The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1910-10-25
THE AUTOMOBILE WORLD

man automobiles are now sporting | electrically refined steel. But II the l foreign fabricators of steel are taking l kindly to the electrical process, 1t IS | also true that the American steel pro- ducers of this great commercial ne
 cessity are doing the same
 l Tires are tested with a pressure of about 400 pounds to the square inch 1n | several of the we'll ordered factories before being sent to the stockroom- IL i is said that the new tires w1lI With 1 stand pressure of 1,500 pounds, bul l such test is given them only on special occasions.
 The making of inner tubes is much simpler process than that of making | the tire-shoes and outer tubes. The inner tubes are made of a single layer of pure rubber. While the delicacy of inner tubes has always been more or less of a problem to mOtordom, ana while strength approximating that of the tire-shoe would be very desirable, such a thing has never been accom- plished. A layer of cotton fabric. en- closed between two layers of rubber would make a narvelously strong in
 ner tube, but unfortunately the pres 1 ence of the cotton in the mixture would defeat it's own ends The DOT
 ous fabric would not be gas-tight for any length of time. if at all. and as that one quality is the foundation stone upon which all inner tubes rest, the idea is not regarded as practical. According to the Central Park au- thorities of New York. motoT cars are killing off the squirrel population of the big pleasure ground. It IS sald the animals are so tame that they do not realize the danger to them in fast moving automobiles. T
 games in Paris Cards and billiards are threatened with extinction. though one would not think it to observe the cafes of Paris or of country towns. But statistics are incontrovertible. In 1871 nearly z, 600 billiard tables were
 taxed in France Until 1888 the num-
 Der increased steadily. when it reach ed the high-water mark of 97,0O0- Since then it has declined, and the noble game is threatened. Last year it was only S8. 900. and in twenty-one billiard tables have been consigned to whatever fate betides dead billiard
 tables. Perhaps they have fed fire places. or have had the green baize or kitchens. It is supposed that it is motoring that is killing billiards, and
 the men who still play in cafes are
 those who cannot afford motor cars. Cards also seem to be going the way
 of billiard tables. Thirty years ago 3, 900, 900 packs were sold per annum in
 France. Last year the figure was 100, 900 short of 5000, 000 But one req
 son may be that, the tax having in
 creased. players are content with
 fewer new packs. The tax now is five
 cents per pack of fifty-two cards.
 s. M. Butler. chairman of the con- test board of the American Automo- bile ASSOCIATION mas announced the
 results of the six-day economy test be
 tween an automobile and a horse and
 wagon held recently in New York
 The runabout used not only won the test by a large margin far eX pense was concerned, but it covered nearly three times much ground
 as did the horse and buggy The event was the first organized, system atic attempt to compare the relative
 costs of travel by horse and wagon and automobile.
 \ Duralumin New Auto Metal.
 "Duralumin the new alloy discov-
 cred by the head chemist. D. A. Weeks
 of Vickers Sons and Maxim of Lon
 don, England, bids fair to become an important factor in automobile con-
 struction,'' said Assistant General tor Co.,. Detroit, Mich, and our me chemical staff are conducting a series
 of exhaustive and comprehensive tests
 with a view to using it if it is prac-
 tical. The new metal which is already
 hailed abroad a substitute for steel
 will undoubtedly be used before long in the automobile industry and is al
 ready recognized as a factor in air
 ship construction at the present time
 by the English naval constructors at
 Barrow.
 ':The value of the alloy for aero
 planes and automobiles lies in the fact that while it is slightly heavier than pure aluminium it is as strong steel and two-thirds as light. It does not
 corrode easily and is only one-third the weight of brass and by it's it
 will be possible to reduce the weight
 of automobiles fully one-half without
 sacrificing strength durability Its
 use for fittings and other parts in the
 motor car industry opens a large field
 for the production of 'Dura1umin' and
 will tend to cheapen it's cost. Just
 think of the possibility of replacing
 the weight of steel by 'Dura1umin' in
 automobile construction. It would
 mean the saving of many pounds of
 excessive weight, allow the use of
 lighter tires and yet give much larger
 mileage the strain upon the air in
 Hated tubes would be consequently
 much Iigflfer.''