Out and Home.—By " The Extractor."
Page 32
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Mr. Charles Challiner, of Shrewsbury and Challiner, was calling at a manufacturers at the same time as myself last week and, with only a brief moment at his disposal, storied a friendly upbraiding of " THE Com_ MERCIAL MOTOR over a recent paragraph anent the possibility of a reduction in the price of tires. I was open to go into the matter, but it had to he postponed until show time, when we shall all have odd moments in which to discuss affairs and exchange ideas. The office of " THE COMMF.ECFL MoToR at the last comnwrcial vehicle show at Olympia was an oasis at tea-time to Many, and we have larger space at out disposal this year, and I shall be heartily glad to see my friends in the trade—so will Mr. Challiner, and many others, please note.
Mr. W. T. Clifford Earp, well known in connection with the " Thames " light van, and better still as a daring and skilful driver of motor speed monsters, awl as a record breaker, is laid up for the moment with influenza. I retain a lively recollection of Clifford Harp acting as mechanician to a lady driver in an automobile event and in a car in which I was the observer appointed by the Club. We were going at a very nice pace ---" well up to the legal limit " is the guarded, regulation description—but Earp's sensitive ear detected a leakage and he was soon out on the footboard, with the, bonnet lifted, and hanging on as best he could. "Give me a tool of some sort and a piece of wood," and a heavy spanner and a stray piece of timber were quickly passed along to him. TIe shaped it as he desired it, and plugged up a blownout compression tap, hanging on the • While by his knees, I think. The car bounded forward and came in the winner of the trophy. Earp is not a man to
• be easily thwarted. Mr. B. Polack, of the Polack Tyre Co., is, I understand, over in this country for a short visit, and Mr. Albert Brown, of Brown Brothers, Ltd., is just concluding a business trip to the Continent. He was last heard of at Antwerp, which city is very active in motor developments just now.
One pleasant little interlude from business, at last year's Olympia show, was a trip organised by the humble person who pens these lines. The Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race took place on the last Saturday of the show, as, oddly enough, it does this year also. It was only on the morning of the eventful day last year as I was proceedMg to the Show, that the idea of a run dawn on a motorbus took shape, and it was quickly arranged. A merry little party enjoyed the change fully, and we were able to pull into a field on the river bank, and from our lofty point of vantage had an excellent view of the aquatic struggle. I shall be glad to arrange .a trip this year, and any exhibitors and their friends who would like to participate will be able to glean full particulars from me at our office at the exhibition. Ladies might be invited.
One of life's little compensations occurred to me the other day, when Mr. W. J. McCormack, of Frorne Tires, waylaid me at the Motor Club and, after some little talk, thus expressed himself in a delicately formal, and altogether kindly, manner. "I have to convey to you my heartfelt thanks for inducing me to insert an advertisement in the pages of your journal." I blushed very nearly and murmured my great pleasure at his remarks and he went on to say, " an old friend of outs in the coach trade recently purchased three public-service, motor chassis and the makers strongly recommended a certain make of tires. Before the matter was actually settled, our friend, being
now interested for the first time in the motor-vehicle movement, bought a copy
of THR COMMERCIAL MOTOR,' caught
sight of our advertisement, and learned for the first time that we were making motor tires, he immediately communicated with us, and we are supplying tires for the three vehicles."