Here's a copy of what I sent to the list 12/15/06 :
From the 12/07/06 issue of Hemmings eWeekly email newsletter, under
the Legislation heading:
'The debate over the appropriate uses of automobiles isn't new. In
fact, what might be the most famous of all words on the subject
were uttered in Congress over 130 years ago...
“A new source of power...called gasoline has been produced by a
Boston engineer. Instead of burning the fuel under a boiler, it is
exploded inside the cylinder of an engine. The dangers are obvious.
Stores of gasoline in the hands of people interested primarily in
profit would constitute a fire and explosive hazard of the first
rank. Horseless carriages propelled by gasoline might attain speeds
of 14 or even 20 miles per hour. The menace to our people of
vehicles of this type hurtling through our streets and along our
roads and poisoning the atmosphere would call for prompt
legislative action even if the military and economic implications
were not so overwhelming... [T]he cost of producing [gasoline] is
far beyond the financial capacity of private industry... In
addition, the development of this new power may displace the use of
horses, which would wreck our agriculture.” Horseless Carriage
Committee, U. S. Congressional Record, c. 1875
- By David B. Traver Adolphus'
Sounds kind of like the current debate over Hydrogen...
krw
On Dec 21, 2006, at 12:05 PM, Infinite Space Systems, Inc. wrote:
Kevin,
Okay, did I miss something? What was the urban legend quoted from
the bogus
"Congressional Horseless Carriage Commission" that Hemmings
published in the
previous issue?
Milton Schick
1964 442 Cutlass
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
----- Original Message -----
From: "Kevin Wright" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, December 21, 2006 10:21 AM
Subject: RE: Everything new is old, or, nothing new under the sun.
Looks like Hemmings (and through them, me) got taken by an urban
legend:
http://www.hemmings.com/newsletter/newsletter.html?
volume=2&issue=27&id=831&refer=news&emlid=123347#831
"Horseless Carriage Committee report an urban myth
Last week, we quoted the congressional Horseless Carriage Committee,
supposedly of 1875. Were we a little skeptical of the source?
Sure, and
we did scour the Congressional Record of the time for a
reference, and
couldn't find it, but then, the Record is a little spotty. At
worst, we
thought that maybe it came from later on, you know, when the
internal
combustion engine actually became common, say from 1895 or so.
Reader Chuck Picciuti was also looking for the source of this, and we
suggested that the only way to verify or disprove this account
would be
to dive into the published volumes of the Record at his local
Federal
Depository. Chuck actually had the time and inclination to go to the
Public Services Division of the Law Library of Congress, and this
is what
they told him:
“This is, in fact, an urban legend. We checked ‘Committees in the
U.S.
Congress,’ published by CQ Press and verified that there never was a
‘Horseless Carriage Committee.’ We also checked the Congressional
Record
Index (indexing debate in congress), the Congressional Hearings
Index and
the U.S. Serial Set, which indexes congressional reports and
documents,
and found no references. Indeed, the terms ‘gasoline’ or ‘horseless
carriage’ do not even appear in these sources for this time
period. We
also checked these sources using the terms ‘automobile’ and
‘petroleum’
and again found no references for this time period.
"We also believe this statement is anachronistic. In 1876,
Nicholas Otto
of Germany invented and built the first gas motor engine and then
built
it into a motorcycle. Subsequently, in 1885, Karl Benz designed
and built
the first practical automobile to be powered by an internal
combustion
engine. The first gasoline-powered automobile built in the United
States
in 1891 by John Lampert was a three- wheeled motor vehicle. The
first U.S.
patent for a gasoline-powered automobile was issued in 1895, and the
first U.S. company to manufacture automobiles was founded in 1896
by the
Duryea brothers. For additional information, click here, or click
here
for a brief history of gasoline."
We hope this sets the record straight on this oft-quoted, totally
fabricated bit of history.
- By David Traver Adolphus"
On digest mode, so I'm a little slow...
Kevin Wright
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX http://
www.wankel.net/~krwright/cars/olds/70Olds.html
'71 Cutlass S for sale, less engine and trans: http://www.wankel.net/
~krwright/cars/olds/71_cutlass.html
Snoopy: 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass S Sports Coupe - It wants to be a
W-31!
And have EFI, 4-wheel discs, a 6-speed, a turbo or two... :)
...and a '71 Holiday Coupe less engine/transmission for sale -
it'll be
parts if someone doesn't buy it!
--
No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG Free Edition.
Version: 7.5.432 / Virus Database: 268.15.26/594 - Release Date:
12/20/2006 3:54 PM
On digest mode, so I'm a little slow...
Kevin Wright
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX http://
www.wankel.net/~krwright/cars/olds/70Olds.html
'71 Cutlass S for sale, less engine and trans: http://www.wankel.net/
~krwright/cars/olds/71_cutlass.html
Snoopy: 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass S Sports Coupe - It wants to be a
W-31! And have EFI, 4-wheel discs, a 6-speed, a turbo or two... :)
...and a '71 Holiday Coupe less engine/transmission for sale - it'll
be parts if someone doesn't buy it!
