Newspapers / The Roanoke Beacon and … / June 27, 1902, edition 1 / Page 6
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Maintenance TT"Y HE object of maintenance is 1 a-- l j. l. .J . i , 1. ,, state that vehicles of all de scriptions always find them In the best possible condition for travel. It is necessary, then, that it be directed in a "way to remove at every turn every obstacle or source of resist ance to traffic, and to prevent or cor rect, at the beginning, all the impair inents to -which roads are liable. Tins result can be obtained only by means of a constant watchfulness, and by the organization of resources constantly at hand in material and workmanship. The secret of the excellent roads of Europe is, first, good construction; second, the constant, systematic, and ekilful method employed in the mainte nance of roads. On these roads a force of skilled men is continually employed, making repairs, and any defect, how fever slight, is immediately repaired. It is not considered that the necessity for continual repairs is an evidence of poor workmanship in the original con struction, but rather that an earnest effort is being made to keep the road ways in perfect condition. This prompt and constant repairing explains the superior condition of the roadways of Europe. The men -who have these repairs in charge are skilled in this line of -work, and hold their positions because they are thus qualified. Politics has noth ing to do with them, as it has in this country. These men are removed for cause only. It takes shears to educate men in the art of road building and the proper method to be employed in making repairs. Generally in this Country cities and towns pay for edu cating the men in charge of their roads, and then politics removes them, but time will make this matter right. It will certainly be made right when people find that it is the only way to have good roads. The trained road builder is just as necessary as the trained doctor, manufacturer or edu cator. Take, for instance, the method em ployed in making repairs on dirt and gravel roads with a road machine. In a great many towns you will find the road officials, once a year at least, at work with this machine, taking the worn out material which the water lias washed from the road into the gut ters and putting it back in the centre of the road. This is wrong, because this material is worn out. It is soft and it is disagreeable. It is dusty, and when wet makes mud, which holds the water, thus injuring the road. It Is as necessary to keep a road clean as anything else. It lengthens the life of a road, and it should not be covered with this worn, loose, worthless dirt, Whatever the road may be. The proper maintenance of roads is everything. In nine cases out of ten, p. traveling through the different towni leep ruts may be found both where the horses and wheels travel, and quite often in good natural road material, frhere is no need for this if a proper system of maintenance is employed, and these roads can be maintained for a small sum of money, if promptly and properly attended to and with some diligence. For instance, if depressions are filled and not allowed to develop into deep ruts, it will not only be more comfortable to the traveler, but the water would not be held, but would run oil the surface of the road. Stand ing water is a detriment to any road. The very best constructed road will soon go to pieces unless it is kept con stantly in repair, just the same as a building. Jloxr Progress is blocked. Probably the greatest obstacle to the improvement of the country roads in the State of Ohio at the present time Is the antiquated law now in force re quiring all road work to be done under the supervision of some person who must be elected from among the voters of the road district, without any regard to his fitness, experience or qualifica tions for the work. No matter how good a road builder a non-resident may be, or how useful his knowledge may be to the roads, the law does not permit him to touch them or to allow the public to avail itself of his skill. If perchance he be a resident and voter and be elected to the position of road supervisor, he cannot use his skill in the construction of roads unless he con cents to do it without compensation, as the State prevents him from receiv ing one cent more than the common laborer. Under the present law there is no possible chance for a skilled road builder to get any road building to do, and there is no inducement for a man to prepare himself for the vocation. A bill originating with the Portage County Good Roads Association has Just been introduced into the Legisla ture by C. P. Suse, of Hudson, repeal ing the law, and putting the selection of road supervisors into the hands of the township trustees. It gives the trustees practically the same powers in respect to road supervisions that boards of education have in the' em ployment of teachers for the schools. They can employ the best skill they can find, and pay such wages as they feel justified in. They can remove them whenever they think the good f the service demands it. This bill, if it becomes a law, will open up the needed opportunity for road builders. A man can prepare him self for this work with some prospect of getting road building to do. Trus tees would soon find themselves sup plied with applicants qualified to do this work. The principles of good road building are well established, and sim ple, but they cannot be ignored or neglected without disaster to the roadi II. M. DE.MIXG. Secretary, rortage County Good Roads Associa tion. MUNICIPAL BATHS. Thlrty-slx American Citips Have Tiicsa Help to Health. "Within the past few years a number of municipalities in this country have established all-the-year-round munici pal bath houses, while others have added to the number of open bathing or swimming places, which, for some years past, have been maintained dur ing the summer mouths. Information collected shows that thirty-si:: cities and towns with 3000 population and upward, by the Untied Slates census of H)00, "now have either all-the-year or summer public baths. These places are as follows: Boston, P.rookline, Cambridge, Dedhani, Ilolyoke, New buryport, Qukicy, Springfield, Water town, Worcester, Mass.; Providence, R. I.; Hartford, Conn.; Albany, Buf falo, New York, Rochester, Syracuse, Troy, Utlca. N. Y.; Hoboken, Newark, N. J.; Homestead, Philadelphia, Pa.; Wilmington, Del.; Baltimore, Md.; Greenwood. S. C; Newman, Savan nah, Ga.; Cleveland, Oh:o; Muskegon, Mich.; Chicago, 111.; Milwaukee, Wis.; Des Moines, Iowa; Crookston, St. Paul, Minn.; San Jose, Cal. The thirty-six places in question are distributed over sixteen States, but Massachusetts has ten and New York seven of these cities and towns. Most of the other States are represented by one municipality only. Outside of the States of Massachusetts and New York most of the public baths are open onl3' in the summer, and that is true of some of the places in Massachu setts. It k known that Newark, Chi cago and St. Paul have all-the-year bath houses. In 1S03 the Legislature of New York passed an act which permits any muni cipalities of that State to establish all-the-year baths., and makes it compul sory for cities of 50,000 inhabitants and over to do so. Municipal baths, often combined with public wash houses or laundries, are becoming more and more common in England, and the signs of the times are that they will rapidly gain popu lar favor in this country. The laundry feature will, naturally, gain ground much more slowly than the baths, i Thus far it has not been introduced in the United States further than to make a provision for washing the per sonal clothing of the bathers. Drying closets are also provided, so an un fortunate man with no change of ciothjng may be insured of clean un derclothes to put on after his bath, Engineering News. Killing: I'eoplo by Brutal Truths. Many people are killed by brutal truths. Some physicians are so con scientiousand so tactless that they think they must tell patients the whole truth when they believe they cannot recover, instead of giving them the benefit of the doubt, for every physician knows that, nearly always, there is a 'doubt which way the case will turn. Cheerful encouragement has saved many a life by helping it to pass a crisis favorably, when the actual truth might have killed the patient or reduced his rallying powers to the danger-point. In all the affairs of life, cruel bluntness in stating brutal facts has caused untold misery and broken many friendships. Truth it self changes from a jewel to a dan gerous weapon In the hands of a tact less person. Because a thing Is true is no reason it should be told, or told in a way to offend. He who would have many and strong friends must exercise tact in order not to offend even by the truth, because it is very difficult for many people to forget even a fancied injury entirely. This is especially true of offenses against taste, or speeches which reflect upon one's pride, ability, or capacity. Orison Swett Marden, in Success. Fussy'g Queer Family. In the barn of W. II. Bunch a mal-1 tese cat is raising a family of three of her own kittens, two black kit tens, two fox squirrels and a wild rab bit. The mother of the family is im partial in her devotion to the. young ones. The two squirrels are the "black sheep" of the family, and they give the old cat considerable trouble by their friskiness. Indianapolis News. Some men are kept so busy talking about what they are going to do that they never find time to do anything. s to AGRICULTURAL. Gate "For Tasture fence. It is always desirable to have some sort of a gate in the pasture field fence, but it is not always easy to build one that is at once stock-proof and easy to oierate when necessary. The arrange ment, as shown in the illustration is not in reality a gate, but a passageway, so placed that the stock cannot get through, but through which a person may readily pass. No explanation of v.'H.-. rt:i-: -,-5 Tntnl stock rnoop passageway. the plan is needed, for it is plainly shown by the ilustration. This fence may b? arranged so as to provide a double gate by hinging the open por tion in the foreground so that when closed to the post will come in snugly against the fence post, and be held in place by a wire locp dropped over both posts, then the gate in the background should- also be placed on hinges, so that when closed it will lap over against the fence about two feet, and be held in place by a staple and hook. , Uses of Copperas. The value of copperas is not fully un derstood, but there are few things more useful to the fanner and gardener. It Is invaluable as a purifier around drains, or in any place where a disin fectant is needed. It is specially use ful in the chicken coop, a small lump placed in the drinking water being a preventive of disease and a general pu rifier. In the garden there are several uses for it; two tablespoon fuls in a pail of water will kill cabbage worms, while a somewhat stronger solution will kill currant worms as quickly as hellebore, and it is much safer to use. Powdered copperas can be sprinkled on the surface soil of hard wood pot plants, so that the water that is applied will soak through it into the soil, car rying the strength of the copperas with it. For mere tender plants the cop peras can be dissolved, allowing one ounce to each gallon of water, using it in the soil once in two weeks, not al lowing any of it to touch the foliage. It is also used for shrubs and trees in the garden, especially those which for some unknown reason fail to make satisfactory growth. It can be made in large quantities for that purpose, using two pounds of copperas to a bar rel of water. A few applications will usually cause a marked improvement in the growth and in the color of the foliage. In sections where corn is dug up by birds and gophers it has been found that if the seed is soaked for a few hours In a strong solution of cop peras the pests will not disturb it Bernice Baker, In Agricultural Epltom ist. To Make Chareoal For Stock. ' In the corn-growing districts of the Western States corncobs are made to serve a good purpose when reduced to charcoal and fed to hogs. Ordinary charcoal is used by many. The method of reducing the corncobs to charcoal is thus given by Theodore Louis: Dig a hole In the ground five feet deep, one foot in diameter at the bot tom and five feet at the top for the charcoal pit. Take the dry corncobs and start a fire in the bottom of this pit, adding cobs so that the flame is drawn to the top of the pit, which will fee thus filled with the cpbs. Then take a sheet iron cover, similar to a pot lid in form, and over five feet in diameter, so as to amply cover the whole, and close up the burning mass, sealing the edges of this lid in turn with earth. At the end of twelve hours you may uncover and take out a fine sample of corncob charcoal. This char coal can be fed at once if desired, but Mr. Louis prefers to take six bushels of it, or three bushels of common char coal, eight pounds of salt, two quarts of air-slacked lime and one bushel of wood ashes, breaking the charcoal up well with a shovel or other tool, thor oughly mixing the various Ingredients. One and a quarter pounds of copperas is then dissolved in hot water, and with a wratering-pot sprinkled over the whole mass, which is again thoroughly mixed. The mixture is then put into boxes and placed where the pigs can get at it at their pleasure. It is not only excellent for the health of the pigs, but is considered by some as a preventive of hog cholera. New York Wcekiy Witness. A Good Garden. A few simple rules are all that is necessary to govern a good garden. First, there should be a good spot, convenient to the house, thoroughly drained, with soil as rich as possible. Second, the owner must know when, 111 how and how much to plant. -.Third, the garden must be kept free from weeds and under good cultivation the entire season. If the gardener has the right kind of tools, and has learned to do his work to the best advantage, two hours a week or a little less than a day in a month, will give him a clean profitable garden, unless the season is one of frequent and heavy rains, which will make the work harder. The gar den cannot be too well drained, for this will enable the gardener to plant early and to work much sooner after rains; it will also keep the soil from packing, causing the plants to become unthrifty. Planting in a well drained garden, plowed In the fall, may begin as soon as the ground dries enough for a harrow to mellow the surface. Peas, lettuce, radishes, onions, beets and cabbage may be planted as soon as the ground can be worked, and if the ground freezes after they are up it rarely hurts them. There arc certain kinds of vegeta bles of which several plantings should be made as they soon go by, and with a single planting the family can use them but a few days; with a succession of plantings there will be a supply for several weeks. It takes little work to keep a garden in good order if a hand cultivator is used. As soon after each rain as the land can be worked, the surface should be stirred to the depth of about one inch. No weeds will then start until it rains again, the evapora tion of moisture will be checked, and you will have a clean thrifty garden, which will be a pleasure to look at, which will give a supply of vegetables from the middle of April till frost, and which, will furnish what would cost $50 if bought in the market. Otto Ir win, in The Epitomist. SAFES IN CHURCHES. Uses to Which. They Arc rut Steel Toor Boxes Now. "Yes," said a safe manufacturer, "safes are used in churches, to some extent, but not to keep money in, because money isn't kept in churches. What they are used for here is to keep the church records and papers in for one thing, and for another, for the preservation and safe keeping of the church plate and sacred vessels. "A church buying a safe for tile preservation of its books and records and so on would very probably buy one second hand. It would common ly be kept somewhere in the basement of the church, out of the way, and it would very probably be built into a wall. It would not be essential that it should be burglar proof. "On the other hand, safes for church plate and sacred vessels might in some cases contain pieces of great value and would be made for protection against burglars as well as against fire. Such safes might be specially designed and ouilt to hold the particu lar vessels kept in them. "But while the use of regular safes in churches is confined to the purposes described there are now used in churches of all denominations many strong boxes of steel in place of the old time boxes of wood, poor boxes and guild boxes for the reception of offerings and contributions, placed per manently in the churches attached to the wall In vestibules or in the body of the church. "Such boxes, of course, are not in tended to keep money in for any length of time, and the amount in them at any time may not be great. But made of wood and locked with an or dinary lock they are liable to be broken open and rifled or the whols box to be carrlpd off, for that matter, by thieves. "These steel boxes are bolted to the wall, so that they can't be torn loose. While it is as easy to drop money into this steel strong box is so contrived that money cannot be fished out of it, and it has a combination lock. It isn't intended to be fire proof; and so it serves its purpose and it is moreover comparatively inexpensive." New York Sun. Bur Agriculture. The myth regarding' the intelligent sowing and reaping done by certain species of "agricultural ants," long supported on such good authority as Darwin and Lord Avebury (Sir John Lubbock), is finally disposed of by Pro fessor W. M. Wheeler in the American Naturalist. If a nest of the species in question be observed at the proper season it will be seen that the workers often carry out from the store cham ber grains of ant-rice which have sprouted and deposit them- in a heap some distance off. These seeds fre quently take root and grow, and since the ants feed mainly upon such grass seed it is no matter for surprise that "ant-rice" should predominate, in the miniature fields about the nest. To stdte, however, that the ant, like a provident farmer, set3 aside a portion of his grain every year for seed and sows and weeds it, is as absurd as to say that the cook is planting an orch ard for future use when some of the peach stones she has thrown out of the window chance to grow into peach trees. Whatever the origin of the practice of these ants, however, the re sult is obviously very much the same as If their operations were guided by an intelligent purpose; that is the pro duction of an abundant crop of grain near the nest, convenient for harvesting. RTICULTURE5 Soil Aionnd Trunks of Trees. The soil should be .cleaned around the trunks of trees. Piles of rubbish,, dead grass, stones or other accumula tions afford harboring places for in sects. Washing the trees with strong, soapsuds and giving them thick coats of whitewash not only adds to the ap pearance of an orchard, but also bene fits the trees. It may be done several times during the year. Keinoily For Cherry Rot. George T. Powell, director of the School of Practical Agriculture and Horticulture at Briarclil'fe Manor, N.. Y., a noted fruit grower, says that ho saved his crop of cherries this year by persistent spraying with the simple' solution of copper sulphate, three to four ounces to fifty gallons of water.. The applications were made daily dur ing the period of rot attack, .about ten days. The rot specked specimens- dropped off, and the clean ones re mained free from attac-K, so that he saved quite a crop, that Drought him twenty cents a pound. He also sprayed his peach trees, for the purpose of pro tecting the fruit from rot, but with a slightly weaker solution, namely,, three ounces of copper sulphate to fifty gallons of water. Indiana Farmer. I'lant Fruit Trees. Plant a tree. Yres, plant an orchard- It will be growing while you sleep,. and if intelligently done and properly Dared for, it will produce fruit for year. after you are laid away to rest. It. will produce fruit for your children and for your children's children, and they will eat thereof and bless the planter. A few days devoted to plant ing fruit trees each spring will, if the- trees are properly cared for, add many a dollar in value to your farm, and much pleasure to yourself and family Buy good small trees of goood vari eties, and always buy from some good nursery. Buy small trees, and if pos sible, plant them hi rows close together' on good rich land, and let them remain for one year; then dig them and plant at once where they are to stand. You will find this plan far better than planting them out in the orchard im mediately after a long journey. Al ways buy trees and plants as near home as possible. I would rather have 100 good strawberry plants taken from my own beds and planted as fast as dug, than 1000 plants brought 100 miles by express, even when packed in the best manner possible, A. A.. Halladaj-, in The Epitomist. A New Annual. The old-fashioned perennials of our grandmothers' gardens were considered very choice bloomers, with their talL. stately growing spikes of showy flow ers in various shades of mauve, lav ender and pale, medium and deep dark blues. It has been quite tbe fashion rtrk . THE NEW DELPHINIUM. of late years to resurrect these old time favorites among, perennials, but they have displayed the one objection peculiar to many perennials that of single, short period of blooom each season. The annuals, on the contrarj',. are in the majority of cases perpetual bloomers throughout the summer, and accordingly an annual Delphinium 1 greatly to be desired. That. is what an enterprising florist has produced during his experiments with seedlings an entirely "new an nual, Delphinium." It is considered by experts to be a rare novelty, and is coming to be known as "the blue but terfly." It not only bears the same large, showy blossoms peculiar to the perennial Delphinium, but it bears them constantly during the entire sum mer, like any other annual; and the exquisite shade of blue found in the flowers may be depended upon to re main strictly blue without changes to lavender or violet. Planted late In the season, pots of the profuse blue bloomers may be enjoyed throughout the winter. Planted early in the spring,, the seeds will produce thrifty plants for early summer blooming. Philadel phia Becord. 5fl
The Roanoke Beacon and Washington County News (Plymouth, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
June 27, 1902, edition 1
6
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