Los Angeles herald., 1907-02-05
CALIFORNIA GREAT
AUTOMOBILE STATE
VAST NUMBER OF MACHINES
IN USE
San Francisco Follows the Example OF
Los Angeles and viii Give a
Horseless Exhibit
Soon

Twelve years ago the automobile was
as strange a sight in America as an
airship is today. What q change!
Every city, town and hamlet in the
United States has it's motor enthusiasts
who use the machine for business as
well as pleasure.
In 1895 there was not an automobile
factory in the United States making
machines for the market. What ma
chimes we had were of foreign manu-
facture. Yet during the year 1905 the
exports alone of American cars amount
ed to $2.461, ,243.
During the year 1906 there were man.
ufactured in the United States about
10000 machines, which were sold to the
public at an average of $1,000 per car,
making a total valuation of $600OO,OOO.
1t is estimated that there are in use
today fully 100000 automobiles in the
United States. With an average of four
persons to a car there are over half
million people speeding over the coun-
try every day in the year.
The autombile industry is showing
greater increase than most any other
line of manufacture. The automobile
has come to stay. At first 1t was
looked on as a fad-a millionaires toy.
Not so now. The automobile has
proven it's practicability and no one is
more cognizant of this fact than the
San Franciscan who saw its operations
on those trying April days of almost a
year ago.
One thing responsible for the interest
taken now in autos is the standardiza-
ton of construction. The auto Is past
the experimental stage. Manufacturers
have quit producing freak models and
have settled down to the manufacture
of the models that the test of time has
proven the most practical.
The buyer feels safe in buying now.
He knows that the machine he buys
now is not going to be a back number"
next season.
Only when one starts to figuring does
he realize that there Is one automobile
to every 566 people in the United States.
AS a comparison with the eastern
states California shows a wonderful
percentage. New York state has one
machine to every 210 people, while CAL
ifornia has one car to every 173 inhabi-
tants. The city of Chicago has one
auto to every BIT people, but San Fran
cisco exceeds this percentage consider
ably by having one machine to every
1873 people.
This showing has prompted the Auto
mobile Dealers association and the
Automobile Club of California to give
an automobile show in San Francisco
from February IS to "a inclusive. The
show will be held in the Coliseum.
which has larger floor space than the
Madison Square garden In New York
city.
Following the close of the New York
show just held an entire trainload of
the models exhibited was started west
to place the same machines in the San
Francisco show. The train is travelling
on passenger time and will reach San
Francisco in about five days after leav-
ing Chicago.
Everything points to big attendance
from all the cities within several hum
dred miles from San Francisco. The
committee is arranging to have suffi-
cient hotel accommodations for the
visitors and the railroads have granted
special rate of a fare and one-third
for the round trip from any point in
California.
The intending visitor, however, must
procure from his local ticket agent a
convention certificate duly signed and
dated which in turn must be counter
signed by the secretary of the commit
tee in charge.