El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-05-10

IN AN address delivered before the
Cleveland Ad club Charles w 8Iears,
- advertising manager of a big motor
company, produced some highly inter
esting facts and figures relative to
the growth of the automobile indus
try. He said;
THE gasoline car industry is a veri-
table giant gown up overnight And
because it has grown Up overnight it
presents many OF the weaknesses and
absurdities Of the adOlescent time OF
life. 1t has not yet come to conduct
itself with the decOrum characteristic
Of its elders
Starting from nothing in 1898. Is
years ago, the industry in America has
grown at such high speed and to such
volume that adJect1ves are lacking
properly to describe the achievement
Steam and electricity. which preceded
gasoline, were soon left far behind.
of the $4,000 cars now registered
in the various states. more than
1000 are gasoline cars, and these
easily represent a value Of s750,O00,000
TIE Great Growth.
Complete and accurate figures
showing the growth Of the gasoline in
1ustry from year to year are not avail
able However, census reports show
that in 1904 $4,000 cars were produced
at value of S19OO0,000, and that in
1903. three years ago. 100000 cars were
produced at a value of S135, 900, 600.
Thus 1909 produced 100000 more cars
than 1904, and the value was $116,000-
600 greater
For 1912 the output is estimated at
100000 cars. valued at from $25O,OOO,-
600 to $500, 100000. Thus the product
and its value have more than doubled
in three years
IAN early handbook contains a list
of go houses that comprised the infant
e-a
included prominent retailers as well
as manufacturers Only Il OF the go
are in business today. The other 25S
have passed away. Death rate 50 per-
cent
Another and later handbook con-
tains a list Of rs manufacturers ex-
clusively who comprised the industry
in 1905. Only "a * the 10 are IN
business today. The other 81 have
passed away. Death rate, 20 percent.
Today, in 1913, the bulk Of the
gasoline car business in this country
is handled by not more than 200 manu-
facturers.
The Second Rand Car.
Second hand cars have operated to
give the industry many unpleasant
thoughts. The man who wants a new
car most frequently owns an old one
that is worth so much to him that the
wonder is that he doesn't keep it. Still,
he desires a new one he IS willing
TO relinquish the old, but not to give
it away. He must have for 1t $1,000
or $1,000 more than the dealer could
possibly get for It on resale So, IN
order TO give the 0ld-car owner all
that he. demands and still to avoid the
loss entailed by selling the old car at
$1,000 or $4,000 less than its taken-in
price some manufacturers hit upon the
naive idea Of boosting the prices OF
new cars an equivalent $1,000 or
$4,000.
This brilliant idea served its pur-
pose in individual cases until compe-
tition began to urge that buyers com
pare various cars and note relative
values. Then it becomes Imperative
that oId-car owners be forced to take
their losses: to allow on old cars
only as much as could be realized upon
resale. Consequently, the secondhand
condition is becoming slightly clarl-
fled 1t viii be entirely cured when
makers abandon fictitious prices and
do business along approved business
lines"
The Rubber Consumed
Men who follow the fortunes OF the
rubber trade estimate that the automo-
bile tire industry alone today con-
sumes as much rubber as was the