THE KINGJOAD DRAG
Fame of Split Log Variety and
How It Is Made.
FOREIGN LANDS ASK ABOUT IT
olentifio Rodmaktn Satisfied With
Ita Practicability Inventor of High
way Improving Device Telle How to
Build It Kind of Wood to Use.
Copyright, 1907, by D. WarJ Klng.J
The fame of the split log or King
ftrag Is becoming worldwide. Inqui
ries concerning It have come to me
from Australia, 1'orto Ilico, Honolulu,
Canada, Paris and elsewhere.
Here In our own country there Is no
longer any question concerning the
merits of the King system of road
dragging. Six states have put "drag
laws" on their statute books, while the
scientific roadmakers of moHt states,
now satisfied of Its practicability, are
Indorsing the method and urging the
use of the drag.
The spilt log drag is so exceedingly
Blmple that most men feel utile to im
prove it and many believe they have
l'LASS Or' HIE KINO HOW UlIAd.
Ins::-.:. ti..us After each ruin drive up
ore .-.,! of tin- wheel track ami hack on
the other side :n least nnco. with drat;
In powMjcn i,i throw the earth to the
Center. Hide on the drag. Haul at an
Hi. i.f r..rt.v.t!vo degrees. 'r.utuul!y
wi.h : the strip .It ii.'mM as the road Im
proves. To round up the r.nd better
L'h
Slite
loos
. t t
Iv.iKii' 1 strip and wurk the
rt to the ee:uer.J
done -o. I have no quarrel with these
men. For years I have been saying
that any tool which will smooth the
surface of the highway and move a lit
tle earth to the center of the road is a
jrood drag. Hut I also would remind
the reader that I have myself spent a
great deal of time years ago trying to
Improve the drag aud gave it up as Im
possible. With all deference to the
opinion of others I feel that one might
as well try to improve an ax or a
t-pade. I have seen and know of a
great many different styles of drags.
Koine are made of one slab with a
tongue, others are built In the shape of
a V and used with 1 road end to the
front, working both sides of the road
ut once, and so on. Any one of them
Is better than no drag and will im
prove the road If properly used.
However. I have been asked to tell
Low to make and use a split log drag,
ud, with the concessions made above,
to Indicate that I am more anxious the
road should be cared for than to insist
It must be cared for by any particular
style of drag, I will confine myself to
my task.
The best form of material for build
ing is the log. The straighter the log
and the straighlcr its grain the better.
Other thine being equal, 1 prefer the
lightest lug. Weight, when needed,
can be added to a light drag, but a
drag constructed of heavy material
cannot be lightened. The weight of the
driver on the drag will generally prove
sufficient to do goal work. If given
my choice I would prefer n log of the
sort of wood in the following list, lu
the order given: Ued cedar, walnut,
elm, cypress, soft maple, box elder,
with oak, ash and hickory iu a class by
themselves and last ou the list. Even
cottonwood or willow is preferable to
the heavy woods.
Having split the log, we are ready to
bore the holes. Two points are impor-
KINO UOAD DKAO REVERSED.
taut in building a drag If we hope to
liave It go together shipshape; bore th
boles at right angles to the face of th
slab across the grain, aud ditto length
kWlse of the grain of the wood. But
little difficulty, however, will be expe
rienced eeu if the holes are not abso
lutely true, for the stakes cau be made
a little smaller for the crooked holes
and, with careful wedging, they will b
all right. Select the best slab to go
la front. Now, with the fiat face to
the north the right hand end of the slab
will be the ditch end. Eighteen "or
twenty inches from the ditch eud of
luhi slab and midway of its cross sec
tion we will bore a two inch bole.
At the. wilier e.i.pof t!r i-l.ri ail a i
close to the en 1 ::s t'.ie t.w.'X'.i ".'
tlinU-v v, i'.i ..i.U-say three to . ';
c Zf MAIC FROM A
. yyw 2' i r plank
snL (T y to" m" loo j
t
itches we "will bore the second hole.
Next stretch a chalk Hue from center
to center of these holes and bore the
third hole halfway between the other
two aud on the chalk mark. Now we
will bring the other slab up close to
and behind the front slab, flat side to
the north, but with the end slipped
west to a point within three or four
Inches of the first hole we bored, and
after carefully adjusting the slabs
we can mark for all three holes on the
rear slab. When these holes are bored
we will prepare three stakes and slip
the slabs on to the stakes (about thirty
Inches apart)' and wedge tbetn se
curely. Those stakes should be sawed off
smoothly lu front or they will clog
the earth as It drifts along the slab,
but the wedges and stake ends may
protrude at the rear, where they will
save you much time and bother by
mutely explaining exactly how the
slabs are held together.
The hitch may be a strong wire or
chain. A trace chain and one-half Is
about the right length. I'ass one end
over the top of the front slab at the
rear end aud loop It around the stake;
the otiier end should lie passed through
a hole made for It two or three Inches
front the ditch end anil at the center of
the si tl.
If forced to use plank, get elm or
cypress 2 by 12 of the proper length
and a '.! by I! of the Bit me length. Vse
the - by rt to ro-euforee the 2 by 12
lengthwise of its center, so that there
will be four Inches lu thickness of the
wood through which to bore the two
inch holes. Ity this arrangement of
the plunk the shape of the log slub Is
approximated. At the end of six
mouths' use the road will become so
hard that the front slab will need to bo
faced with Jiree or four feet of steel
or iron. Any Hat piece will do. No
bolts are necessary except to fasten
the Hat steel to the ditch end of the
1 front slab.
The length of the drag will depend
on the team that Is to be used. For
horses that weigh 1.20D pounds a seven
f ot drag is large enough. Two horses
weighing l.TnO pounds each will han
dle a nine foot drag.
In other articles of the series I will
try to explain how to secure the best
results.
BUILDING SWAMP ROADS.
Horatio S. Earle Tells of Methods That
Havo Been Tried.
To ay just how Lest to build a good
road or even a fair road over swamp
ground is something that no sane road
builder will attempt to do. The main
reason why is that there are seldom
two swamps alike, and so what has
worked in one place would be worth
less in another place. About the only
thing I can d Is to relate some things
that have been done and let you take
your choice without any guarantee
that they will produce a cure in your
partiiuhir piece of road, says Horatio
S. Earle. state highway commissioner
for Michigan.
One man had been drawing gravel
for years. Each year It sank, and the
road was no better than before. He
drew ciiSblestoues In the winter time
and threw them Into the ditches along
side of the road. Iu the spring they
sank. Next winter he did the same
thing. In the spring they sank some,
but not out of sight. The result was
he had two walls on either side of his
road, so that the muck could not ooze
to the side, and there has been no
sinking of his road since.
A prominent railroad engineer says
that generally it Is best not to break
the sod across a swamp, but to haul
on the earth to build up your turnpike.
firt making a mat of trees and placing
your earth on top of this mat. The
trees should be from one and one-hnlf
Inches to three inches In diameter. He
says he built a railroad grade In this
way across a swamp which was so
soft that he could run a pole down
thirty feet by hand, and the grade has
stayed up without any trouble for over
ten years.
Another man, Instead of building a
corduroy road, took the logs and drove
them down endwise beside the road,
using logs sixteen feet long. He drove
them with a hand pile driver made out
of an elm hull with three handles, so
that three ineti could use it. These
logs kept the muck from oozing to the
side and proved very satisfactory.
Where you have a soft spot in your
road It can often be Improved by put
ting a layer of swale grass or rye
straw or hay over It and then putting
your gravel ou top of that. The hay
or straw Is not a water carrier and will
generally hold up the grade until the
gravel has a chance to pack, after
which there will be no further trouble.
Effect of Automobile! on Road.
At a meeting of the Los Angeles
board of supervisors and the highway
commission fi. H. Squires, who re
turned recently from Europe, told of
the building and maintenance of
roads tlere. Contrary to general be
lief, he said, affairs have not yet
reached the stage of perfection abroad,
although they are far In advance of
the United States. Fmt autos, he said,
are bad for good roads, and slow autos
are good for bad roads.
Public Roads of New York.
From the ofhee of public roads, the
United States department of agricul
ture, a report shows by comparing the
total mad mileage with the area of the
state that there are 1.51 miles of pub
lic road per square mllo of area. A
comparison of mile-ige with population
shows that them Is a mile of road
to every ninety-eight Inhabitants and
one lnl'e of Improved road to every
1,2"7 In'uiblionts.
Good Raarfa In Cuba.
It Is rp rt cd fiat about Hg'iry miles
of good rond-i will be buiit this year
In the pro'. luce of Havana, Cuba.
Famous Lilac Tree.
Chief among the mauy objects of In
terest in the gardens of Kaston Lodge,
Dunuiow, the residence of the Earl and
Countess of Warwick, is the magnifi
cent lilac tree which occupies a con
spicuous positlou on the terrace. This
tree Is the finest specimen of Its kind
In the United Kingdom. It bas a cir
cumference of IL'0 feet and a height of
sixteen feet, and It has so dense a
growth and blooms so profusely that
When In flower It forms a huge bou
quet of lilac blossoms.
The lilac Is that conmiouly known as
the Persian and described by the bot
anists as the Chinese, but It Is not a
native of either Persia or China, but
was raised in the Rouen botanic gar
den In 17!." by the hybridization of the
true Persian lilac and the common li
lac of Rrltlsh gardens.
It was of noble proportions at the
middle of the last century and produc
ed such a magnificent display of blos
soms that lu the flowering season Vis
count Maynard, I.ady Warwick's
grandfather, used to make a special
Journey from London to enjoy the
beauty and fragrance of the flowers.
Gardener's Magazine.
Lunches In Germany.
I was told at S:Mrt It was time for
luncheon, writes an American tin
smith working In Leipzig. On stating
that I did not care to eat, he told me
that It would be better If I did no
work, so I sat down for half an hour
ami watched the others. At noon we
had an hour and a half aud nt 4 o'clock
fifteen minutes for lunch.
It may be of interest to some rend
ers to know what the Oman eats.
For his first breakfast he generally
has a milk roll and a cup of coffee.
The second breakfast Is almost always
a slice of bread with lard or goose
oil. a piece of sausage or ch se nml a
bottle of beer. Tor dinner lie has two
slices of bread ns above, with a her
ring or large green pickle, cheese or
sausage and another bottle of beer.
For lunch another bottle of beer and
a milk roll. For supper soup and po.
tatoes.
This Is the general variety of food
we had for the four months I worked
In that shop, and they had It day in
and day out.- New York World.
When He Enjoyed Life.
j Among the tombs near the old Ar
lington mansion on the Chesapc .he
: is the mausoleum of John CllStis, tlif
i father of Martha Washington's iirt
. husband. It beats this suggestive in
: script Ion:
i lieneath this Marble Tomb lies ye T" !v
; iff the Honorable John t'uslls. Esq.
, of tho City of Williamsburg and Pariah of
: Tiurtou
j Formerly of Ilunsars Tarlsh on the 1" st
! crn Shore of
I VerRlnta nml the County of Northampton
! tho Place of his Nativity.
' Aped 71 yours, and yot lived but f. vim
years
I Which was the space of tlmo ha k ; t
! A Haehelor'a House nt Arlington
: On the Kautern Shore of Vorginlu.
It Is said that before his marriage
Custis ilhi have n free and easy nfe,
, Ills marriage was of importance to
his country, for he was the progenitor
of several leading families. One
would like to know Mrs. Custis' ver
sion of the life they had together,
which he regarded as unworthy to be
called living. Youth's Companion.
Finding a Grave With an Egg.
The Miau-tsze. a little known tribe In
Asia, are very superstitious about
death aud will not bury a mau until
! they have first tested the ground with
an egg. This operation Is very curious.
While the body is being prepared for
, burial a number of Miau-tsze. includ
! ing the male relatives of the deceased,
go out to the appointed spot bearing a
. large basket of eggs. Stooping down,
j one of the natives lets nil egg drop
I softly on the ground. If It breaks It is
; considered an ill omen, and another
i spot Is selected. In this way the party
! often want'er about for hours, break
big eggs over the ground until they
' finally strike a place where the shell
does ti"t crack.
J.-.va's Fire Island.
One of the geatest wonders of Java,
"th" lire island." a large lake of boil
ing mud, is nearly two miles In dr
cuinfeience. and In the center Im
mense columns of soft, hot mud may
bo seen continually rising and falling,
like great black timbers thrust forth
and then suddenly withdrawn by a
giant's hand. Resides the phenomena
of the columns, there are two gigantic
bubbles near tho western edge, which
fill up like huge balloons aud explode
on an average three times per minute.
Cause For Hurry.
"I understand they were married In
haste."
"Yes; they told the minister to "hur
ry because there was only a little gas
oline left In their automobile, and they
were twenty miles fronf home." New
York Town Topics.
Plenty of Them.
.Toakley You're right. Most people
worry over what they haven't got, but
I know certain people who worry be
cause of what they have. Coakley
That so? What have they? Joakley
Nothing. Philadelphia Press.
Evolution.
"Faiher," said little Rollo, "what Is
evolution?" "Evolution, my son. Is a
sort of apology which man has Invent
ed for displaying so many of the traits
of the lower animals." Washington
Star.
Good Plan.
"How can I prevent the flies getting
Into my sugar basin?" wrote a "Con
stant Render" to a journal.
"Fill the sugar basin with salt," was
the laconic reply. Pole Mele.
Lovers' purses are tied with cob
webs. Italian Proverb.
1 1 $2.50
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New York
21th to 30th Sts.
Just East of oth
Ave. To reniiiia
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L".Mh cross town
cars p.is s the
door.
Over four hun
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Absi 1 u t p I y
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Restaurant for Ladies and Gen
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Caters espeially to Women trav
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Sei.d for Bo klet
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Turcpean Plan up
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A. W. EAGER
ir.rALVMY ClNTuAL ilOTLL,
i ultra Tiiirn svnEtT
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't i cia. uiunlioii ivi 11
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Special Rates for Summer
"I l; T A HI.K is the foundation of
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rr.aricaa Plan $2.50 to
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S- n 1 b r colored Map and (liiide
oi Xew y rk, r"rre.
Tilly H-iics, Daniel C. Webb,
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T! Orly New York Hotel
rVATl'KING AMERICAN PLAN
MuderJtc Prices
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PHYSICIAN . AND - SURGEON
Office Ahel,ro Iinip Co.
Strw?88idenCe ('oro' "f Maiu ad ttrth
1 Asheboro, N. O.
Dr. S. A. HENLEY.
Phy.lclan . d - Surgeon.
ASHEBORO . N C
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