Evening star., 1927-09-18
BY HERBERT s. HOLLANDER.
II I drive at night?

Shall I drive at night?
Is driving through the rain worth
the discomfort and possible danger
involved?
Here are two questions that the far
sighted motor tourist asks himself in
mapping his program for the Autumn
automobile journey. And Well he
might, for these points are highly i'm
portant and especially worthy of his
consideration.
The answer to the first depends
upon the individual case. If one
knows the road. if the car Is in good
condition and the object of the trip
is to make as fast time as possible,
night driving is to be advised. The
obstacles that once made it inadv;s-
able to fare forth in the darkness
bad and poorly marked roads. mechan.
ical infelicities in the car. the relative
scarcity of filling stations that main
teined all-night service and similar
fficulties-largely have disa ppeared.
Night driving has definite advan-
tages, and although it has its disad-
vantages, too, they may be overcome
by anticipating them and planning to
meet them as they arise.
Among the advantages to be gained
from night driving, the most obvious
one is that under some circumstances
| it permits of better speed. There is
| less conflict with other vehicles; the
| air is fresher. and the car usually
purrs along smoothly. reeling off mile
| after mile without the slightest sign
| of protest.
More Alertness Required.
Night driving, particularly that
| which takes one over Unfamiliar
| roads, is not entirely a matter of
| holding ones foot on the accelerator
and keeping the car on the highway
however. 1t requires a quality of
alertness that is not quite so neces-
sary during daylight hours. when the
whole countryside comes within the
drivers vision. AT night only the
path directly ahead of the car is
| Illuminated, and this reduction in visi-
biity is factor of Importance.
There is an emphatically noticeable
difference between motor travel in the
darkness over roads that are known
and that over those that are new and
strange. On the first one follows the
proper route almost automatically. Or
the strange highway the situation is
different. One must keep track of the
road markers, and they are not sc
easy to read by the artificial illumina
ton provided by the cars headlights.
If this difficulty were insurmount
able, of course, it would initiate
against the chief advantage of nigh
travel-speed. 1t is not, however. II
the tourist will take the time to study
his map carefully in advance, he will
find this obstacle rather easy to over
come. Routes are being marked with
far greater clarity this year. and in q
majority of instances are sufficiently
direct to be negotiated without diff
Guilty.
AS to changes in direction, mos
maps are concise on the distance o1
the turn from the starting point, and
II the trip. or odometer, side of the
speedometer is set properly, the driver
can tell fairly accurately when he
may expect to be on the lookout foi
his new road. This involves closer
watch on the odometer than probably
would be necessary during the day
time. and it may mean an allowance
for possible error in the cars distance
recording device.
Spotlight Comes I'm Handy.
In the matter of reading road signs
a spotlight will come in handy, ant
for such purpose it may be said tina
all States permit the use of thi
auxiliary automobile illumination de
vice. New Jersey is the one Stat,
that restricts the use of such light
to this purpose. the others requiring
generally only that they be used with
discretion.
Night motor travel naturally re
Quires an allowance for the fact thai
all-night filling stations are hard tc
find except in larger cities. Accord
ingly, the tourist should see that his
car has a full gasoline tank and ar
adequate supply of engine lubricant
There may be a temptation to pass ur
a filling station when the supply is
low. 1t is not wise to respond. There
always is % excellent chance thai
the next one may be closed.