The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1922-04-14
The Exit of the Truck Horse
NEW YORK CITY. April 1.-THE
By FREDERIC J. HAsk,N

NEW YORK CITY, April 14.-The
his exit from New York will be speedy,
proposed by DR.. John A. Harriss, Spe-
cial Deputy Police Commissioner of
Traffic here, are put into effect.
81 believe" says DR.. Harriss, that
a law should be passed at once put
ting an end to the use of horses in
Manhattan by 1925. That would give
the owners of horses warning and al
low plenty of time in which to dispose
of their animals. The horse is too
slow 1t slows down traffic every
where. The automobile is now cheap
er than the horse for every kind of
vehicular use"
Since DR.. Harriss is the man who
introduced. as an experiment at his
own expense. the traffic towers which
have brought order out of chaos on
Fifth Avenue, his judgment is much
respected. If he asserts that the
horse-drawn vehicle is clogging the
city's traffic arteries, the public is
willing to concede that he knows what
he is talking about. But the Horse
Association of America is not. 1t has
come forward with loud protest,
backed by private testimonials and
statistics.
Business men in New York know
that it is ridiculous to talk of speed
ing up traffic by the elimination of
the horse" declares Mr.. Wayne DinS-
more, Secretary of the Association.
"Only the other day, the transporta-
ton manager of one of New York's
largest ice companies declared that
better time could be made in the down
town districts with team than with
motor truck, and in actual delivery
work there is no comparison between
the two.
Statistics show that without excep-
ton horses are the cheapest to op-
crate, the longest to live and the cas-
lest to handle on all short hauls in
cities where frequent stop work and
deliveries within a radius of 10 miles
from the heart of the city are essen
tial.
Big Loads, Short HauIs.
Consider the situation of the truck
ing companies, for example. The
island of Manhattan is narrow, and
the docking facilities are located
along both sides of the island, while
warehouses and railroad depots are
centrally located This means that
trucking companies in New York have
maximum amount to handle with
a minimum length of haul.
1.-THE congestion in the business Sec
tions of the city, where most of the
trucking is done, makes travel nee
eSsarily slow. The exclusive use of
automobiles in place of horses in these
areas would increase the congestion,
without noticeable speeding up of traf-
fic
Horses are more easily stopped and
started than motor trucks. Think of
how difficult it would be to deliver
milk by motor!
Furthermore" continued Mr.. Dins-
more. statistics do not bear out Dr.
Harriss' statement that the automobile
is now cheaper than the horse for ev-
cry kind of vehicle use. Figures are
available which show that the actual
cost of operating a five-ton gas truck
for a nine-hour day equals $2625 as
against $13.05 for the cost of operating
one five-ton two-horse wagon for the
same period.
"Only last year." he points out,
"the committee on local delivery of
the American Institute of Meat Pack
ers made an exhaustive investigation
of the comparative costs of operating
gas and electric autos as compared to
horses. The results convinced them
that, for anything under 20 miles a |
day the horse is more economical