Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1895-11-21
HorseIess Carriages In New York.

a few Of the new horseless carriages,
which are already in use in large num-
bers in Paris, and are testing them as
delivery wagons. If the tests are sue
cessful these two houses alone will be
able to dismiss nearly thousand
horses from their service, and the re-
sulting economy will be great. Their
example would, Of course, be generally
followed, if it was found to effect a
real saving of time and money, and
not less than 10000 horses now en-
ployed in the light delivery service of
New York and Brooklyn stores would
be retired from the streets.
1t is too early yet, however, to say
that the usefulness of the horse for
the purposes of light wagon delivery
in large cities is a thing Of the past.
The experiments recently made on the
streets of New York and Brooklyn
seem to have been fairly but not en-
tirely satisfactory. Under the guild
ance of Emile Roger, the French in
ventor, who has come over with three
of his novel wagons to personally SUI
perintend their trial trips, one ofthese
vehicles easily climbed grade Of thirty
degrees on a smooth pavement. The
horseless carriage which did this was
of the pattern as that which won
the prize in the road races held last
June between Versailles and Bordeaux.
In that contest it covered 1876 miles
at an average speed exceeding Is miles
an hour. The New York and Brook
lvn tests are said to have shown that
light delivery wagon, carrying a
full-weight load, such as is ordinarily
sent out from retail dry goods store,
can easily be rushed along over good
roads at a speed Of twenty-five miles
an hour. That is a much higher speed
than will ever be permitted either in
city streets or on country roads.
The obstacles in the way Of making
the petroleum motor-carriage, as it Is
called, available in American cities
generally are Q) that to work well
it needs uniformly good roads, and (2)
that it is not entirely free from danger
in crowded city streets. 1t makes a
peculiar putting noise as it moves along
well calculated to brighten horses at
tached to private carriages and pro-
woke runaway accidents. On cobble-
stones or any road surface that is UNI
even or badly broken up it sweryes
and lurches awkwardly, loses much Of
its speed and isin some danger Of being
set on fire. The streets of New York
and Brooklyn, even in the best quar-
ters Of those cities, are poorly paved.
A New York daily newspaper is at
present giving its readers numerous
pictures of dangerous holes and other
distractions to travel in thoroughfares
well within the limits Of the city prop
er, which afford some idea Of the diff
culties which the horseless carriage,
in its present French shape, would
have to encounter. Out in the sub
urbs of the metropolis the condition
of the roads, especially on the Brook
Ign side, is much worse. In summer
time they have a top dressing of finely
powdered dust from three to six inches
in depth which turns into almost I'M
passable quagmires Of mud in the rainy
season, and later on, when the frost
comes, it is stifened into deep ruts and
high ridges that make formidable OBJ
structiOns to even the stoutest wagon
wheels.
The French inventors Of the horse
less carriage very naturally adapted
it to travel on such roads as they have
in France, and there are none finer in
the world. 1t has rubber tires on its
wheels and is built lightly throughout.
We have only just begun in this conn
try to seriously take up the task of
making roadways of the up-to-date
pattern. The bioyclists have done
much to wake us up on this subject.
After all, it is not particularly dis
creditable to us that our roads are far
behind those of France. Considering
the relative ages of the two countries
and the much larger area that our
road-makers have had to cover, We
have probably as many miles of good
highways as either France and Eng
land.
Its all right, Mary" he said, pa
tiently. go into politics and run for
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