Publicity For Road Transport
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ROAD transport often does obtain a consider able amount of publicity, but it is usually of the wrong kind. Before the war the so-called National Press did little more in this respect than to publish invectives against the toll of the road, with emphasis •bri the guilt of the motor vehicle, the delinquencies of drivers, suggestions that we were using the highways and not paying for them—in fact, anything that would bring the industry into disrepute. ". Coincident with these Were, „so often, eulogies Of the railways, and statements as to how unfairly they were placed through the competition from hauliers and other carriers, including those on the passenger-transport side, and so on ad nauseum. Most probably, much of this was due to the fact that the railways maintained an extensive advertising campaign and, therefore, criticism of them, if carried beyond a very minor degree, might have reflected adversely upon the revenue of the mediums concerned.
There is, at present, a rather better feeling and a growing spirit of co-operation between road and rail, but we must remember that this may be partly because the railways are now having it nearly all their own way, and are being urgently requested by the Government to carry everything possible and thus permit commercial road transport to be reduced to the minimum. This is claimed to be solely in order to save rubber and fuel and to allow the formation of a reserve of transport vehicles which will be ready for any emergency. Whether or not these be the only reasons, the effects are the same, and road transport is being forced into a position which could never have resulted without the restrictive influence brought about by war conditions.
Strive For Post-war Freedom Now, at last, road transport is, or will shortly be, under almost complete bureaucratic _control, and it can be only by a terrific fight that operators will be able to return to even the limited freedom which existed in pre-war days.
To help in this long step to normality, the public must be brought to' the view that road transport is one of the factors most essential to its comfort and well-being. It is here that properly organized publicity should' prove particularly helpful, and the Press can assist greatly in this if tackled in the right manner. It is not necessary to consider only the big dailies and • Sunday papers; there are hundreds of others throughout the country, all of which exercise a decided influence upon their readers, and it is often the local Press which will publish letters and comments from road operators within its sphere of in.fluence—matter which might receive scant attention from larger organs. • Every attack made upon road transport should be countered by an effective reply from some wellknown man in the trade. Similarly, expressions of appreciation should be followed up. Local editors are not'likely 'to put such letters into the wastepaper basket if they concern their own readers and if they contain good material.
Put Facts Before the Public The respective associations can do a great deal to help in this way. Not only can they have their own publicity committees, but they can supply their members with facts, figures and sound observations, with the request that every opportunity should be taken pf having these brought before the public eye: Paid-for publicity is a little more difficult, because it usually involves a considerable amount of money, although it is often money well spent. As is well known, one large association of bus proprietors took upon itself the task of telling the country how passenger transport by road was being maintained at the fullest possible efficiency, and there is little doubt that the lengthy series already issued must have accomplished a great .deal of good in this respect. At present it will be difficult to find much money available for such a purpose in connection with the transport of goods, particularly in view, of the reduced payments for the services of operators which have been instituted by the Government.
It is important, however, that this question of suitable publicity should receive immediate attention. Everything pdssible should be done now in the manner in which we first suggested and in any other way which can be thought out by our readers. Advertising may have to be left until the war is over, but it would be as well to make preparations for this well before that time. After all, this war has proved_ even more conclusively than ever that mobility is one of the most vital factors, and as the motor vehicle, in many . forms, is playing its part in the fight for freedom, so in the days to come should it find still greater opportunities in promoting the Nation's economic life and happiness.
Women In Industry
WHEN travelling around the various war factories one hears different expressions of opinion as to the ability or otherwise of women to perform .duties which, normally, would be entrusted to men and youths. It is our decided opinion that women, as a whole, are doing a splendid job of work, but, naturally, there are limits to the application of female labour.
On repetition work, where the set-up is carried out by the chargehand, women have shown themselves every bit as competent as men ; in fact, it is true to say that women, in their ignorance of a certain technique adopted by the men, immediately proceed to make previous production figures look silly. We know of cases where women, after taking over from men, have sent output up by as nauch as 300 per cent. This. of course, is on repetition work, after a machine has been set up by the chargehand.
In individual cases female labour can be employed with highly satisfactory results on work demanding initiative, and when they become proficient, which they do in a surprisingly short time, employers are loath to release them from such work.
Where delicacy of touch is essential to good workmanship, women are undoubtedly superior to men. Such instances as high-speed drilling and coil winding may be mentioned, women being particularly skilled in the latter sphere. To our mind, one of the outstanding virtues of women in the factories is the cheerfulness which they promote. They sing while they work—irritating sometimes, perhaps, but it relieves the .monotony and provides many opportunities for wisecracks from the men.
When it comes to specialized work in which a knowledge of stresses and strains becomes essential to the safety of the assembly, then it is questionable as to the policy of entrusting such work to female labour.
For instance, the over-tightening of a nut might have serious consequences, but here, as in many other instances which could be quoted, the makers of machine tools and hand tools help to the extent of providing almost foolproof equipment. One may quote adjustable spanners, which refuse to tighten further when the necessary tension has been placed on the bolt.
There is no doubt that were engineering to be opened up as a new field for the employment of female labour, the tool industry would, as it has always done, provide specialized equipment.
In giving women 100 per cent, praise for their efforts in war factories, it must be conceded that the atmosphere is new to them, and that their future holds visions of their undoubtedly more congenial pre-war occupations.
One outstanding characteristic of a woman is her comprehension of mechanical work after but little instruction, which should, once and for all, kill those unkind remarks one so frequently heard about them in matters of engineering.