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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 27, 1916)
RQAO VITAL BQAD DATA SOUGHT FOR SUMMER TRIPS R RO TS FIRST MACHINE IN 1916 TO v I COVER MOST OF MOUNT HOOD TRIP Party of Six Hungry Travelers Find Fepastat Rhododendron Roads Are Reported to Be in Faifly Good Condi tion, but Motorist Are !Not Advised to Mike Trips, Unless They Are Acquainted With Routes. fl! (I ON AUTOS 1 Exertion of Power to Limit In creases Amount of De preciation, Is View. Portland Auto. Club to Issue Guide Book for Tourist and Asks Co-operation. , ENGINE PUT IN. COMPARISON Conservatism 'LOCAL AID. IS ENLISTED En mm) Explorers Are to 'lie Sent Oiit ;ly Commercial Organizations to 'ote Conditions oi Highways . in All 'Parts of State. Here is Rood news for lit Oreson motorists: the touring committee of the Portland Automobile Club, under the chairmanship of "W.- J. Clemens,' Is ptannrng to publish soon a comprehen sive'automobile tour-book .showing all of the roads in tlie state with detailed data aa to mileaRO and - road condi tions in every direction. For the most part the information is to be furnished the touring committee through members of commercial and civic bodies in various sections of the state and in some instances by parages. Those roads nearest Porttanrl wili ba. explored soon by automobile dealers and enthusiastic motorists who -are willing to take trips and .prepare ac curate loss of the more important and popular routes. Each Conitcunlt jr Reaponxlble. As the basis for - this information , copies of-ihe road data published in previous tour bocks are being mailed out to.-the appointed road- explorers with the request tlitrt they .check over in every detail and supplement in every case possible.; .- Ka'cta -. report - will , be signed by the authority who. obtained the lop. - -. - , '". ' ' . ; - .' In this ' way each, community; will etand sponsor for its' own roads '.and cannot complain that the publishers pf the book in Portland are passing thtem by or slighting them, in any particular. The touring committee of the club, which is composed of W. J. Clemens, Frank Robertson and Phillip Buebke, will also send out sets of touring eards to be sent in with, frequent reports of current, roads conditions which will be .regularly in the auto section ' of The Sunday Oregonian. . Work to Start at Once. Tn years -past: -Oregon, - in .contrast with its sister states on the north and south, has been rather slack in issuing , this official information fn weekly bul letins and this announcement from. Mr. Clemens should be hailed with hearty cheers by all Oregon motorists. Mr. Clemens said yesterday that he hoped to have the proposed 'club tour book off the press before Hay. in order that it can commence doing. paod as early in;the Summer touring, season as possible. .The work of preparing data will be launched immediately. Following is a sample of the letters now being mailed all, over the state from the office of Sir. Clemens: In order that there wl!t be no errors or omissions in the new 1916 tour arM map book e are'ai-kitig tlw! various commercial bodies of the state to aid in compiling: toe ciata neressji-y for the guidance of automo bile touriais the cominK season. r Mutual Benefit I'oUfvble., , No financial contributions are asked by the touring committee. We. desire only a little co-operation in the work. In the membership or your organization re a number of automobile enuhumants who ivill ari!y use their machines in making a trip or two to nearby poins with- a com panion who cap jot down the riara as the car travels along. The information thus soured will be ot benefit to the Klamath - Falls Chamber as much as to. tile Portland-' Adto- Znobile Club. , TheTorm which we want ift simDle. the one planned by W.'..r Clemen and used by the bro" book to ..urn pood purpose. In following -this plan have the. men -note, care fully all tjie -turns,- crossroads, -forks" rail road erodings. iluTucroua places, etc. .'.They should give the mileage .tu every- Instance and also closely follow.. th-e details, botb go ing and returning. - 1 Readings vMttt Be. Accurate. Please aiivibe if the weather permits the making of the trips at the present - time. lso try and secure- from" the County Coin lulsioners mope information. Following are the points to bear.jn mind that ail paihfinding trips will be reported 111 a uniform manner: 1. Make start from some promiennt build ing, such as postoffice or city hall.' . Note speedometer readings at 'every tirn, bridge, railroad crossing, crossroad, fork. etc. 3. Note dangerous crossings, turns and grades. 4. Give the grade percentage, if conveni ent. 5. Tell wh-ether roads are dirt, plank, hard surface or niarMilam and describe condition. fi. Explain imprbvemenla that will be Ttiade before the season opens In July. 7. Use as a guide the inclosed maps and ?ata. and cover all the roads shown, as w3ll aa the new ones. f S. Give a list of the reliable hotels and Karaites in the territory covered and also list tiie places along the road- wlietv gasoline canj De purchased. As It Is in the interests of the -whole state to have the; book. out. in time for the-travel-f rs we hope your committees will secure the information as soon as the weather permits and forward it to us. P'ease acknowledge receipt of this matter to Touring Committee. t room 2. Commercial Club building. Portland. Or. , Road In Generally Good. C. 'A'... Parvin, who made the round trip from Portland to Castle Rock. Wash., lifst week in his.. Chandler Six automobile, reports that all of the road except a stretch of about five miles just beyond Woodland was in pood condition. That portion, he said was still damp-but not muddy enough" to require chains. ... Castle Rock is 56.2 miles from Port land by road and embraces most of the rough road general reputed to .the Portland-Seattle drive in the Summer time.' Mr. Parvin. ' in reaching Castle Rock, drove through Vancouver. Ua Center, Woodland. Kalama and Kelso. A full report has not yet been re ceived of . the entire Portland-Seattle trip. - .. The ."it.-Helens' road down the east side of the river is said to, be in fine condition except for. a 4distance of a mile or so' wtvere" work is in progress. lfji -'..fix -4k.vh r-.m - J - "4 ' ' " ' ' - -v - ' i . " """""" . Snow IteicioaK Penetrated. Report-was received 4n Portland last week of the first trip of the seasoru from Fend down into the snow regions of Burns, 15'.' miles. - This trip was made by C. D. Hiliman. tf Pasadena, Frank Readen aiid J. L. D. Morrison.-of Portland, and Kay McKay, of Seattle, who were looking over stock lands. . The trip down required tw6 and a half days, whereas it usually is covered tn seven or tight Hours by the stage autos. Jleavy snow and much mud was encountered in the Harney County country, but the roads closer to "Bend w-cre reported by Mr.- Readen 'as good. The rt-turiv-trip.. from -Burns to Bend was 'covered in a day. and -ahalf. Honekons Cscs American Ca rs-. . Of the 80 automobiles in llonikorrg, 74 are .me"rlcan make. . Consul-General' Anderson reports that the Chinese are improving- their roads to accommodate automobile-traffic. - - - ! Belmont Buys Maxwell.- AmotiK the- many residents of Great-? er Ne-vt York who bought Maxwell cars during the recent National Show, was Augtrst "Belmont, " Jr., 43 Exchange Placer, ( SEP JJA Ik A ry, -.-; v.-. Vs- 5fw ... ..Wu. f J" " si w M -BY" Cli ESTER -A.ftMOOR"ES. BY GUIDIXG a powerful Reo Six automcbilev over the" 48 miles of jfood. ba3.-and commonplace roads that intervene between'!) Pprflandand Toll Gate,"'ChaVls M. Menies, salos managcr of th Northwest Auto Com pany, dealer's in Reo, CoMe and Marrnon cars, last- SlpndaJ afternoon: won the singular. distinction,; of being the first in 1916 to motor over that major por tion -of the famous Mount Hood trip. s-tranire to report, the road was found to' -be in- surprisingly good condition and. unless unusually bad weather is mef-d out during-the comhig few weeks it will not be long until the Mount Hood route is in "prime condition for the season's travel. There were sev eral stretches of rough corduroy mid- way of the trip, a number of ratner U'-Cp (juuuiro Uliu ' . ' " - of half a mile to go through the mud on the outer -end of the trip that re quired the .use -of tire chains, but the cantilever springs took care ot the six peWengers iri: elegant shape' on every bump, and th,e' strong Reo motor, con JrollCdlKy th- (.rained hand of Mr. Men zies. met every situation "slicker than a whistle." - ? - - . For the full trip, the Keo carried .nr. Menziss. Mrs. Alfred F. Biles, Miss Clar- ce Biles F..L.. laly. Kaipn j. oiacnn and the writer.- With various guesses as to bow-far the snow would allow us to go. thi start wjs. made. about 2:30 o'clock and, after what was reckone'd on the official watch as two hours and minutes' of actual running lime. Hie Reo had poked its head beyond Rhodo- dendron Tavern and another five mm utes saw it turning around in the deep. frozen snow a short distance . oeyono Toll Gate, the record point pened-aea by any automobile to leave Portland during 1916. Pnrty Begin Rfinrn Trip. , . Then six hungry appetites were turned loose for a long, long time on a generous supply of hot biscuits, jelly. chicken and huckleberry pie. prepared wih awe-inspiring naste-iana skiii oy thogenial Mr. and Mrs. ' Emil"Frartzeiti. at Rhododendron.- mis uouc, auu everyone warmed to a Queen's taste by a "lowing fire in ine grate, me m-u was turned towards Portland again for COLUMBIA HIGHWAY OPEN TOD V TO CHOWSi POINT OMY. According to information given out ' yesterday by k officials in " Roadmaster Yeou's ' .office it probably will be. a week before automobiles will be able to pene trate the Columbia River High way farther than Crown Point. The road to th.at point is in fine condition except for a rather bad '.place on the hill near the auto mobile clubhouije. but there are still 10 or 12 drifts just beyond Crown Point that probably run to a depth of 12 feet. When these. drifts are out of the way it is believed that -the Highway will be open as far as Store, -11 miles from Portland, where the pavement ends. - . The Sandy approach .to the Highway, is still closed prear Troutdale and it is also impos sible to" drive through the Fair view connection. The best way to approach the Highway is by wav of the Base Line road. The Powell Valley, Foster, St. Helens and Canyon roads and the Capitol Highway are all open to travel today. ; and the - road ,via Vancouver, Wash., is said to be in fine shape .all the way to Se attle. ; a return trip ldf two hours and 35 min utes throughthe darkness of a won derful' night modified by the light of brillanfxtars- anda full moon that il 'umintaed the bare outline of Mount Hood for-a part of the Journey. - -From Portland to Gresham Over the smooth pavement of the Powell Valley road everythtng was, or course, aensm f ul. andjthe same' can be rsaid of the 5.5 mile, of dry. level road that con nected Gresham - with tile town- of Pleasant .Home.. From the latter point on ti:rougli Cotreii lo nanay we en countered every variety of cordurdy surface with enough level, dirt road sprinkled in between to tease Mr. Men- zles, who wa always wiling to let the car . have its own way and travel like liirhtning. Consistent Gait Maintained. All except the last two of the.even miles that spread out from Sandy to Cherryville were favorable to a con sistent gait ot speed and the mud even on the last two miles was never deep enough to require chains. Thanks to the considerate County Commissioners, most all of the hl'ls on either side of Cherryville are pi inked with smooth boardja and whatever roughness exists is met fairly and squarely von the level. " The worst chapter of the Portland Mount, Hood route at thepresent time lies betweeen Cherryville and Bright wood, a total distance of seven miles, with intermittent patches-of fair road. This was about the only place along the entire trip Monday that real mud was found, but it really wasn't neces sary to swing on the chains until com ing to some soft mud about two miles this side of Brightwood. At one place a new fill had been made along the side of a bank that had suffered a slide recently, but worry over this lasted Wor an instant only, because ine car straddled the fill as though it enjoyeo the "diversion. Foot of Snow Encountered. After turning to the right at Mc Intyre store in Brightwood the road at once ascends to higher ground and solid footing is had for the remaining six miles to ' Rhododendron Tavern. From the tavern it is only a mile of fine travel on to Toll Gate. A foot of snow was about the average depth along the road Monday from Bright wood to Rhododendron, but the surface was nearly as solid as ice and the car floated along right over the crest, the wheels 'most of the time being in the grooves that had been carved out by heavy wagons. The height of the snow has been dropping off fast dur ing the past two weeks, Mr. Franzetti says, and tfie motorists who try the trip this week may find more mud and water and little snow this side of Rho dodendron. This country is bound to get a good deal more rain this Spring, but unless the fall is unusually heavy the road as far as Toll Gate should be passable,- to at least sturdy cars and experienced, drivers for the. balance of the season. At present the trip -to Rhododendron should not be attempted by anyone who has never -driven over the road. But if, after studying this report 'on the conditions of the road and taking due -njrnixnni!ft of the current state ot weather, a motorist feels that he would J like to follow up Mr. .vtenzies ieu, there is absolutely no reason under the surr why he .shouldn't take a shot at the trip any time now. The principal thing is to-know by experience and by "hunch" what you are going to run. into on the road. 1 '.JelTery Cars I'Hed on Trips. it was the .writer's privilege to ride in the first car, -a. Jeffery Six, that covered the eight miles on from Toll Gate to Government Camp last year, as welt as in the Jeffery-Four which last November hung up a remarkable record by completing the last Portland Government Camp round trip in 1915, and ib is interesting to compare con ditions on the respective trips. The first . trip of 1015 was taken under mighty favorable circumstances, with very little snow at' any stage far less, snow and mud than was met on last Monday's trip to Toll Gate. Last No vember there wasn't as much snow this side of Toll Gate as there is today, but the climb upj-iaurel Hill to. oov ernment Camp was a terror and, aa the Marmot road was then used in prefer ence to the Cherryville way. .there was another big job cut out in submarin ing through the jnud flats, between Marmot and the bridge that stretches across the Sandy to intercept the.Cher ryvtlle road this side of Brightwood. The road conditions found by the Jeffery-Oregonian pathfinding party last April were far more favorable than those prevailing at certain times during the height of the Summer sea son, when the road was most in use, and it is undoubtedly true that the road conditions as far, as Toll Gate last week wiH average up' fairlyi well with the conditions for the coming season. They are bound to grow better, but dtiring rainy periods 'they are apt to be much worse than they are right now. , " Hudson First In 1015. Going back into history a bit. the first car to make the Portland-Toll Gate trip la 1815 was a Hudson Sis driven by Robert A Hudson, on Sun day, January 21. At that time the road was frozen solid aftr a long cold spell and Mr. Hudson accidentally took n,iTinr,tae-e of this temporary condition bv driving well" beyond Toll Gate. Or; that trip snow was not met. until the car nearly reached Welches, the fall of snow being unusually light last year. - ,, , This year the snow is unusually deep all through the region and it will prob ably be quite some time before any machine can clir.i on from Toll Gate to Government Camp, a point, eight miles on at the top of Laurel Hill. TTuring the final hours of 1915 a Winton Six, driven by Tom F. Cowing, of the Courthouse Auto Livery, carried a party of Mazamas as fur as Toll Gate and returned several days later, being the first car out of that territory in 1916, but not the first one in. The fact that a Jeffery hud gone eight miles further up during fhe month preceding rather took the edge off the 3915 part of the 'Winton Six record, and the fact tliat the Portland-Toll Oate part of .the Wanton trip was made In 1915 gives the 1916 (record to Mr. Menzie and the Reo Six. This Mr. Menzies, by the way, was the first motorist' to Rhododendron in the years 1909 and 1910. as the old reg isters at the tavern prove. Walter F. Burrell accompanied Mr. Menzies on the 1910 trip in a Franklin Six road ster and, as Mr. Menzies recalls, the time of the journey was two hours and 55 minutes. Lincoln to Gravel 13 Miles or Koacl. DAVENPORT, Wash.." Feb. 2fi. (Spe cial.) The -County Commissioners have approved the plans and specifications for the improvement of permanent highway Nix 1-B, between Rocklyn and Creston, a . distance of 13 miles, which is to be graveled at an estimated cost of about $32,000, and the contract will be let March 7. The work consists solely of surfacing, the grade having been built the past season by the, state. Oreenhesrt woodt from British Guiana 'is said to outlast iron or steel when- usod under water. . Willi Its Pushed Steam locomotive, Even Smooth Steel Path, If Beyond Ordinary Capacity, Must Undergo Repairs. Most of us krtow the motorist who, imagining himself a miniature Resta or Oldfield, will tear through the town with a wide-open throttle, in gleeful realization of the fact that his machine, by -being pushed to. the .limits of its capabilities, will attain and maintain a speed . f a mile a minute, or even more. ' - ' . "It is to' the 'everlasting credit of the automobile," says A.1 S. Robinson,' man ager of the Pacific KioselKar branch, "that these exultations of speed may be continued with comparative impuni ty for a considerable time. v "However, he who is familiar. vith railroad mechanics and knows the in tervals within, which' he average lo comotive- goes to the roundhouse for repairs understands that! though the locomotive travels on an-ideal- road surface which is not1 interrupted by the slightest inequality, every demand upon the engine beyond the normal service conditions -for which ft was de signed must result in abnormal wear and tear. . ,, ,- ' Road of Travel Considered. ' "The point is not often made, but; Is worthy of attention, that for purposes of transportation it is impossible- to consider, the motor vehicle apart from the road , on which it travels; the one is as necessary- as fhe -other. A-nd, ultimately, the mechanism -of Vin-auto-mobllo rests not on the .brick foundations- :of a 'Etat ionary engine, nor on the ideally-conditioned steel rail of the Taitroad: but 'on' the ordinary -road sur face, which changes during every sec ond of running. . ' . - " "True, the modern automobile- ac quits its If nobly of its; tasks, when used-r ensibly. - But thechrcnir: speeder, who is apt to be disgruntled atwhat to him may- ssera- unreajse-nable wear and tear, must bear in mind that he is . put ting hla. car . to -severe . trials every time he races it pver the ever changing foad surface '- wi'tli every ounce of reserve power io' action. lllll-t Mnihins Denervations Made. ; Similar observations may be in order in regard to hill-climbing. The per sistent high-speed hill-climber is first cousin to the scorcher. Climbing every hill on the high gear, while it may be done, imposes the hardest kind of work not "only on the motor, but on, every part of the jar. The lower gear ratios .are provided for hill-climbing, and they should be used for it. "It may be well to consider a little more carefully the amount of work done by .an automobile climbing a gradient of, say, a gear ratio of three to one. "This means that cne revolution of the driving wheel is produced by three revolutions of the engine crank-shaft. With the other gear ratios, the inter mediate and the low, the number of revolutions of the engine become still greater as compared with the number of driving-wheel revolutions. Distance IVot Hard to Compute. "It is not difficult to compute with exactness the distance which a car is propelled by one explosion of the en gine, and the power consumed in hill clirr.bjng. The circumference of a 32 inch wheel is approximately 100 inches, and in covering one mile the driving wheel revolves 633 times. Since the motor turns over three, times as fast as" the driving wheel, it will require 1.899 revolutions of the crankshaft to propel the car one mile. "Thus, if, for instance, a Briscoe touring car should proceed at- the rate of 30 miles per hour, aproximately 950 engine revolutions are required. With two power strokes for eaeh revolution there are 1900 explosions, a minute, or 3800 explosions per mile, and each ex plosion propels the car about "one foot and four and a half inches. This es timate presumes that the car is pro pelled over level ground. To mount a hill means simply that grade resistance is added to the various fractional and other', resistances. "An, automobile - weighing, like, the Briscoe, 2100 pounds, including gaso line, oil and water climbing a hill 200' feet high (measured vertically), overcoming the action of gravity, or lifting, and the calculations of the1 power required to do this must involve the factors from which the horsepower unit is derived." I!, (' m'iCHELIN - FO'J n'dED- 1 832 ) M'IGHELIN: ' , UNIVERSAL ' - . -' I . v TREAD . ll I k - ' : - ll I I 111 A real advance PyO in Tire Making fff ' ' j l I V Archer & Wiggins Co., litfJjaS' ' I ' ' r "I I . 'S'vrh nt Oak Sts. . '. ' j IjP" (ONE QUALITY ONLY-The BEST jjjj! " HIGH-SOUNDING and extrava gant phrases, as applied to motor cars, are all too common. "Thus their . force is lost, and they convey no thought other than the impotence of the user. Unfortunately, too, generalities are often resorted to in the absence of significant .facts and convincing evidence. For every effect there is a cause. The prestige, and favor acquired by Maxwell Motor Cars are due to tangible and commanding reasons. .The comeliness of design, the solidity of structure, the economy in upkeep and operation, the ease and comfort in driving and lastly the innate integrity of the whole (exemplified by the World's Motor No-Stop Mileage Record, recently established by one of our stock touring cars) these are the powerful contributing factors to Maxwell eminence. Maxwell Motor Car Owners are people who recognize the wisdom of economy. They expect surpassing service and everything that such service implies. They pay tribute to Value and Worthi ness whether in man or car. i ;s", ll V r-" 5!: Ona Chusu, Fits Body Stylet Two-Passenger Roadster . . . Five-Passenger Tourinp Car . . . Touring Car (with All Weather Top) Two-Passenger Cabriolet . . Six-Passenger Town Car .... Full equipment, including Electric Starter and Lights. All prices F. O. B. Detroit $635 655 755 865 915 MOTOR COMPANY, DETROIT, MICHIGAN S -MAXWELL MOTOR CARS are sold in Portland by our rcproHrntati o C. L. Boss & Co., 613-G17 Washington Si. --fin- -'f.i.'v;--:r'-vfi ,.7r' .J-l r .v It' as eay to tour a to can (lie rrmo to be an comfortable and ecuro on (b road as at home. ' Miles shrivel to insignificance and distjnee is mastered by your gentle control. fir. Six aKdlsrehcCVIiiidcTCars The"nenrcst nppro.tch to niotor-magii': arc these "Iliglnvny cars, so naiaoi because of their great touring radius. To the exceptional power of these cnKincrrinu achievements, to their giant-like stamina is added an opulence of refinement and comfort. Their dis tinctive appearance has made them style leadors. To build this ability into your National w possible only because of fifteen years continued Mirrcss; possible because of National's poli :y to build for . perfection and not for numbers or price. Only a ride cart convey to your mind how f:ir superior these newcraft actually arc. Don't drpiivc yourself of the best vhen National prices are to modest. HiThwar" Six "lUsKw.r" Twlv "Na-oort" S! $1630 ' $1093 J2375 I'i Ices 1". (i. U. rartoiy. DULMAGE-MANLEY AUTO COMPANY I lt! lli'ltOl H. 46-48 Twentieth, Near Washington Lawrence Therkelien, City Salesman NATIONAL MOTOR VEHICLE CO., Lulianapolis. Indiana 5s. --', JrlWSSWZ7p.'''s''W -'TW"! W Www - f., 1- '; -: '-, '.-':.' !-'" . IU I -", ' .::-':.. t .- -: ...--'.. .. ...... f .,