New-York tribune., 1921-10-23
BY Charles Clifton
President Of the National Auto.
-, ~, -

ffeStdent 81 the NGts03tGt Autofs0-
bile Chamber of Commerce
Will America fall down where Brit
ain succeeded?
Will the American public be over
wheimed by rail strike when their
English cousins met the situation with
mn automobile equipment but one
twentieth as large as that Of the
United States?
think not.
The experience of Great Britain in
the railroad strike Of October, 1919,
sheds an encouraging light on the
Impending American crisis. We have
trucks. England had but 100000
motor vehicles and yet was able to
move goods and persons with sufficient
facility to meet the more urgent needs.
: One of the first acts of the Road
Transport Board was to call for vol
unteer drivers, issuing the appeal
through the press. Within a few hours
q quarter of a million persons had of
fered their services.
The country was divided into twelve
transport areas, of which London
formed one, and each area was placed
IN charge of local commissioner. The
pubic parks in London were converted
into motor transport depots.
The main road running around Hyde
Park, for instance, was divided into
sections, each one of which was allo-
Gated to the conveys responsible for
the work usually done by one particu-
lar railway. Inside the park was the
major repair shop, the minor repair
shop and the reserve vehicles waiting
TO be drawn upon. AS each vehicle
came in from its run it reported
promptly to the minor repair shop, and
after being tested was turned over to
the reserve pool.
Milk Supply Kept Moving
All over England and Scotland first
attention was given to the milk sun
ply. A quantity Of milk going to LIVER
pool on September 80 by motor truck
was reported to be greater than the
amount ever brought in any one day
by the railroad. Fifteen thousand
cans of milk were handled at HYDE
Park depot in one day. Motor trans
port brought 5000 gallons of milk
daily into Plymouth.
Supplies were furnished regularly
to the food markets of the large cities.
Within a few days Of the beginning
Of the strike over 1000 motorists had
placed their cars at the disposal of the
Automobile Association for use in con-
nection with the work of the Food
Ministry. In one day 10000 crates of
tomatoes were distributed to the
markets of London. Tons of fish were
shipped from Plymouth to London and
other cities by motor trucks.
Mails were kept moving by motor
car and motor truck throughout Great
Britain. Owners of private cars were
given postal licenses to assist the pos
tai service with the delivery of mail
sacks.
Several paragraphs from "Commer-
cial Motor" (London), give an indica-
tion Of the good humor with which the
British public was viewing the strike:
"One hears:
"That the road round Hyde Park
was known as the Milky Way.
"That our food was going into trans
ports while the strike was on.
"That natural selection in wheel
traffic would aim at the survival of the
feetest.
"That one of the milk lorries (trucks)
from Hyde Park was labeled Pussy
foot's Food For Babes--No Treating
"That Billingsgate found It's fish was
arriving in a fresher state during the
railroad strike than it had been before"
Commodities other than food, more
over, were able to secure delivery
Motion pictures were distributed unin-
terruptedly in Scotland. London papers