Evening star., 1911-07-30

ganizations are gathering in the farmer
motorists of their respective vicinities,
and one Of the phases OF the situation ii
that after the country dweller buys car
his interest in the road proposition de-
velops on the high speed. In many COM
munities. especially in the A.. A. A
county associations which go to form the
state bodies, substantial part or the
membership is being secured from the VII
lagos and farms in close proximity. 1t
follows as a natural sequence that the
national good roads board at once gets
into communication with the local clubs
and lends no small assistance in sug-
gesting plans for highway improvement
along well established lines which have
proven effective in innumerable other
places"
Good roads cost money, but bad roads
cost twice as much.
x x x
Ralph Mulford, the driver, who is now
in New York, is authority for the state
ment that he will not drive in the twen-
ty-four- -hour-race at Brighton Beach, oW-
ing to the fact that the company he rep
resents has announced its intention or
competing only on regular automoDlle
speedways or guarded road courses. Fur
thermore, Mulford has won two or the
big Brighton Beach twenty-four-hour
events and finished second in two others
and believes he can afford to let one OF
two twenty-four hour races go by. There
was only one twenty-sour-hour-r ever
held at Brighton in which he did not
take part, and he still holds the twenty
four-hour world record for stock cars.
x i: !, x
From recent tests made by automobile
manufacturing concerns looking for suit
able timber to be used In automobile
construction, it has been found that Aus
tralia furnishes many valuable hard
{yav
from that country Is ''yate." and from
the tests referred to it has been found
that yate is the strongest timber yet
known to civilization and that 1t may
turn out to be an important factor In au-
tomohle construction, says the general
manager of the Detroit motor concern.
Its average tensile strength is 24,OOO
pounds to the square inch, equahns that
of good cast iron. Many specimens are
much stronger and one was tested up
to seventeen and one-half tons to the
square inch which is equal to the tensile
strength of wrought iron. The sawn
timber of yate is probably the strongest
in the world. The tree grows to maxi
mum height of 100 feet, and has some
times a diameter OF two and one-haf or
even three feet"
The national good roads board of the
American Automobile Association OF
America is trying to impress upon the
road builders of this country the 1mpor-
tance not only of constructing new ROADS.
but of maintaining the old ones in such
a condition that they will be lasting. The
board has been paying no little attention
to the road system Of France which Is
looked upon as a nation of road build
ers.
* x X x
Gov. Bass of New Hampshire is takins g
a verbal interest in road improvement
throughout that state and in recent in
terview with c. o. Robinson, manager OF
the Touring Clubs White Mountain
branch at the Mount Washington, Bret.
ton Woods, he expressed himself as beins
strongly in favor OF the Improvement and
extension of the New Hampshire high.
ways. This is the first time that Gov
Bass has come out so forcibly in favor OF
better roads. In addition the governor
also said that he favored q road com
mission which shall not change undel
different administrations.
Another feature that should be adopt.
ed,' said Gov. Bass, is the system ol