A manual of the principles and practice of road-making: comprising the location, construction, and improvement of roads, (common, macadam, paved, plank, etc.) and rail-roads. By W. M. Gillespie ...

242- IMPROVEMENT OF THE SURFACE.
instead of scraping along the ends of the planks, when
coming towards the track obliquely after turning off, will
on coming square against the edge of one of these projecting planks, rise directly upon it. On the Canada roads,
every three planks project three inches on each side of
the road alternately, as shown in Fig. 115, b.
The planks were laid lengthwise of the road, on the
first one running from Quebec, it being supposed that they
would wear better, and could be more easily taken up and
replaced. But it was found that loaded horses slipped
upon them, (the longitudinal direction of the grain giving
no hold to the feet,) that ruts were soon worn in them,
and that they did not keep their places. This arrangement is therefore now abandoned.
The planks have also been laid obliquely, diagonally, or
" skewing;" so as to make an angle of 45 degrees with
the line of the road, twelve feet plank making an eightfeet wide road. This plan is adopted on the Longeuil
and Charnbly road near Montreal. Its advantages are,
that the edges of the plank are not worn down so soon as
when the wheels strike them directly, (as was shown n
reference to pavements, on page 222;) that the zigzag
ends of the plank facilitate the getting on the track; and
that there is less loss on the rejected, or " cull" planks of
12 feet, than on those of 8 feet. But when a wagonwheel comes upon one end of a plank laid thus obliquely,
the uther end, having no load to keep it down, will spring
up, if not fastened to the sleeper; and if it is, the spikes
or pins will finally be loosened. Each end of each plank
undergoes this action in turn, and thus the road is injured
<and broken up. The first method of laying the planksnt r;ght angles to the direction of the road-is nluch to
be preferred.