SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23RD, 1909.

TH_E AUTOCAR .a Journal publtsbe~ tn tbe interests of tbe mecbantcall\? propelle~ roat > carriage.

EDITED BY H. WALTER STANEq.

No. 731. VoL. XXIII.J SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23RD, 1909.

[ PRICE 3D.

The Autocar.

(Published Weekly).

Registered as a Newspaper for transmission in the United Kingdom. Entered as second-class matter in the New York (N.Y.) Post Office.

Three Editions every Friday.

The THREEPENNY EDITION, printed on Art Paper. The PENNY EDITION, printed upon thinner paper. The FOREIGN EDITION, price 3d., printed on thin paper for transmission abroad.

Editorial Office :

COVENTRY.

Publishing Offices :

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

CONTENTS. NOTES HORSE-POWER RATING .. IPSWICH AND EAST SUFFOLK A .C . Vl AR GAME USEFUL HINTS AND TIPS (ILLUSTRATED) " The Autocar League " .. THE NEWEST 20 H.P. STANDARD (ILLUSTRATED) .. T HE D EVELOPMENT AND ROAD l MPROVEMENTS BILL A RUSSIAN RELIABILITY RUN (ILLUSTRATED) ON T HE ROAD T HE 16-20 H.P. STELLA CAR (ILLUSTRATED) .• ON THE TRACK (ILLUSTRATED) • • BODY DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION (ILLUSTRATED) . . MOTOR UNION NOTES . . T ;IE STAR COMPETITION CAR ANO 1910 STAR MODELS THE PREMIER AMPERO RECTIFIER (ILLUSTRATED) .. THE CINOGENE SELF-STARTER (ILLUSTRATED) THE BELGIAN SPEED TRIALS .. SMALL CAR TALK • • A NEW S >rALL CAR (ILLUSTRATED) THE HALL E.I.C. DUAL IGNITION (I LLUSTRATED) • • CORRESPONDENCE (ILLUSTRATED) ITEMS OF INTEREST (ILLUSTRATED) .. FLASHES (ILLUSTRATED) • •

P AGE.

619 620 620 621 • . 622-626

627-629

629 630 . . 631-632 . . 633-634

635 636 637 638 639-640

640 641 642 . . 643-644 · · 649-650 . • 651-654 . . 655-656 . . 657-658

Subscription Rates :

British Isles-Home Edition, 16s.; penny (thin paper edition), 6s. 6d.

Abroad (thin paper edition), 22s . 8d. per annum. Index to Advertisements appears on page 38,

Notes. The A.A. Patrol Case. As most motorists know, an A.A. scout ,ras fined some time ago for obstructing the Surrey police in the execution of their duty. The obstruction consisted of warning motorists that they were in a police trap. The scout, or rather the Automobile Association on his behalf, appealed against the magistrates' decision, and the appeal went against the scout. We cannot yet comment upon the decision, but it must not be imagined that the Automobile Association will withdraw its patrol organisation or alter its policy. There is a tendency in some districts to imagine that the A.A. is an association for aiding and abetting inconsiderate scorching motorists, but this is not so.

As a matter of fact, in the large majority of districts where the authorities discriminate between reckless and reasonable driving, the A .A. patrols and the police

1rork together and not in opposition, and the scouts assi t in controlling motor traffic and in ensuring public safety, beside. being at the service of members of the Association in many other \\"ays. In Surrey, despite the objectionable methods of the police in so many parts of the county, the A.A. patrols ha,·e loyally assisted the police in more than one case of reckless driving. The A.A. ha done splendid 1rnrk for automobilists, and there is no doubt that ll"ithout it motoring 1rnuld have been almost impossible in certain counties 1rhere prejudice is rampant. and Section 9 of the Motor Car Act is used in a way ll"hich was unquestionably never intended or foreseen when the Act was passed.

I t is not expedient to div ulge the p lan of campaign at the moment, but it is highly probable that a determined and concerted crusade wil I be started again. t the " black " counties in ll"hich the safety of the public is lost sight of in the desire to obtain revenue from fines 1r hich are nothing less than a toll upon motor traffic. The Association has over 12,000 members, and its membership continues to increase, and 11·e ue glad to know that it contemplates an action very imil ar to that ,rhich ll"e briefly outlined recently in connection with " The Autocar League," as there is no doubt that the only way to touch counties or districts which regard motor traffic as a money making proposition is to influence a ll motorists to abstain from spending any money within such prejudiced areas. The policy of long suffering or indifference has been tried and found wanting.

The Autocars of 1910. In accordance ll"ith our usual custom, ire shall publish "The Autocars of 1910," or the Buyers' Guide as it i so often called, prior to the Show next month. This is an old established and much appreciated feature of The Aiitocar which is invaluable to visitors to Olympia, and is used for constant reference by our readers in the colonies and abroad. It may be remembered that this tabulated list gives the name, horsepo11·er, and number of cylinders of each car on the market, and, in addition, all the leading dimensions and particulars are furnished, such as bore, stroke, system of lubrication, and ignition. The number of speeds is giYen, as ,rell as the system of transmission. Then come all the leading dimensions, such as wheelbase, track, body pace. and so forth, while one or two new dimensions have been included to meet the requirements of our reader abroad. Last, but not least, the question of tyre sizes, chassis weight, and price are dealt with. With this list in hand any visitor to the Show or student of car dimensions and details can find out every leading particular of every car for next year. All the manufacturers have been communicated \\·ith , and the list is nO\Y in process of compilation, but should there be any makers who ha,·e not heard from us on the subject we shall be glad if they would apply at once for forms which we will send them so that they can let us have the necessary particulars for inclusion in the Guide. Also will those makers \\·ho have not returned their forms kindly do so without delay ?