THE HONGKONG TELEGRAPH, MOTORING SUPPLEMENT. SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10, 1927.
Something like a Christmas Gift!
Imagine the thrill of awakening on Christmas Morning to discover yourself the recipient of an
ERSKINE
SIX!
What joy would be yours!
In Fact-
A VERITABLE TRANSPORT OF JOY
WHY NOT ARRANGE FOR US TO DELIVER
ONE OF THESE DELIGHTFUL CARS
ON CHRISTMAS MORNING
All particulars from the sole agents :-
The Hongkong Hotel
Garage
QUEEN'S ROAD,
38,000,000 BY 1940.
There will be 98,000,000 motor
NEW GAS TAX.-
•
New Jersey gas dealers face a
HONGKONG.
ROADS INCREASE.
TEXAN FARMERS LEAD
Compared with 153,530 miles of Farmers of Texas own more auto- cars in the United States by 1940, $1,000 fine if they do not take out surfaced highways in the United mobiles than those of other states, according to a predication by their $2 gas certificate by Jan. 1. States in 1904, there are more than the rural registration shows. George Brosch of the Automotive This gas licenso has only recently 521,915 miles of this type road at They own 262,000 motor core and
present.
28,000 motor trucks. Equipment Association of Chicago. been made a law in the state.
ter.
APPLIED ᎪᎡᎢ .
A Tale of Alfred's Carburetter.
(By C. A. Potts),
we
MOTORISTS AND THE OCTROI.
A Paris Comedy.
The futility of the octrol of the City of Paris is an old story.. In' the early hours of the morning it brings revenue to the municipality by the toll which it levies on mar- ket produce. For the rest of the day it is a public nuisance. For years it has prevented the adapta-- tion of public communications, to the needs of the population and immensely increased the traffic
I've no patience with people who plate, as Father wasn't coming run down ant. Look what it has home" until the midnight train, done for us. But perhaps you Mother and I went to bed as soon haven't heard how our fortune was as Alfred had gone, as she was problem. The idea of having a made. It was Alfred's carburat-rather upset at parting from him ring of toll-bars right round the
and had a headache.
inner core of the capital, separat When
came down next It's on every car worth calling
ing it from ita periphery of a car, as you know, and it brings morning we found that Father had suburbs, ought long ago to have in-well, never mind, that's not taken "Nympha bathing" down been exchanged for some other the point. What I mean is, if it from over the plano and carried system of local Excise which hadn't been for art the carburetter it into his study, Mother said he would have brought in the re- would never have been invented. hadn't been to bed and must have
Father has always been an in-been admiring it all night. It was quired revenue without strangling
the traffic. ventor, but he has never been what a very anxious time for Mother
Now that the old girdle of forti- you might call really successful, and me. His patent receptacle for catching When Father came in to break-cations has been demolished, the the ink that leaks from fountain fast Mother told, him that Alfred anachronism of the petrol cannot survive much longer. The pens never caught on, and nobody had been. would buy his lost collar stud de "He brought one of his draw-clamdur for its abolition tector. Our landlord said he'd ings," she added, with pride. "I already becoming louder.
Georges de la Fouchardiere, a never do much good as an inven-hung it ever the piano." tor, if his excuses were anything
is
M.
"Do you mean to say that was witty journalist who daily enter- to go by, which just shows how Alfred's work?" asked Fathertains the readers of L'Euvre with a column of half-serlous nonsense, prejudiced he was..
devised an artful way of publicly. demonstrating the absurdity of
Mother said it was.
Signs of Genius.
Father looked quite humble, Alfred always wanted to be an "I're misjudged him." he said. artist. Even as a child his hairThe boy's genius." was always, longer than other had the children's, and we Kreatest difficulty in persuading | him to wash behind his cars, When he loft school he wanted to go to Paris, but Father would not hear of it. However, his talent wasn't altogether wasted because Father used to get him to make the working drawings for his inventions. Alfred hated in- ventions and used to scoff ni very Father, which made him angry, They had awful rows, and finally Alfred ran away, and Father cut him off with a shilling, or rather, would have done if he had had a shilling.
the system. In
recent article he invited all motorists who had nothing better to do about G o'clock in the evening to drive their cars into 'Paris through the Porte Maillot and put the octroi lo a perfectly legitimate test.
In the ordinary way the motorist who leaves Paris is given a green slip by the toll-keeper as he passes through the gate. He shows this. slip on his return, and the toll- keeper usually allows him to pass without inspecting his tank, on the assumption that he has not brought more petrol back than he took out with him.. M. de la Louchardiere invited his readers".... to lose their green slips, rightly calculating that if 30 or ·40 motorists appeared during the rush hours and offered their tanks for inspection, either there would' be a fabulous block in the traffic "I knew you'd say that," said or the toll-keepers would be Father said his name must Mother, tears of pride and joy obliged to let them by without In either case the inspection. Mother used coursing down her cheeks. It's weakness of the system would be
Alfred went in for the newest kind of art, because he said the old; sort was conventional. Also, the new sort is easier because you don't have to bother about learn- ing to draw, and you can rule all the lines, like you do with working drawings.
never be mentioned,
He brought Mother one of kis pictures.
beautiful. And to think you've
proved. Things turned out as he to fret a good deal, because you know what artists' models are, sat up all night looking at it!"
"Looking at it?" shouted Father, expected. The rush of cars at the though you don't really need
Porte Maillot was larger than models for the newest kind of art. "Looking at it?
I've done more
as I pointed out, but she said, than look at it. It gripped me. Usual, and a great number of "You know what young men are "The moment I saw it I said to motorists were without the usual myself. That's the goods. There's passport. Instead of measuring which I suppose is quite truc.
Anyhow, when Father went to a fortune it it. I couldn't rest the petrol in their tanks with a kauge, and charging them each a frane or two on the quantity. Im- Birmingham to see a man about until I'd made a model."
"A model " said Mother. his patent syncopated mouse-trap, Mother wrote to Alfred and im plored him to come home.
Being short of money, Alfred
came.n
"Certainly Must have a model.ported, the toll-keepers hurried Walt a minute, I'll show you."
them by in order to keep the traffic of the move. They were assisted Father's Activity, "
by a detachment of police, who Father rushed off to his study, had been specially detailed to cope which is also his workshop, and with the anticipated block. M. Fouchardiere. himself returned with a complicated piece de la
Alf the Artist. He'd become, a most perfect artist.
You could tell what he of mechanism, ali screws and bits appeared in due course without a was directly he came in sight. of piping and sliding things. green slip, and prepared to take "But I don't understand," said as long as possible over the He had even grown a little moth- eaten beard, with a bald patch in Mother, aghast. What has that formality of inspection, but the the middle, and his hair complete-to do with nympha hathing?" police, who had recognized in him ly covered his collar, which was!
bathing?" echoed the cause of their extra duty, had "Nymphs Father. "Who's talking about no patience with him, and he had. just as well.
This is a model, to to be rescued by some of his He brought Mother one of his bathing? pictures which Was called scale, of Alfred's new carburetter frends from a rough handling. "Nymphs bathing," though you which is going to revolutionise the.
I had to modify couldn't tell which were nymphs, motor industry.
which Was 1 great relief to the air intake, but otherwise I Mother, but he'd painted the little cun't suggest a single improve- MANNERS OF MOTOR shiver which run down their ment. I must wire Alfred t spines owing to the coldness of onee."
Well, all the rest is ancient his- the water, and there were some little squiggly bits in the top left tory. You know the success the Alfred hand. corner, which meant that earburetter' has been.
DRIVERS.
for Courtesy.
they were afraid of being caught, took it very well, on the whole. Home Secretary's Plea so Alfred said.
He agreed to cancel the title I suppose bathing wasn't allow-"Nymphs bathing," and became a director of the firm. He also had ed there.
Sir W. Joynson-Hicks, the Home "Mother admired the picture his hair cut. There is no doubt tremendously, and hung it over that art is one of the greatest] Secretary, when the principal of our civilisation, guest at the annual dinner of the the piano. She said she didn't blessings care if Father did see it. It would especially modern art. It is so Society of Motor. Manufacturers
(By special arrange and Traders appealed for show him how unjust he'd heen. adaptable.
"higher and bester code Alfred was able to stay quitement with the Morris Owner).
courteous driving throughout the country,"
SOME TRIP! RIDIN' A WHOLE WEEK
AND DIDN'T EVEN GET
A FLAT
AM! HOME
AGRIN
BANG
ឆ of
Hideous Stations-Long ago I made up my mind that I would not take a liver pill so long.as it was advertised in the form. in which we see it in the fields of our country today, but some of the petrol filling stations I have seen make me feel., for the first time the need of a liver pill. Surely it is not beyond the wit of the motor industry and the oll industry to invent something leas hideous than the ordinary red, yel- low, green, or blue filling station," which increasingly.desecrates the beautiful roads of our country?
Speed. If you abolish speed limit altogether you going to give an implied authority to the motorist to drive at any speed he likes up to say, eighty miles an hour-a speed not un heard of on our roads to-day- provided that he does not drive to the common danger. That will not do.
the
are.
Manners.You must certainly consider the desirability of im pressing on motorists a code of manners and a code of driving -utmost which represents the courtesy on the part of those con- trolling powerful engines on high- ways, which belong, not only to motorists, but, to foot passengers
as well;