Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-11-08

tober % in Philadelphia. the electric car
rage winning by margin of ten min
utes. or one minute to the mile. In
cidentally the rules of the contest were
arranged on q common sense basis to get
information relative to the advantage Of
different types of motor cars for special
traffic conditions in congested city
streets.
The contestants were an electric run
about capable of doing about seventeen
miles an hour. and driven by Miss Laure
Duval an enthusiastic woman driver of
electric vehicles. The other car was a
forty horsepower touring car, driven by
Tod Middleton.
The challenge came from Miss Duval,
who believes that she can defeat any
large and speedy touring car with her
electric car. providing the route lays
through the congested portion of the
city, and that a sufficient number of
stops are made.
one as society woman would arrange
for an afternoons shopping, and stops
were made at department stores, the
alters, railroad stations. milliners', hair
dressers' and candy stores
Word has been received by a Buffalo
manufacturer from large trans-At-
lantic steamship line that shipping auto
mobiles has become so important part
of it's business that changes in the con-
struction of it's Mediterranean vessels
are to be made.
When Americans first began taking
their cars abroad for touring purposes
ampton. Cherbourg or Bremen. Now,
however, many prefer to land in Italy
and then tour northward. embarking
for the homeward voyage from one OF
the northern ports. The distance be-
tween decks of this company'S Mediter-
ranean steamers was not sufficient to
care comfortably for the crates used for
the large suburban or entirely inclosed
cars. and now on all steamers of their
line the distance between decks has been
increased nine inches. This additional
space will allow easily for the largest
inclosed cars. Changes in the steamers
for the northern ports of Europe are
not SO necessary, as the spaces between
decks on almost all of them are suf-
ficient.
Evidently a mile Is not mile, after
ALL A New York automobilist, in sup
port of his claim that kilometers should
be the standard of measurement, says:
Miles are very confusing. A kilo-
meter, the world over, is kilometer.
but a mile in America is 1,76O yards.
while in Sweden it is 703 yards and in
China it is $50 yards The Bohemians
go for long mile. So do the Danes,
the Hungarians the Poles and the
Swiss. If you walk three miles a day
among those people you have done pretty
well-you have covered about fifteen of
your own miles. 1t would take eighteen
of the shortest to equal one of the long
est. The rest vary In length between
these two extremes. Doesn't the world.
then, need one measure. the kilo. that it
may use without confusion? Consider.
an automobile that travels forty miles
an hour in China would be going only
2h miles per hour in Sweden
:: x
The exodus of racing drivers toward
Savannah. where the Automobile Club of
Americas grand prize gold cup contest
will be run on Thanksgiving day and its
International light car race the day be-
fore, has begun in earnest. hVe pilots
starting south Wednesday by train. willie
two others sailed Tuesday. The drivers
who went Wednesday were Louis Wag-
ner and Ralph De Palma of the Fiat
team Rigal and Hautvast. the Clement
Bayard pair, and Arthur Duray, who will
have charge of the Lorraine-Dietrich
racer. Cagno and Piacenza. the italia
drivers, sailed on the City of Columbus
of the Savannah line Tuesday. The
marty of drivers which started Wednesday
was accompanied by E. Rand Hollander,;
who will return here as soon as he has
installed the Fiat team In its quarters
near the race circuit.
II was reported recently that Robert
Fulton. who imports Mercedes cars into
| this country, had received word from
abroad that the two Mercedes racers that
were entered for the big car race Thanks
| giving day would surely be sent over
| here to compete at Savannah. and also
i that it was possible that formal entry
| for third Mercedes had been mailed
| from Germany before the time set for
| the closing of entries, 1t was further