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Show Wk WIND-SPLITTING "MOBES." Tihe Automobile Age Seems to Be I in Full Blast. tje speed contests for tho aulomo-bliiMuo aulomo-bliiMuo ribbon, which will take placo 0Tjj,the French roads about I'arls this summer, has set tho motor-racing worbt by the ears, the foreign enthusiasts enthus-iasts especially going to apparently ununited expense In their efforts to secure wbsl Is likely to proo a win-nisi win-nisi machine in sn article upon this "start of millionaires," which recently spared In The Automobllo Magn-alne,tbe Magn-alne,tbe statement Is nude that speed In sn automobllo depends not nione upoo the development of great horse power. n ssserted by somo, nor upon tb slie nt the driving wheels, ns asserted as-serted by others (who point to tho huxe driven on tho modern passenger locomotive In support ot their state-meat)! state-meat)! but upon a combination of llvo factors, the absence of any one ot which In the make-up ot a vehicle designed de-signed primarily for speed might result re-sult in Its defeat In a long-distance contest These five conditions nro (1) the norsa power ot the motor; (2) the number ot revolutions made by thu motor; (2) the weight of a vehicle; (4) tho gearing; (S) construction ot the moving parts, as well as of the entire en-tire carriage, In order to reduco friction fric-tion sad wind reslstanco as much as potilble. The apparently Interminable search tor the happy medium, whero great power will not necessitate correspondingly correspond-ingly and, perhaps, fatally great weight and site, combined with the efforts to reduce wind reslstanco to a minimum, have resulted re-sulted In the building build-ing ot some very curious exsmptes of automobiles, many of which aro nlnost absolutely useltn except for the purpose for which they wero designed high speed snd they cannot consistently consistent-ly be clttscd under the head ot pleasure pleas-ure vehicles. Probably tho most fUirant ex-smplo ex-smplo ot this sacrifice sac-rifice ot beauty Inently mentioned as ono of the French representatives in next sum tner's international races and has been the adversary ot M. Jcnatsy In mnny contests In years past. In this machine the effort to minimise wind reslstanco has not been enrrlod to the lengths that It hns In tho "projectile," probably prob-ably owing to tho designer's unwilling ncss to decreaso the site ot the space dovoted to tho batteries and motor. Tho motor. Is a very powerful ono and desplto the fact of Its being heavier, heav-ier, tho vehtclo la said to bo tho equal M. JENATZY'8 ItACINO "PIIOJECTILE," lines to tho demon of speed Is the I racing "projectile" of M. Jcnatsy I (holder ot the world's automobllo kilometer rtcord), an elcctrlo machine ma-chine constructed ns tho result of a wager that bo cquld design and build an electrorooblle capable of covering lto kllomotora within an hour. When it Is remembered that this means an equivalent of About sixty-two miles an hour, this extremo effort to mlalmlto wind resistance la spparcntly Justified, as Is the gentleman's gentle-man's selection ot an almost absolutely abso-lutely level stretch of 100 kilometers ot smooth road betweon Evereux and Ltaleux, where the special trial will away within the body of the projectile, the only thing In evidence being the necessary gearing. The scat ot tho operator may bo so operator may bo so arranged as to permit per-mit of his assuming assum-ing atich n position as will keep almost his entire body well within the ' bowels" of tho projeetlle.thus still further reducing the wind reslstanco reslst-anco Another ehlcle, tho primary consideration con-sideration In the construction ot which was speed, Is that ot Count Chasseloup I-ou-Int.who was tirom- HI HI I I ! I -" "- " H D1I I'AIIIAS haci:. H In every way ot M Jcnatsy s macblno. I Btlll another peculiar looking vehicle ve-hicle dovoted solely to fast work Is that of M, Do I'alva shown herewith. "Wlndplows" In front and a glsss shield set an nn angle, behind which (he operator msy comfortably observe (he road beforo him, are two features which will result In an addition of speed, If not of beauty to tho vehicle, which la of the electric variety, and, although quite heavy la very powerful. power-ful. The racing machine ot M, Charron (built by the I'anhard company), who will be one ot tho three representatives representa-tives of the Automobile Club do Krsnce In the In- CHAIIOON AND HIS VEHICLE. probably bt mado. An examination of the Illustration shows that tho batteries bat-teries and tbo motor havo been stored ternatlonal races, Is shown In the accompanying ac-companying Illustration. Illus-tration. M. Charron Char-ron Is one of tho most fearless "chauffeurs" I n France, and among his msny noteworthy note-worthy performances perform-ances may be mentioned men-tioned tho Marscll-les-NIco In 1598, Iho Tarls-Amster-ilsm In the samo year and the I'arls- Illordoaux In 1630. Tho peculiar vlrtuo ot M. Cbarron's flyer Is that, unlike most other racing vehicles, ap- pesranco has not been sacrl- jH flcod to speed. It Is com- IH fortablo and steady running, and has nBBPs carried Its fearless owner to the froat QJUHJ mainly by Its ability lo stand long. BMBKi continued strains without succumb' 9hH One of tho most powerful racing- ' H vehicles which has yet mado Its ap- sHEal pearnnro In tho French nutomobll bbsbdRi contests Is the Vnltee, nn llluslratlon jsawS of which Is herewith given The wind B shield foaturo la qulto prominent In this racing machine, and, while almost f completely covering tho operators, tapers to n point In front. The com- pany which builds this vehicle, In H order to lighten It as much as posslbU H consistent with tho requisite strength H to carry Hie weight of iho motors de signed (o develop (he twenty-tour. fl horse-power ot which It Is capable, liaa mads extensive use In the body oj partlnlum, nn Alloy nt aluminum ami tungsten, whose spcclne gravity Is al- H most Identical with that of aluminum H alone, but whnsa strength Is very much greater While posstsslng horaa H power exceeding tho majority of rac- H Ing machines, tho Valleo has as yet H been unsuccessful In winning races, H which may be partly attributable to H Iho facts that It Is driven by a single, H belt and possesses no speed change, H gear detecta which will be remedied H before Its next nppenrnnco In a racej H In this connection It may be stated H that It Is the consensus of opinion1 IH among those devoted to this "sport ol H millionaires" that vehicles developing H a maximum ot slxtien horse powes H ato better adapted to fast work on tho H road than are those possessing greater or less power H A German racing vehicle, tho first H I ot tho kind turned out of the famous H I shops at Csnnstadt, and specially de. IH Mgned to bring the automobile hlus jH ribbon to Germany, la that of Herl Jolllnck, of Vienna, who races undei H tho noru de plume ot "Mercedes," and H who won the Tourists de Nice race In l H 1899. Thta racing machine's four- feTiatH cylinder motor Is also capable ot, do- H veloplng twenty-four horse power, and H although It has not yet been tried la H sctusl contest, the vehicle hss In trial H work shown sustained speeds of H eighty-five kilometers (about fifty- H three miles) an hour a performance H which, If duplicated In next summer's IH International contests, will very likely H result In the discomfiture of the H French chsuffeurs. The machine re- H semble some of the French vehicles H In general outlines, having similar H controlling and speed lovers, dlacon- H tlnulng gear, brake and accelerator. H |
