The Wheels of Industry.
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This journal, dealing as it does with the "Chariots of War," no less than with the "Wheels of Industry," continues of national importance. Its interests embrace impartially the transport wagon and the parcelcisr, the military tractor and the steam lorry.
The Royal Show.
We are advised of one addition to the official list of exhibitors at the forthcoming Show of the Royal Agricultural Society at Nottingham, which list appeared in our issue of the 20th ult. The addition is the Star Engineering Co., Ltd., of Wolverhampton.
Our Fund.
There is nothing fresh to report about the progress of our Fund, for the past week, except that the organization is being maintained in its usual state of efficiency. If readers, other than those who have already made the maximum gift of 250, elect to stand by us in this matter, and to send further donations, for which there is now disclosed need, we may complete 25000 by the 22nd inst., that is, exactly eight months after the inauguration of the Fund.
Recent Registrations.
East 'Anglian Transport; Ltd. (22000), with its office at Market Road, Chelmsford.
St. Albans Rubber Co., Ltd. (210,000), with its offices at the Camp, St. Albans.
Parker's Garage, Ltd. (210,000), to take over the business at 150a, Sidwell Street, Exeter.
London Motor Hire Co., Ltd. (25000), by Rose, 111cCanna and Co., Broad Street House, E.C.
London and South Coast Motor Services ;(i915), Ltd. (210,C00), by Weollake, Letts and Birds, 3, Serjeant's Inn, Temple, E.C.
Southdown Motor Services,. Ltd. (251,250). To adopt agreements with the Brighton, Hove and Preston United Omnibus Co., Ltd. Worthing Motor Services, Ltd., ara the London and South Coast Haulage Co., Ltd.
More London Buses.
The total number of licensed buses being operated on the London streets on the 31st of last month was 2211. This shows an increase of 31 over the figure for the previous month. This compares with a total of 3406 one year earlier. The war accounts for the difference.
Proposals and Purchases.
Tipton U.D.C. is to borrow 2495 to purchase a motor fire-engine.
The Surveyor of the Wilton Town Council has been instructed to report on motor transport.
A second Belsize chassis is on order for the Leeds Corporation, to be fitted with an ambulance body.
Crossley and Rothwell chassis are being considered by the Health Committee of the Hull City Council.
Wimbledon Town Council has decided to garage its new Dennis motor ambulance with a local tradeSman ; the charge for garaging and providing a man to drive it when necessary will be only 10s. per week.
C.M.U.A. Committee.
The latest additions to the General Committee of the C.3.I.UA. are Messrs. V. H. Poynter, a director of John Knight, Ltd., and Mr. J. R. Maidens, representing Schweppes, Ltd. The representative character of the governing body of this national organization is thus further enhanced.
"Picking and Choosing" by Taxi-drivers.
At the Sheffield police courts, on the 3rd inst., a taxi-driver named Horace Lamb was fined 40s., with 10s. costs, for refusing to take a fare When requested to do so while plying for hire on a public stand. The evidence showed that the driver thought he had the right to refuse a short-distance fare, from the stand to the railway station, and stated that his employer did not regard a shilling job as any good tohim:
City of London National Guard M.T.C.
Throughthe courtesy of Messrs.. Edward Nelson and Co., an owner convoy of six Milnes-Daimler vehicles paraded at Trafalgar Square on Sunday morning last, and conveyed a company of the National Guard to Ongar for special . exer-. eises. The arrangements for the working of the convoy were under the -personal direction of Mr. E. P: Beavan. The vehicles were driven by Messrs. J. J. English, A. E. Goodman, J. Groves. W. Snowden, R. Spurrier, and C. Wright. The officers of the M.T.C. on duty were the adjutant, Mr. F. G. Bristow, with Convoy-Commander Clarkson.
Personal.
We learn that Mr. R. J. Armstrong, the removals manager for John Walsh, Ltd., of Sheffield, has been re-elected to the Executive Committee of the Furniture Warehousemen's and Removers' Association, of which body he has been a member for many years. Mr. Armstrong is also chairman of the local centre in Sheffield.
Mr. Arthur W. Windsor's Marriage.
The Assistant Editor of this journal, Mr. Arthur Whalesby Windsor, is now back in journalistic harness, after a short motoring honeymoon, snatched from " Campaign Comforts ". and numerous other " C.M." activities. His marriage to Miss Ivy Millicent Garland, the second daughter of the late Mr. W. H. Garland of Halifax and. York, took place at St. George's in the latter city, on Friday the 28th of May.
Road-rolling in France.
The accompanying illustration shows a water ballast motor roller, constructed by Barford and Perkins, Ltd., of Queen Street lionworks, Peterborough, at work "somewhere in France." The quick re-instatement of roads behind the firing line,. and immediately after any advance, is of paramount importance, and it is satisfactory to know that large numbers of Barford and Perkins road rollers, have been requisitioned both by-the British and the French War Offices.
Testing Axle-weights on the Portsmouth Road.
Watney, Combe, Reid and Co., Ltd., of the Mortlake Brewery, Mortlake, was summoned at Kingston-on-Thames, on the 3rd
for allowing two heavy motorcars to be overloaded. The axle-weights were tested at Spa Bottom, Esher, and it was found that the excess on each back axle was more than two tons above the limit. It was submitted on behalf of the defendant company that its organization had been seriously upset through impressments by the military authorities ; no fewer than 106 horses, 11 vans, 8 motor lorries, and 22 sets of harness had been surrendered. and 11 new motor lorries, which had been ordered to make good the deficiencies, were not yet delivered. Furthermore, no fewer than 504 of the company's employees and two of its directors had gone to the Front. New men made mistakes, and the lorries had been inadvertently overloaded.
The Bench imposed a fine of 22 on each of the two summonses, and £2 2s. were allowed as legal costs on each. sunimons.
Wall Parealcars.
Messrs. The Initial Carrier Co., of 300, Goswell Road, London, E. C., has recently been appointed sole concessionnaire in London and district for the sale of Wall parcelears.
New York Legislative Measures.
" New York is considering legisf lation referring to the limiting of the size of motor lorries which will be permitted to traverse its streets. As the proposal stands at present, these limitations are as follow : no lorry is to exceed 24 ft. in length, 7 ft. 6 ins, in width, or 14 tons in total weight ; the maximum allowable speed is S m.p.h. As is but natural, the possibility of such drastic enactments is viewed by the industry of America with considerable alarm, as it is pointed out that if the New York authorities succeed in making these laws their examples will be followed by other cities throughout the Union. So writes a correspondent on the other side of the Atlantic. We, in England, may regard 8 m.p.h. as a foolish all-round limit, but it may interest the L.G.B. Committee to hear that a 14-ton limit is looked upon as low.
Small Farm Tractors.
A writer in " The Scientific American," discussing the small farm tractor, lays down the following as being the basis for a standard specification : the machine must be light enough to enable it to traverse the light bridges and aulverts customarily found on a farmer's property ; low enough in pressure per unit to avoid packing the land ; powerful enough to replace at least five horses in ploughing; and the price must not exceed the value of the horses which may, be sold when the tractor comes to the farm to stay. Discussing the progress of the small tractor to date, he points out that experience has proved that the maker of a good form of large tractor does not necessarily know enough to proceed immediately to the construction of What will be the successful small machine. Considerable difficulty has been encountered, for example, in relation to the actual propelling member. Two rear driving wheels have been discarded in favour of the single wheel. The reason for this lies partly in the fact that width must be kept to a minimum. The fourwheel-drive has. also been tried with but indifferent success. Probably the most important variation from the wheeled type is that which substitutes a wheel with movable pedals jointed to the rim (" elephant feet "), or else an endless apron or track composed of segments (" caterpillar "), either device affording much greater con
1336 tact with the ground than the ordinary wheel. The bulk of these tractors are arranged to . draw ploughs or other implements in the rear by means of rods or chains. Another type of considerable interest, although it has not yet reached a point at which it may be described as a commercial success, is one in which a rotary cultivator or milling machine is employed.
"Should Women Drive?"
[Miss Virtue, a London young woman of education and refinement, is now driving a motorvan for a firm of grocers in Boar Lane, Leeds. A correspondent suggests that her experiences and expressions are worthy of publicity in view of our notes on the above question, and the following notes are from his pen.—BD.] The first professional or business woman-motor driver in the city of Leeds, she took the place of a man who enlisted. Several young chauffeurs sought his job, and when they appeared before the manager they were rather surprised at the way he talked to them. "Kitchener wants you," was his dismissal.
So Miss Virtue was given the chance of doing a man's job. The manager says the experiment has been an unqualified success, " Motor driving is not the most severe experience I have had," she declared. "I have had to rough it in many ways ; I have had 12 months farming in Canada. Compared with that, this delivery van business is simple. In fact, it's not a bad sort of life at all, and I can recommend it to any strong, healthy girl."
She says that any girl who is not shy soon gets over the novelty, and over such things as small boys crying out, "Oh ! there's a woman driving." The people in Leeds have not been in the least " rude " ; on the contrary, she has found that many householders prefer to have their goods delivered by a woman to having them from a man. " don't waste the time of the maids in talking, and flirting between the maid and the motor man is 'off' when the 'motor man is a woman," she quaintly commented.
Miss Virtue is troubled by the kindness of men at the garage ! She does all her own cleaning, and would do more if the men were not such good chaps that they will not let her. " Still, if it comes to a pinch," she declared, "I could always do my own repairs." Electric Vehicle Parade.
An interesting demonstration and parade of electric vehicles, organized by the Elec_tric Vehicle Committee, will -take place on the Thames Embankment, probably near Waterloo Bridge, at 5 p.m. on Thursday, the 17th irbst., in connection with the annual general and other business meetings of the Incorporated Municipal Electrical Association.
Orwell Eleetrics.
We have been interested to receive from Mossay and Co., Ltd., of 41, Tothill Street, Westminster, S.W., a copy of its catalogue for Orwell electric vehicles. These British-made machines are sold in 30-cwt., 40-cwt., and 50-cwt. sizes. They are constructed at the works of Ransomes, Sims and Jefferies, Ltd., Ipswich. This participation of an old-established traction house in the battery-vehicle business is of more than passing interest. Great results are promised.
Wars Phases.
The twO illustrations on this page are particularly intended to show two of the many extraordinary phases of development that war conditions have brought about. It was not anticipated that petrol-electric chassis could be used for War Office purposes on any large scale, and yet our lower illustration shows a large convoy in the service of the French Government, consisting of Tilling-Stevens petrol-electrics and a number of Star petrol lorries. The smaller picture shows a Ford light van in the employ of a great railway company. Large numbers of these clever little American machines are doing such emergency service effectively.
C.M.U.A. Reminder.
It is requested that points for C.M.I.T.A. evidence before the L.G.B. Committee be not delayed. Varying Penalties for Offences Under the Motor Car Act.
Several cases of heavy motorcars being driven at speeds exceeding the limit were heard at Royston Police Court on .Wednesday last. In three typical instances the fines imposed were 25s., 40s. and 50s. There is no apparent reason for these differences in the amount of the penalty. The heaviest fine was imposed on the defendant whose excess speed was least.
War Orders: Vehicle Speeds and Weights.
The day of reckoning is coming for a lot of firms that have been rushing out Government contracts (says a correspondent).. They have worked their machinery and employees at top pressure, and, speaking of Yorkshire khaki factories in particular (leaving notes on 'ammunition matters for other observers), the production has apparently been to the mutual satisfaction of the Government and the producers.
One has been struck by the enormous use of commercial vehicles for conveying loads of cloth to regimental depots, clothing factories, etc. Until a year or two ago, Yorkshire had not seized on commercial motor potentialities as keenly and appreciatively as some centres. The war has made a lot of men realize quickly what they had been slow to understand before—that the "em." would collect at the factory and deliver direct to destination with rapidity.
The foregoing preliminary notes are essential, to force home the importance of the following comments, our correspondent adds :— Speeds have frequently been beyond legal limits, and loads have often, obviously, been "great," not to say beyond the stipulated r.a.w., etc.
It ought to be clearly understood that neither engines, tires, nor any
other part of a " c.m." can be expected to give a maximum efficiency. They cannot be expected to uphold the claims and testimonials presented by the manufacturers when the customer's order was being sought—if the vehicles are overtaxed. That -this -kind of offence has gone on is beyond question, and it will be unreasonable to
• expect car and tire manufacturers to make good the alleged deficiencies in durability. For those supposed deficiencies would, if accurately traced, very often be found due to high speeds and heavy loads in the hurry to fulfil orders. Now that khaki mills are becoming a little slacker, and the motor less in demand, there will be some overhauling of engines etc., followed no doubt by calls on the makers to make good this, that, and the other.