Out and Home.—By "The Extractor."
Page 14
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A Well-known Agent's Early Days! A Noisy Fellow Annoys a Fellow. "I Don't
Like Dinners."
A good story was told at the Agents' Section dinner by Mr. Rowland Winn, of Leeds, who occupied the chair. It was apropos of nothing, but it suited the humour of the gathering.
Winn's brother has been made a member of the city council, so he thought it was time he sold his old car, which he had driven for many years, and invest in a new one. Some weeks afterwards he espied the old De Dion, transformed by this time into a commercial vehicle, and delivering bundles of newspapers. In the driver's tempmary altseeee he started " twiddling the taps," and a loud protest was the result when the youth appeared on the scene. "Don't you mind me, my lad," said the new city councillor, " I've driven that car thousands of miles." The boy's reply came thuswise : "Oh! hey yeti really l Did yo' hey t' job afore me f "
"if you must talk, make a noise like an order." This was a printed placard irt use at Olympia, which caused much amusement, and tehich I traced to the effervescent Mr. "Johnny" Adams, who took the chair at the annual Lanquet to the Belsize agents on Wednesday of Show week. I was a privileged guest, having as neighbour Mr. A. W, Roslington the well-known. export agent for Belsize vehicles. Supporting the chair were Mr. J. Hoyle-Smith, managing director, Messrs. Dodds, McKnight, Colin Mather, a.nd others. A prosperous
c8
year has to be recorded, 240,000 profit having been earned, and the goodwill being now entirely written off.
"If an earthquake were to engulf England to-morrow the English would manage to meet and dine somewhere among the rubbish just to celebrate the event." This was uttered a good many years ago by Douglas Jerrold. Meanwhile the leopard has not changed his spots, and Show week, although only affecting pleasure cars, was a strenuously hospitable time for many people. The Agents' Section dinner will be dealt with at length on another page. Now that the agents have secured the sympathetic support of the Editor of this journal matters should move towards a more general reconciliation of views. I have long held the opinion, and have given expression to the same in these columna, that the live agent should occupy a most useful place in the heavy vehicle business. He is on the spot, he has the knowledge and the experience in connection with motors, he is the local distributing centre doubtless for oils, tires, and supplies generally, and in many eases his garage is used for housing commercial vehicles. Mr. Stafford, whose "counterfeit presentment" appears on this page, has worked like a Trojan in the agents' cause. Stafford is a remarkable man ; he evidently believes thoroughly in the maxim that "nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm."
do not think I have before met a man who could give himself up so completely to the subject in hand and at the same time make it so attractive. I have known enthusiasts to be such awful bores, but not so with the gentleman whose features and attitude are herewith so faithfully limned. Stafford is a Yorkshireman, fluent of speech, apt with stories and axioms to illustrate and drive home his points, and, moreover, an entertaining man with a. great fund of humour. Some of his hours of leisure are given over to billiards, at which game he shows marvellous qualities of care and skill.
It is an opportune time to commence the manufacture of small engines for commercial vehicles, the demand For a light van for the light trades, such as the stationery, confectionery, drapery, and a dozen others, being extremely large. It will be found that a fac tory is rapidly being fitted up at Willesden for the manufacture of a 10 h.p. engine, which, I understand, will come out at a very low figure. Mr. Bernard A. Kupferberg, B.Sc., is the chairman and managing director, and in an early issue there may be included drawings and details, which, I venture to think, will prove interesting.
Much banter was levelled at Mr. S. F. Edge at the various Show dinners anent his agricultural pursuits. He is, of course, goin in for improving conditions an output with his usual thoroughness and intensity. One smart idea came from Stafford: he predicted that " S.F." would, with a view to obtaining more milk, be developing six-jetted kine in place of the four-jet variety.