Hm rank IE
VALLEY NEWS
i -
i
WANT ADS
NUMBftR 4'.'
VOLUME XXV.
LA GRANDE. OREGON, SATURDAY, OCTOBER 1, 1927
FACTORIES TEST
CAR THOROUGHLY
Use of 'Proving Grounds'
Explained by NEA
Science Writer .
fly Israel Klein
(.Science Editor. NKX Strvlcu)
EnK'neers aren't through' with
on uutoinobllo after it ip produced.
In fact, they'vo Just Uckuii tinker
ing with it, rinding lta fuulta und
its promises. In . an,, .effort to im
prove tho next product.
For' thla purpose Bonn of the
lurgu companies have what ati
culled "proving grounds."
The. General Motors' ''proving
Cio und" at Mllford, Mich., for in
Hiunce, has about 1'tV miles of prl
vuto highway laid out so as to rep
resent every road condition that
average driver'1 meet & There
urc JillN ranging from 7 per cent
grades to as high us 24 per cent
There arc concrete and gravel
roads.
. There is a level concrete stretch
without a kink or a twist In it, a
mile in length, and there Is a
speed track with embankments at
the turns making a 45. degree unglo
with the level road.
There is a north and south road,
and an east und west road, no in
tersection between them, each to
tent little idloHyncraules of driving,
the difference in Hpeecl or gasolinu
usuguulien driving in opposite or
cross directions.
So Law Applied
These are samples of the tiny
I details that are being examined in
t)ic actual driving of automobiles.
Everything conceivable can be
done vhere, from trailing along at
2 tnlles an hour to speeding at the
i'uAto.Hi an engine can pull a car,
Thtfru arc no stato laws, no con
stables to stop the. drivers. ,
t No imaginable factor ubout a
cur is taken for grunted, no beliefs
or theories permitted. Everything,
even though known for a certainty.
Is tested to learn the actuul facts.
Even the instruments pluced in
the car aren't trusted. Instead of
these, special gasoline gauges, spe
cial speedometers and other appar
atus devised in the research labor
atories are lilted to the cur on
test and the readings are taken
from these.
l-or speed, for instance, u bi
cycle wheel, a small electric gen
erator and a highly sensitive volt
meter divided Into miles from the
coipbitwition attached to a ear for
more accurate readings. This is
called a fifth wheel speedometer,
and it can be relied on for all
speeds. - ,
Mat or TiifcU '
'Gasoline consumption, also, if
GRIDIRON STAR IN CONVERTIBLE CABRIOLET
I be discouraged completely.'
r-wif yyte jyis
5 tmJzl
Morley Drur.v. eapinln of the 1027 Inlvei-hlly of Southern California foul bull (earn Is One of the
few Ktars left on the campus after Mm 1 WltT eta mm mn graduated Inst lime. Sixteen members uf liie
I. S. . kuiukI of Inst year were missing when tho fint prnetii-e uus called by CimmJi Howard .tones on
Sept, 15 nudl npl. Drury is the one bright star upon whom t!u Trojan rooters arc buihling thetr Immhs
thN year. J'hoto shows Drury In n Star coiirr-rtitilo cabriolet, one of the most popular model In the
star line und a favorite among the students of the Ixtn Angeles university.
tested by combination of burettes,
or long tubes, showing tho driver
bow this fuel Is being burned.
i Other tests include acceleration,
'deceleration, rolling friction, riding
qualities, fuel economy at fixed
speeds, minimum and maximum
h peers, endurance. hill-climbing,
i braking, driver's vision range, re
flection from cars behind, head-
, lighting, steering effort, vibration,
ii oises, b rak e and clutch ped a 1
pressures;1 crank ease, dilution, ven
tilation, size und appearance,
) .There's a concrete mile straight
away to test pickup, speed and
braking. There's a sunken stretch,
called a "bath-tub" to learn the
effect of water on a cars parts.
Hpeeiat cameras are used to photo
graph cars from all angles for ap
pearance and vision.
All these und many other tests
und measurements arc made and
tubulated by figures and graphs.
Many facts are being gathered ap
parently with no purpose in view,
except that they'll be on record
whenever an engineer happens to
; want them. Then they might
form the basis for an improvement
long desired in the auto world.
., How these facts are used and
com pa red is suggested by O. T.
Kreiisser, engineer in charge of the
( General Motors proving ground.
j . How Cars Compare
I "Here, are two cars providing
Die suinc amount df leg room and
seating comfort," he points out.
"One car can steer in a circle of
ten per cent less diameter than
the other. Aitsuming everything
else belnge(itial, It can bo deduc
ted that the car steering within
the shorter radius has the advant
age from the customer's point of
view.
"Here again are two cars, in-one
of which the driver has a vision
t Ii rough the windshield and past
the corner posts that is 20 per cent
greater than the other's. Again the
one with the greater vision area
has the advantage, if everything
else is equal.
"Unfortunately, 'out. of necessity
the automobile must be a compro
mise involving a great many fac
tors, any one of which may be of
major importance to a particular
customer.
"The car mentioned us having a
shorter turning radius, may be less
steady to drive on rough roads.
The cur liavlng greater driving
vision may not have, a desirable
rakish appearance or the corner
pouts may be too flimsy and not
provide a rugged door hinge hang
ing." This is how deeply the investi
gators go into the lust detail.
Kvery part is taken from u ma
chine that had been run through
the mill for measurements and fur
ther Individual tests to determine
everything possible about it.
The proving' ' ground assumes
there Is no perfection.
MANY TOTS HURT
'HOOKING' RIDES
CHICAGO, Oct. 1 (AP) Tho
mother of the cuvo ago, as sho
at niggled to rear her children,
ever lived in fear of the junglU
beasts and today's mother finds a
counter part for that terror In tho
"jungle" beyond tho curb where
motor juggernauts take a ''terrible
loll" of young lives, Harold K. Hut
tenhcim, editor of "the American
City" told the National Safety con
gress. The jungle mother heard the
lion's roar with quaking; today's
screeching brakes blanch the
cheeks of mothers and why. Hut
teiiheim asked "have your chiefs
fallen down in their traffic job."
The editors answered by declar
ing trtere is no sense of fair play
or courtesy among the general
run of motor car drivers.
"The mental attitude of most
motorists and of some law makers
appears to be that pedestrains who
still survive as such are a well
nigh intolerable nuisance. Wo
hear a good deal of the need ot
pedestrian control on the high
ways, but mighty little of consider
ation of pedestrians."
He advocated the revoking of
driving licenses as punishment for
reckless driving, adding "the aver
age driver would rather lose his
right to voto than his right to op
erate a car."
I Court Defines Minor's Rights in
Purchasing and Returning Autos
The polico and the court h have
made automobile stealing for mere
joy-riding much less popular than
it was JO or 15 years ago. Girls,
on t he ot her ha ml, have grow n
more insistent that their boy friend
provide them with tho thrill of a
spin down the highway. If the
boy friend hasn't a cur, some other
boy friend has. Result, the boy
friend, who is often a minor, pro
ii He one, and the minor has act
ually paid money on the purchase
price, und taken and used the ar
ticle, that ho ought not to be per
milted to recover tho amount ac
tually paid without allowing the
vender of the goods the reasonable
compensation for the use und de
preciation of the article, vvhllein
his hand.
"Of course, If there has been any
HAY ST ATI-: TOUACCO
i AMU (OUST, Mass. Massachu
setts, whose population per square
mile is greater than that of any
state except Hhode Island, still hut
a little room left for tobacco fann
ing. Tin Massachusetts Agricul
t ur.tl college points out that the
yearly crop now averages between
Ujioo.iHio and H..00U. oou pounds,
iiiuully all of which Is grotvn in
three counties in the Connecticut
Kiver Valley.
vldes himself with u car on the I fraUl r imposition on the part of 1
Estimates Place Death
Toll Among Children
Under 15 at 7,211
An estimated 7, I'll children un
der fifteen years of age were kill
ed In highway accidents In 1 liliti.
Several hundred of these child fat
alities were the result of hooking
rides or coasting in the public
st reel.
These appalling figures wen is
sued by the American Head Build
ers' association today in emphasiz
ing the necessity for safety educa
tion of children. Nearly one-third
or Hit total 2B,aoa fatalities last
year were children of school uge,
it was pointed out.
"The dangerous habit of hook
ing rides should be discouraged by
parents and teachers. Children
who insist on "hopping" motor
trucks or passenger ears without
the knowledge of the drivers are
inexcusably careless. Often child
ren .will climb to the rear step of
an ice wagon in order to sec urn
u cooljng piece of ice. and fall to
the pavement when suddenly tho
machine Is started, i ) rivers are
unaware, in many cases, that child
ren are secretly riding on the tiro
or fender of their machines, and
are powerless to prevent accidents
to them. I
i "The responsibility for accidents
to children rests for a large part
upon school teachers and parents.
essity for
GOItS TUIX roi,icKMi:x
LONDON Too many sea-dogs
are wanting to be bobbies, accord
ing to a notice Issued by the ad
mi rally. The naval office says
there has been a considerable In
crease in the number of sailors ap
plying to Join the police force. He
cause of the demand for seamen
ami stokers, men of these classifi
cations will not be released for po
lice service as formerly except in
special circumstances.
COM MIlCS JS 1 XVI'INTIGATDH
1'AItlS A new attempt to prove
thai Columbus wns nut a citizen of
Genoa but a Cntalontan lias been
launched in a book written by
Senor Mills Ulloa, Peruvian schol
ar. He claims that a French Cata
tonia:! named ' Joan Colomb has
been robbed of his fame by con
fusion with a Genoese family
named Colombo, which tried to
prove kinship GO years alter the
explorer's death.
!A l'rench concern is planning u
series of excursions into the sub
I urbs of 1'aris on Sundays In stage
coaches of the days of Louis
Philippe with coachmen in top
( boots and gayly colored livery.
A recently measured iceberg was
found to cunt :i in enough lee to
keep every refrigerator In the Cul
led .Slates supplied ior a.. year.
conditional sales plan. Often, be
fore the car is fully paid for, tho
minor wrecks It, loses Ills Job or
his girl. Then, he calls for the
! dealer who sold It to him and says,
j "1 wus a minor when I signed that
I contract, here's your car, Glvo mo
my money buck"
! in many states the minor is able
to get away with it, too, und the
merchant Is compelled to give back
i what money he lias received and
'take back what is left of the ma
chine without any compensation
lor Its use or depreciation u sad
der and a wiser man,
i Hut, the courts of all the states
have not followed this ruling, and
some that have followed It have
differentiated between certain con
. dittoes, holding differently In cases
I w hero the contract was performed,
partly performed, or to be per-
formed in the future; also, letting
' their decisions be altered by such
.questions as "was the contract one
for necessities of life? Was it bene
d'lcial to the minor? Was If fair
' und reasonable?" and many others.
A Minor's Hight
! The question of a minor's right
to disaffirm his contract anil se
cure back nnyt hlng of value he
might have paid on It, wus never
presented to the supreme court of
J Oregon unlit li'U. It in lulerest
jto note thai the case In which It
was first presented involved a
motorcycle, and the second an au
tomobile. T When the question was finally
presented, tho supremo court bc
galu Its opinion us follows:
Tlio amount Involved In this
preceding Is not large, but the
question of law presented Is a very
Important one, and one which has
been much disputed in the courts,
and about which t lie re is a great
i und irreconcilable conflict in the
authorities, and we have, thereforo
given the mailer careful atten
tion." I
j Following a discussion of the de
j clNlons of 'the various stale courts
und of Knglund. our court laid
down the law in Oregon 1o be
"where 1 he minor has not been
over-reached In any way, and thorn
bus been no undue inf luence and
the contract is a (air und ruaaou- .
CAN'T lOIX;i; HAD M CK
OGHKNHl KG, N. Y. A sales
man laden with travelling cases
was hurrying to catch a ferry
when a black cat dashed across llin
street ahead of him. To avoid ill
fortune he turned and walked
around the block lo approach the
then u different rule would apply." -,. M1 ii(lP ,..
salesman trudged back to his ho-
the seller, or 1 the contract is un-
fair, or an unfair advantage has i
been taken of tho minor in Induc
ing him to muko the purchase,
The reader will note that the
rule set out above applies only m
cases where the contract Is ulready
executed. A diferent rule would
apply in the case of an unexecu
ted, that is. one where every part
of Its performance was delayed
until a future date.
The optimist hopes for the best
and realizes It; the pessimist fears
the worst and endures it.
I, baggage and all. "Avoiding
that eat," he lamented, "made mu
miss my boat."
According to Professor. Koelllck
i r, a Swiss zoologist, fish are not
deaf and dumb, and In the depth of
the joa give forth a buzzing sound
which contains a certain amount of
harmony and gnyety.
TEXACO GASOLINE
for
Heasty & George
. Corner Adams and Second
eiteition of the
courtesy find caution at all times,
; the child can develop an habitual
isnfe conduct that will follow him
throughout life.
"In addition to the safely educa-
j tion of children, it is the mo rail
, duty of all drivers to prohibit
I children from riding the fenders
j or rear attachments of their ma
chines. Holler skating or bicycl
ing behind motor vehicles should
! Made Movies in
cannibal Land
1 DRIVE THE CAR I
a & Jt moMr t. i n xr v w m meat ... ee
1 fMrrKrEro pmp m
1 Lir r&KVErniEr m
S TWO-DOOR SEDAN MDl BY F1SUZR 'Sg'
. a. b. Lansing - llrr : - . -
H Don't judge Oldsmo- ' jf Get in and enjoy its ' P " f s '
S bile by what similar uxu"ous comfort s J r
prices eVer before Admire its fine an- P j -A
I have bought. Vr 'P i 4
ES Come to our show- Then take the wheel " H ! ' s
3 room and put it to II and experience the 1 ti
E3 the tests of your best . swiftacccleration.thc Ie V ' 'jP'
1 taste and soundest judg-'" flowing power, the easy j '4t.J ' f
li mentv steering and effortless con- . IfSl ! '
Hi r, , trol of its thrilling, R j , feifi
I Compare it, step by step, sm00thcr performance Wg I f
jj w.th even costly cars- Drive the car and know M ' ,
. fa View its new smartness the difference! 1 h
1 m v P i
1 OLDSMOBILE SALES CO. j
' If , : 1428 Adams Ave. '
III lkwA jjbA j
xtra Value!
In Better Traction and Longer Wear
to TIRES
rtl TUBES
rnniwr
Always the standard for the trrc industry to follow can now
Iju purchased for a short time only at remarkably low cash
prices. Such an opportunity! Just as winter is coming on.
Buy now and save.
Path t inders
CORDS
...mvA; .
All Weather
Tread
Mlth Hubert and lirr hiHmifT,
.Cnntth gnnke. of Is, A ne b-,
lave returned nftr-r seven months
in the FIJI Island, wb-re they
made movie Fiibjecls ot the reign
ing1 cannibal kin:; and -M." natives.
Australian movi luleie.-u b.nkid
the film. f
$6.85
(Regular Clinchers)
$7.60 :,2
(Oversize)
$12.50 :2xi $16.75
$17.75 Mm $23.70
$20.25 $27.25
BALLOONS
$ 8.25 29x1.40 .$11.15
$12.10 30x195 $16.40
$13.80 31x5.25 $18.90
$17.55 33xG.oo $23.25
Liberal Reductions on Auto Tubes and Oilier Sized, '
Tires in Proportion