The Monmouth inquirer., 1917-12-13
MOTOR CAROF 1851
Push-Button Control and No
Steering Wheel Predicted.
TO ELIMINATE UGLY ANGLES
There Are No WaII-Like WindshIeids
and No ObtrudIng Fenders-6rakes
Are Applied Automatically
No Pedals.


1851, Waldemar Kaempffert writes In
McClure's. First Of all you are struck
with it's sheer beauty of line. There
are no abrupt, ugly angles. Curve
melts into curve within a grace that
you associate with the form of swan.
There is no wall-like windshield; there
are no obtruding tenders. BY 1912 the
designer of airplanes had discovered
that large, correctly designed bulk
is more easily moved through the air
than a mass composed of projecting
wires, stays, wheels, arms and legs
that each projection, however slight.
rakes the air and leaves an invisible
wake behind it.
His work was not lost upon the mo-
tor-car designer. The streamlike body,
as it is called, made its appearance
about 1915. By 1851 not only will 1t
have been generally adopted, but 1t
will be far more refined than anything
which we can now display. 1t will
part the air as gently, as smoothly as
a pike slips through the waters OF
lake. 8a
What We May Expect.
We may expect In the motor car Of
1851 something akin to push-button
control. The guiding Of a motor car
or truck in these days of the motor
cars infancy is no mean physical per-
formance. Arms and legs play far
too important a part In motoring. If
locomotive engineer were thus depend
ent on his muscles there would be no
70-car freight trains, no 20-hour train
between New York and Chicago. Think
of the physical demands now made up
on you and then ask yourself If you
have not the right to demand that by
1851 inventors will have tossed gear
shift levers and brake pedals upon the
scrap heap.
The ideal motor car of the future
will have just one controlling lever,
and no more. See. as I pull or push
the lever, I turn the power on or off.
Did you notice how the engine slowed
down and how the brakes were auto
matically applied as the car slackens
in speed? There are. no pedals to op-
crate. The speed of the engine de-
termines how hard the brakes shall be
applied-in other words, in what dis
tance the car shall be brought to full
stop.
r Abolish Steering Wheel.
In a country threaded with superb
ly smooth thoroughfares the steering
wheel will be abolished. With little
handle you will guide the car of 1851
to the right or to the left. No tense
muscles will be called upon to avoid
collisions. Steamships have long had
their steering engines to swerve rud-
ders that weigh many tons. The steer
ing engine is controlled by the wheel
on the bridge. So in this car Of 1851
the little steering handle causes a mo-
tor to turn the front wheels to the
right or to. the left.
We do 1t in 1917, but it is wrong,
egregiously wrong to drive a vehicle
from the rear. Why? Because 1t is
easier to pull than to push. The tug
boat pulls It's barges; the locomotive
pulls its coaches; the freight handler
on our wharves pulls his hand-truck,
Nature seemed 10 have discovered long
ago that pulling is easier than push
ing. Unlike the car of 1917. the motor
car Of 1851 will therefore be pulled by
its motor.
And the motor itself-how different
from the engine of 1911 Gasoline
Will cease to be motor-car fuel in 1880.
There will not be enough oil In the
world from which enough gasoline can
be distilled. The alcohol and electric
motor will take the place of the gaso-
line engine.