Wh at Users Tell Us 4 Y 4 Interview /3
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This user says : " There is little question as to the superiority over the horse." of the motor
Most of us have, from time to time, viewed with distinctly mixed feelings the sight of a van, belonging to one or other of the big spiritdistributing concerns, drawn by horses, We have doubtless wondered why petrol companies, of all business undertakings, should thus seem to be amongst the last, to adopt a petrol-propelled machine.
We recently learned of the delivery, by the Albion Co., of a four. tonchassis to the Gas Lighting Improvement Co., Ltd., the enterprising proprietor of a number of well-known brands of petroleum spirit, amongst which perhaps the best known are the various grades of Carburine and Glieo—the latter a name aptly invented by the stringing together of the company's somewhat numerous initials. We thought it would he interesting to learn at first hand how this company viewed its experimental employment of motor haulage for the distribution of petrol spirit, hoping to be able to point a, moral from its initiative which should result in the quicker adoption by the great petrol corporations of horseless transport.
Piloted by Mr. W. Sanders, the company's depot manager, on a recent occasion, we sought. a short interview with Mr. F. S. Clark, the sales manager, and we found these two gentlemen quite willing to tell us what they could of their delivery methods. The principal works are at West Ham, or, as Mr. Clark put it, "we make the smells in the East End, and we distribute the spirit from depots in the outer zone."
"At present you only have one motorvan, Mr. Clark ? "
"That is so, and it is. an Albion four-former. We used to have a twotonner of the same snake, and for three years we got hard work out of it, although it must be admitted that some of our early experiences were not of the happiest nature, perhaps because we tried unsuccessfully to employ clinched-on tires."
" And this new machine, how long have you had it?" " T think it is not yet three months," was Mr. Clark's reply, Mr. Sanders putting the date as being early in November.
"The point is," continued Mr. Clark, we have not quite made up our minds on this matter of the haulage question for our own depots, either as from works to (sopa, or from nepot to retailer. personally am con vinced that there is tittie question as to the superiority of the motor over the horse. 1 ou see our conditions are rather difficult. Much of our business is, shall we say, ot a touting nataire. We never quite know how much of our load we are going to i succeed n dropping at the retailers' on the route. On the other hand, we may go out with a load and may not have half enough for the local demands We have to carry a quantity of two or three different brands, and it is not the easiest of matters, although it may seem simple, to proportion the amount of each of which the load shall consist."
" Your smaller machine must have given even more trouble in that respect? "
" That is so. \Nre found that, with a two-tormer, we were putting up a very big dead mileage, owing to the necessity of our constantly returning to headquarters for fresh supplies. Now, with our bigger machine, we take on a big load and make a long round without the necessity of returning for supplies."
" Our greatest problem is to reduce the mileage as much as possible and to increase the gallonage. In other words, we want to carry as much as we can for each mile we travel. Of course, a large proportion of our deliveries is composed of small lots." Of course, your new Albion has not been long enough_ in service for you to say much about costs ? "
" No, we can tell you more about that in a few months' time. The machine is undoubtedly a good one, and we are doing 350 miles a week with it. Our rough records show an average load of 1000 gallons in tins, and we are constuning spirit at the rate of seven miles to the gallon. We keep our cests very accurately, but the latest returns are not at the moment available. You can have them at some future date."
"Of course, you people have been to the front in the matter of benzole " "Yes, and we are still going in the same direction. The following figures may interest you. hi January of last year we sold 609 gallons of Glieo motor benzole ;
in May 53,000 gallons ; in August, 76,000 gallons; in October, D.0,000 gallons of the same stuff. That's progress? Of course, at the present moment we are not quite sure what is going to be the attitude of the authorities on the ta.xation of this spirit. Personally, we should not be altogether surprised if the growing use of this benzole, taken in conjunction with the fact that steam wagons are exempt from all . such taxes, did not have the ultimate effect of forcing the authorities to adopt an entirely new means of taxation. At a-ny rate, it's a question for careful consideration in the near future."