Motorcab Topics.
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ride outside ann to licence such cabs as he considers suitable to carry five instead of lour passengers, namely, four inside and one outside, or five inside if there is sufficient room. An animated correspondence in the Dublin papers, with regard to the threatened invasion of taxicabs, continues.
Witrritigton Town Council has granted licences to the Liverpool Motor Cab Co. for taxicabs to be used as hackney carriages.
The Carnage-Bell Motor Cab Co., 77-8, Holborn, W.C., has acquired the adjoining premises, 73 and 70, and intends to erect buildings on the site.
The latest adjective to be applied io taxi-driving by Mr. Castno Hamilton in " The Sketch," in the course of a short article entitled " The racingtaxi peril," is " Skinoftecthitis.
The 'Watch Committee of the Eastbourne Town Council has considered the question of licensing motoreabs to carry five instead of four persons. A petition signed by 25 motorcab drivers and a letter from the Provincial Motor Cab Co., in favour of this was read. Communications were also received from Mr. S. Simmons, Messrs. Ray and Sons, and the Eastbourne and District Motor Cab Co., objecting to the proposal, but approving of the suggestion that one passenger should be allowed to ride outside. The Committee resolved that the inspector be instructed to allow one passenger to
The St. Pancras Garage Co., Ltd., with an authorized capital of 1;20,000 in £1 shares, to enter into and carry out a contract with the de DionBouton Motorcab Co., Ltd., and to carry on the business of hiring, repairing, selling and dealing in taxicabs, motorcabs and other mechanically-propelled vehicles. Signatories include A. Pye-Smith, J.P., 171, St. Pancras Road, N.W. New Registration.
"Breakdown" Lorries.
We illustrate, on page 166, the Dennis " breakdown " lorry for the Gamage-Bell Motor Cab Co., Ltd. The winding gear can be seen, just to the far side of the driver's seat. This vehicle is similar to the one previously supplied to the General Motor Cab Co., Ltd., and in consequence of the satisfactory working of which Mr. Horace Bell has purchased the machine now under notice. There are a couple of ramps, up which any brokendown or damaged taxicab can be pulled. The chassis is of the standard two-ton pattern, with 28 h.p. fourcylinder engine. Testing a Panhard.
In connection with the recent motorboat and aviation meetings on the
Riviera, an interesting trip was made by two Paris journalists in one of the new four-cylinder 12-16 Panhard taxicabs designed for London service.
The car, which had just completed 1,430 miles in the hands of the firm's testers as certified. by the indicator, was hurriedly stripped of its windresisting screen and load of scrap iron and, without any special prepara tion, was fitted with an ordinary open body. The run from Paris to Monaco was made in two-and-a-half days ; the car made a number of trips in the mountainous district round Monaco, was used daily in connection with the Nice aviation meeting, and returned to Paris, via Marseilles, Salon, Arles, the Cevennes mountains, through Auvergne to Le Puy, Vichy, Moulins,
and Fontainebleau. The total distance covered was 1,607 miles.
Our Paris correspondent, who formed one of the party for the entire trip, writes that the journey was accomplished without a single adjustment. " We were three passengers, weighing, together with a quantity of heavy baggage, 62 stone. The first day's run, from Paris to Roanne, distance of 236 miles, was made with only three changes on to second gear. the car being started away from a standstill on second. On the following day, the route lay through St. Etienne and a mountainous district into the Rhone valley, Orange being the stopping-place for the night. Nice was reached on the third day. On the return trip, a detour was made to Marseilles along the new Corniche ; the second day's trip was from Marseilles to Villefort, in the heart of the Cevennes, the mountain road frequently having grades of .14 per cent. ; the third day was from Villefort to Moulins; and the fourth one into Paris. The only involuntary stop of the entire trip was to change a Dunlop tire, which had been punctured by a nail at Montelimart. The other tires, Dunlop steel studded in the r,ear and Dunlop ribbed in the front, were never touched, and were not even
inflated during the three weeks MI the
road. On the return, they showed very little signs of wear. Had it
been thought advisable, the bonnet of the car might have been sealed on the commencement of the rim. The tool chest was never opened during the trip. Being designed for work en London streets, the taxicab was naturally under-geared for the long straight-away runs on the level French highwa3s. The average speed, including all stops, on the Paris-Roanne run, mostly level road, was 25 miles an hour. The ear showed to best advantage on hill work, most of the travelling in the Cevennes and Auvergne mountains being done on the
high gear. The only occasion on which the first speed had to be used was on a mule track on the Turbie, shove Monaco. The remarkably-quick acceleration of the motor made the mr an ideal one to drive through
the winding mountain passes. A. feature of the cab, of interest to taxicab drivers, is the fitting of two neutral notches, one between the reverse and the first speed, and another one between the second and third speeds. Although offering no advantage for open road work, it has the convenience in city traffic of allowing the neutral to be obtained with a veryslight movement of the change-speed lever. Thus, when a passenger is discharged, the driver can slip into neutral without passing through the lower gears, and, except on a grade, can start away again by moving one notch forward to the second gear.
Once the hang ' of the ear has been obtained, there is no danger of dropping into neutral on changing up from second to third. On returning to 'Paris, the chassis was overhauled awl sent to London."
Alleged Wrongful Entry.
In the -King's Bench Division, before Mr. Justice Channell and a common jury, the action of a widow named Crowter, who has a refreshment business at Kennington, against the General Motor Cab Ca., Ltd., was beard on Friday and Momlay last. The. evidence showed that Mrs. Crowter, who is 65 years of age, began to derive custom from motoreab drivers, about the month of March, 1908. She incidentally stored lamps and coats, to save the. men the trouble of carrying them home at night; in fact, her place was practically used as a. cloak room, as well as a coffee house. Representatives of the General Motor Cab Co., for reasons which they hold to be good ones, entered the premises rather uneeremmlionsly, on the 12th November, 1908, and began to take possession of certain articles, which action was resented by Mrs. Crowter and certain of her assistants, although not actively. Some of the men stated that they were detective officers, and that " everything was in tile hands et the police." A polies inspector gave evidence that, on his telling Mrs. Crowter that she had some property belonging to the company, she replied : " I have some here, but, if it belongs to the cab company, I have no desire to keep it." She invited him to take the things away. He told Mrs. Crowtor that some of the things had been stolen, and she replied 611;1,t she would be glad to get rid of them. There were a great many things in the shop which did not belong to the company_ A sergeant of police stated that ary goods removed were taken on the lady's invitation.
The jury found in favour of the plaintiff, for whom Mr. Moresby White appeared as counsel for £100.