Evening Star Newspaper, September 23, 1928, Page 55

&« ATCH out for the school children.” This is the advice of Traf- fic Director William H. Harland to all motorists in the National Capital. Mr. Harland re- turned to this city last Monday, the opening day of school, follow- ing a short vacation at North | Beach. Mr. Harland believes that every | care should be taken in protecting the 70,000 or more education seei- ers who began the year's griad again a week ago. The director also is of the opinion that the parents and school teachers should set apart a few minutes to instruct the children in traffic safety. Protection for Children. “If the motorists exercise due care in t:r driving and the chil- dren are taught to watch out be- fore crossing the streets there wili be no accidents involving the fu- ture citizens of the District of Co- lumbia. Every motorist should a% all times have his car under per-, fect control, and when he notices | children playing on the sidewalks he should reduce the speed of his car. Being within the speed limit 1s not enough. “The children must be instruct- ed not to dart out into the streec without warning, and that the proper place to cross is at the in- tersection, not in the middle of the block.” The student patrois to enable little children in cross- ing the streets was praised by Mr. Harland. The new traffic signals at the intersection of Florida avenue, Connecticut avenue and S street should be in operation by now. For the first time the new methoc of having the amber light overlap the red and green signal is tried. Graduallv this method will be ap- plied to the other traffic lights of the city. At the above intersec- tion the green signal will be on for 30 seconds for Connecticut avenue traffic. For the cross streets the green light will be on for 20 sec- onds. Mr. Harland is very anxious to have the lights scheduled for in- stallation near the various schools be put into operation first. These signals, he believes, add to the safety of the school children. The next signals to be installed will be five lights at the intersec- tion of Kalorama road, Connecti- cut avenue and Ashmead place. Heretofore, left-hand turns. were prohibited on vehicles entering Connecticut avenue from the cross street. With the lights, this regu- lation will be changed. Next on the list is the intersec- tion of McKinley and Morrison streets and ‘Connecticut avenue. This intersection faces the Eliza- beth Brown School. Following in- stallation here, traffic lights will be installed shortly at Eighteenth street and Columbia road. Installation work at these places and others, including the runnin of underground conduits and cables. has heen in proaress for some time. This prenaratory work takes a great deal of time. but it 12 only a short time unon the com- pletion of this work that the lichts can be put into complete opera- tion. Free Tests. The director is anxious for the public’s attention to be agam called to the fact that under the supervision of the Traffic Bureau a shop is maintained to test both headlights and brakes, free of cost. The shop is maintained directly in back of the Traffic Buresu. Al- though repair work cannot Le done, adjustments on headlights will be_made. The motorist n visiting this shop need not fear arrest if his headlights or brakes are found to be not working prop- erly. If adjustment cannot be made there, he will be told whut is necessary to be done. Both the director and his assistant, M. O. Eldridge, have noticed lately many machines on the streets of the city with glaring or defective lights. The office of the director of traffic is daily besieged with rapid-fire salesmen. Any appli- ance that might have anything to do with traffic is brought in. If the former Secretary of Commerce had approved all the devices that these salesmen say he has, ne could not have possibly attended to any of his cabinet duties. “Mr. Hoover has avproved this,” is like unto the saying of many 2 news- paper visitor with the hopes of “selling” some news by saying, “I used to be a newspaper man my- self once.” The other day a man from far- off Texas came in to the Traffic Bureau with a device to be placed on the street at an intersection with the words “stop.” “slow,” “no left turn,” or what have vou, in- scribed upon them. This device by its position is scheduled to catch the eye of a motorist much easier than a sign on a lamp- post. Should a wheel of a ma- chine bv mistake strike the sign it merely would flap down. and after the wheel passed over would flap back into place. Similar traf- fic deviees have been installed in other cities, most of them smaller in size than the National Capital. In these towns the device is made of rubber. The Tevas salesman exhibited one of metal. “T don't want to sell vou these, I iust want vou to try them,” was the “line” he veed. : “We cannot nut on the streets of the city anvthine that could ke ‘i colled an nbstruction ” Mr. Eld- ridee told the man. “Should anv| one e~teh thair foot in it and fall | the citw wanld ho sned, Your sie- pals misht wark elcewhere, hut | Weshington is Federal ecitv. | and. therefore, different from any othar nl~ee” The s~lesmen was un goainst it He had no arecument for that refusal. He was not shle to sell them 2nd he was not able to have them tried out. Contemplates Change. Mr. Harland is considering a new signal change. The’ lights under a plan he has in mind will remain green continuously on an arterial highway until a machine approaches from a cross street. In the Motor World BY G. ADAMS HOWARD. light on the arterial highway wiil ! remain green, after the interval| passes, which at present it would automatically turn red whether there is a machine approaching or not. The nature of the plan is not divulged. Hack Inspector Joseph Harring- ton has just returned from a mo- tor trip West. He reports that in St. Louis there are no hackstands. Taxis are classed with all other| automobiles and can park any- where they can get in, provided they do not stay over the allotted time for all machines. According to him the plan works out nherel very well. | Another novelfy the inspector i reports is that if you phone for a taxi and ride over 55 cents worth, the money for your call is refunded. Mr. Harrington did not advocate the giving up of taxij| stands here, but admitted 1t might save his office a lot of trouble. The Early Auto. Interesting reminiscences of au- tomobiles and automobiling 20 years ago are narrated by B. W. de Guichard, a pioneer in the au- tomotive industry and spark plug company head which rounds out its twentieth anniversary this month. - & “Today the motorist steps into his car, turns on the ignition and is comfortably and confidently away on his journey,” Mr. de Guichard said. “Twenty years ago, this same motorist, perhaps, used a tea- kettle full of hot water to prime his machine, pouring some of the hot water into the radiator and some of it over the carburetor. Then he would bend over and crank the car; if adroit at this operation, he would escape a broken arm “There were headlights that had to be filled with oil in the real early days; a little later, carblds' lights were introduced. With this method the motorist found it necessary to see that the tank was supplied with water and carbide. “Riding over a rough road, and there certainly were plenty of them, the carbide lights would suddenly flare up like Vesuvius and then as quickly fade away. Following the carbides came the acetylene pressure tank, which was quite an improvement. It will be remembered that all of these lamps had to be lighted with a match. “There were no garages along the roadways 20 years ago and few passersby to.render help, so in case of a punctured tire the motorist would begin work on changing the offending bolted-on lug, or clincher type fabric tire. Inflating the tire was done by hand pump. There was no such thing as carrying an inflated spare tire in the early days. And chang- ing a flat tire then often meant half a day’s work, a pair of badly skinned hands and anything but a sweet dispostion. “Shock absorbers were unheard of in the early days. This didn’t make motoring over the bumpy roads any better. © Windshield wipers were another unknown ap- pliance, but they weren’t needed in the Winter time, anyway, bhe- cause everybody jacked their cars up in the garages and kept them there because road conditions made it impossible to use them. “While there was no such thing as a spark plug 30-odd years ago, in the days of sprockets and skepticism the accepted means of firing the fuel mixture was a fear- ful contrivance known as a ‘hot tube.” “Equipped with a blow torch, | the motorist would proceed to heat up the tube. If he couldn’t get the tube hot enough, the engine remained dead. If the tube be- came overheated—bam, backfire, bandages. Motoring Handicaps. “Under such handicaps labored the inirepid motorist before he even put on his gloves and gog- gles to go forth and give Main street a big thrill. “When it looked as though that hardy band of pioneer motorists was destined for extinction the fiendish ‘hot tube’ was discarded in favor of spark plugs. “The first spark plugs were nothing to enthuse about. They were bought by the peck and thrown out by the bushel. But in the intervening years of automo- bile progress spark plugs, like other component parts of the automobile, have been gradually developed and improved until they are as nearly perfect as it is possible to make them. “Today improved engine design eliminates necessity of the tea- kettle full of hot water; better tires have reduced greatly neces- sity - for changing. Improved roads and cars make Winter driv- ing as popular as at any season, and certainly more. appreciated. On any well traveled road the mo- torist is able, as a rule, to get service when necessary. “Cars are being driven longer today because of engineering de- velopment and better driving| conditions ‘and because of the protective devices on the car, such as oil filters, air cleaners, crank- case ventilation, gasoline strain- ers, balloon tires, shock absorbers, lacquers and paints, instrument board indicators, etc. Again, an- other factor in the long life and economic operation of today’s au- tomobile is the owner’s knowledge of the importance of keeping the car serviced regularly.” The Little Demon Guard Against Him and You'll Save Many a Repair Bill. Friction (metal rubbing against | metal) wears out gears! It's the little demon that surely and quickly destroys any car. Demand Ebonite-T for the } transmission, because it makes gear | shifting easy. | Demand Ebonite-R for the rear | , axles. It prevents noi and de- | livers long, satisfactory service. | EBONITE | catisfactorily any more than Summer THE.. SUNDAY STAR W‘\SHIA\'GTO.\’. D. €. SEPTEMBER 99 1928—PART 4.° NEW BUS STARTED ON A VACATION — THE NEW CAR VS. VACATION. o BoTTOM LES PITS,VA. | —By J. T. BERRYMAN . OF WHICH PROVES AND HERE IS THE SAME BUS RETURNING To WASHINGTON -ALL DPERIVE MORE BENEFITS FROM VACATIONS THAN AUTOMOBILES D! THAT PEOPLE HEAVIER VEHICLES REQUIRE MORE CARE Trucks and Busses Are Under Greater Strain—Harder on Spark Plugs. A loaded truck or bus traveling at 20 miles an hour employs in proportion approximately as much power as does an automobile traveling 50 or 60 miles an hour. This is, of course, due to the weight of the vehicle, according to an engineering news bulletin, which gives some interesting information concern- ing trucks and busses. B “A bus or truck,” the bulletin says, “gives the same service as an automo- bile in proportion to the ton miles and is just as efficient. “In many cases the bus or truck en- gine labors more in a month than an automobile will in several years. This is why heavy duty vehicles need more frequent care and why they are hard- er on spark plugs. “While the average bus or truck op- erator may not be aware of it, abnor- mal driving conditions, such as con- | stant operation in a hilly country, af- fect spark plugs to such an extent that for ihe best engine performance it is necessary to use an entirely different size plug than that ordinarily recom- mended for the particular engine con- cerned. “One truck which had been deliver- ing heavy loads in neighboring towns located in a level country recently was switched to a different route where practically all of the highway was through a hilly terrain. This created an abnormal driving condition for the spark plugs, and they developed pre- ignition. The difficulty was immedi- ately corrected when the proper type plugs were installed to fit the abnormal condition. The same type spark plugs | will not meet all driving conditions oil will function efficiently in the Win- ter. All reputable manufacturers in- clude in their line different type spark plugs to meet different driving condi- tions. Some bus and truck operators g0 so far as to study their driving con- ditions in order to obtain the plug best suited for their conditions, and which cnables them to get maximum effi- ciency at the least cost. This is in- formation that should benefit all bus and truck drivers.” \?J/T X T 1S hard to Ideal for furniture, house- hold and industrial uses. of your repaint Then, after the interval passes| (Combi which lslnow in efle‘ct. ttllw green 20 Cents light will come on for the cross| o pinine Seations and Garage street, and through traffic will be | At Filling Stations ges. stopped. If no machine ap- BAYERSON OIL WORKS proaches the intersection, the Columbia 5228 | that cities progressive in almost every ) ainted it myself repaint job was not done by a professional. For Steelcote Rubber Auto Enamel is unlike any other auto refinishing material. It is neither an ordinary paint nor lacquer, yet it can be applied over either. It flows on evenly, leaving no laps or brush marks. Just a tew hours atter painting, your car is ready for use. Even if you have never painted before, Steelcote will give no trouble. % The Steelcote formula is based on pure Para Rub- ber, which gives a mirror-like surface, elastic enough to prevent checking, peeling or creeping. The Para Rubber, too, resists the damaging action of gasoline, road oil or tar, steam or acid. Steelcote givesa choice of almost every conceiv- able color. New cars, with their gay two-tone effects, can be matched in color. You will boast Rubber Auto Encenel. Your dealer has a complete color chart showing the enamel on metal. Or, write us direct for art color chartand intermixing instructions. Repaint it yourself—or specify Steelcote at the paint shop. STEELCOTE MANUFACTURING CO., St. Louis, U S. A. . Makersof Fine Enamels, Paints,Varnishes, Waterproofings, etc. Younger Cities Make Better Traffic Laws Thgfpld Ones, Expert Asserts Younger cities, perhaps governed less | by habit, are making better pmvismns‘ for modern traffic than older centers of | population, according to E. E. Duffy, highway educational writer. Los Angeles, for ingtance, a member of the younger generation of cities, last | year established a new record in streu; building by completing and accepting | 234 miles of first-class pavements ca- pable of economically carrying the tre- mendous burden that daily passes over the ordinary city street. That city now has 1456 miles of pavements, of which 900 miles may be said to be adequate for the automobile in its demand for stability and smooth- ness, more than is possessed by any other city. This is only a small’ part of Los Angeles’ street equipment, for if all streets were unraveled they would extend for 4.740 miles, a nice Summer tour. All cities, even down to the village of a few thousand, possess startling mileages of streets. This fact alone constitutes one of the best arguments for the construction of street surfaces that serve year in and year out with- out excessive repair bills. Iv is both unfortunate and illogical respect permit the continuance of costly repair work on such vast mileages of inferior roadways as are in existence. Numerous cities of importance built downtewn streets 20 or so years ago for horse-drawn vehicles. Notwith- standing the complete change in the type of traffic, these streets have been repaired year after year, with little at- tempt at redesigning them for modern needs. This is not a characteristic of large cities alone, Street repair bills play “hob” with city budgets, and in many instances ac- count, for excessive indebtedness. Effi- cient cities are proceeding on the prin- ciple that it is best to replace high- cost inferior surfaces with high-type pavements and to build new streets of stable material. Such action saves money, provides greater comfort and gives the taxpayer the pleasurable feel- ing that he has bought something other than the privilege of spending money for repairs. Not only are younger cities design- ing street accommodations particularly for the automobile, but it is striking that subdivisions and newer sections of old cities are also recognizing that the automobile is not a hay-burning machine. convince anyone that a Steelcote job—if you do it with Steelcote | to repair “The Paint from the Rubber Tree" National Electric Supply Co., Distributor, Washington, D. C. A car weighing a ton (most of them weigh more than that) traveling along at a moderate rate of speed deals the roadway a blow of two tons when a slight bump is hit; trucks often throw a force of five tons per wheel bn the 1oad. There is no wisdom in continuing streets of ancient vintage simply because it is easier. Inspect Valves. Hard starting, faulty compression, lack of power, poor acceleration, ex- cessive gas consumption, lack of .peed and an inclination to buck ut low speeds, often are traced to burned, warped, pitted, broken, galled and stick- ing valves. If you are having these troubles, check the valves. Then ex- amine carburetion and ignition. They are sometimes to blame. Or sometimes it is a combination of all three. W;lk Brake Squeaks. When brakes begin to squeak have the serviceman check up to see whether (1) the bands or shoe are properly adjusted to the drum, (2) rivet heads are dragging on the drum, (3) the drum is scored or out of round, (4) grit or other foreign matter is imbed- ded in the lining. (5) anchor boits or brake rods are loose, (6) any parts are rusted. UNIFORM AUTO LAW PUT UP TO DRIVERS Public Interest Is Vital to Prog- ress, Automotive Official Says. Success in the effort to establish uniformity in motor laws both in State and city throughout the country de- pends on the interest exhibited by the public, according to Richard S. Arm- strong, representing the National Auto- mobile Chamber of Commerce, speaking tion at Augusta, this week. “The national conference on street and highway safety perfected a uni- form State motor vehicle law in 1926, and has just issued a model municipal traffic ordinance,” said Mr. Armstrong. “Accordingly, the motorist now has a standard which he can call to the at- tention of his local public officials. “In many communities the public officials are already taking theleader- ship in seeking to modify local ordi- nances, where this is necessary, to con- form with the standard in process of adoption throughout the country. The motoring public, especially as repre- sented in motor clubs, will give en- couragement to such officials by heartily approvi of their activities in this before the Maine Automobile Associa- | Taking Sightseers More and more each year motorists | are waiting until September and | October to take their annual vacation | Jaunt by car, feeling that at this season the roads are less crowded. the air is land region—the territory bordering on the five great lakes—Ontario, Erie, Huron, Michigan and Superior. | With Buffalo. on Lake Erie, as the | starting point the Automobile Club of America has outlined a 2,000-mile trip | througk this region that can be made | very comfortably in from two to three | weeks' time. | Leaving Buffalo, one heads north and westward to Niagara Falls. Crossing the bridge, oge is on Canadian soil—Niagara Falls, Ofitario. | From here our route | takes one across this province, which | borders on Erie, through Hamilton, Woodstock, London and Blenheim to Windsor. This is an excellent place to spend the night and then take the ferry over to De- troit, Mich., in the morning. From Detroit to Bay City one has a choice of two routes, one bordering on Lake Huron and passing through Mount Clemens, Port Huron, Port Austin and Bayport and the second passing througn Pontiac and Flint. The latter is the | preferable route, as it is more direct | and affords the motorist an opportunity | to visit_the automobile plants in Flint. From Bay City up to Mackinaw tho | route follows the west shore of Lake Huron. passing through Linwood, Standish, Lincoln, Alpena, Rogers and | Cheboygan. Mackinaw is the most | northern town on the peninsula, and | here our route turns southward. this time traversing the western shore of the State of Michigan, alongside of Lake | Michigan, via Petoskey, Traverse City, Northport, Ludington, Muskegon, Grand Haven, South Haven and Benton Har- bor to Michigan City, Ind., at the | southern end of the lake. | this point one is on the main | route to Chicago, and it is only 57 miles | from here to the metropolis of the Middle West. There is enough of ir terest to be seen in and around Chi- cago to make a stop-over of several days decidedly worth while before one sets out for St. Paul and Minneapolis, the twin cities on the Mississippi River in Minnesota. Our route between thes points lies through Rockford, Dubugque, Towa; Independence, Oelwein, Elkader, Preston, Minn.; Rochester and Farmington. From St. Paul one runs north and eastward up to Duluth on Lake Supe- rior and the westernmost point on “The Lakes.” Superfor is the largest and deepest of the five great lakes and gen- orally conceded Lo be the grandest one At Duluth start eastward on the re- | turn journey, crossing to Superior, Wis., and running across the northern part of that State and into Michigan which States torm the scuthern boun- dary of Lake Superior, via. Ashland, Ironwood, Houghton, Ishpeming, Mar- quette and Newberry to Sault Ste. | 1 the north shore of Lake | { ferry over to Mackinaw. | City to Chicago 5 GREAT LAKE COUNTRY IDEAL FOR AUTUMN MOTOR TOURS Automobile Club Suggests Several Routes Through Regions Rich in Interest indfColor. trip the following one is suggested. This covers about 1600 miles and touches four of the Great Lakes—One- tario, Erie, Mick n and Huron. Leave ing Buffa start southward, fol- clear and crisp, after the heat of the | lowing th line of Lake Erie Summer, and the c e at its | through Westfield. N. Y., to Erie, Pa. best with the glorious coloring of the | This is the 4 autumnal foliage. And now is the ideal | por time to take a tour up into the lake- | harbor on the very interesting cause it contains the Pe Memorial Monument and the Perry flagship, the Niagara. as it was here in Presque Isle Bay that Commodore Perry built his fleet. Erie ic also the home of the Wolverine, the oldest ironclad vessel afloat. Going onward from here. one passes through tabula, Cleveland, San- dusky. Toledo. Elkba South Bend and Gary to Chicago. After viewing the cights of Chicago, cne turns northe ward. paralleling the western shore of ake Michigan. via Waukegan, Racine, ilwaukee, Port Washington, Sheboy- gan, Manitowoc, Green Bay, Menominee to Gladstone. Here the route turns eastward, along the northern shore of Lake Michigan through Manistique and Garnet to St. Ignace, where the ferry s taken to Mackinaw. Proceeding southward. one follows the shore line of Lake Huron via Sheboygan, Alpena and Standish to Bay City, thence through Saginaw. Flint and Pontiac to Detroit. Crossing the Detroit River by one comes to Windsor, in the ce of Ontario, and the route ses the Dominion via Leamington, London and Hamilton back to the Ine ternational Bridge at Niagara Falls. till a_third attractive trip, covering about 1,700 miles, and which touches the same four lakes as the one above, is to go from Buffalo via Niagara Falls and Hamilton to Toronto. Here turn northward to North Bay and then west- ward to Saulte Ste. Marie. Take the ferry across the St. Marys River to Saulte Ste. Marie, Mich., then run down to St. Ignace and again take a Follow the route southward, bordering the eastern shore of Lake Michigan, through Petos= key, Traverse City, Ludington and Mus- kegon, Benton Harbor and Michigan Fro=1 here the return trip can be made via South Bend, Cleveland and Erie to Buffalo. ‘The most direct and shortest route from New York City to Buffalo is to cross the Hudson by way of either the 125th or Dyckman street ferries and run to Hackensack. From here the Liberty Highway, route No. 17. should be followed through Arcola, Hohoku: Suffern, Tuxedo, Goshen, Middletown, Monticello. Liberty, Roscoe. Windsor, Binghamton, Owego to Elmira. Here turn northward and follow route No. 14 through Watkins Glen and Penn Yenn to the main Mohawk Valley route. Turn left on this highway, route No. 5. and follow it through Ba- tavia into Buffalo. This covers about 425 miles. Another very popular route is to run north on the east side of the Hudson River, route No. 9-E, to Peek- skill. Cross the bridge over to Bear Mountain and follow route No. 9-W northward ~ through Newburgh and Kingston to Albany. Here turn west- Marie. One crosses the St. Marys River by ferry to Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and continues the journey, | once more on Canadian soil, through | Thessalon, Cutler, Espanola, Sudbury | and Sturgeon Falls to North Bay. | Here one tutns southward via Trout | Creek, Huntsville, Bracebridge and Bar- | rie to Toronto, on Lake Ontario, known | as the “Queen City” of the province. | Frem Toronto we follow the shore of Lake Ontario through -Hamilton back | to Niagara Falls and Buffalo. | direction.” For the motorist who wishes a shorter | |ward and follow | tady. No. 5 via Schenec- Amsterdam, Little Falls, Utica, Syracuse, Geneva, Canandaigua and Batavia to Buffalo. This route covers 450 miles. The route from Washington to New York well known to the tourists of this city. Follow United States route No. 1 through Baltimore, Belair, Conowingo, Zennett Square. Philadelphia, Trenton, e and the Jersey cities. The Holland Tunnel from Jersey City into New York is recommended. Iy WERIORYy 0/ this /mz‘ente&/ engine NOW AT LOWESHE PRICE T The brilliant success of the Standard Six has brought the number of Willys-Knight owners to thousands motorists more than 325,000. And new are being constantly added — who find that the patented double sleeve-valve engine even surpasses itsreputation for velvet smoothness, silent power and carefree, economical operation. Naturally, it costs more to build this superior power plant—but theStandard Six has definitely broken down the price bar- rier. All of Willys-Knight’s exclusive ad- vantages are now made availabl le to a great new market—at thelowest price in history! . . . 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