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News and Comment.

3rd October 1907, Page 22
3rd October 1907
Page 22
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Page 22, 3rd October 1907 — News and Comment.
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

This journal fosters, represents, and chronicles commercial motoring

in all its branches.

We originate; others imitate.

R. A. C. Trials.

Our report is continued on pages 95 to io4 ;it deals, incidentally, with certain features of the journey across Lancashire and Yorkshire, The Home.-Coming.

No effort will be spared to secure the presence of London Pressmen during the last stages, and interest should have grown by the time. Bedford is reached.

. . Lectures. .

The Council of the Bristol Incorporated Chamber of Commerce and Shipping has resolved to print the recent lecture on the trials in exten,so. as part of its annual report-, which is circulated to all the members. Mr. Shrapnel! Smith's next lecture will be delivered on Monday evening, the 7th instant, in the Council Chamber of the Leicester Town Hall, at 7 p.m. The Chair will be taken by Charles Bennion, Esq., President of the Leicester Chamber of Commerce.

The _Smoking Concert.

This journal's smoking concert will provide a pleasant function for the last night of the trials. The judges and other principal officers, including Mr. Orde, have signified their intention of being present, whilst Mr. IL G. Burford, M.I.Mech.E., Chairman of the Commercial Vehicle Committee of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, is amongst the supporters of the competition who have promised to contribute to the programme.

Baldock is not able to accommodate even those who are permanently on tour. Inns at Biggleswade, Buntingford, Hitchin, Royston, Shefford, or Stevenage, will probably be visited by men who have cars, as all these Waces are within io miles of the last halting_ place, whilst Letchworth, the first Garden City, is only 2 miles away. We learn that a number of motoring parties

are being arranged for this last night, arid it is as well that new arrivals from London should be prepared to drive as far as Bedford, Hatfield, or Hertford, or back to town.

A Deputation.

The Roads Improvement. Association, in accordance with the terms of the resolution which was passed at the conference between road makers and road users, at the Institution of Civil Engineers, on the rith June last, is about to organise a deputation to wait upon the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with a view to the obtaining of a special grant of one million pounds

sterling for the improvement of the highways in this country, and in order to urge the necessity for the establishment of a central highways department.

Municipal Motors.

Willesden District Council has instructed the Dust and Destructor Committee to consider and report as to the expediency of purchasing motor wagons for the Council's service.

Widening the Scope.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders intends to alter its Articles of Association in order to provide for the formation of local centres throughout the country.

Stepney Wheel.

The report and accounts of the Stepney Spare Motor Wheel, Limited, from the 23rd September, 1906, to the 31st August, 1907, show a gross. profit of 4'26,794, and a net profit, as per profit and loss account, of £20,930. The subscribed capital is only 487,55o, and the directors recommend a distribution at the rate of zo per cent. per annum. The use of these wheels for rnotorcabs and other light commercial vehicles is already upon a considerable scale.

In New Zealand.

The opening of the Seddon Memorial Technical College, at Christchurch, New Zealand, which occurred at the end of July, marks an important step in the development of the study of subjects which have a direct bearing upon road locomotion, and other branches of mechanical engineering, in a country where commercial motors are coming into increasing use every month. An interesting account has been sent to us by a local correspondent, but we have not room to use it at length: By the same mail, we are informed that Messrs. Norman Heath and Company, of Hunter Street, Wellington, the New Zealand representatives of Sidney Straker and Squire, Limited, are doing an increasing trade in these wellknown, English-built vehicles.

Military Motors.

The recent manceuvres in France tend to show that a lot has vet to be done before military motors are so adapted

as to render them of much use except upon metalled roads or other highways, and the perfection of the walking machine promises to be the only effective means of enabling self-propelled units to cross country. The German military authorities are about to tackle the problem by the construction of new. military roads, but the enormous expense of carrying out this alternative. appears to us to render it a far less desirable course for our War Office than, the granting of an adequate sum of money for the prosecution of experiments with walking machines, such asthose of the latest HeIe-Shaw type, the' design of which is of a revolutionary • character, and the constructionof . wh' " marks an enormous advance:

We understand that the issue of the Rover Motorcab Company's prospectus will definitely take place within the next three weeks, and that the delay has been due to a combination of circumstances which favour its success.

Lower Prices.

The Continental Tyre and Rubber Company (Great Britain), Limited, announces that, in consequence of the improvements in the methods of manufacture, and of the increased plants which have recently been put down at the company's works in Hanover and Willesden, a substantial reduction in the price of its motor tires takes place as from the 1st instant.

Winter Lectures.

The syllabus for the winter term of the London School of Economics and Political Science, a copy of which has been received from Mr. H. J. MacKinder, M.A., Director of the school and Secretary to the governors, of Clare Market, Kingsway-, W.C., is of interest ; a copy will be sent to any reader of this journal on application to Mr. MacKinder. The courses include lectures upon commerce and industry, accounting and business methods, transport, and insurance.

Multiple-Disc Clutches.

The original clutch of its type, and the first that was able to give good service in motor vehicles, that of Dr. HeleShaw, F.R.S., continues to be adopted very widely, notwithstanding the fact that some manufacturers avail themselves of the inventor's work free of charge. Mr. Powell Evans, of the firm of Messrs. Merchant and Evans Company, of Philadelphia, has recently completed arrangements for the production and sale of all types of the Hele-Shaw clutch in the United States.

Cigarette Cases.

A six-line paragraph was published in our issue of the 12th ultimo (page 23) to the effect that the Coventry Chain Company (1907), Limited, of Coventry, was willing to forward a metal cigarette-case to any reader of this journal who sent in a written application, and quoted the source of his inspiration. We are interested to have received a letter from Mr. Norman Hill, the managing director of the company in question, under date the 28th ultimo, as follows : " You will be glad to hear that, owing to the notice you were good enough to publish in your journal concerning the cigarette-cases we were giving away, we have had applications for a very large number. We shall be obliged if you will apologise for us in respect of the delay which is bound to occur over the dispatch of these cases to some of the applicants. There are plenty more for distribution, but we must ask that future requests be accompanied by 2d, in stamps for postage."

From Coventry.

While making reference to this company, we might draw attention to its latest invention, the worm-roller, motor chain. One object is to avoid any ringing noise, and this desirable result appears to be obtained by reason of the fact that, although the worm roller is a true cylinder, the natural ring of the metal is destroyed by reason of its laminations. These rollers being made of strip steel, there is little likelihood of fracture, as the grain of the metal follows the circumferential line of the roller, whilst great accuracy of hardening should result from the uniform character of the strip steel. The capacity of the worm roller to resist crushing and bursting strains is claimed to be at least twice as great as with rollers made from the solid bar, and an analogy is found in the well-known practice of the world's leading arsenals, where the wire-wound gun is now so generally produced, in order to obtain a greater resistance than can be obtained from solid steel. The company will be happy to furnish quotations. L Worm rollers.

Dennis Prices.

Our reference to the Dennis catalogue, in last week's issue, deserves to be supplemented by mention of the complete price-schedule of spare parts which is contained upon the last few pages of the catalogue in question. Buyers of Dennis vehicles have every facility placed before them in regard to the ordering of parts by telegram or cable, and they know the prices in advance. This practice is now being followed by all the best manufacturers.

Another Ivel Award.

Ivel Agricultural Motors, Limited, of 45, Great Marlborough Street, W., has been awarded the gold medal of the West Gloucester Farmers' Club, in the first ploughing match held this sea son at Iron Acton, near Bristol. A three-furrow, Ransome plough was used first, and a cultivator afterwards.

Fire Extinguishing Tests.

The Valor Company, Limited, of 9, Bush Lane, E.C., gave a demonstration at the Aston Lower Grounds, on the occasion of the Birmingham Exhibition in connection with the R.A.C. Trials. The tests were watched by a large num. her of visitors, and the usual satisfactory results were obtained. This company's " New Era" extinguishers are one of the most distinguishing features upon the competing vehicles, and each driver has to lay his apparatus on the ground, in front of his machine, before leaving for the night, so that the officials in charge may be satisfied that their precautionary measures have not been wasted by the loss of the apparatus, which is thus kept in a position of maximum readiness for use.

Motor Fire-Engines.

The advantages of the motor fireengine are certainly becoming more widely recognised, as is evidenced by the increasing number of fire-brigades that now have this class of apparatus in use. We learn that Merryweather and Sons, Ltd., of Greenwich, S.E., has, in the course of the last week, dispatched a petrol, motor fire-engine to Glasgow, shipped a motor " Fire King," steam fire-engine to Singapore, and also sent a petrol, motor fire-escape and hosetender to Bombay, whilst it has, during the same period, received orders for motor, steam fire-engines from Londonderry (Ireland) and Widnes (Lancs.). There is no doubt that the motor is rapidly superseding the horse in the fire service, and it is significant that the fire-brigades in London, Liverpool, Glasgow, and Edinburgh (four leading cities in the Kingdom) all possess selfpropelled fire-engines. Rolling the Roads.

The Gwyrfai Rural District Council has been discussing the effect of motorwagon traffic upon its roads, at its last meeting, which was held at Carnarvon. The Surveyor expressed the view that motor wagons did more good than harm to the roads, and that they acted, at least during portions of the year, as steam rollers. The Clerk to the Council also advised that there was no remedy for damage to sewers, unless the traffic was, legally, extraordinary.

French Trials.

When, a few weeks ago, the official communiqué circulated by the A u tomobi le Club de France, relative to a recent meeting, was received (writes our Paris correspondent) it was seen that next year's French commercial vehicle trials would probably be held shortly after Easter in the environs in Paris, the itinerary resembling that of this year's tests. Now, however, the " Auto " asks what, as a matter of fact, the itinerary will be, and states that it believes two projects are under consideration—one for the circulation of the competing vehicles in a restricted area around the French capital, and the other for a run to Madrid via Bordeaux, returning to Paris by way of Barcelona. The latter proposition is evidently of recent birth.

Motorcab Profits.

During the six months ended June 3oth last the Compagnie Ginierale des Automobiles Taximetres made a net profit of 100,000 francs. This was the only company to obtain the right of circulation for their vehicles at Trouville during the high season there, and it is believed—although no figures have yet been officially issued—that an appreciable revenue was obtained from this service. It is well to note (says " Omnia ") that the company has a large number of cabs " de luxe" on

the streets, besides the ordinary " autotaxis," and that it has contracts with different hotels in Paris which ensure very regular and remunerative activity for these former vehicles. Motorcah companies are little disposed to inform the public, or even their shareholders, of the net receipts obtained, but some consent to issue the average, daily returns per vehicle. Experience has shown that from gross daily takings of 50 francs, 50 per cent. should be deducted for general expenses, and that el the remaining 25 francs one-half should be taken as the net profit of the company. In quite recent times, however, when companies were issuing their prospectuses, a dividend of 15 per cent. was foreshadowed on net receipts of g and even 8 francs per day I

Extraordinary Economy. _ The Lacre consumption records in the R.A.C. Trials are coming out even beyond the expectations of the entering company, and it is remarkable testimony to the economy of the engine, and the efficiency of the transmission, that over 18 miles to the gallon can be obtained with a vehicle having a gross weight, including load, of 2 tons ticwt.


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