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Show Immmrn BI MOTOR TRUCKS "Motor trucks made possible the punitive exepdition into Mexico," says L Henry Farrington of the Society of . Automobile Engineers, "the United 3 States military authorities being faced Sfi with the problem of securing many K hundreds of additional four-mule army K- escort wagons and thousands of ani ls mals, had it not been for the auto transport. Il "There would also hare been overj f.r 1,000 extra mule drivers. The expense lw of purchasing and operating this B equipment would have been simply K enormous, and the mobility of the K expedition would have been seriously K impaired, jp Due to Business Men. p- "America owes what success the h Mexican expedition has had to her I progressive business men. In Euro- I pean countries, especially Germany, 1' Austria. France and Russia, it was If' due to the foresight of the military! I,' authorities that motor trucks Avere' available when war broke out. Thisi was brought about by the various systems sys-tems of motor lorry subventions that obtain to a greater or less degree in practically all European countries. "In the "United States there is no subsidy for motor wagons. Hence, when the Washington government decided to co after Villa, the business I demanded for motor trucks had put the American motor truck manufacturers manufac-turers In a position to furnish on very short notice large quantities of motor trucks suitable to a greater or less degree de-gree for military transport work. "It must not be thought, however, that the military men themselves were at all backward. On the contrary, they did wonders with the niggardly funds placed at their disposal for tho purchase of military motor truck equipment. First Real Test3. "Although experiments with motor trucks were made by American army officers as far back as nine or ten years ago, the first serious experiment toward improving military road transportation trans-portation was made in the summer of 1912, when a competitive test of various va-rious makes, types and capacities of motor trucks, loaned for the purpose by truck manufacturers, was made between be-tween Dubuque, Iowa, and Sparta, Ordinary Truck Fails. "This experiment was not at all conclusive, except in two important particulars. It was shown beyond tho Bhadow of a doubt that while the ordinary or-dinary truck of commerce was a very efficient and economical machine for use on a fairly good road, it failed completely tinder army service conditions condi-tions in the field, when it was required to travel through hub-deep mud or sand and over steep grades and rough country. It was also proved to the satisfaction of the military officers that a motor truck having a load-car-' rying capacity of one and one-half to two toiiB was the most serviceable size for use under bad road condl-"The condl-"The test was successful and unquestionably un-questionably resulted In many improvements im-provements being made in motor truck design and manufacture within j the following two or three years. Go Where Wagon Goes. "The report of tho military officers making the Dubuque-Sparta test practically prac-tically outlined the service conditions for the perfect military motor truck, which did not exist at that time. Boiled down to its essentials, tho re-porL re-porL defined a perfect truck as a machine ma-chine that would go anywhere a four-mule four-mule army escort wagon could travel. "Most of the motor trucks used by the United States military forces In Mexico aTfl nnninnprl xatih fi-u j -- - ...v.. liuicuuttiu box bodies similar to those used on K the regular army escort wagons. rflH These trucks are employed in carry- NH ing provisions, camp supplies and am- I !B munition to the base and temporary UH camps and to the troops in the field. Ij Other Types. fjH "Besides these thero are a number B of other interesting body types, in- eluding tank wagons ior carrying gas- jH oline, lubricants and water, trouble or Ll repair trucks equipped with machin- f cry and parts for effecting repairs in H the field, and containing among other things an oxyacetyleno welding out- H fit and bench equipment, etc. There H are also being developed army motor H field kitchens, pontoon wagons and Dther special motor vehicles." H j |