mtS SUA'DAlf OKEUOMAA, rORILAND, MARCH 15, 1914.
NATIONAL A10 FOR
ROADS ADVOCATED
Logaa Waller Page Would Ap
ply erit System to High
. way Officials.
POLITICS DECLARED BANE
County Urged as Smallest Unit' of
Administration and Employment
of One Person With Practical
Knowledge of Construction.
BY LOGAN WALLER PAGE.
Article II.
National aid road improvement is one
of the plans proposed, and I have no
doubt this plan will be inaugurated in
the near future. State aid is already
well under way, and has been constant
ly growing since 1891, when New Jer
sey first embarked on the plan of hav
ing aid granted directly by the ptate,
and & measure of state supervision pro
vided. Counties and states are bonding
themselves to build hard-surfaced roads,
and this is helping to some extent, but
to my mind the primary necessity is so
to reform and revise our existing road
systems as to insure the efficient con
struction of the roads, continuous and
adequate maintenance and honest and
capable handling of our road revenues.
I had hoped that when the states as
units took hold of the road problem
they at least would eliminate to a very
great degree the baneful influence of
politics, but the history of the changes
in state highway departments during
the last 10 years would indicate that
politics is as active there as in local
subdivisions. During the past 10 years
there have been changes in the control
of the engineering work in the state
highway departments of Arizona, Con
necticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland,
Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire,
New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsyl
vania, Washington and West Virginia.
In the State of New York alone there
have been nine changes made in the
state highway department in the last
15 years. While it would not be fair
to characterize all of these changes as
unjustifiable, it is evident that the ten
ure of otlice is, as a general rule, in
secure; that the official, who should be
absolutely free from political control.
Is almost totally unable to act except
at the dictates of those very forces.
Civil Service Advocated.
The- remedy, to my mind, is the en
actment of strict and clear-cut civil
service legislation applicable to the en
tire road system in each state, and the
conscientious and wise enforcement of
such legislation. In the first place, a
state highway engineer should be
chosen by a non-partisan board, and
should hold office at the discretion of
such a board. ' AH subordinate positions
in the department should be filled by
rigid competitive examinations, with
out regard to party affiliations. At this
point I wish to call attention to the
fact that we have recently filled the
office of assistant director of the United
States office of public roads by such
a competitive examination, and prac
tically our entire force, from messen
ger boy to director, is "filled in the same
way. The results are infinitely more
satisfactory than the old sp' ils system.
In regard to county and township
road work, I think it would be advis
able, wherever the system of govern
ment permits, to have the county as the
smallest unit of administration, and to
have one county official who is re
quired by law to possess a pracAcal
knowledge of road construction and
maintenance, and who is appointed af
ter an examination to be prescribed by
the state highway department In con
nection with the State Civil Service
Commission. While it probably would
be necessary to give the County Board
of Commissioners, or such officials as
have charge of county affairs, the
power to remove this road official,
they should be compelled to appoint
his successor upon certification from
the Tegister of the eligibles established
by the state highway department and
the State Civil Service Commission.
Ftt'r Compensation Ursed.
This would prevent removal of road
officials for the purpose of substitut
ing local politicians, and would tend to
permanency of office on the part of
good men and the easy removal of In
competent men. There should be pro
vided by legislation and regulation suf
ficient compensation for the county
road officer so that efficient men
might be attracted to the work. Con
stant employment should be given, and
his subordinates should be capable men,
supplied in accordance with the spirit
or the merit system.
The objection has been made to the
employment of county engineers that
some counties are utterly unable to pay
a salary such as a competent engineer
would require. This difficulty can be
overcome in two ways, first by legisla
tion so framed as to permit two or
more counties to Jointly employ an
engineer, or, second, by making the
civil service regulations sufficiently
elastic as to enable a practical and ef
ficient superintendent to be employed
rather than a high-salaried technical
engineer where conditions appeared to
warrant it. Only when we arrive at
the state of development where we
rcogjilze in the fullest degree the ne
cessity for the application of the merit
system in road administration in everv
unit of government will we attain that
standard of excellence in our public
roads which would, make them com
parable to the roads in Europe
BEARINGS DISPUTE IS ON
C. F WRIGHT DOUBTS RISCEXT AD
JCSTABLE ROLLER COMMENT
Trade Paper of Standing Quoted to
Show That Use of Balla Is Grow
ing; From Year to Year.
A recent article In an Eastern paper
made the statement that "greater at
tention Is being paid to the incorpora
tion of adjustable roller bearings In
hubs and transmissions."
The facts do not warrant such a
statement, according to C. F. Wright,
of Ballon & Wright.
"One of the leading trade papers of
the industry is "Automobile," of New
York," he said, "and Its Information
Is always gathered with a great deal
of care. In the January Isbuo there
appeared a tabulated review of auto
mobiles of American manufacture in
their 1914 models. Among other
items of construction was that of bear
ing equipment. This was given under
three headings, to-wit: Gear set, rear
axle and front axle. This Information
In comparison with similar information
published in previous years shows the
following:
"Bearing equipment in transmissions:
In 1912 the transmission of 64 per cent
of the pleasure cars was mounted en
tirely on ball bearings.- In 1914 this
tendency has increased to 72 per cent.
'"In rear axles: In 1912 the differen
tial and rear wheels of 43.3 per cent of
motor cars were equipped entirely with
ball bearinsrs. This has grown in 1914
to 64 per cent.
'Front wheels: Last year showed
preference fur the roller bearings:
in 1912 the front wheels of 67 per cent
of the motor cars were equipped with
ball bearings, last year that per cent
age had dropped to 49 per cent, but
this year shows a return to almost the
1912 figure, with 61 per cent -of the
motor cars using ball bearings 1n the
front wheels."
COLUMBIA STUDENT CANDIDATE
FOR ALABAMA SENATE.
If. H. Holmes Favors Use of Convicts
on Hlshnaya and Announces Op
position to Leasing System.
H. H. Holmes, a student of Columbia
University, New York City, has at
tracted some attention by declaring
his candidacy for the Senate of Ala
bama on a platform opposed to the con
vict lease system and advocating tlie
development of convict road work.
Holmes, who is a man of maturity and
force, was taking his higher degrees
at the Northern university. From a
child he had heard of the unfortunate
leased convicts and had hoped for an
opportunity to better their conditions.
In planning out his campaign he wrote
to commissions and commissioners all
over the country for material and ad
vice. Slowly the answers came back;
bureaus of research, prison associa
tions, charity organizations, all pointed
him in the direction of some bureau at
Columbia University.
Nonplussed, he confided the peculiar
situation to some undergraduate
friends, who told him laughingly,
"Why, we know all about your Ala
bama convicts; there's a chap over In
the dormitories connected with some
National committee of some kind that
investigated all your convict camps
for Governor O'Neal; better wake up!
There is nothing on which we don't
have experts at Columbia even prisons."
Holmes left for his Southern cam
paign, fully equipped with what he
had gleaned under the shelter of Co-
llumbia University. He found a bu
reau which Governors have come hun
dreds of miles to consult; whose inves
tigators have planned officially the
construction of the Wisconsin- prison
system for the state on a basis even
10 years ahead 'of the progressive ideas
of - the Northwest. Holmes' platform
was culled from hundreds of similar
platforms which have already been
used in dozens of states. His argu
ments are the best- that Governors
have said in messages for years past.
while the legislation of all the Legisla
tures has" been ransacked for proper
precedents. More valuable, though,
than all this was advice and assist
ance based upon the study made by the
bureau within the last few months of
the actual conditions and the heart
rending stories of the unfortunate convicts.
"We .wish you luck .Mr. Holmes."
was the rejoinder he received when he
said farewell; it was from a raw-boned
clerk in the office of the bureau, who
remarked under his breath, "I did two
years there myself; this dope you have
gotten is straight. Go to it, and get
the poor devils out on the roads."
COMPARISON IS IDE
FRED WEST CITES LONGEVITY OF
HORSE AND AUTO TRUCK.
The First Special Train
of Autos to the Pacific Northwest
40 Carloads, 1 93 Buicks, Value $251,565
Left the Buick Factory at Flint, Mich., Wednesday, March 4, 1914, consigned to
the Howard Auto Co. for distribution in the Pacific Northwest.
' If'SSsdL tMsfllNGTON .
BUICK6 x-v x yS
i 1 vt ..coxiiMTDALR . r rsx V
BUICKS DO SELL
H
OWARD AUTO CO
Phones Main 4555. A 2550
Mel G. Johnson, Manager
14TH AND DAVIS STS
Advantages of Machine Over Beast for
Commercial Traffic Shown by Lea
vltt Branch Manager.
'"As compared to horse transportation
methods, trucks are practically inde
Btructible,"' says Fred West, manager
of the local Leavitt branch; "or at least
so much longer lived than the horse
that this faithful beast of burden
makes a very poor showing. There are
plenty of records available which show
that horses used In rapid transporta
tion service retain their efficiency for
only about two years. A three-fourths
ton Willys-Utility truck, for instance,
if properly cared for, will last four or
five times as long, with no lost time for
sickness or exhaustion and very little
for repairs.
"The proper care of a truck doesn't
mean that it has to be worked over all
the time it is not in service, either. A
superficial daily inspection and a care
ful Inspection once a week gives the
owner a thorough knowledge of just
what condition his truck is in all the
time. These daily and weekly Inspec
tions in the aggregate do not require
more than an hour or two, and this will
take care of all adjustments and minor
repairs necessary, too.
The horse must be fed and groomed
at regular times, care must be taken in
the quality and amount of food given,
and there is always the possibility that
overwork or unfavorable weather con
ditions will result in a sick animal.
"The truck is never sick. The ex
treme heat of Summer and the exces
sive cold, or slippery streets of Winter
have absolutely no effect upon its
mechanism or working power. It will
travel as far and as fast on the hottest
day of Summer as it will when the
weather is temperate. Slippery streets
hold no terrors for it. It will plow
ahead through snow and over ice with
out a bit of trouble. The man who
drives a motor truck doesn't have to be
an expert in his line, for anyone with
common sense and ordinary intelligence
can be taught in a very short time to
take care of his machine properly.
There are many other points in which
the truck is superior to the horse,
aside from the ever-present fact that
the motor vehicle will do more work In
less time and for less money than is
possible for its equine competitor."
Activities In West Extensive.
February has not been a quiet month
for West Coast motorcyclists, as many
interesting club events have been
staged during the month. On February
14, the Tucson and Prescott (Ariz.) Mo
torcycle clubs staged a run to Phoenix,
where they took part in the Admission
Day festivities. On February 22, was
held the Mt. Hamilton run of clubs in
the Bay City district; also a 40-mile
road race from Tucson to Vail and re
turn; and on the 23d, the Stockton Club
run to ML Hamilton.
Future Coast motorcycle events so
far scheduled are:
May 30-31 Oakland Motorcycle Club
run to Fresno, Cal.
July 3-4 Lake Tahoe run by Stock
ton Motorcycle Club.
July 4 300-mile international race
on oval track at Dodge City, Kan., un
der auspices of Kansas Short Grass
Motorcycle Club. '
July 4-5 San Francisco Motorcycle
Clnb 310-mile run to Sausalito, to Eu
reka and return.
Clubs Plan Season's Events.
The two motorcycle clubs of Toronto,
Canada, two of the most active clubs
of the sort in existence, have already
completed schedules for the entire sea
son's events. Sunday runs, week-end
trips, endurance runs, competitions.
picnics, hill-climbs, and dinner parties
are planned for the enjoyment of the
members of these two live organiza
tions. In addition to these events, the
Wanders' Motorcycle Club has arranged
for a two weeks' tour, begining July
25. The run will be to New York City
by way of Rochester and Niagara Falls,
and it is expected that a number of the
F. A. M. clubs will join the tourists
nlnnp th rnntp ThA Tnrnntn Mntnr.
cycle Club has launched an intensive
membership campaign in an effort to
raise its membership to 1000. There are
at this time practically 00 riders af
filiated with the club.
The Swiss Department of the Interior is
considering the advisability of establishing
a central office for promoting: foreign tourist
traffic in Switzerland. It is proposed to
call in a commission of experts and other
interested persons in 1914 for consideration
of the proposition to be presented by the
department.
PLODDING PUBLICAN GETS BENZINE
BUGGY AND CHRISTENS IT "PILE-IN
"Always Boom for One More" Is Motto, and Kerosene Kontraption Does Not Grumble While Owner Grows Fat
f and Jolly, and All People Love Him.
BY WALTER GIFFA-RD.
It came to pass, once upon a time,
that there dwelt In this Fair City of
Roses a Plodding Publican, one of the
Hoi Polloi who steadfastly maintained
a belief, despite Female , Suffrage,
Higher Criticism, Eu and Hy Genics
and the Grand Old Party, that the old
old Adage still existed. . His Credo was
"Let the Poor Gink in on a Good
Thing."
- It also came to pass, one evening,
that this Plodding Publican was go
ing through his Twice Daily Stunt of
Waiting on the Corner of Broadway
and
Car.
Fifth street for a Home Going
As usual it happened that the Umpty
Umptieth Car swung past him, loaded
to the gunwales, other Plodding Pub
licans gripping desperately the noose
straps. Then it was that there passed
by him a Luxurious Limousine, having
in it Nought but Chauffeur or at best
a Man at the Wheel.
Upon him was the Spleen of the
Plodding Publican vented. Thusly did
he declare himself to the broad 6treets
and the gloomy sky. r
"Among these owners of Luxurious
Limousines and Empty Seated Auto
mobiles be men who are Corner Stones
MANUFACTURING FIRM BUYS FLEET OF TWELVE CARS.
r,. V u-av
i
OXE OF 12 OVERLAND DELIVERY WAGONS PURCHASED BY LOCAL SHREDDED WHEAT COMPANY.
of Commerce. Passers of the Plate at
Places of Public Prayer, Associates of
Charitable Organizations, men rich and
benevolent. It behooveth me to set an
example for these Misguided Ones.
"Filled Seats" to Be Desire.
"E'en though it looseth from me
great Wads of Dough, yet will I buy
me a Benzine Buggy. What care I for
Initial Cost, for Cost of Up-Keep? Gas
oline Bills, Tire Bills and all else be
Hanged. Unfettered by the Shackles of
Matrimony, why should not I increase
ray Expenses, thereby giving me an
Incentive to increase my Income. 'Tis
settled. I will buy me an Automobile
and it shall be my one Aim, my main
Desire to keep the Seats always Filled.''
Having therefore let it be known
that he was In the Market for a Kero
sene Kontraption he was surrounded
by a motley assembly of that Species
of Homo known as Automobile Sales
men. One would talk Service, another
would speak of Large Assortment of
Parts; yet another would point with
Pride to Factory Output. This being
so, one could not wonder that our Plod
ding Publican was Hazy In the Bean.
At last it came to pass that there
wandered his way a Different Sales
man, as different from other Salesmen
as a Baked Bean is from a Ham and
He was clear of eye, fresh of counte
nance and convincing of manner.
With him in Joyous mood went our
Plodding Publican, for a Tryout, which,
commonly, is called a Demonstration,
but which Salesmen use for other pur
poses, such as Abstraction of Simo
leons. Demonstrator Is Ordered.
Having seen with his own eyes that
the Repair Shop was empty, thereby
signifying as to the Solidity of this
make of Car, and having been made
completely Satisfied as to the high
Monetary Standing of the Firm, its
Ability to give Service and Its Guar
anty to keep the car in running order
for All Time, he handed the Different
Salesman a Bunch of Kale and proudly
ordered a Demonstrator.
Then having gained Possession of
aforesaid Vehicle, he turned to it,
Sort-of-proudly-like, and said, "Ma
chine of Mine, I dub thee"Pile-In. Thy
Motto shall be, "Always Room for One
More." "
So saying, he gripped the Throttle in
one hand, in the other his Divinely
Decorated book of Instruction in Driv
ing and so armed to the Teeth, sallied
forth upon his Mission.
After the tncident known as Stalling
of Engine -had occurred a sufficient
number of times, and after he had be
come Inured to the gaze of others of the
MOTOR
TRUCKS
A REAL SENSATION FOR ALL TRUCK-USERS
More Strength, Less Weight
and Price 31000 Less Than Any
Other 2-Ton Truck
We Carry Tour Paper $600 Down, Balance $100 a Month
On the 1500-pound Truck, $300 Sown, Balance $50 a Month
We Tested This Truck
Two Years Before We
Offered It For Sale
We value the name of "Reo" too highly to run the slight
est risk of injuring it with an unworthy product. So when
we saw the great demand among business men in every part
of the country for a strong, simple, dependable truck for
medium heavy duty, we met this demand only after assuring
ourselves beyond the shadow of doubt that we had surpassed
every truck of this type on the market, and fulfilled every
condition that our experience demanded as necessary.
We Know It Has No Equal
For four years we have watched these trucks working
under every condition of actual service, we tabulated the
results and are sure that in either dependability or price no
motor truck equal to this Reo Model J has ever before been
offered to the American business man.
Here is a truck that is built for strenuous service, and can
be operated and controlled by the fewest possible motions.
The motor, transmission, clutch and entire driving system
are cushioned on a sub-frame against jars and shocks. This
item alone, through quantity production, cuts the cost of the
truck many hundreds of dollars.
Powerful REO Features
It requires no expert motor experience to see the value of
these exclusive Reo features.
The left side drive and right hand center control allow the
driver to mount from either side, saving time. The motor is
governed so it cannot race, or run beyond a safe speed.
Heavily armored front makes damage through ordinary col
lision impossible. The sectional radiator is made of 24 inde
pendent, removable sections. One or many of these can be
taken out and replaced without affecting the operation of
the truck.
REO MOTOR TRUCK CO.
Lansing, Mich.
C. L. BOSS & CO.
615-617 Washington Street, Portland, Oregon.
Common Herd, It came about that he
was Just as equally sure of reaching
his Destination as other Motorists.
Girded, therefore,, with the Laurels
of Victory and the Insignia of Tri
umph upon his Forehead, he drove
Pile-In forth, taking them all as they
came from the Hedgerows and the
Byways. Those who rode in Pile-In
were of all sorts, but whoever It was
there was still Room For One More,
and Pile-In did not grumble while our
Plodding Publican grew Fat and Jolly
and All People loved him.
And the moral is that we can all
do something in our little way to help
the other fellow, for the other fellow
often likes a lift.
Portland
Branch
65-67-69 W. Park St.
North
Phones
Main 4506
A 2367
"T7"OU who are interest-
JL muiunug or
3 driving in any ve
hicle, for business or pleas
ure this branch is a mine
of help and comfort. Call
on tis for every item of tire
service at any time.
Avail yourself today of
the efficient advice and
assistance that go with
Firestone service.
TIRES
A RIMS L
m ACCESSORIES M
A complete stock at all times
of Pneumatic Tires, Non-Skid
or Smooth Tread; Truck Tires
in all approved types; Pleasure
Electric Tires; Fire Apparatus
Tires; Carriage Tires; Rims;
Tire Accessories, etc.
Let us prove leadership in
service as well as quality
and value.
Firestone Tire & Rubber Co.
"Amtricm't Largeit Exclnriot
Tirm mmi Rim Makers"
65-67-69 West Park St, North
pi, iO
Home Offie and Factory, Alma, O.
Branches in All Lars Cities