JULY 29TH, 1905.
THE AUTOCAR a 3ournal publisbeb in tbe interests of tbe mecbanicall\? propeUeb roab carriage.
EDITED BY H. WALTER STANER.
No. 510. VoL. XV.] SATURDAY, JULY 29TH, 1905.
[PRICE 3D.
TlfE AUTOCAR.
(Published Weekly.)
Registered as a newspaper for transmission in the United Kingdom. Entered as second.class matter at the New York (N.Y. ) Post Office.
EDITORIAL OFFICE:
COVENTRY.
PUBLISHING OFFICES :
2 0, TUDOR STREET, LONDON, E.C., ENGLAND.
CONTENTS.
PAGE
N OTES: DEFINITION AND CLASSIFICATION- WHERE SHALL CHILDREN
PLAY ?-FRANCE AND MOTOR RACING
UsEPUL HINTS AND TIPS. By Lieut. Windham, R.N. T HE BRIGHTON MOTOR iHEETING (illustrated) ...
ON THE ROAD, By Owen John ...
125-126 ... 127 128-139
140
CONTINENTAL NOTES AND Nxws: RACES AND TOURING TRIALS-FRANCE
AND OTHER CONTINENTAL COUNTRIES-THE M OTOR BOAT FIASCO-
THE SIODELEY-MEYAN MATCH
141-H2
IN THlt HOUSE OF COMMONS-THE BLACKPOOL R ACE MEETING ...
CORRESPONDENCE: To INTEREST SPECTATORS I N CIRCUIT RACING
LONDON TO SCOTLAND- THE HANDICAPPING AT BRIGHTON
142
TOURIST TROPHY RULES-ENTRANCE FEES FOR CLUB COMPETITIONS
-INVESTIGATION OF MOTOR ACCIDENTS-BRITISH·BUILT CARS-
THE ADVANTAGES OF PNEUMATIC TYRES ...
143-145
SOME ComlENTS ON THE BRIGHTON MEETING, By Henry Sturmey 146-147
T HE S IDDELEY-MEYAN MATCH
... 147
FLASHES...
!48-150
T HE MOTOR PNEu:-.1ATtc TYRE Co.-THE 1 ' PERFEcr" MOTOR TYRE
(illustrated)
151
CLUB DOINGS : CLUB F1xTURES-LINcs. A.C.-WELSH A.C.-NoTTS.
A .C.- THE AERO CLUB-MANG.HESTER M.C.
... 152
" THE AUTOCAR " SUBSCRIPTION RATES. British Isles, 16s. Abroad (thin paper edition), 22s. Sd. per annuu1
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Notes. Definition and Classification. Mr. Rees Jeffreys, the secretary of the Motor Union, in sending his congratulations upon the return of the number of motor vehicles, etc., registered in the united Kingdom, published in the last issue of The Aiitocar (page roo). says: " The return will be useful in many ways, and particularly so to the Motor Union in connection with the preparation of the auto-
mobilists' case to be laid before the forthcoming Royal Commission." ~Ir. Jeffreys, however, takes exception to the application to one of the classes of the term '· pleasure cars. " This he thinks is inaccurate and misleading. \\'e quite appreciate his objection, but the term 1rns adopted as being one already in general use for the purpose of differentiating the cars included under the heading, and 1rhich are not used for strictly utilitarian purposes from those which are so used. The latter are now exclusi,·ely dealt with by our offspring, JI otor 1'ract,ion. A more complete description would ha,·e been " cars capable of being used for pleasure," and this is what is popularly understood by the definition.
It is quite true, as :.1r. Jeffreys points out, and as is also well known to all motorists, tha:t cars weighing less than t11·0 tons a.re by no means all pleasure cars. The cars ll'hich can either be used en_tirely for business or partly for business and partly for pleasure can now be numbered by thousands. There are, for example, many cars used by doctors for their professional work which are in no sense of the term "pleasure " cars. Mr. J effreys's chief reason for objecting to the use of the term at this juncture is that it is calculated "to confirm our critics in the H ouse of Commons in their most unjustifiable assumption that the light motor car is purely a pleasure vehicle, and that those who own them u e the public roads, raise dust, and inconvenience the public merely for their own amusement." He suggests that in the future the definitions of the two classes should be " light " and " heavy '' cars.
We quite agree that this would be more politic from a Parliamentary point of view, but as it happens the term "light car " is already used amongst motorists to de cribe a particularly light section of the whole cla s which Mr. Jeffreys would designate by that name. The public is very erratic in its choice of names; nearly everything which it labels is labelled wrongly, so far as the etymological derivation of the words is concerned. The great thing is to know what is included in the term. It really matters very little 1rhat specific denomination as applied to the particular class of motor cars in question. \ ,Ve have it on the highest classical authority that " a rose by a.ny other name would smell as s11·eet, ·, and pi easure ca rs would still be pleasure cars were they not pleasure cars ca ll ed. In the e matters of mere nomenclature we must follow the popular lead. but at the same time for purposes of serious discussion from a legislative point o.f view we must obtain, and in ist upon othe rs obtaining. a clear_ idea of what is real ly the type of vehicle included in the terms appliJ!: to different classes. Where shall Children Play?
The ca1·eless and niminal practice of allowing children to roam and play upon the highway is being brought closely home to the minds of coroners and coroners· juries in Yarious parts of the country. From general evidences it will soon be found necessary to take drastic steps with a view to prevent this danger-
