Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 19, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 January 1910 — GOOD ROADS [ARTICLE]

GOOD ROADS

winter rml Work. One of the problems confronting th« farmer is the question of inaintenanc* of dirt roads. Not only should dirt roads be maintained during the spring and summer months, but the winter months as well; especially is this truo where there is not an over abundance of snow, which condition exists with: many of our readers. The King road drqg may be used with much benefit during the winter months. Just after thaws or rains. Gpod work can be done at this time of the year, because the soil is crumbly or mealy and pushes easily toward the center of the road. If the road has been properly cared for during the summer and fall It will be only a slight task to drag them during the winter when conditions are right. At this season of the year there is little, for the work teams to do and in the early spring the roads will be in shape to turn water and permit of early drying out. In tact, the winter dragged road will be dry and hard In the spring when neglected, roads will be soft, rutty and springy. Go after the work now and drag whetffiver you can during the winter, then your road will be in good shape next spring. Maks a split-log road drag and keep it going on the highway. D. Ward King, the inventor of the drag, gives the following directions for making a split road drag: Take the two halves of a split log, ten or twelve Inches thick and seven to nine feet long. Set the halves flat sides to the front, fasten thirty inches apart with strong stakes the ends of which are wedged in two-inch auger holes, bored through the slabs. Put a solid plank platform on the stakes for the driver to stand on. The hitch & made of strong wire or chain, the long end fastened to stake over the top of tbe front elab, the short end should be put through a bole made In center of the slab and near the end to prevent the back slab tilting forward. Face four or five feet of the ditch end of the front slab with Iron. An. old wagon tire, wqrn share pf road grader, or any piece' of flat steel will answer for this purpose. As a general rule, always haul the drag an angle of 45 degrees, moving the dirt to tbh center of the road.— Successful Farming.