The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1913-09-18
Automobile News

portant detour on the Shore line to
Boston, the main road between New
London and Mystic, being closed for
construction The following alternate
is offered, the roads being good and.
the scenery. superior, if anything, to
the regular route: Crossing the ferry
over the Thames River at Groton,
turn Immediately left on Thames
street, curving right and again left
over railroad bridge on direct but hilly
road to Old Mystic 7.8 m. At the fork
on edge of village, keep right and
again right at the next fork O.6 m.
beyond Follow direct road along the
Mystic River to Soldiers Monument
in Mystic 1875 m. Pick up trolley and
follow tracks on regular Blue Book
route through Stonington, Westerly,
Narragansett Pier and WEXFORD to
Providence. This detour is hardly
more than three miles longer than the
old route and is quite as desirable in
the matter of road surface.
Top Fitting AS Defined.
If you ever went through a body
departm ent of automobile plant,
you probably noticed that in fitting
the tops, there was so-called model
or master body on which each top
is fitted, as a dressmaker fits a gar
ment to q. model. In other words, top
fitting as defined by other motor-car
builders is analogous in meaning to
ready-made clothing manufacturer
practice of fitting a certain size gar
ment to a definite form and fashion
ing all garments bearing that size label
on a specific model. This is why we
see a collar of q coat worn by man
with a long neck purchasing that size
garment sagging ridicu1ously out of
line, or why the sleeve-Iength is too
long for another man wearing that
size. In other words, the individual
deviation from a standard cannot be
compensated for, in any ready-made-
method of fitting garment or an
automobile top. It is true that the
bodies may be built on the same model
to exact measures, but when the top
Is fitted the slight deviation in its
m easuremen will bring about slight
disaIignment Of the body and the top
ging or Wrapping of the top at some
point.
Yosemite National Park Opened.
While a number of autoists are
taking advantage of the reopening of
the valley to automobiles. the order
came so late in the season that traffic
into the Yosemite will not be very
great this season. The Yosemite val
ley is at its best in the early summer
when the weather is cooler and the
streams are high, thereby enhancing
the beauties of the falls many fold.
Next season a great rush of auto traf-
fic into the valley is predicted. The
Y osemite National Park was receded
to the United States government in
1904 by the State of California. after
the state had held it forty years, Cali
fornia having acquired the park from
the government in 1854. It became
evident that the wonders of this great
valley would be better preserved If the
park were again placed under federal
control.
Should Be Concrete.
Coincident with the organization of
the Lincoln Highway Association for
the purpose of establishing nation
al highway from the Atlantic to the
Pacific Ocean, Elwood Haynes sets
forth his observations of the roads
traversed during the recent Indiana
Pacific Coast Tour, held under the
auspices of the Indiana Automobile
many of the states west Of Indiana
through which the completed high
way must pass.
incidentally, Elwood Haynes is a
strong advocate of the use of concrete
in the construction of this highway,
due to its permanence and low cost of
up-keep He says: 1.-The roads we
passed over enroute between Kokomo
and Los Angeles were good, with the
possible exception of small stretches
in Missouri and Utah; but we must
remember that the weathr was good,
som th1ng which was distinctly in our
favor. People nowadays demand a
highway which will remain in good
disable condition 365 days of the year.
'At the present time the question
of highway building is receiving more
attention than 1T has at any other Pc
Rod In history.
Concrete has always been identified
with permanent construction. Since
the earliest days it has provided the
for all forms of perma-
nent highways, and through it's sue
cessful use in this connection, it sug-
gested itself as a material adaptable
for the wearing surface also.
ffThat which makes concrete con-
struction appeal strongly to the tax
payer, however, is the fact that once
laid, it 1ncurs but little maintenance
expense and the money previously ex-
pended for that purpose is thus di-
verted into the construction of more
roads and pavements of the same dur
able type.
haps furnishes the best example in
this connection. The thirty-odd miles
of concrete roadway, built in that
community during 1909. 1910 and 1911
cost but 81 per mile per year to main
tain and notewo rthy is the fact that
practically all Of this small Jexpendi- |
ture was devoted to cleansing the ad-
joining bitches.
Here in America concluded Mr..
I'VE have the car-now what
we need are roads so built as will
permit our utilizing them at all times
of the year regardless of prevailing
weather conditions"
Westgard Has Covered 10000 Miles.
With 10000 miles of his II, OOo-mi1e
10oI7 hi, T
Westgard, Vice-President of the Ma
tional Highways Association, and Di-
rector of of Trans-ContinentaI High
ways, left Denver this week for A1bu-
querque, N. M, via Colorado Springs,
Trinidad, Las Vegas and Santa F'e.
From Albuquerque he goes westward
to Los Angeles, arriving there early in !