Los Angeles herald., 1909-11-07
ENGLISH CRITIC CALLED
BY LOYAL AMERICAN
DER0GAT0RY CRITICISM OF
YANKEE CARS ANSWERED
cockney Refers TO American Products
as Shoddy, and Ire of American
Manager Is Promptly
Aroused

! Max Pemberton, an English critic Of
automobile affairs, has raised a storm
OF protest because of an article by him
appearing i'm the London Field Of recent
date adversely commenting on Ameri-
can cars. In quality Of steel and sound
ness of design, among other things, the
American machines, he asserts, are in
ferior to those of the British isles. Mr.
Pemberton's conclusions have been
challenged by f. $. Bennett, manager
of the Anglo American Motor Car COM
pany. i'm heated fashion, as follows
his letter appearing in the Field:
"Sir-Your contributor, Max Penn
bertOn, in his article in last weeks
issue has some remarks to make about
American cars which 1 think are a
little bit off the mark. l say I think
because the more one knows about
motoring the less dogmatic one gets,
and this is a point that Mr.. Pemberton
might take TO heart.
He says certain American manufac-
Jurors are now busy making limitations
/ of French and German cars, and eX-
| pccting US to buy them. Are they? So
far as my knowledge Of the American
! trade goes-and ] have had ten years
continuous experience in connection
with it--they are doing nothing Of the
sort. As regards the Cadillac company,
which supplies more petrol cars in the
British isles than does any other Amer
lean company, ii is certainly not ask
ing England to buy an imitation of any
French or German car, and i'm going
through every other American car now
being offered to the British public l
fail entirely to find any imitation being
offered by an American motor car man
ufacturer.
again, Mr.. Pemberton should not try
To persuade the readers of the Field
ffa4
ting up the huge factories that they are
doing to invade this country. l may
tell you that the demand for the whole
of the British isles is only just about
equal to the output of the Cadillac fac
tory alone, and this is only one Of 1871
motor car factories i'm America. So
that You see the American market
which is far bigger than that of the
whole Of Europe, is the one on which
he has his eye.
Mr.. Pemberton asks, who would
buy shOddy American imitation when
he could purchase the real thing?' The
answer is no one but fool will buy a
'shoddy' American car, or 'shoddy
English, French or German car.
IT Mr.. Pcmherton will look carefully
into the technical points of the best
American cars he will not look in vain
for the originality the lack Of which he
deplOres. | am not writing this expect
ing to get a cheap advertisement, and
would have left out entirely the namo
Of the car that I ann interested i'm sell
ing, but / want TO bring Mr.. Pemberton
down 10 solid facts and away from airy
paragraphs, and 10 do this l must bring
i'm the name Of the car I am selling"
Here Mr. Bennett takes up half a
dozen points Of the Cadillac car detail
ing The claims to originality in the sys-
tenn Of water jacketiug, engine bear
ings, steering gear, clutch suspension
and luhriCation, and, concluding, he
cites the remarkable test Of these cars
made by the r. A. G, last year.
"As to Mr.. Pemberton's suggestion Of
'shOddy I'm regard to American cars"