This is 9 cts. per sq. ft. of finished walk. The gangs that built the walk were usually two masons at $2.50 each per 10-hr. day with two laborers at $1.50 each. Such a gang averaged 500 sq. ft. of walk per day.
Cost at Toronto, Ont.—Mr. C. H. Rust, City Engineer, Toronto, Ont., gives the following costs of constructing concrete sidewalks by day labor. The sidewalks have a 4-in. foundation of coarse gravel or soft coal cinders, thoroughly consolidated by tamping or rolling, upon which is placed a 3½-in. layer of concrete composed of 1 part Portland cement, 2 parts clean, sharp, coarse sand, and 5 parts of approved furnace slag, broken stone or screened gravel. The wearing surface is 1 in. thick, or 1 part Portland cement, 1 part clean, sharp, coarse sand, and 3 parts screened pea gravel, crushed granite, quartzite or hard limestone. Costs are given of a 6-ft. and a 4-ft. walk as follows:
| COST OF 6 FT. SIDEWALK. | |
| Item. | Per 100 sq. ft. |
| Labor | $ 5.59 |
| Cement, 1.66 bbls., at $1.54 | 2.49 |
| Gravel, 2.7 cu. yds., at $0.80 | 2.21 |
| Sand, 0.46 cu. yd., at $0.80 | 0.37 |
| Water | 0.05 |
| —— | |
| Total | $10.71 |
| COST OF 4 FT. SIDEWALK. | |
| Item. | Per 100 sq. ft. |
| Labor | $ 6.73 |
| Cement, 2.04 bbls., at $1.54 | 3.15 |
| Gravel, 2.06 cu. yds., at $0.80 | 1.65 |
| Sand, 0.49 cu. yd., at $0.80 | 0.39 |
| Water | 0.07 |
| —— | |
| Total | $11.99 |
The rates of wages and the number of men employed were as follows: 1 foreman, at $3.50 per day; 1 finisher, at 30 cts. per hour; 1 helper, at 22 cts. per hour; 15 laborers, at 20 cts. per hour.
Cost at Quincy, Mass.—The following costs are given by Mr. C. M. Saville for constructing 695 sq. yds. of granolithic walk around the top of the Forbes Hill Reservoir embankment at Quincy, Mass. This walk was laid on a broken stone foundation 12 ins. thick; the concrete base was 4 ins. thick at the sides and 5 ins. thick at the center; the granolithic finish was 1 in. thick. The walk was 6 ft. wide and was laid in 6-ft. sections, a steel plate being used to keep adjacent sections entirely separate. The average gang was 6 men and a team on the base and 2 masons and 1 tender on the finish. The average length of walk finished per day was 60 ft. The cost was as follows:
| Stone Foundation: | Per cu. yd. | Per sq. ft. |
| Broken stone for 12-in. foundation | $ 0.40 | $0.015 |
| Labor placing at 15 cts. per hour | 1.50 | 0.056 |
| —— | ——— | |
| Totals | $ 1.90 | $0.071 |
| Concrete Base 4½ ins. Thick: | ||
| 1.22 bbls. cement per cu. yd. at $1.53 | $ 1.87 | $0.026 |
| 0.50 cu. yd. sand per cu. yd. at $1.02 | 0.51 | 0.007 |
| 0.84 cu. yd. stone per cu. yd. at $1.57 | 1.32 | 0.019 |
| Labor (6 laborers, 1 team) | 3.48 | 0.050 |
| —— | —— | |
| Total for 90 cu. yds. | $ 7.18 | $0.102 |
| Granolithic Finish 1 in. Thick: | ||
| 4 bbls. cement per cu. yd. at $1.53 | $ 6.12 | $0.019 |
| 0.8 cu. yd. sand at $1 | 0.80 | 0.002 |
| Lampblack | 0.29 | 0.001 |
| Labor (2 masons, 1 helper) | 6.36 | 0.016 |
| —— | —— | |
| Totals | $13.57 | $0.038 |
The two masons received $2.25 per day each and their helper $1.50 per day, and they averaged 360 sq. ft. per day, which made the cost 1⅔ cts. per sq. ft. for labor laying granolithic finish. The cost of placing the foundation stone is very high and the cost of concrete base also runs unusually high, the reasons for these high costs are not evident.
Cost at San Francisco.—Mr. George P. Wetmore, of the contracting firm of Cushing & Wetmore, San Francisco, gives the following figures relating to sidewalk work in that city. The foundations of cement walks in the residence district of San Francisco are 2½ ins. thick, made of 1-2-6 concrete, the stone not exceeding 1 in. in size. The wearing coat is ½ in. thick, made of 1 part cement to 1 part screened beach gravel. The cement is measured loose, 4.7 cu. ft. per barrel. The foundation is usually laid in sections 10 ft. long; the width of sidewalks is usually 15 ft. The top coat is placed immediately, leveled with a straight edge and gone over with trowels till fairly smooth. After the initial set and first troweling, it is left until quite stiff, when it is troweled again and polished—a process called "hard finishing." The hard finish makes the surface less slippery. The surface is then covered with sand, and watered each day for 8 or 10 days. The contract price is 9 to 10 cts. per sq. ft. for a 3-in. walk; 12 to 14 cts. for a 4-in. walk having a wearing coat ¾ to 1-in. thick. A gang of 3 or 4 men averages 150 to 175 sq. ft. per man per day of 9 hrs. Prices and wages are as follows:
| Cement, per bbl. | $2.50 |
| Crushed rock, per cu. yd. | 1.75 |
| Gravel and sand for foundation, per cu. yd. | 1.40 |
| Gravel for top finish, per cu. yd. | 1.75 |
| Finisher wages, best, per hr. | 0.40 |
| Finisher helper, best, per hr. | 0.25 |
| Laborer, best, per hr. | 0.20 |
Cost in Iowa.—Mr. L. L. Bingham sent out letters to a large number of sidewalk contractors in Iowa asking for data of cost. The following was the average cost per square foot as given in the replies: