Dorothy Levitt

“ The Englishwoman at the Wheel—Her Skill in Mechanics and Map-reading—The Ladies’ Automobile Club—Some Noble Women Motoristes—Successful Competitors—Lady Racers at Brooklands—A “Motor Christening”
There is no country in the world—not even France, where the motoring movement received its first real start and its keenest pursuit, nor America, where the fair sex is supposed to receive and to exercise its largest freedom—there is no country in the world in which woman may be seen at the helm of a motor-car so frequently as in England. ”

“ There are dozens of cases where people foolishly tip. If your hostess’s groom drove you in the dog-cart to the station to catch a train you might think a two-shilling tip all-sufficient. Yet when her chauffeur takes you to the same place in a motor-car you wonder{83} whether he will think five shillings is enough. It is really very absurd. If we have to tip, why not treat the motor-car as we would any vehicle and the chauffeur as we would any groom or coachman? ”

“ When running on any speed, if you allow the car to gain impetus and then put the change-speed lever in neutral position, the car will travel on in the same manner as a free-wheel bicycle, the action of the gear being neutral temporarily disconnecting the engine and gear.
If you see an obstacle in the road do not go up to it at full speed and suddenly put on the brake. The sudden application of the brake will hasten the end of the life of your tyres—and if you are not driving on non-skid tyres a bad accident may be the result if the road is at all wet. ”

“ On a closed-in car, limousine or landaulette, any kind of attire is permissible as the conditions are precisely the same as being driven in a carriage, but with an open car neatness and comfort are essential. When racing, or when in countries where speed is not looked upon with such horror as in England{24}—on the long, straight seemingly never-ending, military roads of France, one can travel at a speed that makes goggles or masks a necessity, but for motoring under ordinary conditions there is no reason why one should wear them. ”

“ Starting one’s engine is not the nicest thing about motoring when a woman is acting as her own driver and mechanician, but with the little cars no strength is required; it is only the big cars that need a swelling of muscle. There is a great knack in starting an engine, but this, once overcome, ceases to be hard work.{42}
In front of the car you will notice a handle. Push it inwards until you feel it fit into a notch, then pull it up sharply, releasing your hold of the handle the moment you feel you have pulled it over the resisting (compression) point. ”

“ In France, where the possibilities—commercial and practical—of the small car were first foreseen, the great motor race of the year, the Grand Prix of the Automobile Club de France, is now preceded by a Grand Prix des Voiturettes, and the result of the 1908 contest is a striking illustration of the speed and reliability of which some of these little vehicles are capable. ”

“ If a woman wants to learn how to drive and to understand a motor-car, she can and will learn as quickly as a man. Hundreds of women have done and are doing so, and there is many a one whose keen eyes can detect, and whose deft fingers can remedy, a loose nut or a faulty electrical connection in half the time that the professional chauffeur would spend upon the work. ”

“ If you go on a tour or a little trip, driving yourself, and put your car in a public garage or the one attached to your hotel or roadside inn, your car will not be touched unless you so order. Then for cleaning it, furnishing petrol, charging battery or anything else which may be wanted, there are regulation charges and these will be put down in your bill. The attendant at the garage may or may not be the man who did the work, but if he is it would be quite the proper thing to give him a small tip, just as you might tip the waiter or the chambermaid had they done any satisfactory work for you. ”

“ Motoring now so general that an Owner of a Car is not any longer considered to be necessarily a Millionairess—Tipping should be on a sensible Basis—While the Motor-car has emphasised Tipping, nowadays the modest Shilling receives quite a Welcome—When to tip and when not to tip explained from Personal Experiences
If there is one thing more than another which the motor-car has revived and intensified it is the habit and practice of tipping. I need not give a lecture on tips. All of us agree, more or less, that the present-day tip is one of the banes of existence. ”

“ There is only one trouble regarding which you are really justified in feeling angry—that is a punctured or burst tyre. It is possible for a woman to repair a tyre, but I am sure I am correct in saying that not one woman in a thousand would want to ruin her hands in this way. Nowadays there is a repairer in nearly every village, and the best plan is to drive very slowly on the rim to this nearest repair-shop. With a small, light, single-cylinder car it will do no harm, but if you drive too fast, or far, the inner tube may be damaged. ”

“ Healthy in body and mind, Phœbe stands aloof from the troubles and desires of humanity, until in her own wrecked happiness she awakes slowly to the need of some power greater and kindlier than ever Diana knew. It is only after the absolute surrender of self and after the awakening of a greater, more maternal love than she has as yet known that she finds peace. ”

“ I have tried many different makes and have come to the conclusion that the De Dion is an ideal single-cylinder car for a woman to drive. It combines simplicity with reliability—two very important items to the automobiliste.
For your own driving, if you are going to attend to the mechanism yourself, you should purchase a single-cylinder car—more cylinders mean more work, and also more expense as regards tyres, petrol, oil, &c. The single-cylinder car is the most economical to run. ”

“ You may not lose your presence of mind, but how about the cyclist? Don’t cut corners on the wrong side of the road and there will be no need to worry about the answer to my query.
That one can show a great deal of courtesy to other cars and to general traffic on the road is assured, but that few people do is also a fact. Here is a case worthy of attention. Every motoriste has or will experience it. On the road in front of you is a covered car with noisy engine. It is a landaulette or limousine which rattles more or less. The noise of the engine is also magnified by being closed in. ”

“ By joining the club you have many advantages. For instance, there is, of course, the convenience of using the club rooms and the{65} club garage when in town, and in getting a percentage off your hotel bills. But there is the greater advantage of getting all the necessary information you may want regarding hotels, roads, and such like when you want to go for a tour. There is, in fact, scarcely any information appertaining to motoring which you cannot get at the club. It is always good for a woman car-owner to belong to the first motor club in the kingdom. ”

“ The first speed on these little cars is from zero to 9 miles an hour, the second from 9 to 18, and the top from 18 to 28. I should advise you to get thoroughly used to the steering while on second speed, and at first drive very slowly. Do not expect to be able to control the car in a few minutes. Take your time and get in sympathy with your motor as you would the horses you drive or ride. Gain confidence slowly. Once you have confidence in yourself the battle is nearly won. Bear in mind that when riding or driving a horse it is only partly under your control. ”

“ Many cars have been wrecked through carelessness in this direction. Remember it is not actually the petrol that catches alight, but the vapour that arises from it. If your petrol-tank runs dry there is no danger—the car will simply come to a standstill.
The chamber in which the petrol and air mix and vapourise is called the carburetter, from which the vapour is carried to the cylinder head by means of a pipe, and is there exploded by the tiny electric spark from the sparking-plug, the explosion forcing down the piston and causing the crank-shaft to revolve. ”

“ But do not wait until you are within a few feet of a pedestrian or cyclist who is already doing his utmost to get out of your way and then sound your hooter. If the cyclist be a novice or at all nervous such conduct might cause an accident.
Keep within the legal limit of speed all the time except on a good and clear stretch of road, where there happen to be no “blind” corners or dangerous cross-roads or traffic. Then there is no real harm done to any one in trying to see what you can get out of your car for a short spurt. ”

“ The power of a petrol motor depends upon many factors—diameter of cylinder, speed of working, quality of mixture, compression, cooling-surfaces, &c.—some of which vary from moment to moment in practice. The only real means of measuring it is by the dynamometer or pony-brake, which records the power actually available for useful work. Horse-power so measured is called brake horse-power. ”

“ If every woman and man who drove a car followed these suggestions there would not be an outcry against the motor-car. Unfortunately the great majority of motorists have to suffer for other people’s faults—the disgraceful driving of the few. ”

“ Never take a sharp corner at full speed. A walking pace would be much better.
Never pass or try to overtake a pedestrian, cyclist or vehicle at a corner.
Avoid the bad and perilous habit of trying to squeeze through doubtful openings in traffic either in town or country.
Never drive the engine downhill.
Do not leave the engine running when stopping outside a house. The noise, though it may be slight, may be annoying to the inmates or neighbours.
If you have a syren fitted to your car, do not sound it in a town or village. A syren is really only necessary for Continental driving. ”

“ If your hostess should have a stable only and not a garage, and the man is only able to clean your car as he would a carriage and you have to do the filling of the tanks and the starting of the engine and so on, a smaller tip is all that is necessary.
In staying a week-end at a country house, if your car has not been used during your stay the tip of five shillings is quite sufficient. But rules on such points depend on circumstances. If the weather has been bad and the car is in a very muddy state the man will probably have had considerable extra work to bring out your car clean and shining. ”

“ Almost every woman who can afford it is, of course, a motoriste in the sense that she owns, or has at her disposal, a motor-car. It is not, however, with the ladies whose experience of the pastime is limited to a seat beside or behind the driver that this chapter deals, but rather with those who are accustomed to the task of driving and caring for their cars, and who find a healthful recreation in doing it. ”

“ There are many other cars, British and foreign, not less reliable and equally moderate in price: the Phœnix, for example, a twin-cylinder car, costing £140; the Jackson De Dion, costing £220; the Pick, a four-cylinder 14-16 horse-power car, costing only £165; the Rover, costing from 100 to 200 guineas according to engine-power and finish; and the Vauxhall. When it is remembered that cars can often be bought second-hand but in first-class condition for about two-thirds of their original cost, it will be recognised that motoring need not be the exclusive privilege of the very rich. ”

“ If the hill is a very steep one it may be necessary to change to first. There is always a correct moment for changing speed, both on the level and on hills, but this is a thing that can only come with practice.
If you have a long decline to negotiate, turn the switch off so that the engine is not running,{50} allowing the car to roll down on its own impetus, controlling with the brakes, but remember, on the car slowing down, after passing the foot of the hill, to put the top gear in and switch on again, otherwise the engine may stop. ”

“ In every respect but one the advantages of the small car over its big brother are enormous. Its one drawback is that its accommodation is necessarily smaller. The typical small car is a two-seater; but that is the essence of its economy. Extra seats and extra passengers mean extra weight, and extra weight requires larger engines and more petrol, and entails more wear and tear on tyres, machinery and chassis. ”

“ You are now on third (or top) gear and will find that unless the country is very hilly you will usually be able to keep the car running on this gear for a long time, varying the speeds from 10 to 28 miles an hour by deftly manipulating the ignition, air and throttle.
Changing speed on the car illustrated is an easy task, and that is why I have taken the De Dion car as an object-lesson. With the majority of cars there is a deal of “arm work” necessary, and in many cases not a little strain, this strain very often counteracting the benefits otherwise derived from the driving. ”

“ The time is coming when every man who can afford to go out of town at week ends will find it worth his while to be a motorist, when every suburban house with a rental of over £60 will have its motor shed, and when the small car will be as prevalent upon the country road as the bicycle is to-day.{101}
CAR INDEX-MARKS AND THEIR LOCALE
One sees every day on the streets and roads cars bearing numbers and letters quite unfamiliar. It is advantageous, in many ways, for the motoriste to be fairly well acquainted with some of the more important index-marks. ”

“ As a matter of fact, a strange hand on the wheel and levers seems to put the car out of tune.
Before starting out for a ride your first duty is to see that the petrol-tank is full. It is unpleasant to be stranded on the road, miles from anywhere, minus petrol. The petrol-tank is, in many instances, under the seat. Lift the cushions, unscrew the cap and peep in. If it is dark it will be necessary to hold a piece of stick in to see how much petrol there is, but when there is occasion to do this, be very careful that there is no dirt on the stick ”

“ I have made it a rule never to allow any one to drive my own little car—and this is a rule that every one will find useful. All cars have their individual idiosyncrasies, and if you alone drive, you get to understand every sound; but if you allow any one to drive you are ignorant of what strain the car has been put to. ”

“ One can easily remember in the United Kingdom that Ireland’s index-letters all contain the letter I and Scotland’s all the letter S (with two exceptions) . England and Wales to date, with very few exceptions, use up the letters A, B, C, D, E and F. London has now four distinct index-marks and no doubt will add to them as the increase in cars may demand.
All motor-cars must have an index-mark and a registration number, excepting those owned personally by his Majesty the King.{102}
White letters and figures on a black plate are for privately owned cars. ”

“ For winter driving they are now making a fur and leather arrangement which covers the steering-wheel; but I would suggest that, to the beginner at any rate, this is superfluous. Soft kid gloves, fur-lined, are much better.
Novelties of all sorts are always coming on the market; but the beginner had better let some one else try these first. It is an expensive{68} thing to keep on experimenting with every new device for a car or the motoriste. Let others try them, and if they should prove of real use you will soon know. ”