Page 118

WISCONSIN FAR  R' INSTUTL
To bring about this result it won
not be needful to issue bonds or eve
impose burdensome taxes. Put tU
best men you have at the head of yot
road commission. Commence at yot
city limits and work into the countr
having the tax payer perform the Is
bor, if he so elects, subject to the samr
rules that govern other laborers, an
it would be but a few years until Wii
consin roads would be models for th
world. It matters not what principl
or what material we use In the coo
struction of roads so long as the nam
row tire reigns supreme; were it buil
of adamant and coated with steel I
would give way before this fell de
stroyer which must be banished from
the face of the earth before we read
the acme of success of good roads.
Not only exempt the broad tire from
taxation but place a premium upon it
use, and if that does not have the de
sired effect, then make it a state'
prison offense to draw  a load on
wagon with a tire of lesser width than
four inches.
DISCUSSION.
Sunt. McPerrn-Fn     u  wora iu,
the taxes?           you work out
Mr. Powers-We work it out on the
cash basis; we allow the tax payer tc
work it out if he wants to, but he can-
not come out at nine o'clock in the
morning with the idea of loafing. We
pay him thirty cents an hour for him-
self and team.
Supt. McKerrow-Do you use any of
the improved machinery?
Mr. Powers-Yes, I think we have
almost everything in our town now in
that line. We have two road graders,
and we have eight wheeled scrapers
that we use to cut away the hills with,
and then we have an Austin stone
crusher.
Supt. McKerrow-Do you allow your
town treasurer to collect live per cent.
on the taxes that the farmer has
worked out?
Id Mr. Powers-Np, sir, we do not, We
en make that provision with our man that
he we must not charge up to the road
ir warrant or for road receipts.
tr Supt. McKerrow-I think that is the
J. reason that law has fallen into dia-
L- repute, on account of our town treas-
Le urers collecting three or five per cent.
Id on tax worked out.
,. Mr. Briggs-What kind of stone are
e you using for your road?
e   Mr. Powers-We are using lime rock
D- to some extent, but we prefer river
bed gravel for the crusher.
t Question-Sandstone would not be
it gcod?
Mr. Powers-No, and lime rock is a
m little too soft. I think, however, that
h our lime roads are all right after
three years' use.
o Mr. Briggs-How about these hard
*sheads, or prairie granites?
M Mr. Powers-That would last as
* long as time. Probably the Appian way
a is built of that stone. The stone
crusher handles them all right.
Mr. Briggs-How long will lime
reck last?
Mr. Powers-We cannot tell any-
thing about it. Three years ago is the
first we put on. In northern Illinois
I was on a lime rock road not long
* ago, that has been in use ten years
and it was in perfect condition yet.
Mr. Briggs-If you had plenty of
Dlime rock?
Mr. Powers-I would use it by all
means, and not crawl through the
mud.
Supt. McKerrow-We had a road
leading out of Milwaukee, covered with
crushed lime rock twenty years ago,
and it is a good road yet. There is one
rcad that is longer than that; it runs
out of Wauwatosa; it has been there
longer than the other, and it has been
repaired but very little.
Question-Do you know what would
be the ccat to repair this road each
year?
Supt. MeKerrow-I couldn't tell you.
I have noticed somewhere the figures
put at an averge of ten dollars a
mile.
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