over the furface than is 
abfolutely neceffary. Great care fhould 
be taken to direct all mounsain-freams 
Improved Method of making Roads. os 
particularly with a' 
545 
from roads; and fuch ftreams. neve 
fhould be permitted to rtin in the drains 
at the fides of the roads; but in other 
channels at a diftance. Jn preparing 
the ground for a new road, or in repair- 
ing an old one, the fr thing to be ar- 
tended to is the folidity of the foundation 
—~if any part of it be foft, that part will 
fink, let the fuperficies be what it may; 
the vicinity of {mall {prings is generally 
he caufe of thofe detached holes which 
we frequently meet with in roads—thefe 
{pots muft be dug ull a firm bottom is 
found, and the neighbouring {prings 
muft be drained below the foundation of 
the road. Having obtained a firm fub- 
{tratum for a new road, or having filled 
up all inequalities in an old one with 
folid materials, we may procecd to make 
a good read with much lefs trouble and 
expence than is nfual. 
The foundation muft now be covered 
with ones of any fize, not exceeding fix 
or feven inches diameter ; it is obvieus, 
that if fmaller ftones can be had, they 
frould be preferred. The ftones thould 
be fpread equally over the furface, and‘ 
fettled firmly with a light fledve; in 
this operation, fuch ftones as are too 
large, muft either be broken or carried 
away; over this a layer of fmall ftones, 
not larger than eggs, fhould be fcattered, 
and fettled with hammers between the 
interftices of the largeft. Over this a 
{mall quantity of any hard clay, jut fuf- 
ficient to cover the ftones, fhould be 
{pread; if mixed with gravel ic will be 
better—but if gravel alone were ufed, it 
would fall ‘through the ftones and be 
wafted. It is taken for granted, that 
this work be done in dry weather; the 
road will, therefore, in this fituation, be 
fit for cattle and carriages—in a month 
or tivo, the clay and gravel willbe worn 
away, and the corners of the large ftones 
will appear—men fhould now be em- 
ployed to break the ftones with hammers, 
weighing about two pounds and a half; 
they fhould ftand up at this work, and 
the handles of their hammers fhould be 
from four to five feet long, according to 
the fize of the men. It will cot about a 
penny per yard cto break a road covered 
in this manner, to the breadth of four- 
teen feet. After another monch, or fix 
wecks, the road muft be broken, with 
care, in the fame manner; and, with 
proper intervals, it fhould be broken 
from time to time, as often as may be 
be nceceflary—four times is, in general, 
fufficient. Whilft this operation is per- 
formed, a boy, with a barrow of fine 
gravel, 
x 
