New-York tribune., 1909-08-08

breeze but when the pinch and bit OF
quick thinking is necessary the breakfast food
element in their brains comes right to the
face, their hands and feet become inextricably
tangled in the machinery and the nearest copper
turns In the ambulance call.
The brake seems TO be the first thought in the
mind Of I'll. inexperienced driver, when as a mat
ter Of fact. II would often be a good thing IL
automobiles made without brakes A heavy
car can't be stopped without running considerably
more than It's length, II it is making any
speed at ALL Though the wheels should be stopped.
II will still slide. And the few feet that it slides
frequently mean accident when. If the driver
OF the car would let the brake alone and the
machine to run with the other vehicle the acci-
dent would rarelv occur.
Only a day two ago two men We're running
through South Orange avenue, in the Oranges.
IN a racing roadster. when. at narrow cross
street they met trolley coming at fun speed.
The making better than forty
miles an hour and the trolley car. also try
ing for a record. The driver of the machine I'm
this instance was an experienced man. Instead OF
reaching for the brake he gave the steering wheel
q twist and the automobile turned on two wheels
and flying down the street beside the troll
ley car Most Of the passengers were on their
feet with their hearts in their mouths, but the
automobile scraped neatly along the step of the
trolley and set the pace 20 the next corner,
where 1t turned once more and proceeded on It's
| way.
Another instance OF the automatic judg
snent occurred with W. T. Scarritt. chairman of
| the Committee on Public Safety of the Automobile
| Club OF America. also in the Oranges Mr.. Scar
rltt was driving along Mum avenue. East Orange.
following slow moving truck and waiting for a
chance run by IT, Two boys riding the
back OF the truck. swinging their feet over the
end and chatting Mr. ScarIitt The automobile
!, not a dozen feet behind the truck when
| of the boys suddenly woke up to the fact that he
had passed his corner and without stopping TO
think Of the heavy car. launched himself straight
at IT. slipped the pavement and fell almost
| der the front wheels.
To have attempted TO put on the brake would
| have been fatal The would surely have slid
| and the boy. Mr.. Scarritt gave the steer
| ing wheel a quick turn and brought his machine
| around that IL stood at right angles across the
/ road II until he had made the turn that
| he put the brake and brought the machine u a
standstill The boy scraped by the mudguard
but was unin1ured and picked himself up and ran
| down the street.
| Quick steering brought another party through
trouble In Brooklyn. They exactly 10y
riders" but they near Joy riders" They
| had been down Coney Island In a big car and
they had been having pretty good time. that
IL was good thing for them that there no
motorcycle policeman putting the stop watch on
| them on the return trip.
/
nue. and let the machine out To full speed II so
happened that OF the city's workmen had
been doing little sewer repair job I'm Hillside
avenue. and had ditch opened up half way across
! the street and half way down 10 the water level
| A board laid across a couple OF barrels TO
guard the opening. and red lantern was hung on
! the outer end OF the boardFf for a warning signal
| But Il a rather dark night and there moth
! Ing show which way from the centre OF the
street the opening extended.
| The driver OF the speeding car thought that he
| had the thing figured ont right and swooped down
| on the ditch full tilt. Not nifty feet away ne dis
covered that he the wrong side and one
more jump would land the party at the bottom OF
! a opening. underneath wrecked automobile e
and with fine collection Of broken arms neckS
and legs, not TO speak OF contusons and lacera-
/ tsonA
| Without touching the brake. he jammed the
wheel 20 port. the turned. raised high on two
wheels. a whirl TO staTboard and the machine sped
| by the obstruction with iange of broken glass as
the lantern torn from the hook and fen to the
street.
oniy the driver knew how narrow tho escape
had keeo