Commercial Motoring from the Inside.
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Article VI.
Contributed by " Homoc."
In this, the last of this series of articles under the above heading, it is intended to deal with some of the " side issues " of the industry and to "look ahead " on a few scores. One may, no doubt, anticipate occasions, from time to time, for further outpourings.
Fire-Brigade Requirements.
Under this heading, I am attacking what has been up till lately chiefly a horse-drawn proposition. For some years, to a small extent, steam has been utilised for the propelling power, but the speed obtained by the use of steam has not been by any means as high as is feasible with a vehicle driven by a petrol engine. It is true that, in the case of the steamer and fire pump combined, there was distinct advantage from the utilising of steam to propel the vehicle, since on arrival at the scene oi fire the steam engine was employed to run the pump.
During the last year, or at the outside IS months, the petrol-propelled chassis, using the engine to drive the pump, has commenced to come into vogue. There is, in this direction, still a lot to learn, but without doubt a vehicle of this type, possibly with improved design, will become a standard lire-brigade vehicle. In the first place, the speed attainable is ideal : high-powered engines give quick acceleration in traffic; steep hills can be ascended at good speeds; the petrol engine can sustain constant and heavy loads for hours at a stretch, provided it is of sound construction, and the lubrication system efficient ; the engine weight is light per horsepower, and the space occupied is small; and, with the exception of skidding, there are no drawbacks. The objectionable feature of the steamer, in the shape of the boiler, does not exist, and large volumes of water at high pressure can be brought into play rapidly without consumption for power. Steam is now as much "out of it " as horses.
Horse-drawn vehicles are but little good, because a horse can pull only a small weight, especially at the high speeds necessary for fire-brigade work, whereas, with a petrol-driven chassis, there is no difficulty in attaching a soft. escape to the rear of the chassis, which also carries a pump driven by its own engine; such a combination must be extremely suitable for small districts where capital expenditure is of importance, and long distances have to be traversed. These are some of the advantages —without considering the cost; in regard to this latter point, there can be no doubt that horses for fire-brigade purposes are very expensive, both by reason of their upkeep and the depreciation through the great strains put upon them, whilst a larger staff must be employed to look after a number of horses.
Skidding and Side-slip.
Dealing with the one difficulty, viz., skidding, especially on greasy roads in towns, when side-slip may be generated, ordinal-Anon-skid protectors are being fitted to the solid tires, and to a certain extent these have been found effective. Another method of overcoming this difficulty is to fit the twin tires on the rear wheels far apart, the tires themselves having cross-cuts in them. This latter mode of tireing a vehicle has been found effectual —more so, perhaps, than the utilising of steel non-skids. The track, in this case, is somewhat wider, and when carrying a standard escape it is a disadvantage which necessitates the escape's hanging to the rear of the wheels, instead of its overhanging the driving wheels of the chassis. If the chassis were built to take twin tires far apart and the escape overhanging the wheels, it would make the wheel track rather narrow, and not be so effective a preventive of skidding.
Within the last few weeks, through a regrettable accident in London which occurred when a fire-brigade vehicle caused the death of a human being, a rither interesting question has cropped up. [See page 407 ante, our issue of the 2ist January.—E0.] This question of technically-illegal speeds in fire-brigade work, if not put right by the Local Government Board, will result in a serious disability; there is every reason and call for high speed when going to a fire, though some think that slow speed could be insisted upon at practices. Needless to say, such a position would be untenable; it is not logical or sensible to train a man to drive a speedy motor vehicle slowly when at practice, and then to expect him to go at full tilt when going to a fire. Again, it would not be possible to test the vehicle properly, and it can, therefore, reasonably be expected that proper action will be taken to alter the present ludicrous position of affairs.
War-Office Needs.
In the direction of motor vehicles for the War Office. once the Government makes up its mind to spend a reasonable sum of money, the Trade can look for a considerable amount of orders from this source. The dominant idea appears to be, that unless a vehicle can go over the roughest of ground, like some horse-drawn vehicles, it is of little use for transport work; further, statements have been made that the relatively-high speed at which a motor vehicle can travel is not required. This seems to be an absurdity. Assuming the troops were stationed some distance from their base, there can be no doubt, even if their situation were some distance from the road, that a speedy transport from the base to the nearest point on the main road would allow provisions, ammunition. etc., to be brought so far, at speed, by motor, for cartage at leisure over the rough ground by means of the ordinary horse wagons. During last summer, at the manceuvres on Salisbury Plain, soo troops and more were fed by the use of one motor vehicle, which traversed a distance of 30 miles to bring in supplies. A slow-travelling oil tractor, for which trials are in course of organisation already, will doubtless he of great
service to the commissariat department ; but, apart from such machines, high-speed motors will be necessary.
Foreign Governments are purchasing motor vehicles in quantities, and bringing them into line with the scheme of their transport. Their subvention terms are liberal. They realise that the conveyance of troops from point to point in civilised countries on the main roads will, surely, save a great deal of unnecessary fatigue to the troops themselves, and bring them, in time of war, into the line of action more speedily and in a much fresher state than if they had to tramp any distance, entrain, detrain, and march again. It seems a thousand pities that at the very sources whence the commercial-motor movement might expect good support at home, a niggardly attitude is adopted ; this, when emergency arises, must prove disastrous to the country, whilst, at the present moment, the support of the industry would make a great difference to the manufacturers. Once Army orders are placed, opportunities for steady use will assert themselves in respect of the machines bought.
So far as manceuvres and war service go, the engine power could be utilised for generating current for their search-lights; various tools could be driven, and these would be of great assistance in putting right small detects in appliances which are necessary for troops on the march; even if the vehicle itself could not travel over some places, since, with a large number of troops there must always be a base of some description, and it is inconceivable to imagine that every base can be situated at a spot where there are no roads at all, it could be used in stores haulage; any vehicle could easily be fitted with a drum and cable for soff-ground winding ; and, finally, one can also imagine that, in the general scheme of offence, a 3o-4oh.p. engine could be utilised in many ways, to carry out work which at the present Lime is done slowly, laboriously, and inefficiently by either the horses or the troops—such as the placing of guns into position, or as nearly so as may be.
Agricultural Motors.
The United States are very much ahead in the building of motors for agricultural purposes, and this large field has not been properly exploited by the English manufacturer. The vehicles made in America to-day are not wholly satisfactory, being of too small power. A light tractor is required, driven by a 25-3oh.p. engine, to run at a speed of about four miles per hour, the wheels having wide treads, with suitable strakes fitted to them, to enable the tractor to tow the plough, binder, drill, etc., over rough or soft ground, Other uses to which such tractors could be put are driving threshing machines, chaff cutters, and other farm machinery.
An invention which came to the writer's notice some time back, in connection with the wheels for such tractors, showed great ingenuity. Each wheel had slots in its periphery, and, by means of an eccentric motion the extent of which was.controlled by a lever from the driver's seat, spuds were made to protrude through the periphery just at the arc of contact With the yielding earth. The lever at the side of the driver varied the protrusion of the spuds through the wheel from fin. to 4in., depending upon the nature of the soil upon which the tractor was working.
The whole vehicle should not cost more than ,(,-23oo, and any manufacturer laying himself out for this class of work requires to be in a position to accept payment spread over at least three years, but he can rest assured that, one season having been spent in demonstrating with say half a dozen of these tractors in various parts of the country, a large crop of orders would result.
Mail Contracts.
This class of work, instead of being carried out by the post-office authorities themselves, who should purchase their own vehicles and run them in an economical manner, is placed out on contract to tenderers. The prices paid by the G.P.O. to the contractors show a great saving over railway rates. Unfortunately, even in this class, the people tendering have begun to cut up against one another, -reducing the contractors' profits.
The Trade itself cannot, of course, complain about the placing in this manner, as vehicles have to be purchased from them, and thus they benefit, but why should not the services be run economically by the Post Office autho-• rifles themselves? Is it suggested that the " Powers
that " could not run a series of services all over me count .3 as economically as they can obtain contractors to run one or two vehicles? If this is the case, it is really a scandal. In outlying districts, possibly, the placing of contracts for this class of work would be justifiable, but, for large towns like London, one call assume that it would not be too great a strain on the authorities to inaugurate services on their own account.
Coal Trade.
The commercial-motor movement is " up against " labour unions, when it touches the coal trade. The coal carters are paid so much for each sack they deliver ; hence, if an enterprising coal contractor were to employ motorvans where unions exist, he would still have to pay the same rate for each sack delivered, and no saving in cost would be effected, in spite of the fact that a great deal more coal would be conveyed. One might suggest that any strong man could become a coal carter, but this, I am given to understand, is not the case. There is a knack in lifting heavy weights which can only be acquired after a considerable amount of apprenticeship, and this particular union is so strong that little can be done to bring the spell of motors within its magic circle.
Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
In discussing this body, one does so with a certain amount of temerity, as whichever side one takes up one is sure to he " treading on someone's corns." There is no doubt that, in the past, the Society has done a tremendous amout of good—probably more for the pleasureear side than for the commercial side. The difficulties which the commercial section of this society has to encounter are very much greater than those of the pleasurecar section. One must recollect that the committee of the heavy-vehicle section has to deal both with the petrol vehicle and the steam vehicle, the latter being a force in this branch, and for some reason or other the two classes of manufacturers do not seem to come into line. One need not assume that because there is to be no show this year the committee's efforts in connection with the Bond had much to do with the matter; under any circumstances, the probability is there would not have been sufficient support forthcoming. Manufacturers prefer to " sit on the fence '' this year, and await developments; further, they feel that it would be grossly unfair, after all the work they have done, to allow a new firm to step into the arena, by means of applying for a large space at Olympia, and thus to pose as a "leading firm " in the industry. Abstinence from showing probably means less loss, either from the point of view of possible orders, or expenses incurred, than showing in a small manner. It is a case of making a great show, or not having a show at all for a season.
The question of being allowed to show at other exhibitions is one which can be discussed from many sides, and no definite result obtained ; there is sound argument on all sides of the question. Harking back to the roo7 trials, the firms who did not enter were not by any means the losers, whilst some who entered gained a little ground, and others lost heavily. No great increase in trade was noticeable on account of these trials. Collective effort seems to he of little use ; individual effort seems to be the most satisfactory mode of obtaining business in this trade, as in all others.
Good work was certainly done by the heavy-vehicle section when it insisted on putting down the malpractice of promiscuous and never-ending demonstrations. After the passing of this resolution, " milkers could always be effectively handled, and this resulted in a great saving of expense to the manufacturers, and much more ground being covered, through their being able to keep vehicles free which otherwise would have been giving unnecessarily-long trials.