Show THE AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY By Frederic J J. Haskin meetings will be held in St. St TWO Two Louis this week which will possess I unusual Interest to the American i public The Automobile Association Association Association tion of America will meet Thursday Thursday Thurs Thurs- day in annual convention and the third national good roads congress will wUl convene on the same day The growing popularity popular popular- ity Dy of the automobile has had a remarkable ble influence on tho the road question In the United States and It is fitting that the automobile Interests Interests interests Inter Inter- ests and the good roads interests 4 should meet to together together together to- to gether in their annual annual an an- rt y nual deliberations I L The wonderful Improvement improvement im Im- im- im i 3 provement in the roads of the United I States during the theL decade now closing L is attributable to the enthusiastic efforts efforts efforts ef ef- ef- ef forts of automobile owners to induce the state authorities to provide better Frederic H HaskIn highways L. L L. L Whitman who on August IS 18 finIshed finIshed finished fin fin- an n journey Y from tram New NewYork NewYork ew York York- to San Franci Francisco FrancIco co in liT ten da days s 's fifteen fifteen fir fir- teen hours and twelve minutes tells tho the story of good road Improvement in a most mosi eloquent wa way Tn In 1903 it required sixty 1 one days to make this same trip and in 1904 It was done in three thirty-three days When Mr Whitman completed his recent journey he deducted four days ten hours and nine fifty minutes from the tile former record made by him In 1906 Thus it will be seen that the running time for the miles between New York and San Francisco hem n cut down to nearly sixth one-sixth of what It was only seven years ago While some of this reduction is due to the improvement in the automobile much more of it is the result of t the e pioneering pioneering pio plo work of the advocates of ot good roads Another long iong automobile journey which peaks peaks volumes for tor the great International International international movement for the improvement of public highways s recently was completed by Mrs Harriet Clark Fisher of Trenton N. N J. J Mrs Fisher Is known as the anvil an vii vil queen being one of the largest manufacturers manufacturers manu manu- of anvils in the world Last year she started out on a globe girdling tour taking with her a maid and ann a man servant Ji In i. i thirteen n. n months she com con completed pitted her trip around the w world which she made made made-In in her car DurIns During Dur Dur- lug Ins the whole Journey she had no serious accidents and although she penetrated far tar into the uncivilized u regions of Asia she experienced little more difficulty than if It she had been touring in America I Th The automobile a are preparing preparing pre pre- paring for tor the greatest season in 1911 that the industry has ever seen The Tha supply of 1910 models ls already Is exhausted exhaust exhaust- ed am an the agents are now talking about the advantages of the 1911 models It is estimated that tha there may maybe b be as many as cars turned out during the coining coming season The great rea t difficulty manufacturers manufacturers' ers ers ers' will experience is In securing a sufficient sufficient dent supply of the accessories for the equipment of their machines It is feared that the business of 1911 will be limited not not by the capa capacity ll of the factories but buty b by y the supply or Of the accessories s. s There will be a larger number of low and medium medium medium me me- priced cars turned out during the coming year than ever er before The popularity popularity larity of the automobile in hi rural districts has brought a demand for cars retailing at less than 1200 and the large Jarge majority of the new f factories are arc preparing to devote their attention to the production of cars for this demand I At Ata a rec recent nt meeting of th the Association of Licensed Automobile Manufacturers it it was decided that the system of dating used In the designation of models ought to be discontinued and a system of letterIng lettering let let- substituted Heretofore cars have been spoken of as 1907 models 1909 models etc This has resulted in an exceedingly low value being placed upon second hand cars by purchasers sers Under the system of lettering to be followed hereafter the machineS machined of a given year rear will be called model A A. A model B B. B etc It Is believed by automobile dealers that this will result in s second cond hand cars ears having hav hay ing a sales value more in proportion to their actual worth than Is the case to day Of course this is based upon the assumption that the bu buyers ers of second hand cars are not Informed as to the real significance of the lettering system Perhaps the most notable legal decision ever made in the automobile world was that recently handed down by Judge Judg Hough of New York affirming the validIty validity valid valid- ity of the Selden patent In 1879 Geor George B. B Selden of Rochester N. N Y Yf filed an ani i application for a patent covering co automobiles automo automo- biles bites driven b by gasoline In 1895 his lits patent was issued Since that time there has been a series of suits pending and the matter mattE now is to be carried to the court of last resort A large proportion of the automobile manufacturers of the country have joined the Association of Licensed Automobile Manufacturers 1 and are fighting for the validity of the Selden patent It Is said to be one of the fears of the tho automobile trade that at some fu future future fu- fu ture time there may be an oversupply of machines turn turned d out and it s expected I that this association will be successful in holding down production to at least the point of 01 demand The Selden patent expires expires expires ex ex- ex- ex pires In 1912 and it is probable that after date there will be a reduction in t the e prices o of automobiles One of the demands of automobile owners today is for a device that will prevent Joy riding During the last year or two so many cars have hae been surreptitiously taken out by chauffeurs and others for Joy riding purposes that the owners art are highly desirous to have their machines so equipped that it cannot cannot cannot can can- not be dope done without discovery All sorts of devices have been placed on the market market market mar mar- ket and the success that has attended their operation ranges from good to in In- In different One of these on the desire to Joy ride comes In the shape ofa of at ofa a plug cut out switch with a lock at at- Another offers a a. locking attachment attachment attachment at at- for the gear shift Still an another another another an- an other records the tho vibrations of the machine machine machine ma ma- chine and the recording instrument is th isso so locked as to prevent access access access' to to it by anyone save sa the owner Another device I is If an automatic speed regulator It is isso isso isso so arranged that whenever the machine travels more than a certain number of miles per hour the power is automatically r reduced to a point within the speed limit Those who have equipped their cars with speed control apparatus find there are no Joy rides and no violation of the speed laws by cars so equipped During DurIn the present year there has been beena a careful study of the adaptability of the automobile in operations against airships In case of war The Northwestern military mili tary academy purchased three automobiles automobiles automo automo- biles blies and equipped each of them with a rapid fire shots a minute 30 caliber gun This gun had a a. sighted range of 2000 yards ards The machine was manned b by oy 0 y four lour cadets and ana anu carried carriea carnea an equip equip- equip b by oy 0 y four lour cadets and ana anu carried carriea carnea an equip equip- equip equIpment equipment ment merit of pounds Under these thee conditions con con- they went through the strenuous Glidden tour from Cincinnati to Chicago via Dallas Tex a distance of 2850 miles mUes Experiments seem to demonstrate that the automobile will be effective In this field General Frederick D. D Grant this year declared In an official report that thata a law ought to be enacted which would enable the army to commandeer every privately private owned automobile in the country country country coun coun- try in case of car One of the latest things s in automobile construction is the equipment of machines machines machines ma ma- chines with individual electric light plants It has been found that a small dynamo can be he placed in iii th the mac l e to advantage and that lamps supplied with current from il it will give Jl the most s satIsfactory satisfactory sat sat- t- t light It will wUl not be necessary for the man who wants his lamps lighted by electricity to buy new ones for at much less expense he can have his old gas lamps fitted up with electric bulbs A new seat has been Invented In for in increasing In- In crea creasing the passenger capacity of automobiles automobiles automobiles au au- au- au in emergencies This seat ma may maybe maybe r be clamped on the rear mud guard the running board constituting a foot rest for the additional passenger er As one of these seats may be placed on either side of the machine It will be possible to seat two extra passengers Another new departure In automobile equipment is the use ue of wireless telegraphy In the Glidden Glidden den tour this year automobiles were fitted up 1 with small outfits which had hada a range wide Ide enough to l keep the tourIsts tourists tourists tour tour- in touch with the outside world atall atall at atall all times It Is said that the city of Houston Tex has more automobiles in proportion proportion proportion tion to Its population than any other city in the United States There are 1300 machines with a total population of less than The states of pf If the central west est are said to have more machines machines machines ma ma- chines In the rural communities than any other section of the country and in these states are found a majority of ol the automobile manufacturing plants plant of the countr country The rise of the automobile industry has had It ft Its disadvantages as well as Its ad ad- ad vantages vantage A big hat manufacturer declared declared de de- de- de dared recently in a bankruptcy proceeding proceed proceed- ing against him that his financial em- em grew o out of at the rise of the automobile business b He asserted that there are not tenth one-tenth as many silk hats sold toda today as there were before the advent of or automobiles and attributed this to the fact that men who ride i in automobiles cannot wear ear silk hats to an any advantage I I. I The President Tomorrow Tomorrow The The Government at Work |