Daily Kennebec journal., 1908-11-26
BOSTON Man WINS.
IN AN ITALIAN CAR,
Hi||iard Sends Lancia Car 1886 Miles al
52.56 Per Hour Gait in the Light Car
Race on the Savannah Course.

| Race Course, Savannah, Ca, Nov.25
A little red Italian car. with four
cylinders, which hummed like a giant
| bundle bee and with an American
! driver at the wheel, won the first inter-
national light car race ever held in
| this country today. In doing so the car
and driver set a high record of 5256
miles an hour for the 196-mile journey
over d part of the circuit which win be
used tomorrow by the grand prize
racers.
William Nj. billiard of Boston, in a
Lanca car, named after the famous
Italian driver, proved the winner COM
bination. The elapsed time was 8 hours,
As minutes and 33 seconds.
Robert Burman, driving Buick car
| No. 9, finished second. more than six
| minutes behind the winner. l.. B. Lor-
inner, seated at the throttle OF Chal-
mersDetroit, No 10. fought his way
into third position: f. T. Hearne's
Stick, No. II. was fourth, and Al
Poole'e Italian Issotta was fifth Then
came Il whole GCck of tWo-cylinder
Maxwclls, Arthur See in No. 8. finishing
sixth and Carl Kelsey in No. II, fin
| ishing seventh. CoStello's Maxwell No.
| l. and MunWeile-'s No. Is We're run
nlna in eighth and ninth positions re-
| srectivelS. when the race was called
Off The OILY other car running at this
time was the French S. p. O.. which
WAS Specially rebuilt for the race, but
which was incessantly in trouble, sue
&C eding finally in making only five cir
cults of the 9.S-nlile course.
The race was run under sapphire
skies and the warmth of a summer sun.
| The DAY grew brilliant and clear after
| Il morning of the heaviest Wettest fogs
that held the city in its blanket en-
brace and which continued to dampen
The ardrr of the crowd until within
half an hour of the beginning of the
race ut II o'clock A crowd Of many
thousands filled the two big grand
| stand, &t the finish line and other
thousands lined the rectangular course
| on all four of it's regular sides. But the
crowd remained at a respectable dis
tanco and militarymcn We're thrown
| around the race track and they kept
| the pathway of the cars absolutely free
from trespassers until the race was de-
| clared off
| Although there were many minor
mlShapS to the cars the only serious
| wreck happened at the very close of
the days racing. Fcastor driving Buick
| No "A had been in trouble early in the
race and was driving along pell nell
on his 14th lap when he lost the road
| and went crashing into the ditch The
! mechancian Frank Thompson, was
hurled from the car and rendered un
conscious. 1t was at first thought he
had been killed. but later he regained
consciousness and it was said tonight
he would recover.
Car No. 13, q Chalmers, driven by w.
r. Burns, flew into a tree on the very
first round of the course and the chauf-
fcur lost four of his front teeth. Burns
did not draw No. 13 originally but eX
changed with a more timid driver, who
was fearful lest the fated number
should bring him i'll luck.
The race was duel between the cars
very start. Burnam in his Buick held the
lead from the entire first half of the
race. Then he stopped to replace a lost
nut and Hilliard drove the Lancia into
a lead which he never relinquished. Only
| once did the little red car come to
| standstilI Then it was only for second
| to allow the mecnanican to take on
| board two small cans of lubricating oil
which he subsequently pumped by hand
into the throbbing motor
Burman fought valiantly to regain his
lost advantage but to no avail. The Ian
| cia kept hummng away over the ground.
with engines muffied. while Burman in
his Buick and Lorimer in a Chalmers kept
swapping ard barking with open eXhausts
tar, l,,- Iollr
man and held the honor of second posi-
ton during the 18th, 18th and 16tn of the
20 laps in the race. but Burman, known
as one of the most daring drivers at the
course kept crowling his engines and
urging his car forward until he was again
in the second place. Hilliard in the Ian
| cia, meanwhile had gained nearly lap
on his struggling rivals.
F,a,ly in the race it was seen that the
Lancia was running more smoothly end
holding the road better than any or the
other cars and was hailed as a winner
| by the knowing ones as early as the
| third or fourth lap. Hiliard seemed to
be driving with the ease and nonchalance
| of n man out for pleasure trip and he
4 did not seem to be using the maximum
of his power at any stage of the contest
, The little machine is only rated at ZIG
horsepower. but it fairly swept the heav-
Ter of the Baby racers" off their wheels
The Buick car No. H. driven by
IIeaIne was in a contending position
throughout and held third place for n
| long while. fighting over every inch OF
the oiled roadway with the Chalmers
No. 10.
The II starters in the race-12 of Amer
| lean, two of italian and one of French
| manufacture-were sent away at half
minute intervals, and Kept in clusters
/ throughout. At times there was as high
as four OF the little racers in the home
stretch in view of the stands and the