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Show GOOD WORK OF THE AUTO IN THE HOUR OF DISTRESS HAS PROVEN ITS USEFULNESS. (By L. P. Lowe, Chairman of Board of Governors of the Automobile Club of California.) The following story appears in the Examiner: In the hours of her greatest distress what would San Francisco have done without the automobile? auto-mobile? To the thoughtless, or those unfamiliar with the heroic work performed by the self-propelled vehicles, the answer would seem simple and a rapid conclusion reached that the city would have gotten along just about as well in some way, but to those close observers who saw the seldoir failing machines hurrying, flying hither and thither, thith-er, rapidly removing the sick and wounded from scenes of devastation and death to parts of th' city thought to be. safej again removing the helpless help-less to more distant locations as the first scenes o refuge were claimed by the flames, forcing thei' way over fallen walls and hanging wires through the streets impassable to horse-drawn vehicles, rushing on errands of mercy fraught with extrenv peril and escaping ere disaster befell when deatl would 'have claimed a less speedy messenger, af fording a practically immediately means of com munlcatlon for the military, civic and relief authorities, au-thorities, safety, unconcernedly and rapidly' haul Iing dangerous loads of dynamite for those who fought to save the city, going ever and on when horses were falling In exhaustion and death In a word, accomplishing heroic ends impossible by any other means of locomotion, surely San Francisco's misfortune has attested the supremacy and boon of the automobile. What the automobile did for San Francisco in her hour of darkest need it stands ready to outdo as the silver lining comes to the passing cloud through which the golden rays of sunlight are breaking. As an assistant to the upbuilding of the city no other vehicle can do so much good work. The runabout and touring cars will afford a speedy and every-ready means of transportation to those who must now move over considerable distances and to localities which for weeks, aye months to come, will be unfavored with the accustomed ac-customed cable car, there being many hilly localities locali-ties which forbid the trolley and are accessible by horse-drawn vehicles only by long and tortuous routes, but which the automobile will easily surmount sur-mount in the most direct lines. . ' In the rapid up-bullding of the city speedy communication, com-munication, quick transportation and accessibility mean everything; the telephone will care for communication com-munication and those who select the automobile to perform the duties of transportation will reap a rich and quick reward. Not alone has the passenger automobile proven its worth, as the commercial vehicle also came through with flying colors. Heretofore there have not been in San Francisco many commercial vehicles ve-hicles of the self-propelled type, but those few have proven so thoroughly useful and economical as to place their success beyond question. These vehicles are now more than ever needed and their ability to quickly and cheaply handle heavy loads over long distances will unquestionably make them a popular means of transportation. For a long time will San Francisco's streets be crowded with tugging, tired horses and urging teamsters slowly moving heavily laden trucks and the merchant, builder and drayer who foreswears these and adopts both the personal and commercial automobile automo-bile will find himself far in advance of his less foresighted and consequently less fortunate competitor. |