The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1907-09-07
LOCAL CAR IS
SECOND IN
AUTO RACE
LOzier Seven Miles Behind
Leader--One Car Burned.
Other Accidents.
SCORE AT TENTH HOUR.

3. RennuIt ....... .Bernin. ......... 400
2. LozIer ........ .Smeiser. ........ .
8. Hotchkiss $3.50. Fitzpatrick. 49,. 2
s. L0zier ........ .Michener. ...... .2S9
1. Dedietrich 49,. Fuller. ......... .2S0
2. Dedietr1ch 100. Mack ........2 =
o. Allen Kingston Campbell. ...... .241
NEW YORK, Sept. with a roar like
the musketry of war, nine racing auto
mobiles plunged into the darknes in a
grinding race at Morris Park last night.
Nine desperate drivers hunched themselves
in their seats. tense and alert, and h
settled back for a long and dreary race,
which will last twenty-four hours.
Kitchener. in a Lozier, shot from the
starting point as IL his car had been
|hurtled from a catapult, and before the
first turn had been reached he had gained
twenty yards on his competitors. The cars
struck the turn, careened on their outer
wheels, sent the dust in misty clouds and
disappeared in the night. only to reappear
q. few moment later and repeat the trick.
And thus 1t continued for monotonous
hours as the race wore on.
At the end of the tenth hour today the
| Lozier car. driven by Smelser, of Newark
was a good second In the race, having
reeied off 42 miles. A Renanlt, manned
by Bernin. Infamous driver. was leading,
seven miles ahead. while the Hotchkiss
WAS lHlTus lltiN HclNhR9 @LN9 ~ $500
the Newark car. The Hotchkiss lost many
miles by being burned early today. The
gasoline in the car ignited and exploded.
Some 5000 auto enthusiasts were watching
| the race. II. Judson Fitzpatrick was drlv-
ing the car, which was whizzing over lap
after lap. sixth In the contest. The race
used mp the gasoline quicker than kilpat-
rick, a daring chauffeur, expected, and he
drove the ear to the training quarters under
/ tl,a RaI1 efa1ad IN have fha tank Tcfiipd. A
crowd followed, for nothing more exciting
had happened.
Fitzpatrick and his mach3nist, Harry
Hawkins. remained In the car: H. Craft
and F. V. Hines. employed for the pur-
pose, began to fill the cars tank with gas
oline. The tank was almost full when
some one in the throng pressing around
threw a lighted cigarette or match into
| the gasoline. Instantly the explosion and
| the flame of the gasoline scared high.
Craft and Hines were badly burned on
| their heads, faces and arms. Fitzpatrick
and Hawkins jumped from the car and
| escaped hurt. The crowd, which had scat
tered, rushed back. and were quickly
| Joined by about half the spectators. Had
a human been burning these motor car
lovers could not have shown more solicit
| tude. Men, and even women, tore Off their
| auto coats and threw them on the burning
| auto, trying to smother the blaze which
water could not put put, of course.
Finally a half hundred men scorched
their fingers and dragged and showed the
| car to a pump, where a hose was turned
! on it and wet down the coats. which by
that time covered the car. So the fire was
smothered in fifteen minutes.
Meantime Fitzpatrick was raving almost
like one demented that he was delayed in
the race. The instant the fire was out
men set at work like mad to repair the
car. Whether the gasoline was ignited ac-
cidentally or purposely could no be
learned.
1OO-NIlIe Record roken
The 10O-mile record for the race wa;
broken Last night by Kitchener driving the
Lozier car I'm the official time of 2 hours
minute 40 seconds. beating, his own former
record for the distance by 4 minutes q
seconds. made In the Brighton Beach con-
test. Kitchener increased his speed from
the first half hour and his fast driving was
the sensation Of the early racing hours.
The Michener Lozier car lost Its lead
shortly after 1880 this morning by smash
ing Its front right wheel while making the
lower short turn. A new wheel was hur-
ried 20 the spot and fitted on the car. 1t
resumed running before l o'clock and sue
ceeded in getting into third place for a
time. The other Lozicr car. driven by
Smelser. wns very fast, and took the lead
at the end OF the fourth hour at l O'Clock.
with a total Of 1870 miles. As the injured
Lozier car stopped Smelser was coming
close behind and barely averted a serious
accident.
: The Packard car. which had been in
second place, broke its rear axle a few
minutes before l o'clock. and wps the sec
ond car to be officially withdrawn from the
race.
Accidents In Special Events.
Two slight accidents added a thrill to
the ffty-mile race, the feature event OF
the afternoon. e. r. ThomaS's 6O-horse-
power De Dietrich car, driven by George
Robertson, took fire. and the machine shot
along enshrouded in flame and smoke. The
blaze was e~xtinguished, but the mishap
put Robertson out of the running.
A few minutes later J.. M. Willet's
Stearns 60-horsepower machine. driven by
William Swan, skidded while rounding the
turn at the backstretch n bolted through
the outer rail. The occupants were unin
jured and the car was only slightly dam
aged.
A Dc Dietrich Company's machine won
the race in sensational style. 1t finished
only a few yards in front of Renault
AIienlK Z msfnu,'; dr IIlxen bV Vs A M; n ee campbe an
finished third, a mile and a half back. The
winners time for fifty miles was Sc min
uteS ana AZ 40 SECONDS.
J. B. Ryall. of Newark, driving a
M~athewson car. won the four-lap match
race.
The summaries:
Fifty-Mile Race-Won by DE Dietrich
Company's 60-horsepower machine. driven
by George Mack; Renault Freres's A.
horsepower Renault car, driven by M. Ber-
min. second; Allen Kingston Company's So
horsepower car, driven by A. S. Campbell,
third. Time Sc ;49 Ass.
Five and One-half-Mile Race-Won by
o. f. Thomas's 60-horsepower De Dietrich.
driven by George Mack; e. r. Thomas's
60-horsepower De Dietrich, driven by Ar
thur Rippingwell. second; Charles Raoul-
duvhl's 40-horsepower De Dietrich, driven
by Arthur Rowley. third. Time, en-.
81 2-5s.
Four-Lap Match Race-won by Mathe-
son 60-horsepower machine, driven by J..
b. Ryall: Haynes 30-horsepower machine.
driven by Wallie Owen. second. Time, en-.
17s.
Trial against time by A. T. Campbell In
Allen Kingston machine. one mile. Time,
I'm, 10 2-5s.
George Robertson. in SO-horsepower Van
derbilt-H otchkiss, tried to beat record of
80 1-5 held jointly by Walter Christie and
Louis Chevrolet. He covered the distance
in SO LBS.