Motorcab Topics.
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The Watch Committee of Easthourne T.C., at its last meeting, granted lieenees for the following motorcabs, subject to the same being furnished with taximeters: Motor Coaches. Ltd., 6; Eastbourne and District. Motor Cab Co. (1909), Ltd., 5; Mr. Chapman, 1.
Wimbledon's Increasing Fleet.
Wimbledon is proving a profitable district for motorcab operation. The principal local proprietor is the Wimbledon Motnrcab CO, Ltd., which has no %V a nice little fleet of nine inaehines. We reproduced, in our issue 1.or the 19th August, 1909, a photograph of the first five machines that eery acquired by this company. We 11,,w: include an illusteation of the two 'latest cabs that this owner has pur.chased they are 14-16 lip. fourcylinder inots—the company has eon.sistently shown a. preference for chassis by this French maker. A correspondent informs us that one of lie directors of this concern considers led a large measure of its success in lie development of local business is iluo to the systematic acquisition of a private connection for hiring work of all classes. Only in this way is it possible to secure compensation for the considerable amount of dead mileage 1, Idyll is involved as the result of .ireration in an outlying suburb. Amongst other cabs which are run in Wimbledon are a 10 h.p. two-cylinder Napier and a 14-16 h.p. four-cylinder machine that htis just been delivered hy the Belsize London Agency.
Many of our readers will remember that we gave an extended account of the satisfactory running of the Wimbledon company's small fleet in our issue for the 23rd December, 1909. New Registration.
Motor Exchange (LI uddersfiekt), Ltd., with an authorized capital of £2,000. by A. H. Atkins, Ltd., 27-28, Fetter Lane, E.C., to take over a motoreah proprietor's business. First directors: S. Hardeastle and L. A. Hack (manager).
An Eastbourne Napier.
An interesting unit of the small mixed fleet of British nioterealis that is owned by Messrs. Skinners, of St. Leonards-on-Sea., is a 15 h.p. fourcylinder Napier. We reproduce on this page a photograph of this handsome model on the rank at [Listings.
On the last day of November, there were 6,227 motorcabs registered in London.
Taxicab Strikebreakers.
Taxicab traffic in New York during the past week has been a matter of considerable difficulty, and, indeed, of danger to life. Riots have occurred in Fifth Avenue and in other fashionable thoroughfares, and drivers of taxicabs have been stopped and terrorized by discontented chauffeurs. The police authorities iu New York have made. a determined effort to insure that owners should have protection while they kept their machines at work. The New York Taxicab Co. is continuing part of its service with a policeman :ilongside the driver of each machine.
Bristol Company Appeals.
The Bristol Tramways and Carriage Co., as we recorded in our last issue, lodged an appeal against the judgment of Mr. -Justice Coleridge at the Bristol Assizes, by which damages to the amount of £2,000 were awarded to a Mr. Brooke, who had suffered injuries as the result of a collision between two cabs in Bristol. The appeal was lodged on the grounds of excessive damages and of alleged misdirection by the learned Judge. The Lords of Appeal granted a stay, on condition that the tramways company paid VW° to the plaintiff in the recent aetien. at once.
Judicial Opinion in Bath.
In an action for damages, which was brought on behalf of an elderly lady who was knocked down by a taxicab belonging to the Bath depot of the Bristol Tramways and Carriage Co., His Honour Judge GwynneJames, gave judgment for £70 damages and costs. The judge took occasion to deliver a abort lecture on motor-driving in general.
New Registrations.
Charleville Transit Express Co., Ltd., with an authorized capital of £2,000, to carry on the business of proprietors of motorbuses, lorries, and of carriers, etc. Chairman : R. M. 1). Sanders. Registered office : Cherieyule, co. Cork.
Union Motor Car Co., Ltd., with an authorized capital of £2,000, to carry on the business of manufacturers of motorbuses, etc., also to enter into an agreement with H. F. Basset, trading as the Union Car Co. First directors: IT. F. Basset, A. H. Ruffle, and G. M. Smith. The registered office is at 21, Denbigh Street, Pimlico.
The Star-wheel Dodge.
The case in which Henry Hetherington, aged 64, a taxicab driver in the service of the General Motorcab Co., Ltd., is charged with appropriating certain sums of money from his employers by means of a well-known method of tampering with the taximeter mechanism, was concluded at Lambeth Police Court last. week. The prisoner who pleaded " Not guilty," and reserved his defence, was committed for trial at the Central Criminal Court. A fitter, who it was alleged, disconnected the star-wheel of the defendant's taximeter, said, in the course of his evidence, that this proceeding was " an every-day occurrence in the streets in broad daylight; " he sometimes received a shilling for doing such a job. An Ambitious Company.
At the ordinary general meeting of the Brussels Motor Cab Co., Ltd., at which Sir W. J. Bell presided, and at which the annual report for the period ended 31st May, 1910, to which we referred in a recent issue, was presented, the chairman, in the course of his speech, foreshadowed the intention of the company largely to increase the fleet "to enable it to attain the position it should hold as one of largest, if not the largest of the cab companies on the Continent."
Fatal Hesitation.
The jury brought in a verdict of accidental death in the case of a fatal accident to a lady in Southport, who stepped out in front of a moving taxicab some few weeks ago. It appears that the deceased lady was one of a party of six, which was attempting to cross the road together ; the ladies were confused by a warning that was shouted by some onlooker. A police constable gave evidence that the taxicab driver did everything he could to avoid the accident.
General Motor Cab Co.'s Report and Accounts.
We this week confine ourselves to a summary of the principal figures in the report and accounts of the General Motor Cab Co., Ltd., for the year ended the 31st July last, together with comparative figures from the accounts for the preceding twelve months. The older figures are those in parentheses.
LIABILITIES. — Issued capital, £822,730 (£822,582); mortgage debentures, £333,120 (loan from bankers, £200,863) • ordinary trade creditors, £100,738 (1132,565) • reserve for accruing accounts, L35,6:36 (nil); unclaimed dividends and debenture interest, £2,064 (£2,846); provision for accrued debenture interest from 1st July, £1,388 (nil); general reserve account, £17,992 (£8,727); special reserve against rolling-stock, £136,840 (£110,426); profit for the year, £201,525 (£225,554).
ASSETS.Freehold land and buildings, £228,946 (£212,191); rollingstock, £1,087,851 (£1,085,247); plant, machinery, furniture, fixtures, fittings, etc., 416,452 (£15,855); stocks on hand, £70,500 (£49,459); sundry debtors, 416,885 (20,G38); £20,638). sundry advance payments, £21,734 (£34,302); interest in Provincial Motor Cab Co., Ltd., £32,685 (£13,580); teaching suspense account, £l0,000 (L17,331); United Motor Cab Co., Ltd., purchase account, £55,197 (C51,834); underwriting and preliminary expenses, £20,000 (£10,000); discount on first mortgage debentures, £7,137 (no corresponding item); balance of proceeds of debenture issue, £1,797 (no corresponding item); purchase of first mortgage debentures, £5,407 (no corresponding item); cash at bankers and in hand, £27,320 (133,288).
The gross profit for the period, after administrative and other charges, is £201,525. This is allocated as follows : added to special reserve against rolling-stock, £79,465; written off interest in the Provincial Motor Cab Co., Ltd., £10,895; written off teaching suspense account, £12,350; written off preliminary expenses, £21,996; paid and reserved on account of debenture interest, £16,078. This leaves an available balance of £60,746. An interim dividend of 3i per cent, on the preferred ordinary shares, which was paid on the 31st January last, absorbed £28,585, and the directors now recommend the payment of a like final dividend, absorbing a like amount ; directors' commission then becomes £1,627, and an additional small sum is placed to general reserve account of £195, leaving a balance of £1,753. This is added to the amount brought forward from last year's accounts, £92,736, and carried forward. The results, so far as we can judge at the moment, in the absence of time to consider the accounts fully before going to press, are distinctly encouraging. We shall return to -them, in the critical sense, later.
The Silver Lining.
At the annual Huddersfield Cabdrivers' Dinner, which was held this year at the George Hotel, several speakers referred to the declining fortunes of horsecab drivers and owners, on account of the arrival of the allconquering taxicab. In spite of this depressing feature of the gathering, those present seem, from all accounts, to have managed to enjoy themselves in conventional manner.
Larger Hackney,-carriage Number.
Considerable discussion has recently been taking place in Sydney with regard to the licence plates of taxi cabs. -Until the present time, they have been supplied with hackney-carriage numbers of the sonic size and appearance as those used in London ; but now public motor-vehicles are to
he supplied, instead, with special licence plates, which are to be similar to these used for private cars, excepting that they are to have white numbers on a blue ground instead of black on white. The idea is to prevent taxicabs escaping after an accident, on account of the smallness of their numbers. " As such an occurrence has not yet happened, people may be inclined to wonder at the necessity for such a r! [Lange," adds our correspondent.