A number of farmers in Ray county, Missouri, employed one of their number to drag a five-mile stretch. He received compensation at the rate of $3 per day. When the end of the year came and a settlement was made, the cost for the year was found to be $1.66 per mile. The road is a tough clay, and my informant declares it was always much better than the other roads in the neighborhood.
Prof. William Robertson of the Minnesota Agricultural station, after a year’s experience in dragging a ‘main road made entirely of gumbo, without any sand or gravel, and which during the past year has shown no defects either by rutting or development of soft places,’ fixes the cost of the work at not to exceed $5 per mile.”
Since in Maine, Iowa, Missouri and Minnesota, the four states just referred to, there is a comparatively great annual rainfall, while in Utah the rainfall is comparatively small, the cost of maintaining the earth road in Utah will be correspondingly less and the results will be proportionately greater.
If the state legislature, the Automobile Club of Utah, some other organization or some philanthropic individual, will offer an annual prize of $1000 to the county actually constructing and maintaining during the year the best five miles of earth road, the number of excellent roads that will be built in the next few years will be a most pleasant surprise to all who are anxious to see good roads constructed.
The better, and, in fact, the best roads will come along naturally after we have a first-class system of earth roads built and well maintained generally throughout the state. When once the efforts of all our good-roads enthusiasts are united on constructing and maintaining first-class earth roads everywhere, the road problem in Utah will be solved, and our road systems will be the pride of the whole state.
What is the State School of Mines?
The State School of Mines is the college of engineering of the University of Utah. It is an organic part of the University and enjoys all the advantages that spring from an intimate connection between a technical college and a modern university.
COURSES.