The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-04-11
SCORES OF CITIES
WANT TO ENTERTAIN
GL|DDEN TOURISTS
Pathfnders Will Leave Cincin-
natl Today to Pick Out
Automobile Route
TRI-CITIES OF ALABAMA
SURE TO BE ON ROUTE
Leaving Cincinnati Tourists VIII Strike
Nashville, Florence, sheffield and
Tusculnbin. Thence West to
Memphis and Texas

New York, April Especial Thou
sands of letters, from all parts of the l
states which will be traversed by TIL,
"Glidden tourists" this year, have reached
the contest board of the American Auto
mobile association. Nearly every import
ant town and city within the $500 mile
loop. which has been tentatively decided
upon, wants the reliability tour to "come
their way and all manner of induce
ments are offered. The contest has gont
beyond the hospitality stage and devel-
e9ed into the premium class. Many towns
Nave suggested presenting the contestlng
travellers with about everything except
building sites In districts where the
roads are poor they will build new ones
When there are only ferry accommoda-
tons for crossing streams the town or
county officials want to build bridges
specially.
While Chairman S NJ. Butler of the
contest board has been able to reply to
most of his enthusiastic correspondents,
who, as they say themselves, are going
to capture the tour if they have to tear
up hAA1 ADduS Niltll no lOI ledQ through
their towns, he has been unable to give
them any positive assurance that the
cars will pass their way.
Leaves Cincinnati Today
Dali Lewis, who has mapped out all
of the famous American Automobile asso-
citation tours of the past, expects to
leave Cincinnati, the starting point of the
tour, Monday, April II. He will travel in
Chalmers car which has been selected
as the official pathfinder, and will carry
with him corps of photographers and
press representatives. The pathfinders
expect to be in the field for not less than
three weeks If they cover the II states
Included in the tour, as suggested by the
contest board. it will keep them driving
day and night to do the work within
that time. Not only do they have to try
out different ways of getting from town
TO town, but they have to survey each
possible route accurately as to mileages
turns, rivers. hills and road conditions in
various kinds of weather They must
also look out for the housing and feeding
II the hundreds of people who will be
on the tour. 1t is one thing to map out a
tour for the testing of one or two cars
or trip for the pleasure of a few peo-
pie, but where you have to contend with
hundred or more cars of nearly as
many makes, all of which must be OBJ
HtINtu DIS ~ THEIR TelldDlllIY ana also
to look after the comfort of 400 or 800
contestants and passengers. the path
fnders face a problem of no little size
This year the "Gliddenites" will be
carried over a vast country which has
nc been penetrated by the motor car,
which has not many hundreds of miles
of what the east, at least, calls good
roads and where the hotel is still in its
virgin simplicity.
The contest hoard vvishae II distinnil.,
understood that the precise route can
not be given out for publics ton until
after the pathfinding car has reported TO
the New York office of the board. No
definite instructions have been given Mr.
Lewis. He knows in a general way the
main points which the board would like
the tour to touch. These points have
been selected. after much careful de-
liberation with view to introducing the
motor car in its present state of perfec-
ton to a mammoth section of the United
states, where the people are prosperous
but where they have not been awakened
10 the marvellous benefits which follow
In the wake of good roads and the good
car.
The Tentative Route
Starting at Cincinnati. in the southwest
rorner of Ohio. about the middle of
June, much earlier than the Glidden
tour usually starts. the first city of i'm.
portance to be visited will be Louisville
KY. The run to Louisville will probably
not follow down the Ohio valley, but
rather via Lexington
From Louisville the route now suggest
ed is via Bowling Green to Nashville.
Tenn From the capital of Tennessee the
tentative route is to Florence, Sheffield
and Tuseumbia. Ala, the tri-cities of
the south. along the "Natchez Trace"
an old military road. which was built
by Gen. Andrew Jackson in 1872. This
Is through the valley of the Tennessee.
Crossing that river the cars will head
almost directly west. across the top of
the state of Mississippi, the fifth state
TO be touched. and then back across the
Tennessee line to the city of Memphis,
on the historic Mississippi river. Goine
south from Memphis the caravan will
probably cross the Mississippi by ferry
at Trotters point to Helena, Ark, and
run westward to the Arkansas river to
Little Rock. From Little Rock the tour
may go to Texarkana, via Hot Springs
This part of Arkansas is filed with small
streams and it is not unlikely the Gid
denites will have some lively fording ex-
periences. particularly If the streams have
been swollen by recent rains. The largest
stream which must be crossed between
Texarkana and Dallas. Tex, is the Qua
chita, near Arkadelphia. For the greater
pdIl Vi TIE WdS lHe country Is extremely
nat and the roads are frequently soft.
making hard going for the motors From
Dallas the route will likely be to Fort
Worth. over an excellent pike. From
Fort Worth the cars will go north via
GAINESVILLE to the Red river. crossing into
Oklahoma. Fort Worth may be termed
the rounding point of the $500 mile tour
II is the most southern and also the most
western point touched. From there the
second leg of the journey begins and
runs through several more states back
70 Chicago.
1t is Approximately 1900 miles via the
tentative route from Cincinnati to Fort
Worth The road is both interesting and
difficult, but the second lap of the long
Journey from Fort Worth back to Lake
Michigan is probably more difficult and
possibly more interesting than the run
down toward the southwest.
The Return Trip
The first place of any considerable size
encountered on the return run Is Okla
homa City, then Guthrie. in the center
OF Oklahoma. Leaving Guthrie the cars
head for Kansas. probably touching Ark
ansas City on the way to Wichita. They