Important Statistics.
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The Royal Automobile Club has compiled a complete return of all classes of motorcars, both light and heavy, as at the eoth September last, from returns furnished by the registration authorities of the United Kingdom. The Scottish and Irish clubs cooperated for their respective countries. A summary of the totals, with the comparative figures for the year 5905, is given herewith, and we are gratified to note the large totals for what are officially termed "trade vehicles." It is a matter for regret, however, that a large and unknown proportion of these vehicles are not heavy motorcars, but merely light ones which are used for trade and business purposes, and which are therefore exempt, under the Excise Act of 1888, from the payment of carriage duty. Turning to the third column, the total of public conveyances is higher than we should have anticipated; it is clear that full allowance is needed for lapsed registrations.
Statistics of this kind were first got together, to Midsummer Day, Igoe, for the purposes of an address before the Royal Sanitary Institute, at Gies gow, by the Editor of this journal. Similar returns were then compiled, for the years teo5 to 1907 inclusive, by one of our contemporaries; even then, some 17 months ago, there was doubt ii the minds of many who were competent to judge as to the accuracy of
such returns. At that date (July 27th, 5907), our contemporary estimated that its own figures required to be corrected by a deduction of 5 per cent. from the total returns of motor vehicles—an estimate which we considered very inadequate. So long, however, as the registration authorities cannot accept the huge extra work of analysis and revision, which is admittedly involved by the checking of old registrations, which date back to the ist January, leoe, in order to determine how many of the registered vehicles are no longer in effective use, so long must any at tempt at accurate statistical information be abortive. The most satisfactory feature of the returns under notice is that, no matter how drastic the allowances for lapses and cars taken out of the country, they more than bear out the most optimistic estimates as to the number of commercial motors.