MOTORING & CYCLING

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1314, 1 July 1915, Page 35

MOTORING & CYCLING

It is stated that buyers of cars in Holland have now, before importation, to give a surety of £lOOO that the car will not go out of the country.

The latest type of 100-h.p. Gnome Vickers gun biplane, complete'with gun, costs £2,250.

It is said that starting a car by the customary method is almost unknown in the States, as no one will look at a car that has not a selfstarter.

Mr. A. St. Lawrence Lee Guinness, well-known in motoring circles in England, and now a naval lieutenant, has become a baronet on the death of Lord Aedilaun.

There is not a shortage in English light cars. The Government has not commandeered light car factories, but owing to price of raw materials increasing, and wages going up, the prices of light cars are also being raised.

The Swift Company was one of the earliest firms to turn out a light car. It was introduced in 1902 and called a light car. It had a single cylinder engine of 7 h.p.

In France, owing to the awful state of the roads, some of the Army motor cars are being fitted with wheels suitable for running on railway tracks.

The Wairarapa Automobile Association has written to the County Councils of Masterton, Eketahuna, and Featherston, asking that sign posts be erected at four or five misleading cross roads.

The launch Veronica, built by Messrs. Lane and Sons, of Auckland, has been purchased as a motor launch for the Hospital Ship. It is the gift of Mr. William Barton, of Featherston, who subscribed £350 for this purpose. The launch, a very fine vessel of her type, will be put on board the Maheno when that ship arrives in Wellington from Dunedin.

One of the lessons learned during the present war has been that of having ei'her a four-wheel drive truck or a differential lock. When one of the rear wheels becomes mired in soft ground, it behoves the driver to lock the differential immediately, in order to get the truck out of the mud. Several good trucks have' been lost because of the driver’s inability to get the wheels to grip the ground.

A scheme is on foot to establish a Motor Car Insurance Company under the auspices of the Wairarapa Automobile Association, and Messrs. T. E. Maunsell, J. D. Smith, and 1.. V. Wilson, who constitute a committee set up to go into the matter, brought forward their report at the; last meeting. This was read and discussed in most of its bearings, but it was finally considered that still more time was wanted, and a special meeting should be held to discuss this question, and also to discuss a proposal for putting the Rimutaka road in a state of good repair to be held at Featherston.

Sir Edward Grey has been spending a holiday cycling in Northumberland. Doctors recently insisted upon the Secretary for Foreign Affairs taking a holiday.

The well-known and delightful singer, Mr. Peter Dawson, has been experiencing the joys of New Zealand roads. The cheerful baritone and his concert party were marooned at Wairoa (Hawke’s Bay) for a week on account of the bad state of the bar, and the impassable roads. They made the journey to Wairoa by motor, but the awful state of the roads would not permit them to return either to Napier or GCsborne.

The South Taranaki Automobile Association has pointed out to the Eltham authorities that there was only one unmetalled piece of road between Wellington and New Plymouth, and that it was their property. This is now being remedied. At the same time it was suggested that direction posts should be erected at various

points, and it is gratifying to know that these suggestions are being given effect to. The County Council have had direction posts erected at each end of the Dalziel Road, and at the Mountain-Boylan roads junction, and danger posts at Dalziel Hill, at each end of Mortlock’s Hill, Mangamingi Hill, and both sides of Tawhiti Hill. It might also be stated that, on the suggestion of the Automobile Association, the Patea County Council has improved some of the curves on the Manawapou Hill, and promised further improvements. Motorists and others will greatly appreciate these improvements.

A rather startling experience fell to the lot of Messrs. George A. Dawson, manager of the Guardian Assurance Company, Chritschurch, and Jones, of the staff of that company, while they were motoring to Kaikoura recently. When they emerged from one of the tunnels on the Cheviot-Kaikoura Road they found a large boulder obstructing their progress. They were pro-

ceed.ng to remove the boulder when they noticed earth and stones trickling down the hillside, so, concerned for its safety, they ran their car back into the tunnel. Just as they got back into the tunnel a heavy landslip thundered down, covering the spot where they had been standing a few moments before. There were hundreds of tons of earth and rock in the landslide, so it effectually blocked the road. Messrs. Dawson and Jones, with the occupants of another car which arrived a little later, had to walk on until they reached a place where they could send a message through to Kaikoura for another car,

the other cars being left in the tunnel. About“TUmen had to be put on" To clear the road. The regular motor passenger services and the mail service were not disturbed to any great extent, as one of the compan.es concerned had a car on the southern side of the block, and the other company managed to get a car round to the southern end of the tunnel by us.ng a long roundabout route to it.

From April 1, 1914, to March 31, 1915, 429 motor cars and cycles were registered in Wellington city. The number is made up as under: —106 5-seater cars, 49 2-sealer cars, 21 lorries and vans, 1 motor ambulance, and 252 motor cycles. This brings the total number of registrations in Wellington up to 1990. Forty motor lorries and vans and 71 taxi cabs were licensed; 158 drivers’ licenses were issued (103 to taxi and 55 to motorvan drivers), bringing the number of driving licenses issued up to 669.

After an occupation of 278 days, supervening on General Russki’s stroke at the beg.nning of the war, the Russians are letting Lemberg go. With Lemberg there depart also the Galician oil wells which are near to it. The Germans have lately been producing fuel for iheir air machines irom some new product named benzol. A certain amount of oil has also been coming from Rumania. The recapture of Lemberg will now g.ve them all the oil which they require. It also severs five model Lues of railways through which come and proceed the Russian stores and new troops from Kieff and other depo s of importance.

A case which affects every motorist in New Zealand came up before Mr. J. G. L. Hewitt, S.M., at Greymouth recently. It was alleged that a motor car proprietor crossed a street in the town when a train was approaching. In referring to the matter Mr. Hewitt said the law was that vehicles must not cross such crossings while a train was within half a mile. At many crossings, and in particular the one under note, it was absolutely impossible to see an approaching train within 100 yards, and in such instances the by-law would appear somewhat absurd. However, he would hold in such cases that if it were possible for a driver, by using his eyes and ears, to discover that a train was within half a mile, and the cross-

ing was then taken, he have (o convict. There was, however, the further question as to whether a driver had a further duty to perform, viz., to get out of his vehicle and ascertain if a train were within the prescribed distance before negotiating the crossing. That point he would look into. The whole point was that where such dangerous crossings existed as the one under note, a crossing keeper should be provided. To avoid the expense of crossing protection the onus was thrown, unreasonably he thought, on the public. The law as it stood imposed a very heavy liability on them, and it appeared to take up the position that if anybody was killed it was their own look-out, and not a matter that troubled the authorities concerned.