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About The Omaha morning bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 1922-1927 | View Entire Issue (May 13, 1923)
Many Shakeups Occur in State Highway Boards Departments in Fourteen States Reorganized During Past Year, Inquiry Shows. Highway department* of 14 states either have been reorganized or the management of their affairs put un der new direction as the result of the action of legislatures or a change In the state administration, according to the study of state highway activities being made/ by the Good Roads board of t|le American Automobile association. This big turnover in management of state highway departments does not take in consideration the changes i which occurred during 1922 and the ] jcars preceding, but represents the legislative or political product of i three and a half months of 1923. When it Is-considered that these de partments have the expenditure of ■ from $2,000,000 to $40,000,00(1 annu ally under their direction, the eco nomic hiss resulting from the fre quent changes in administration with ' the corresponding changes in policy j is appalling, points out IT. G. Shirley, , .chairman of the Good Roads board. Complete Reorganization. The changes made in the state highway departments in 1928 vary from the usual change of the chief executive of the department with the incoming administration, to a com plete reorganization of a state high way department along entirely dif ferent lines. In one state, after May 1 of this vear, there will be left only one assistant draftsman of the old organization. All of the heads of de partments and minor employes were asked for their resignations. In ari nother state widely separated from the first, the entire personnel of the rii- 1 rective heads of the organization were relieved from further duty hy legislative enactment and a new form of administration substituted. This is the second complete change in four years for this state. If a corresponding high percentage [ of private business concerns of simi lar magnitude were subjected to a like turnover in management. Mr. Shirley declares, the results would be ■ so disastrous to business generally as to demand on the part of business tiie immediate remedy of this situa tion. Must Plan Ahead. It is pointed out that business con cerns having the expenditure of j amounts as large as those entrusted to state highway departments, for reasons of economy and efficiency, ; must plan their work ahead for a period of five, 10 anil 20 years. The . difficulties in applying this well . known rule of business to the admin istration of* a state highway depart ment will be appreciated when 14 out of 48 states changed either personnel or plan of administration, or usually both, in three months. Tiie average term of office of a state highway ex ecutive is two and a half years, ac- 1 cording to the statement of a well known state highway offi< in! The observations which have been „ —y made by the Hood Roads board em phasize the necessity of clo.-q. cri-opets. ntion between the motorist who is in - terested in highway improvemt iit and the state highway departmer,'* It is the opinion of Chairman Shirley that the frequent changes in person nel and plan of administration is largely due to lack of understanding on the part of the public of the plans of the department and just how the state's money is being expended for construction and maintenance of high ways. it Is the belief of the board that tiie motorists through the or ganized efforts of their clubs can ma terially help in building up public confidence in their state highway de partment. Cadillac Ad Man. Here. Says Farmers Arc Prosperous Verne K. Burnett, advertising man ager of tiie Cadillac Motor Car com-' pany, Detroit, was a guest of J. H Hausen of the J. H. Hansen Cadillac company on Wednesday. •Mr. Burnett is making a tour of the United States in the interest of the Cadillac company, paying particular attention to the condition of Ameri can farmers. He said the farmers are getting back to normal. "Most of the farmers are not only r»ady for merchandise, but are buying better qualities than they have here tofore considered necesSary,” he said. "This applies to machinery, auto mobiles, household goods and other lines.'' California ha* 251.4 motor vehicles re* latered to every one thousand persons, or ona car for every 3.6 persona. Palestine haa 700 motor cars and 100 motor trucks. Imports of motor vehicle* Into the United States totaled 46* in 1922. *•» Henderson Tire Co. Opens Branch Here Charles A. Botbwell The Henderson Tire and Itubber Co., Inc., of Columbus, O., which recent ly opened a branch In Omaha at 2215 Farnam street, are well pleased with result* from this territory, so far. Charles A. Bothwell, who will man site the banch, ha* been a resident of Omaha for many years and Is well known. He feels confident this branch will show a satisfactory toluine of business this year. Red Bird Newest Overland Model I_.. TTHttiTiMiK_ — The Red Bird is ihe latest addition to the 11*23 series of the Overland. In addition to embodying the essen tials of skillful design and solidity of construction, this model is special ly notable for the complete equip ment it carries on leaving the fac tory. In general appearance the Red Bird is a creation striking to the eye. It is an illustration of fine, well-bred coloring. Combined with this is the Vhaki top of serviceable material that will also hold its own in all seasons. . The engine in the Red Bird is larger and more powerful yet pre serving all the facilities of the Over land motor for giving unusual mile age per gallon of gasoline. The crank case has a double bot tom which increases the strength and rigidity. Two Men Join Tire Firm W. Karl Tlmrher. 4. E. Wenzel. Photo by H«yn. Two additions to the sales organiza tion of the Sprague Tire & Rubber company were made this week, ac cording to an announcement given out by E. H. Sprague. W. Karl Thurber, a tire man of many years experience, joins the organization as service station merchandising man ager, and J. E. Wenzel becomes Denver distributor. Thurber will have complete charge of I he merchandising of Sprague free tire service stations in the United States and will maintain his head quarters at the factory in Omaha. He recently came to Omaha from Chicago where he has been connected with one of the largest tire com panies in the business. Wenzel has an organization already perfected in Denver and several cars of Sprague tires have already been distributed. Farmers of West to Start Buvinjr Present Prosperity Will Con tinue. Declares Oakland Representative. The lumber Industry of the north west has come back; the crops of the great middlewest look extremely promising: long expected rain lias come in the extreme west, and, w-hat is more important there is a spirit of optimism in the middlewest and west sections of the country that the pres ent prosperity is going to continue and increase. This sums up the opinion of C. J. Nephler. general salesmanager of the Oakland Motor Car company, from personal observation and discussions with business men and farmers dur ing a three weeks' trip to the Pacific coast with George II. liannum. presi dent of the company. During the trip they visited more than 15 branches and distributors of the com pany. "Of course, most farmers, due to conservation, will be reluctant to make heavy purchases until they pretty nearly know just how large and fruitful their crops are going to be,” explains Mr. Nephler. "But just as soon as they kno^ the probable crop, they are coming into the mar ket, for they are behind on many of their necessities, including autoino biles, and they will begin to catch up. just as the general public did last year, which in a measure was re sponsible for the sale of a record numliej- of automobiles as well as of other necessities during 1922.'* Speed Wagon Makes Alarm (’locks Unnecessary A speed wagon which keeps so close to schedule that the farmers along their route have thrown away their alarm clocks, is described by J. M. Opper of the J. M. Opper .Motor com pany. The speed wagon in question, which was placed in service on February 15, 1922. by the Democrat and Chron icle newspaper of Rochester. N. Y., has beep doing duty every day and has been adhering to its strict schedule I vo accurately that the folk In the vicinity of Hornell, N. V , Insist that they can tell the time of day by simply keeping an eye upon the road over which the speed wagon travels ' "A ton and a half of newspapers sent out every day by the Demo crat and Chronicle prior to Febru ary of last year was carried by trains, , but connections with other lines could not to he made In time to Insure the farmers of getting their newspapers early In the morning. To solve this problem, the speed wagon was called 1 into service and has been on the Job seven <lay* out of the week since that time. "The total distance covered each day is 150 miles, or 1.050 miles each week. Almost every possible condition is en countered in the progress of the run. and the maintenance of a strict sched ule is made unusually difficult, owing to the fact that there are many trades en route, of them being a three-quarter mile grade which 1* especially deep and winding. Part of the trip is through the foothills of the Allegheny mountains, but fortunately, the roads are good SPECIAL NOTICE We will now furnish* you Durant Touring Cars, painted either blue or red, equipped with disc wheels or wood wheels, cowl lights and many other extras at the Durant regular price at Omaha, $998.00. Have you seen the Durant Sport Touring and Sport Sedan? They are Wonderful Values. Andrew Murphy & Son 14th and Jackson _*c5 Wholesale' and Retail 395,962 Fords Delivered in l .S. in First Quarter Sales Per Cent Greater Than for Same Period Last Year—Demand Exceeds Supply. Detroit. Mich., May 12—Sales of Ford cars and trucks In the United States alone for the first quarter of 192" reached the total of 395,962, the greatest sales record in the history of the Ford Motor company for a similar period of months. This is an Increase of 135 per cent over the same months last year, when Ford retail deliveries totaled 168.509. Even these figures do not Indicate the number of sales which could have been made had production facili ties been greater. Every month deal er requirements have been far in ex css of the company's manufacturing ability. For May, dealers' orders reached the enormous figure of 300, 000 Ford cars and trucks. Following the expenditure of mil lions of dollars for new machinery, expansion of manufacturing units and enlargement of assembly plants, pro duction has been gradually increased since the first of the year until at present the company is operating on a schedule in excess of 6.500 com pleted cars and trucks a day. While reservations now are being put on early predictions that this year would see 3,000,000 cars and trucks produced in the United States, increasing demand for Ford products will, all indications are. keep produc tion at capacity rate for the re mainder of the year, bringing it well over the million and a half mark by January 1 next, maintaining the established Ford percentage of pio ducing as many cars and trucks as all other manufacturers combined. Rubber Situation in America Is Acute W W. Wuchter, president of the Nerbaska Tire arid Rubber company, has returned from a conference, called by If. 8. Firestone In Akron, O, on the crude rubber situation. November 1 1922. the British colonial secretary put Into force a very drastic restric tion on the exportation as well as a prohibition export duty on crude rub ber from the British possessions In the far east, attempting to create a short age of crude rubber and thereby in creasing the cost to manufacturers, who must of neceessity pass It on to the Interstate consumer. A conference was held February 27 in Washington at which Mr. Wuchter was present and resolutions of pro test were adopted and further resolu tions requesting congress to appro priate $500,000 for investigation of such countries not under the Rritish flag, where rude rubber can be success fully grown. Congress made this ap propriation. and the Department of Commerce is now busy working out its plan along these lines. The T'nited States is dependent up on the far east for its rubber. All pro tests to the Rubber Browers' asso ciation have hern without result. Th*re w#re 12 per < ent mnr» n> • r lour:n,ii vinthne the national park In 192J •han In pr#redln*r years, ••■ct r<linic to the report of the director of th*_ nat otial park service. The to’al wu more tnU Mf.000. I)a> ton, 0., Sets New Record for Autos Per Square Mile While < 'aliforniH and Iowa have been racing with each other for sev eral years to register the most ve hicles per person. Dayton. O., has quietly been establishing a new motor record, that of the most motor ve hicles per square mile, that is. 1.885. Detroit comes next in this rating with 1.8f»7. with San Francisco third, totaling 1.803 cars and trucks to the square mile. City planning experts are taking recognition of th s particular growth and many municipalities are provid ing for new highways and parking fa cilities. Dr. Bert N. Caldwell Joins University of Iowa Faculty Iowa City. la.. May 12.—L)r. Bert W. Caldwell, former member of the typhus commission to the Balkans and exsuperintedent of the Alle ghany C.eneral hospital at Pittsburgh, lias been appointed superintendent of the university hospital at the Uni versity of Iowa. He will begin his new duties sometime this month. Ur. Caldwell is now at Vera Cruz. Mexico, where he is a member of the yellow fever commission. Rec ord of Buick Shows Healthy 9/ State of Industry 9/ j Million-Mark Not Considered Good, hut Guide Post llrg ing Company to Keep On. By K. T. STRONG, General ShU Mtiimgrr, Buirk Motor Co. We tio not think of the 1,000.000 jnark as a goal rfached. Rather consider it as a guide post along the way, advising us that we arc going in the right direction and urging us to keep on and on. And so. in viewing the production of our 1.000.000th car. w* tin not see anything that might cause use to sit hack and admire the laurels already won. We accept our achievement as a chall*-ngp to produce better cars, in , that we may give every Buick owner a little more value, a little more ser vice, a little more motoring pleasure ttin 11 our record may reasonably 1 td him to expect. The production of 1.00,000 cars of Buick quality Is also of significance 10 the automotive industry. That it has been possible to make and sell so many gotid cars shows at once that the industry is in a healthy state. Much a production by sn acknow ledged leader can have nothing but a stabilizing and beneficial influence on the industry as a whole. The first 1,000.000 Buick cars have done many things—things that have made interesting history. But, to us, their individual accomplishments have combined to build for Buick a reputa tion, which is at once both a valuable asset and a responsibility. That this responsibility does not rest lightly on, our shoulders goes without saying. We have but to refer again to the Buick creed, which reads, "No matter what Its price, a Buick car must and will give tb» maximum of that service for w-hich it was intended, and must hear its proportion of the responsibility of maintaining that high prestige which Bui'-ks have attained." There are 47.42$ garage* .n the United State*. There are 449 as# motor vehicle* tn Can ada. nearly half of these being tn On tario EIGHT million car* are equipped with Stewart Vacuum Tanks and Speedometers. Eighr million en dorsements of Stewart reliability and q ialiry And every dav adds thousand* to this tremendous clientele. A< a car owner, dealer or manufac turer. these fact* mean everything to you. Don’t accept any other teed •vsrem or speedomerer equipment. Don't take any chances. It is not worth the risk Stewart Accessories are Cuv rofT|hilr. They require an unbelievable small amount of attention, vet it is assuring to know that immediate, expert service can always be obtained when necessary. There are Stewart Service Stations in eight>-seven principal cities, from Norway to Tasmania, fifty-four in the United States alone that service Stewart equipment exclusively. And every station has its Stewart experts; factory-trained, skilled mechanics. What a convenience this is for car owners. what an invaluable as*et for car manufacturers and dealers. De mand Stew art equipment and you can command Stewart Service. Strwirt'Wimrr Speedometer Corporation • Chicago, U. S- A. MILES PER GALLON What Car Can Equal This Record? Read These Facts About the Gray Test * nnie* di Wi >00 mile* vd hifh mountain* ••HO mile* ol Mohave Oiawt and Sand 700 miles cA Prairies and Plains 200 miles ol hard ftsnf tntid 200 miles ol Pennsylvania Mountains VOOO miles ol improved hi*h *'ava and dry Hnvuif Proof of economy under mil dr tying condition* $520 louring Car F. O. fi. FWn*w A «ock Gray touring car has just finished a cross-country ran from San Francisco to New 3 ork with an aw rage gasoline consumption oi 3T8 miles to the gallon. The trip was made under the sanction of th+ American Automobile Association. The car was accompanied by aa official observer of that association and every drop of gasoline and every mile trawled was checked by the observer. This is a world s record for low gasoline consumption under all condi uons of automobile travel. What car dares attempt to equal this record? 1 oday, when the insistent demand of the motor driver is for economy and low operating cost, the Gray establishes a record under official observance that may never be equalled by any ocher car. Come In and See the Gray Today Gray Motor Corporation, Detroit. Michigan KOPAC BROTHERS Distributors Nebraska and Western Iowa 1116 Howard Street, Omaha, Neb. Wira at once for agency.