Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-01-26
CHANGED LIVING
CREDITED TO AUTO
Industry Supports Economic
Structure Which Has Effect
ed Far-ReaChing Revision.

Wnole Scneme OF mooern transportation,
and its foundations, growing stronger
as the years pass, now support the
economic structure which has made
life in this day q far different thing
from that of half century ago. accord
ing to E. T. Strong, president Of the
Buick Motor Co.
Prior to the advent of the railroad
and the automobile, there were three
basic principles of economics which to-
gether had suficed the real needs down
through the years-they were food,
clothing and shelter. In those times
one could provide his every need with
out depending upon single soul out
side the community in which he lived.
If he wanted a pair Of boots the shoe
maker made them for him; his cloth
ing was homeSpun, his home built of
lumber from his neighboring hillsides.
Practically everything he bought was
purchased directly from the producer.
Transportation Cuts Distance.
But what a different world is this in
which We live today Transportation
has brought the four corners of the
earth to our doorsteps. TranSporta-
ton has become so interviewer into the
social fabric that in 1880 the econo-
mist finds himself faced with the neces-
Sity of revising his essentials to include
it as a basic principle of modern life.
There is no incompatibility in the
field of transportation. Each of its
various forms has a place and they are
all fused toward a common end.
The automobile in its embryonic stage
was often decried as a toy for the
wealthy, but mass production, intro
duced into the industry by American
d.
the reach OF everyone, and in so doing
revolutionized our standards of living.
Through the use of power and preci-
sion machinery American Workmen cut
loose from the old codes and canons of
manufacture and as result the auto
motive industry led the way through the
greatest period of industrial activity
the world has ever known. All other
lines of endeavor quickened their pace
to meet a changed condition. Thus
new patterns are fashioned for new
age. Modern America, with its tele-
phone, radios, Subways and apartments,
values its time. Every waking hour is
filled, and minutes are multiplied as
acts are shortened. Everything that
lags is abandoned. The determined de-
sire for speed Is, accommodated and the
calendar expands under the pressure
OF new interests and new occupations.
Life, before the advent of the auto
mobile, may have been "the good old
days" we sometimes like to talk about,
but shudder at even the thought of
going back to q world where the round
of routine was so narrow and life so
limited. It was an innate craving for
experience that assured the success of
the automobile as a means Of trans
portation once 1t was made available
TO persons in all walks Of life.
Anun~l a. Wanna IA.
Perhaps the changes wrought by war
had something to do with Fastening
the rise in our standards of living and
thus increasing the popularity of the
automobiless At least postwar America
is a different America, with its needs
greatly changed. More money Is
earned, m0N is saved, and more is
spent. And transportation Is the main.
spring that keeps the gigantic channels
of commerce flowing at a rate con-
sistent with our changed needs and
demands.
The successful motor car company
today finds itself of necessity appeal
ing almost constantly to the young
idea. While its product must be COM
Portable and sturdy enough for every
one, above all it must be speedy enough
and beautiful enough for youth. AS
one of our designers recently expressed
1t, the modern motor car must be
keen" 1t must appeal to the fresh
viewpoint.
The woman motorist is responsible
for many of the improvements and re-
fnementS offered in preSent-day auto
mobiles. Her influence on the changes
in design has been little short of ire
mendouS. Even before she demanded
color in the kitchen, basement and the
bath roomse she insisted upon it for
both exterior and interior of her motor
car. Just as she has changed the
styles in the matter of dress length,
size OF hats, and q hundred and one
other things so has she demanded
smart lines for her automobiles. She
is back of an ever-increasinR demand
for dependability and performance, and
the wtde-awake company builds more
and more Of these qualities into its
cars each year.
The busy business man, whose every
moment is filled with activity must
have car that will function when he
needs it, and function well.
With all these exacting requirements
constantly present. the great automo-
tive engineering laboratories of Ameri-
ca are spurred on to new endeavors
In order to incorporate more luxury.
more comfort, and more driving ease
into a mode of transportation which
has become an absolute necessity in
our lives.
100000 Employed in Industry.
Approximately 100000 persons, or
about one-SfXth of the entire popula-
ton OF America, are directly or indirect
~ dependent upon the motor industry
Tor their livelihood. Nearly 1900 600, 900
is invested in the motor car manufac-
turing plants Of this country, exclusive
OF parts, tires and accessory factories
These plants produce SO per cent Of all
automobiles manufactured in the world,
and n per cent of the worlds total
are owned in the United States.
twenty-five and a half million cars
are now in use in America, and with
the total yearly production running over
100000 cars it is seen that If each
owner buys a new car only once in
five years, production in American
motor car plants will be kept running
at an unusually high peak These
ngures are exclusive of the export busi-
ness, which is constantly growing.
Travel by motor car in this country
has reached tremendous proportions.
Government figures indicate that nearly
100000 motorists visit the national
forests each year. Transportation over
100000 miles Of highways in America
has brought together all the differences
IN human mind and welfare. The
Pacific and Atlantic are no farther
apart than miles of earth-and the
miles are getting shorter. New York
knows San Francisco as it does Min
neapolis and New Orleans. Thus have
We accepted the motor car as a very
definite part of our existence. Usage
has implanted it in the American blood
The pioneering period is over and our
standards are set
What about the future? It is more
than hopeful, 1t is assuredl Although
hesitate to predict lust what sort OF