Perth Amboy evening news., 1904-10-10
WORLDS AUTO RACE
Heath, an American,
Wins For France.
CLEMENT, SECOND, CLAIMS THE CUP
Vanderbilt Silver TnnSard In First
American Road Contest Goes to
French Automobile Club.
Carl Mcuscl Killed.

NEW YORK, Oct. 10. George
Heath, an American, driving a ninety
horsepower Panhard and representing
the Automobile Club of France, finish
cd first in the international automobile
race for the massive silver cup given
by William X. Vanderbilt, Jr. One
man was killed, pinned beneath the
| overturned car owned and driven by
George Arents, Jr., the young anna
teur. Mr.. Arents himself was serious
ly hurt.
Albert Clement, driving an eighty
horsepower Clement car, was second
and entered Il protest. II. II. Lyttle, in
a thirty-four horsepower Pope-Toledo,
| came in third.
1t was probably as close a finish as
ever took place in a race of it's kind
Heath crossed the tape in 8 hours 2C
minutes 40 seconds and Clement sec.
ond In 5 hours % minutes 10 seconds,
the race going to Heath by / minute
% seconds. The machines were start.
ed at two minute intervals.
The racing board of the American
Automobile association considered Mr..
Clements protest at Garden City I'M
til . o'clock in the morning and finally
decided to throw it out.
Gabriel, the noted French driver,
who had been favored as a likely Win
ner, was well in the lead in the first
three laps. He was gradually over
hauled and passed, however, and in
the seventh lap, when he broke a crank
shaft, Gabriel dropped out of the race.
1t is said he sat on the roadside and
wept. Frank Croker drove a plucky
race, but accidents to ties delayed
him.
Swift and terrible as might be a
vision Of sudden death, the big French
auto, driven by George Heath, an
American, tore across the finish line
in Westbury in the great race l min
ute 2S seconds ahead of the nearest
competitor. Albert Clement, the young
Frenchman, vile was driving a cal
especially constructed for him by his
father. was so close behind that ever
after both men had completed the
course ii was uncertain which actual
w was in the lead. Despite the fact
that the course was so dangerous that
many experts before the race pro
nounced it murderous, the race was
the closest ever run over a 300 milt
road course.
Murderous it proved. Hours before
the end of the race death had taken it!
toll. Before 0 o'clock a. m. one maj
was dead. At midnight the life of an
other was trembling in the balance ant
the balance sinking against him. AZ
they tore round in the second lap Of
the race the swaying of the car which
George Arents was driving, with Car
Meusel as his assistant, wrenched the
tire off one of the front wheels of thu
machine. 1t swerved wildly, jerking
Arents, who was driving, out of his
seat and leaving him unconscious il
the road. Then 1t dashed ON uncon
trolled, so swift that Carl Meusel, hi
mechanic, had no chance to jump on
and save himself. Three hundred fee
farther on it turned a somersault, ant
Meusel was pinned underneath. Thos'
who ran to his assistance soon saw III
was terribly injured. Both men wer'
hurried to the Nassau hospital in Min
cola, where Meusel died without recov
ering consciousness. Arents had sus
tanned a fractured skull, and later i
was said at the hospital his condition
was desperate.
Heath's claim to the honor of thu
fastest time for the distance was dis
puted by Clement, and the final awar,
of the cup was long in dispute. Gle
ment no sooner had completed the rae
than he turned back and, almost witt
tears in his boyish eyes-he is onl.
twenty-two-entered a formal protest
saying he had been detained improper
ly in one of the controls for one and
half minutes. ~