ROAD MAKING A LA GISBORNE.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume XI, Issue 1297, 15 March 1883, Page 2

ROAD MAKING A LA GISBORNE.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —How long is the road, which they are now metalling (?) going to last before it again becomes a quagmire ? Let anyone who is at all interested in this question (and this includes all the ratepayers in the Borough) take a little of the ballast they are putting on, wash away all the dirt and sand from it, I and see how ilttle there remains of real gravel or “ metal, h and I think it will be clearly apparent to the simplest minded individual that) should the approaching winter be a wet one like thejlast, it will go far to reduce the road again to a bog. Whether the material is according to contract quality or no, ,1 will not now go into ; but thia I must say that the whole job is a great mistake. The contractor cannot benefit much by the transaction (for ’ I have been credibly informed that only 20 i series of truck loads have been brought down since the 17th of last month), and the Borough Council is wasting a large sum of money which had it been properly laid out, would have gone far to have made a road which would have lasted for many years. Can they expect to make a good road by putting ballast, of which more than fiO per cent, is sand and dirt, on a soft bog, such as the road is, with no foundation ? is it not possible to make a foundation, the same as they do when making new roads at home ? What they do is to dig a quantity of clay, mix it with “ breeze,” !«• small coal,'and then, having lighted a fire, the mixture is gradually banked on until a large pyramid of many thousand tons is gradually burning. After the whole of the combustible material is consumed the fire gradually dies out leaving the clay burnt red, like pulverised bricks. This is laid about bin. thick as a foundation, and on this again is laid about one foot of well wernert gravel, this again being covered with the well known broken granite and flint. Wc have plenty of clay ; the Borough could charter a schooner io bring the small coals; and, from a personal inspection, I find that the hill immediately across the. Turanganui River will furnub us with plenty of excellent gravel for generations to come, Wc muwt perforce do without the top dressing. Why not make good roads at least in the immediate township. Let them try a piece of the main road constructed like this. The experiment would not be costly, and the benefit great. Our footpaths arcal&qin a most disgraceful state. Why not ashfeli them in the main i thoroughfares. I believe that coal tar cun be | obtained very cheap indeed, at Dunedin, und ' about three gallons of tar mixed with six buckets of dried sand and two of pulverised chalk well boiled, will cover upwards of 20 square feet; this will stand any amount ol traffic for years. The cost of the plant required, labour, and material* would not amount to much, and the benefit immense. ; Our gutters and waterways cotild be coated ! with this, and would not. then, as at present, ■ be choked up with weeds, but wuuld carry the surface water away. If this were done i the town would look fresh and clean after a I heavy shower, and people could venture abroad without having to wade through a * series of quagmires and bog. Yours, etc , Verete.