The Columbus dispatch. (Columbus, Miss.) 19??-1922, 1920-02-08
Statesmen TRIPLE
CALLSON TRADE
DALLAS COMPANY MAKES ENOR-
7 Gus SAVING By USING MO-
TOR CARS INSTEAD
OF RAILROADS.
Waste and Duplication Of Effort Be
ing Eliminated by New Methods
Of Transportation.


Railroad Administration recently
made the statement that the motor
car is becoming a serious competitor
of the railroads ana that it will even
tually drive many short lines com
pletely out of business.
Several considerations enter into
this somewhat remarkable analysis of
the transportation situation" said a
prominent manufacturer, commenting
on the subject. ut hasn't been so
many generations ago since the Amer
lean public was quite content with the
speed Of mule drawn canal barges and
horse drawn wagons. They were their
only means Of transportation and few
people even thought of the possibility
Of getting things moved faster. It
was the maximum of transportation
equipment and everybody was salts
fed.
"But along came the railroads with
their innumerable branches and short
lines and before long both farmer and
merchant were shipping things to each
other by this new method. II was
much quicker and therefore cheaper
Instead Of hauling all the way by
wagon, they used the wagon only in
hauling to the freight depot, saving
\ their horses and themselves for in
creased production.
"Then the advent of the motors car
brought still another change. The far
mer is finding that he can save still
more time and energy by leaving his
horses on the farm to rest or contin-
ne their work while he hurries away
to the city or to the freight station
in his car. And the merchant has
long since found that the horse is a
financial burden as compared with the
motor car for delivery and general
hauling purposes. This is true parti-
cularly in any business that requires
light vehicle for quick service.
| "And it is a fact, as this railroad
official said, that farmers and mer-
chants are not only using motor cars
to haul their goods to the depot. but
that they are going a step farther,
saving a second and third handling
by leaving them on the car and haul
4 ing direct to their destination. 1t is
this tendency toward eliminating
waste of time and duplication Of ef,
\ fort that dooms the short line rail-
road. 4
"And coupled with this is the
equally important fact that many
large business houses are equipping
their statesmen with motors cars.
These statesmen formerly depended
exclusively on tn short line. But
short line trains usually are not con-
tinental limited, nor do they run as
often as the saleman desires to move,
Consequently there is an enormous
loss of time. 1t is no wonder that
the motor car, always available and
always reliable, is finding favor with
these statesmen. They complete their
work and move along, independent Of
schedules. And so another of the old
reliable customers of the little rail
roads is deserving them-and the day
is not far distant when the roads will
have to suceumb."f * ss'G
Directly substahtlarlng sthis view
point is the case of the Perkins Dry
Goods Company of Dallas, Texas,
which has installed fleet of eight
specially equipped Dodge Brothers
motors cars for the statesmen who
cover the territory In the neighbor-
hood of Dallas. By use Of these cars
the salemen have been able to call on
an average of three times the number
Of customers usually seen by the old
method of railroad travel The well
established reliability and low upkeer
cost Of Dodge Brothers motor cars.
however, is pointed out by the Per-
kins Company as an important factor
in this enormous saving.