OPINIONS FROM OTHERS.
Page 29
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The Editor invites co" espondeme on adl subjects connected with the use of commercial motors. Letters should be on one side of the paper only and typewritten by preference. The right of abbreviation is reserved, and no responsibility for Mews expressed is accepted.
Advertisement Revenue from Vans.
The Editor, TELE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
[1845] Sir,—I have read the article by "Vim -in in your issue of April 19th, in which he makes suggestions for increasing the advertising value of tradesmen's vehicles and so reducing the cost of rimfling them, and I should like to say that if a van owner should not want to advertise himself on his vans, he mg always apply to my firm for a yearly sum for the advertising rights, free of all responsibility or work More commercial-vehicle owners receive the advertising revenue from their vans through my firm than through any other channel— from railway companies right through the big _express companies down to the smallest country carrier.—
Yours faithfully, T. B. LAWRENCE. 1, Arundel Street, Strand, London, W.C.2.
Steamers v. Petrol.
The Editor, THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
[1846] have read "A Disgusted' Petrol
Driver's" letter with much interest. Ho says that he has had dealings -with Sentinel steam wagons and with petrol, but that now he is driving a petrol vehicle. I presume that is why he is disgustedl
The wagon I drive is not a"high-flying Sentinel express.' It is an ordinary six-ton Sentinel, but I can always pass a 5-6 ton, petrol wagon on the Welsh roads, where most of my work lies. The bills round this district are as steep as any in the country, 1 in 8 and 1 in 6 gradients being quite common, 13Ili I never fail to get up them at a good speed, whereas the petrol wagons I pass usually have the bonnet up, letting the engine cool.
It is the same on the level, the engines of the petrol vehicles get so hot with the wagons fully loaded that they can only go at an average speed, whioli I can easily beat.
I am surprised if the steamers in Warwick have to Five the petrol the "pass." Are the steamers hauling trailers?
No. I am afraid that, so long as "A Dispieted. Petrol Driver" continues to driVe a petrol vehicle he Will remain disgusted.--Yours faithfully, Chester. AN ENTHUSIASTIC STEAM DRIVER.
The Licensing of the Steamer's Steersman.
The Editor, THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
[1847] Sir —With regard to the question raised in the issue of The Commercial Motor for May 3rd, "Should the Steamer's Steersman Hold a Licence?" I think that it is more necessary for the steersman to have a licence than for the driver, because we drivers understand that the man who is at the wheel is the one who is responsible for the machine, yet it is a.fact that most drivers look after the motion andthold the driving licence, but are not responsible, as you put it, for the direction.
I think that the sooner the whole of us transport drivers realize that we should be in charge of the machine and take the wheel and control the engine, the better it will be for everybody likely to be concerned. I myself ha.vehad 12 years' transport work, and I always take charge of my engine and control it myself.. This puts the driver in his right place, which is the first place. The second man should learn to govern the fire and water, no as to be able to keep up the pressure in the boiler and to avoid wasting the steam when travelling.
would like to add that, in my opinion, it is desirable that an applicant for a driving licence should. first of all have to pass a test, and only if satisfactory should he be given a driving licence. Road transport is growing too rapidly for licences to be granted so easily as is the case to-day, but T think thatthe scheme would have to be carefully arranged, as we could not put up with being continually stopped by policemen desiring to know if we were qualified and licensed drivers.—Yours faithfully, TRANSPORT DRIVER.'
Hunslet, Leeds:
Hints on Maintenance.
The Editor, THE COMMERCIAL Moran.
[1848] am sure that the majority of the readers of your interesting paper will greatly appreciate your new feature entitled "Hunts on Maintenance." This should appeal particularly to the small garage repair man who does not deal with a large number of vehicles of any particular type, and may find it somewhat difficult to understand the peculiarities of individual machines.
The feature deserves to be a successful one, and I hope you will receive a large number of contributions, to which I shall look forward with keen interest. —Yours faithfully, REPAIRER. Edgbaston.
Protecting Coach Passengers.
The Editor, TETE COMMERCIAL MoToR.
[1849] Sir,—I was very interested in a paragraph i entitled " Passenger Protection " which appeared n your last issue on one of your pages devoted to progress in passenger transport. The paragraph dealt with the use of Auster wiedscreens to each row of seats in a char-à-bance.
As a regular passenger in motor coaches, I have frequently experienced the need for some further protection than that afforded by the single windscreen and the ordinary type of hood. In cold or wet weather only the passengers in the front row of seats are at all prOtected, and, although the expense of protecting the other seats is probably considerable, there is no doubt that many persons would be willing to pay a little more for the extra comfort prQvided
-Yours faithfully, PASSENGER. Bournemouth.
Hire-purchase Criticism.
The Editor, TEE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
[1850] Sir,—I was very pleasedto note the criticisms of hire-purchase transactions made by Mr. G. Eustace and published in your issue dated May 10th. Up to the present there has been far too much of the "take it or leave it" spirit displayed by the companies who sell on the hire-purchase system. One very unfair point in most of these transactions is that if the purchaser, through misfortune, finds himself unable to pay further instalments, the vehicle can be seized by the hire-purchase company, and he is left without any redress or compensation, although he may have paid three-quarters or mare of the total cast. In such cases, would it not befairer and tend to increase such sales if a certain amount of compensation could be given, dependent upon the value of the vehiclei at. the time of seizure and the amount of money paid to the company ?—
Yours faithfully, H. JENIIINSON Crewe. •