Very often, when I find something I don't understand. I have a tendency to dwell on it, at least in the back of my mind until I can find a logical solution. I recall hearing about roads of Ancient Rome and how good they were. However, when I was at Pompeii there were ancient roads in their natural state, and they were incredibly bumpy, just a bunch of different rocks put together. It would definitely been very difficult, not to stay uncomfortable to travel over. I pondered that problem for a very long time. Then one night I saw an old western movie that had a scene in a dance hall/ saloon. On the floor they had laid down straw. Then it hit me, that must have been how the Romans made their roads passable with some sort of comfort.