During the 1920′s cars progressed from being fairly sparce and utilitarian vehicles to practical vehicles that were more reliable, comfortable, technically innovative, and stylish. Manufacturers strived to out-do each other in advancements in all aspects of automobile construction and styling in order to increase their market share and profits.

As cars became more mechanically reliable, comfortable, and easier to drive, women became the targets of 1920′s car advertisements.

You can see some wonderful pictures of 1920′s cars, car engines and bonnet decorations at the 1920′s Cars web-page at Squidoo. The diversity of colors and styles of these early cars is amazing. Equally amazing is the rapid pace of technological advancements during this period. Most of the automotive technological advancements of the last century occurred in the nineteen-twenties, with the exception of electronics, of course.

Four wheel brakes, pneumatic tires, sophisticated suspension systems, hybrid power-trains, torque converters, car-radios, leaded fuel, and new engine configurations were but a few of the automotive developments of the 1920′s.

Henry Ford was able to reduce the cost of cars to a level that most people could afford, through innovative methods of mass production using assembly-line methods. Car factories employed thousands of workers and whole new industries sprang up to service the automobile.

New and improved roads facilitated the growth in road transport and travel, so that the automobile became an essential part of everyday life.

Steel Wheel Advertisement from 1925 

Source: Motor Magazine, January 1925

THOUSANDS of tests have proven the artillery type spoke wheel the most practical and durable of popular type wheels. A careful study of “wheel-ology” will show that spoke wheels withstand the greatest shocks without damage to axles, bearings, or the car itself.

Steel Wheels – Where Strength Is Essential

The terrific speed of modern motor cars calls for the greatest possible strength in wheels while yet maintaining the minimum in weight. The Dayton Steel Spoke Wheel offers a most successful answer to this popular wheel problem by giving car owners a new measure of wheel service.

Its artillery type design makes it practical for popular use and readily adapts it to the needs of the millions of car owners. Its steel construction and hollow spokes, with folded seam throughout their entire length, provides the necessary strength while also keeping the weight down to the minimum. This seam is neither brazed or welded, nor is there any brazing or welding at either hub or felloe ends. This method of construction prevents the possibility of crystalization which would occur at brazed or welded points. Another important feature is that the all-steel construction of the wheel permits the use of a baked enamel finish equal to that found on the best car bodies.

A Wonderful Wheel for Dealers and Car Owners

The Dayton Steel Spoke Wheel bids fair to revolutionize the motor wheel industry. Rough roads, heavy loads and slippery pavements are no terror to this wheel. It withstands the knocks and bumps of every-day driving.

Dealers and Distributors Wanted — In a few weeks the story of this wheel will be told to millions of car owners. Thousands will need them for immediate replacement. A good profit awaits live dealers who want this business. Write today for prices and discounts.

State Managers Wanted to handle unassigned territory in certain states. Must be high grade, experienced salesmen, capable of financing own operations. Attractive proposition to those who can qualify.

This Dayton Steel Spoke Wheel is now in production for Ford, Star, Overland, Gray and Chevrolet cars.

THE DAYTON WIRE WHEEL CO., Dayton, Ohio

ACCIDENTS ON SCHEDULE

“IN MY experience in industry I have found that all accidents happen in the first two hours of the first half of the working day, and the last two hours of the last half,” says Dr. W. Louis Hartman, chief surgeon, Michigan Central Railroad, writing in National Safety News. Says The Nation’s Health (Chicago):

The reasons given for this is that it takes the worker two hours to divert his mind from the things outside his work. He may have financial difficulties or sickness in his home. He is slow to adjust himself to his task. The accidents occurring in the last two hours are due to fatigue largely, and might be overcome to some extent by I proper physical as well as mental care. It should be the duty of the supervisory forces, | especially foremen, to keep an active interest in injured employees, and encourage them to return to work as soon as they are able to perform satisfactory service, tho they should not be allowed to do work which would in any way interfere with their recovery. Lighter work might be provided for the worker, but Dr. Hartman points out that an occupation of some kind tends to hasten recovery by keeping the worker’s mind from dwelling on his injuries.

Source: The Literary Digest for April 9, 1927

NO MORE SHIFTING GEARS

At a recent meeting of the Royal Society of Arts, in London, Mr. George Constantinesco delivered, by invitation of the Society, a lecture describing recent developments of his remarkable device called the “torque converter,” replacing the usual gear-shift systems of automobiles and similar machines. Says Dr. E. E. Free, in his Week’s Science (New York):

This device is described by some engineers as being the most remarkable innovation in the science of mechanics since the invention of the steam-engine. One of the problems encountered in many applications of power is the problem of varying the speed of a moving machine without changing the speed of the engine which drives it. In gasoline automobiles, for example, it is necessary to provide some gear-shift arrangement, by which the driver can operate his car rapidly or slowly, the speed of the engine changing much less than does the speed of the rear wheels. The Constantinesco device does away with this necessity.

Small automobiles equipped with it are now being built in England and have no gears at all. The driver needs to pay attention only to the throttle and to the steering-wheel.

The principle of the device is one essentially new in mechanics. Mr. Constantinesco declares that he worked it out mathematically and philosophically before any model of it was built. The trick is in the use of an oscillating weight, which vibrates back and forth like the pendulum of a clock. The mechanical principles involved are far more complicated, however, than are those of a simple pendulum.

INCREASED USE OF PREST METAL

THIS interesting feature of the year’s iron industry is reported in The Iron Trade Review (Cleveland), by Ethan Viall of that city, a former editor of The American Machinist. Mr. Viall attributes it to refinements in mechanical processes, and to more extensive employment of welding and improvements in the finishing of metal surfaces. He writes:

One of the outstanding developments during the year was the noticeable trend toward all-steel automobile bodies. Wider adoption of seam-welding, because of the rigidity it affords, is hastening the swing to the steel body.

The change from the old type of body does not involve the increased tonnage of steel that one might expect. This is because a better grade but lighter gage of steel is being used than in former years, and also because late changes from steel-and-wood bodies to all-steel does not require much more sheet steel. In most of the composite bodies, wood was used merely to stiffen or back up the metal. A slight change in design, with, in some cases, a harder grade of steel or a slight increase in gage, now gives a stiffer and stronger body which is self-supporting at only a small increase in the total weight of sheet metal used.

Marked advances in die-making and improvement in the art of pressing metal are responsible for the constantly broadening use of shaped metal for articles of intricate design formerly cast or assembled from multiple parts. Many steering-wheel spiders now are made of prest metal, as also an increasing number of vending machines, motor-air-cleaners, stove legs, and even the tops for kitchen ranges—the latter an application long considered impractical because of the exposure of the metal to warping and burning influences.

Perhaps the greatest growth in point of tonnage may be traced to the gradual improvement in the finishing of sheet metal, which now permits surfaces comparable to that of the finest woods. This refinement, coupled with the fact that sheet steel now is being laminated with insulating and other materials, has led to the use of metal cabinets for iceless refrigerators. The largest manufacturer of this equipment, in announcing plans to build 600,000 units during 1927, states that this expected production and the greatly reduced price of the product are made possible by the economy and manufacturing efficiency permitted by the use of metal cabinets. Enameled products, kitchen cabinets, and similar articles, as well as furniture, are made of prest metal in greater quantity owing to refinements in construction and finish.

Another indication of the growing favor of steel for highly finished articles formerly made of wood is found by the writer in inquiries from manufacturers of radio equipment for dies for radio-set cabinets, boxes, and stands. He says:

The finish of the steel cabinets is almost indistinguishable from that of those of the most expensive woods, and steel lends itself more readily to mass production. The fact that some of the highest-priced radio sets now come in metal cases indicates how satisfactorily the prest metal manufacturer has met the requirements of this new market.

Important development work now under way may open up new applications. It is predicted by reliable authority that steel shingles, prest from sheet metal and treated to resist corrosion, will furnish a new market of unusually attractive tonnage possibilities.

This and other pending projects would seem to indicate that the now cooperating agencies of engineering research and market extension may win significant victories, and expand the consumption of prest metal in the near future.

Source: The Literary Digest for April 16, 1927. Article – Increased use of Prest Metal

HOW THEY GROW ROSES FOR FOOD IN NANKING

Source: The Literary Digest for September 12, 1925

IT seems that the Chinese city of Nanking is a notable center for rose-growing for food and the preparation of rose-leaves for table use. According to a recent issue of The Chinese Economic Bulletin, published by the Chinese Government Bureau of Economic Information, with offices at Peking and Shanghai:

Two varieties of roses are cultivated in Nanking. What is known as the “imported” variety is used only for decoration and has little commercial value, because it is not so scented as the indigenous variety. The color of the “imported” variety is either dark or light red and that of the indigenous variety purple. The latter is highly scented and retains its fragrance for months and even years. The dried petals, after being kept for a year or two, become as fragrant as fresh petals after they are moistened. It is this characteristic that has made the flower so much sought after by the Nanking public, its use being chiefly for food-scenting.

The Nanking public uses roses not only to scent tea-leaves or drinks, as people in other parts of China do, but also in the preparation of various kinds of food, especially candy and light refreshments. Nanking bakers use roses very liberally in scenting cakes and other kinds of pastry. During the flowering season, the bakers collect large quantities of these flowers and keep them in a preserved state to be used in the next twelve months. Rose-petals are preserved for food-scenting in two ways: they are either dried in the sun and kept in a covered jar, generally of glass, or preserved in sugar sirup. Nanking brewers use rose-petals in preparing a kind of rose-scented liquor. Even pedlers and food vendors boast that their wares are rose-scented. The greatest consumers of roses in Nanking are the bakers and tea dealers, the latter using them to scent tea-leaves.

A candy from sugar and rose-petals is also prepared. This is done by pounding fresh rose-petals into a pulpy mass and mixing with refined sugar, which is further churned with a spoon or ladle until thoroughly mixed. The mixture is then dried in the sun. This preparation is known as “rose sand,” because the sugar, when dried, still retains its granular form. This concoction is pretty in color and palatable to the taste, and is a favorite food among Nanking adults and children alike. In spite of the pounding and mixing, the rose undergoes no change in color or scent. The “rose sand” is generally used to sweeten food or drinks. It is also believed to have medicinal value, the rose scent being claimed to possess the quality of strengthening the digestive power. The recipe of preparing “rose sand” is one catty [ 1/3 Ib.] of sugar to every fifty rose-petals.

Roses are extensively cultivated by Nanking farmers who live near the city. There is also a special class of florists inside the city. The rose-bed is generally located near the farmer’s house, where the land is suitable neither for rice cultivation nor for mulberry plantation. The rose-bed sometimes covers an entensive area and is carefully watered and fertilized. Every one or two years, young shoots can be separated from the parent shrub and with the roots covered with mud are often sold on the market for transplantation. Rose shoots obtained in this way, however, often fail to grow, because the roots have either been hurt or partially dried up. Nanking horticulturists, for transplantation, prefer the young roses sold by the city florists in pots, which, after being used as table decorations, can be transplanted in the ground, and grow rapidly.

The market price for roses varies with the conditions of the weather. Fair and settled weather in the flowering season will bring good returns to the farmers. Under such weather conditions, the demand for fresh roses is brisk and prices rise accordingly. The market for fresh roses is over in less than a week, buyers being eager to collect flowers and dry them while the sun shines. Rainy and unsettled weather causes the market to become exceedingly dull. The price of the flower is extraordinarily cheap, owing probably to extensive cultivation. In former years, a rose used to be sold for a cash or one-tenth of a copper. The market price now is four cash for a rose of medium size or five roses for two coppers. Nearly every household in Nanking uses roses either as food or decorations. Nearly 10,000,000 pieces. valued at between $15,000 and $20,000, are gathered every year in Nanking.

TO MAKE STUDENTS PAY MORE

The Literary Digest for July 2, 1927

TO MAKE IT EASY to pay for a college education has been the ideal of our institutions, but the saturation point of benevolence seems to have been reached. On one side and another we are adjured to make education cost more. In our issue of June 11 it was pointed out that teachers, through being forced to accept small salaries, were the largest contributors to the support of education. The remedy was to increase the student fees. The same recommendation, based on another argument, is advanced by Mr. John D. Rockefeller, Jr. He would ease up the burden of the endowment system by making students pay more for what they get, while limiting gratuities to students intending to enter the ministry, the teaching field and similar ill-paid professions. His remarks at the Brown University Commencement luncheon are reported in part by the New York Sun. “The college education of yesteryear was practically free,” he says, “because of an assumption that students benefiting therefrom would enter a profession in which the returns to them would be small but the gain to the public large.” To-day, so he thinks, students attend college “for a good time, for social considerations or to fit themselves to earn money.”

“The idea of service to the community is no longer the chief consideration. Therefore it seems proper that the student might be expected to pay for the benefits he receives.”

Quoting from figures of the Bureau of Education of the Department of the Interior he estimated the receipts of privately supported colleges and universities in this country at $140,000,000. This sum, based on figures compiled in 1923-24, goes for current expenses. One-half of this amount comes from student fees; the other half from endowments, gifts, and other sources. Continuing:

“Thus it is evident that the student pays only half of the actual cost to the college of his education. The colleges and universities of to-day are confronted with the necessity of securing either scores of additional millions for endowment or increased current income. That these vast sums can be secured from private sources in addition to all that has been given during the last ten years is barely probable.”

Mr. Rockefeller then suggested increased tuition fees with certain modifications. He contends that the great majority of persons sending their sons to college could afford to pay more. For those students who could not afford to pay more he suggests scholarships, student aid, and student loan funds on a large scale.

For most students other than those who enter the ministry or teaching he would have a loan either with or without interest, with the first payment date possibly ten years after graduation. In conclusion:

“If the principle here enunciated were accepted as sound in its application to undergraduate education to which this discussion is limited, its complete realization could wisely be attained only little by little, tuition fees being raised perhaps $50 a year or only so rapidly as was found to be desirable. Already and with-out definitely adopting this principle, various colleges by increasing tuition fees have taken the first step in this program. Thus far no change in the number or character of the student body has been observed, and if adequate funds for scholarships and loans are provided, it would appear that no serious change need be expected. It is true that such a course on the part of privately supported institutions might tend to increase the attendance at State universities, in which event the State universities would undoubtedly find it necessary and advantageous to increase their own fees.”

The New York World comments:

“The problem which Mr. Rockefeller has in mind is a real one; one which people in general have not yet faced; one which must be faced by every institution of the higher learning which aims to keep abreast of educational needs. With applicants for college education increasing four times as fast as endowments, even the unparalleled generosity of college founders and donors can not begin to keep pace with the demand tor those facilities which spell progress for the nation as well as for the individuals affected. Neither by taxation nor by endowments is there any prospect that our colleges generally will be able to raise professors’ salaries to a living level; and this must be done if the quality of teaching is not to deteriorate.”