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Show AUTOMOBIL1NG j The summary of imports and exports for tho month of August, and the eight months cmllnpr wllli August, issued by the department of commerce and labor, allows thai the exports in motor cars have taken a wonderful upward turn. Such Items as a 100 per cent increase in our exports to France, coupled wltli a 10.3 per cent dcercuse In our imports from thai country, arc particularly gratifying. grat-ifying. k -4 As outlined, the next Grand Prix will be the longest road race ovor run, the distance being nol less than fiOO miles, alt of which must bo run In one day. The bars as to car slzo Itavo been dropped alio, and' there will be no limitations. This practically means a return to the liennolt cup days. ' Space in the tenth International auto-mobllo auto-mobllo show, which opens In Grand Central Cen-tral Palace. New York, 'on New Year's eve, has been allolcd to seventy-two makers mak-ers of American and llfteen Importers of foreign cars. Six ot)nr American mnknra are on tho waiting list, making ninety-three automobile concerns In all. It Is claimed that this Is the largest number over showing In New York. Official llgurcs recently published in England show very clearly I ho rapidity wiln which the motor-driven can.s are replacing Jiorso-drawn vehicles In London. The Hgures show thtiL there Were IOI'.'j hansom cubs iu usu in London on July 1, which was 1290 Iuhs than llio number on July 1 of lliu previous year; of four-wheeled four-wheeled cabs there had been a decrease of ..S0 to a total of JU70, and tho number of taxicubs hud increased 188U to a total of 3:!0t. The passing away of the horse-drawn horse-drawn vehicles Is thus strikingly shown, as the number of taxlcabs had moro than doubled In the twelve months that the horso-drawn vehicles were decreasing about 20 per cent. t 4 Thcro is much sense 'in I lie plea made In Engineering for wheels of larger diameter diam-eter In motor curs. Thai Finall wheels have some advantages is undeniable; Lhoy aro lighter, Cheaper, put ICns strain on the axle; It Is generally simpler to scl the plutform on tho car with them, and it is easier to arrango tho lock for the steering steer-ing gear. On the other hand, there Is much more vibration with small than with large wheels, owing to tho unavoidable unavoid-able inequalities In roads, which is In-JurloiiH In-JurloiiH to llio mechanism, and Increases greally the cost of repairs, and besides, the concentration of louds on wlx.-i'ls of small diameter Involves destruction Of tho road surface. In the case of certain clnss?n of vehicles, ve-hicles, such as omnibuses aud wagons for frolghl. in which speed is of less Importance Import-ance than llio capacity for a heavy load, and where comparatively Iltllo relief can be expected from Improved ilres save at great expense, tho substitution. of larger wheels seems only reasonable, .'he sug-gostlon sug-gostlon Is also made that the call for reat. speed iu pleasure cars, which marked the first introduction ofJthc automobile auto-mobile to the public favor. Is yielding lo a more general demand for more durable and trustworthy machines and for reduced re-duced running expenses. Hero again wheels of larger diamolor would help. More important, however, than any improvement im-provement In the. motor ears themselves Is tho question of saving the roads. The destructive effect of tho 'smaller tires Is demonstrated by malbonlallcs and inc-elmnle, inc-elmnle, but the social dirrieultlcs are shown just an clearly. Motor -cars aro destroying the cxlsllng roads. Tho motorists mo-torists on the one side demand that roads should be brought to u pitch of perfection that will allow tlioin to run their cars at full speed witli no harm to themselves; this Engineering, maintains cannot bo done, unless they are restricted to railroad rail-road tracks. On the other side, the tax-pavers tax-pavers who nay fpr the, maintenance of the roads object to their being destroyed by vehicles that arc not suitable for thorn One remodv proposed Is the taxation of motor cars" according to the diameter of the wheels, tho smaller wheel paying tho larger tax. . , , It would be bettor still to build motors mo-tors fit to run on the roads as they are. ami one. slop toward that object would be gained, according-lo Engineering, by Increasing the dlamotor of the wheels. The. cost would bo verv little compared with that of keeping the roads iu good condition. Tt is a suggestion that is worth llslonlns to. Now York Sun. |
