New-York tribune., 1908-02-24
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
DEFENDS AUTOMOBILES.
President Of Ne7c Jersey Club Tens
of Experiments.
To the Editor of The Tribune.

To the Editor of The Tribune
Sir: In this mornings Tribune there IS an article
on Road Taxes on Wheels which contains state
ments that are open to dispute. For instance you
say: ''It seems be beyond doubt or question iiat
automobiles have done much more damage 10 the
improved roads OF the states than other vehicles
nut together and have, indeed. wrecked some oi
them such extent as to make rebuilding frc-
essary and it also certain that roads which
will be suitable for and will stand the wear ana
tear of automobiles VIII be much more expensive 10
build and maintain than roads for other vehicles
Those very positive statements, but the IND
portant question arises they true? Statements
concerning the serious damage inflicted upon roads
by automobiles began to be repeated about three
years ago by people connected with road mainten-
ance and were accepted facts without investi-
CATION
have been operating automobiles in New Jersey
about eight years. and being engineer with
some experience in road making and maintenance,
I do not accept statement involving engineering
problems without calling for proof. There were no
proofs adduced Of the destructive effect on the
roads by motor cars-rnereiy statements. corrobo-
rated by evidence
In order to satisfy myself how far the statements
might be true. l proceeded 10 investigate the mat
ter from a scientific standpoint. 1 attended all the
racing events within my reach and watched the
effects OF the high rates of speed They
| left no marks that would indicate the charges
| made against them being well founded on Or
| rnond Beach. which is softer than ordinary roads
!
difficult to distinguish the marks Of the heavier
vehicles from those made by the light
! The statement has repeated that the fast
revolving wheels OF the automobiles abrade the
surface Of the roads. That is nonsense. Would
any person attempt break granite or traprock
with rubber rnaIleto The blows impaired by the
wheels are precisely the those that might
| be inflicted by a rubber hammer. The laborS OF
Sysiphus would have been nothing compared to the
lost labor expended in cracking pile OF rocks with
a chunk of rubber.
| A charge often repeated against the automobile
is that it carries away the surfacing that binds
the macadam together, and the cloud or aust
that accompanies q fast running automobile seems
TO lend an air of truth to this charge. To make
certain that it was we'll founded, l proceeded to
collect specimens of the dust waited by the auto
mobiles neighboring gardens and hedges 1he
dust of such a light. foury consistency thae
the robbery indicated must necessary be hght
Thinking that my conclusions on this matter
Wight he erroneous I collected last about
| a hundred pounds of road dust and spread it in
The middle of a road Springfield. n. j., in
/ which the stones stuck out like blunt spurs and
on which automobile racing was common visited
| that SPOT once a day watch the disappearance
! of the covering I had put on. There seemed 10
! be no change at the end of a week and MADE up
my mind TO collect the dust in two or three days
/ more and weigh il. But before 1 could carry out
/ nv intention a shower OF rain came on and con-
siderable portion Of the dust was washed away
/ That was followed on the second day by a heavy
ratnstorrn that entirely washed away the dust 1
. had deposited.
The lesson TO OF this experiment was that ror
preservation Of the surface roads require water
roof covering that will prevent the cementing mat
ter from being washed away by every shower The
tests also seemed teach that road supervisors
should proceed make practical tests, instead OF
uncorroborated assertions. Yours very truly
ANGUS SINCLAIR,
President New Jersey Automobile and Motor Club
East Orange, y. J. Feb. IS, 1908