From Our Berlin Correspondent.
Page 18
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At Friday's sitting of the Executive +Committee of the International Motor Exhibition to be held at Berlin in the :autumn it was decided to devote a space of about 1,5oo square metres to motor cans, omnibuses, and boats on ground contiguous to the exhibition halls, and to cover in the same with canvas. This section will include a normal-gauge, steam-motor railway in full working .order, from the Hannovrrsche Waggonfabrik Aktien-Gesellschaft, a benzine-driven road train, and Berlin's new selfpropelled vehicles now being experi.mented with by the local fire-brigade.
Motorbus traffic was commenced in Munich on the mai with a couple of Bilssings, the Gaggenau vehicles not having been delivered in consequence ot -tremendous pressure of orders. It is interesting to note that all drivers en:gaged by the municipality must have worked for some time in the factory in .which the type of machine they will be called upon to drive is built. That the 'Bavarian capital has at length adopted • self-propelled omnibuses is chiefly due to the energy of Dr. Uebel, a well-known motor sportsman of the city. At aa recent meeting of the town council the Mayor was asked what he intended to do in regard to the heavy freight 'motors " which severely taxed the roadsurface." Dr. Kiihles, of the Traffic -Committee, denied that the commercial -vehicles running in Munich " severely taxed the road-surface "; on the contrary, they taxed it much less than the ponderous brewers' drays and the like, drawn by horses. The committee would, however, keep an eye on the 'freight automobiles shod with obliquelystraked iron tires,
On the loth of September the Hes-sian town of Hersfeld became the centre of a second motor post line, the first having been but recently established, and connecting ITersfeld with Treysa. The new line extends as far as Schen
• klengsfeld via Friedewald. Two motor-buses from the Siiddeutsche Automobilfabrik, of Gaggenau, equipped with motors of h.p. and licensed to carry to persons, are employed, each covering the distance three times daily in rhr. 44min. This improvement in the limal traffic and postal service is warmly
appreciated by the inhabitants. Postdirector Fleischer, who initiated the service, has expressed his entire satisfaction with the behaviour of the Gaggenau vehicles, and especially in view of the stiffish gradients on the road. It may be mentioned that the above time could easily be shortened, but the maximum regulation pace for post motors in Hessen stands at 20 kilometres—some 12 miles an hour. On page 54, a bus is shown about to start from the Hersfeld Post Office.
In explanation of the sharp and altogether unexpected drop in the shares of the Berlin Omnibus Company, Dr. Springer, ex-chairman of the Supervisory Board and legal adviser to the banking house of S. Bleichroder, which is financially connected with thecompany, states that the decline is to be accounted for partly by the increased costs of the horse lines and partly by the dilatoriness of the municipal authorities in granting concessions for the motorisation of lines ; of the 30 projected motor lines only live have as yet been sanctioned. Unfortunately for this explanation, Dr. Springer mentions also that the supply of vehicles takes place but slowly, owing to pressure of orders in automobile works, from which it is clear that, even had the authorities dealt with the concessions more expeditiously, the company would not have been able to take advantage of the sanctions, for, as a tnatterof fact, up.to the present, this company has developed but two of those granted.
British Motorbus Orders for German Makers.
The news cabled to Berlin by the London correspondent of a local daily that the " London Motor Omnibus Trust " had placed an Order with the Argus Motoren-Gesellschaft for 300 chassis I am in a position to confirm. Negotiations have been going on between London and the Berlin firm since Christmas, and ten chassis will shortly be delivered on account. The Argus Company turned its attention but recently to the omnibus branch, and purposes making a speciality of this class of work. Chassis only constitute the subject of the big contract. No sooner did I read the cable about the order for soo motorbuses than I personally enquired at the " Argus " Company's place as to the truth of it. It seemed incomprehensible to me that London financiers could actually commit themselves to an order for 300 chassis from a German firm which had practically no experience in constructing frames for omnibus work. Messrs. Stoewer Brothers are to supply 200 chassis : but the Stettin people are old hands at the branch; their omnibuses have long been running on many routes, both in this country and in England. They make a speciality of omnibuses.
I have never seen an "Argus " omnibus. I asked the gentleman whom I generally see when visiting the "Argus" people, how long the company had been building buses.
" Only this year," said he. "Why haven't you built for Berlin, then? "I queried; " how comes it that you have to go to London to sell your goods, when the Berlin Omnibus Company is complaining of the slowness of delivery? "
" Oh," he replied, "the Berlin Olnnibus Company insisted that we should let it have an omnibus—a chassis, that is, as we don't build coaches—on trial, and accept payment if it proved satisfactory; but we wouldn't,"
" Why not? " I asked, rather surprised at the apparent independence, end to this he only murmured something about the company's preferring to do business on a cash basis.
" Our chassis has been described in a leading London weekly," he remarked. " In which? " I naturally asked.
" Here," said he; " you can see it," and he handed me a page from "Tile COM.MRRCIAL MOTOR of July 12th last. [See pages 3oo and 391 of that issue. —ED.]