A Happy New Year to
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Our Readers and Supporters.
THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR has not before, in its nine years of existence, been dated the first day or the year ; that lapse of time is due to the occurrence of more than one Leap-year iii the period noted. The 1st January has thus, for us as a journal, been an unknown date until No. 460. We have, accordingly, had to wait a long time for the opportunity—correct to the day--to wish our readers all good health, happiness and prosperity in the year which lies ahead of them, with which greetings we now open the year 1E4.
Several pages of this issue are devoted to careful forecast and considered indication, under the title of " What 1914 has in Store." We shall esteem the receipt of communications from supporters in regard to any of the points which are advanced on those pages, and such letters may be either for publication as " Opinions from Others," or marked " Private "—i.e., for the Editor's personal correspondence.
The Editor and the Imperial Motor Transport Council.
A paragraph appeared in our issue of the 20th November, page 266, which read as follows : " On the invitation of its chairman, the lion. Arthur Stanley; M.P., Mr. Shrapnell-Smith recently consented to become a member of the Imperial Motor Transport Council."
We regret to find that, subsequent to this announcement, other parties have been responsible for contradictory statements, to the effect that the Editor was not so invited by the chairman of the Council, but had in effect. shown considerable keenness to get on to the Committee, and that the. above-quoted statement was substantially untrue. The facts of the ease are clearly confirmed in the following communication from Mr. Arthur Stanley, which we have his permission to publish :— " It is perfectly true, as stated in the issue of THE COMMERCIAL 1101OR Of the 20th November, that I asked you to join the Imperial Motor Transport gouncil. I am particidarly anxious to have a really representative Council, and there-fore I was desirous that you should join us. I hope and believe that the Council will be of real service to the motoring industry tImoughout the whole Empiye."
We again express regret that statements which savour of unfriendly misrepresentation have been made concerning the Editor in this matter. Far from his seeking or wishing to push himself on to the Council in question, he only consented to join it after Mr. Stanley had twice extended a personal invitation to him to do so. Having joined it provided there is no repetition of the misstatements to which exception is taken, he hopes Co be able to fulfil his sincere intention, to help forward those of its objects and deliberations which are calculated in any way to do good to the motor industry at large. Apart from its appointment of an Alcohol Research Committee, of which Sir Boverton Redwood, D.Sc., is a member, this Council, since its well-attended meetings were held at the Olympia Show of July last, has been actively engaged in various directions. We publish in this issue (page 401) a reference to proposals which it has circulated for the development of commercial-motoY-manufacturing interests in Canada.
This Month's Shows at Manchester ; Olympia in Miniature.
The City Hall, Manchester, has this month to serve as an Oiympia in miniature on two occasions. Privatecar interests are to be represented on a scale which, whilst thoroughly representative, will be much reduced in comparison with the intentions that were the rule and held sway prior to the destruction of the Exhibition Hall at Rusholme last month. Commercial-motor representation will be unchanged as regards exhibitors, but the display is deferred, to the extent of three weeks, by reason of the causes with which we have dealt in earlier issues. We repeat the dates, 30th January to 7th February, on and between which owners and prospective owners may examine the best and latest proditctions in the parcelcar, van, omnibus, char-h-banca and lorry sections, so that there may be no risk of confusion in their minds with the privatecar show (9th to 17th inst.). The space in the City Hall, which is close to one of Manchester's principal thoroughfares, Deansgate to wit, and within easy walking distance of the Royal Exchange and other business centres of the city, is by no means sufficient for all purposes, even WI the heavy side of the industry. It has to be remembered that the units to be staged for appeal to haulage interests require. on the average considerably more area than do those at any private-car display ; again, during the past ;ear, there has been a remarkable extension of the attention that is paid to the needs of the commercial-motor owner by accessory and component manufacturers, and by other makers of and dealers in the ever-growing variety of supplies and consumable stores for which such owners call. This has caused pressure of demand for stands in the narrow galleries. We have held over, for several weeks, publication of the complete list of exhibitors at the show in which we are more particularly interested. It is still four weeks to-morrow (Friday) before that exhibition will open, and we have felt that it is useless to publish the list prematurely. Our arrangements for dealing with the " Call of Lancashire " are as thorough as usual, and readers in the counties which centre upon the port and city of Manchester may look forward to their being apprized of the arrangements in the next few issues, as well as to the " Show Guide" of the 29th met., and the " Show Report" of the 5th prox. On the personal side, it will be the writer's pleasure to attend the S.M.M.T. (Lancashire, Cheshire and North Wales Section) dinner, at the Midland Hotel, Manchester. on Thursday of next week, and he looks forward to renewing many friendships on that occasion.