MARCH 27TH, 1909.

THE AUTOCAR B Journal publisbe~ in tbe interests of tbe mecbanicalll? propeUe~ roa~ carriage.

EDITED BY H. WALTER STANER.

No . 701. VoL. XXII.l

SATURDAY, MARCH 27TH, 1909.

ll'RICE 3D.

The Autocar.

(P u blished W eekly.)

Registered as a Newspaper for lra , smission in the United Kingdom. Entered as second-clas~ matter in the New York (N.Y. ) Post Office.

Three Editions every Fr iday .

The THREEPENNY EDITION, printed on Art Paper. The PENNY EDITION, printed upon thinn,r paper The FOREIGN EDITION, price 3d. , printe d on specially light bank paper for transmission abroad.

Editorial Office :

COVENTRY.

Publishin6 Offices :

20, TUDOR STREET, LONDON, E .C ., England.

CONTENTS. NOTES ON THE TRACK USEFUL HINTS ANO TIP~ • • THE DAIMLER ENGINE TEST (ILLUSTRATED) WARNIN G POSTS IN CUMBERLAND A UTOMOBILJSATION AUTOMOBJLISATION. THE GUARDS PAS-SING

P.<G£ . . 415-416·

41 6 417 . . 418 -41 9

419

(ILLUSTRATION) MOTOR UNION NOTE~ THE AERO AND MOTOR BOAT SHOW (ILL USTRATED )

4 21 423 · · 424 -433

A MICHELIN FLYING PRIZE-ROAD S IGNS TN DEVON AND

CORNWALL

4 33

SMALL CAR TALK • •

4 3 4

THE ROYAL A UTOMOBILE CLUB ANN UA L GENERAL MEETING

AND DINNER • .

439

THE r4-r6 H. P . ADAMS FOUR-CYLINDER C AR (ILLUSTRATED) • • 440 -44 2 .1..'"HE T ECHNICAL INSTRUCTION IN MOTOR CAR ENGlNEERING--

·TH E PASSING OF TRAM-CARS

442

-CORRESPONDENCE..

A C HAT ON AUTOMOBILJSM IN AMERJCA • ,

• • 443~447

. • 448-449

.MOTOR UNION COMliITTEE M ONTHLY MEETING • •

FLASHES • •

449

• • 450-451

A P UNCTURE T EST-AN EASY STARTING DEVICE-A N OVE L

ACCUM ULATOR C LUB DOINGS .SOME QUERIES AND REPLIES • •

452 453 454

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• British Isles-Home Edition, 16s.; penny (thin paper) e d ition , 66 . 6cl .

Abroad (thin paper edi tion), 22s. 8d. pee 8.J\num . Index t o Advertisements appears on page 36.

Notes. A Demonstration of Skilful Driving. All ca reful observers must ha\·e noted the greater ,skill \ri th which cars are handled and controlled on il:he road to-day than was the case a few years ago. This is not only due to the impr01·ement in the ca rs ,themselves , but also to th e skill which long practi ce -or careful instruction has giv en to drive rs . No better proof of tlus can be offered than ithat a fforded by the Automobile Association run to H astings last week. Here we had over 300 cars driven in close order on roads which in many cases were very treacherous, ·owing to the glaze of ice with which they were coYered, and yet there was not a single accident either on the ,open ro;i rl<. where speed was comparatively high, or in the crowded streets, where it was low. It is certain ly the most st riking demonstration which has been given for a long time of the extraordinary safety and ease of control of a good modern car when properly handled. What makes the demonstration the more remarka bl e is the fa ct that the re mu t unquestionably have been some drivers who were not very skilful in the A.A. run . :Many of them, we know, we re oiners 11·ho ha1·e drive n cars from the commen cement of the automobile era, but others certainly did not possess more than the ave rage skill, if as much, and yet all of them went through both out and home 11·ithout the semblan ce of an accident . It may seem absurd to boast of a drive to th e coast and back without a contre temps, and so it would be under ordinary conditions, but only those who have driven in a crowd of fast mo1·ing cars recognise the difference between a.n ordinary trip and the successful demonstration of last week.

Undoubtedly the all-round impr01·ement in dri \·ing has been mainly brought about by mechanical improvements in control , which on all the best cars is now o eas1· a nd certa in. In the old daYs it was almost entire ly e ffected b~· th e clutch and bra-kes . N01rndays the brakes are u ed so littl e a nd th e throttl e so much. All o rdinary checks a re mad 1rithout touching the brakes at a ll , and the often disc uss ed virtue of fl exibility has n 1·er made it. elf so usefull y apparent. Not so long ago it 1rns the attribute of comparatively few engines, and to-day there are wide differences between the most and the leas t fl exible, but almost the worst of them to-day i as good as the best of a very few yea rs ago. Then, again , brakes are much b tte r- not only rnstly more reliable, but much smoother in action. ~o great adrn nces have been made in steering, but here again the average has been 1·ery much raised, so that, 11·hil e 1Ye had ca rs which steered as well in the earl)· days of wheel steering as we have to-day, th ey we re quite the exception. It is true there is still much to be done in the improvement of . teerin g, but it is undoubtedly bette r a ll round to-day th an it has eve r been before. There is nothing new in all this , but the facts have been emphasised by the successes of last 11·eek 's demonstration . The A.A. has do1:~any good services for motorin g, and its last work i5t:...n e for which it d ese rves the highest cred it.

The Road as a Playground. The law forbidding the use of the road as a playground is found negatively stated in a number of cases holding that the right of the public upon a highway is merely a right of pa sage for the purpose of legitimate travel, and it is put positive ly in Section 72 of the Highways Act, 1835. Pl aying at football or any other game on a ny part of the highway to the annoyance of any pas enge r or passengers is an offence ranking with riding or driving upon the footpath, tethering animal thereon, injuring or obstructing the road, damaging the banks, direction posts o r milestones, pitching tents or making fires on the highway, bait ing bulls , l aying timber, su ffering filth to