IMPORTANT C.M.U.A. DINNER IN N.W. DIVISION.
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Fr HAT enterprising section of the Com
mercial Motor Users Association's organization, known as the NorthWestern Division (Preston area) SuCceSSfully held their annual dinner at the Bull and Royal Hotel, Preston, On Monday of last week. The chairman of the Preston area, Mr. C. m. Gosselin, M.Inst.T., presided, and was supperted by Mr. H. Astley Bell, JP, the Guild Mayor for Preston, Mr. R. C.-Reynelds, Col. J. P. Hodge, Mr. George Ambler, and the principal commercial motor
users in the Preston'area. Tbe company numbered about 70, and after a well-served meal an interesting toast list was honoured. The chairman was particularly felicitous in his treatment of that oft-repeated theme, " His Majetsy the King and the Royal Family," but he modestly delegated what was really the toast of the evening, i.e., " The C.M.U.A.," to Mr. R. C. Reynolds, and we should like to take this opportunity of congratulating Mr. Reynolds en his efforts in this direction.
Menace of the Railways Bill.
He delivered a very carefully reasoned and thoughtful speech, based on his consideration of the all-important topic of the railway applications for road powers. Ho was cautious in disclosure, but he intimated very clearly that he was in a position to say teat, when the Railways Bill was finally presented to Parliament; it would be a very different thing indeed from that which had been suggested in the first place. It was very nearly an open secret that the railways were surprised to find the great, extent. of tle opposition which their proposals had roused, and had gone a long way further than was originally intended in placating their opponents. He thought that a great deal of confused thinking had taken place in connection with this subject of such vital importance to all road users and to the industry generally.
He begged his hearers to concentrate on the one question of principle as to whether the railway' companies should er should not have the powers for which they were asking, and not to dissipate their energies in intangible discussions as to what the ultimate effeet of such powers would be in this, that, or the other direction.
He stated that the railways' case was framed on a series of assumptions which were by no means arguable. ',First, they quoted the very large amount of traffic that the read vehicles had filched from the railways, whilst they appeared not to take into proper account the fact that a large proportion ef the traffic now road-borne had never been rail-borne and, moveover, that much of it was new as a result of the facilities offered by the roadway as distinct from Tail facilities. Much, too, of such traffic was the result of natural development of commerce, and this also had never 'been rail-borne.
Secondly, their assumption was that, supposing that a large proportion of traffic had been taken away from the railways by the roads, they could recover all, or very nearly all, of this traffic; but that, again, was an assumption which could not be surcessfully argued. There was no evidence that the railways had any specific remedy, for recovering the traffic they had already lost, or, at any rate, any considerable portion of it. What means did they intend to take to Make such recovery? Their proper course was to improve their railway facilities.
Thirdly—and this was the most thoughtful part of Mr. Reynolds's arguments—the railways, assuming that they lad lost a large amount of traffic to the roads, and again assuming that a large proportion of this was recoverable, neglected, or affected to neglect, the allimportant consideration that, if they recovered such supposedly lost traffic, they would only be able to handle it by, road means, and that such means would cost them, additionally to their existing costs, i.e., those arising from the inauguration and maintenance of the new motor traffic they would have to acquire. In other words, whilst the railwayswere deploring the loss of traffic On existing and continuous costs, they were proposing to recover this traffic without reducing them, but by adding also the necessary motor vehicle costs. Moreover, their new enterprise would only result in the earning of :the, sante moderate return on ca,pititi expended on the new plan as wouldaccrue to any other haulier in a big way. There was no question of their proposed motor vehicle 'enterprises improving the position of the enistieg railway shareholder, which was, presumably, the only object they should have in mind. The responsibility of the railways to the public was to give them first-class economical railway facilities, and them it ceased.
The Line of Municipal Thought.
Mr. Astley Bell, the very popular Guild Mayor of the old city of Preston —it is to be remembered that Preston is celebrating this year its great festival which occurs every 20 years—made a strong appeal for more consideration for corporation and municipal officials, who were selected with very great trouble, and as a rule it was only possible to remunerate them at rates which might be anything between one-third and onesixth of the sums they could earn professionally in ordinary business.. He claimed the help of the commercial motor industry to assist him in making Preston Guild Year a memorable one.
'Several of the speakers paid great tribute to Mr. Gosselin's energetic activities in the North-Western Area of the C.M.U.A., and pointed out. how much the area owned to his enthusiasm.
Considerable comment was made on the . expenditure involved in the Butt case; but, on the whole, it appeared to be agreed that, although the expense had been a great drain on the resources of the C.M.U.A., the holding-up of extraordinary traffic cases for several years had been of advantage to the industry and that ultimately, no doubt, the law of the land would be altered as a result of the revelations that had occurred during the hearing of the case in the courts.