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About 1909 or 1910 the Cadillac became
incapacitated; a large bolt let go in the motor, causing irreparable
damage. My father was heartbroken because he considered it
the best automobile he had ever owned, and we kept it in a shed for
several years before finally selling it to a junk man who came and towed
it away. Going down Ball's Hill into Waltham the
steering mechanism broke and the driver lost control
and ran into a tree. Luckily he only fractured an arm.
In 1906 my grandfather bought a four cylinder Mitchell which
we still have. In its day it was a fine touring car with large brass
headlights that burned acetylene. The gas was generated in a
brass tank on the running board. There were two compartments
in the tank, one for water and one for calcium carbide. By turn-
ing a knob the water would drip onto the carbide and generate acetylene,
and when the gas flowed freely through the system
you lit the lamps with a match. There was always a pop from an
accumulation of gas in the lamp chamber, and a continuous
sizzle when once lit. This was all a rather clumsy arrangement,
but as we rarely drove at night we were not much inconvenienced by it. A
few years later the Prestolite tank was developed: a cylinder containing
gas under pressure and a much handier arrangement.
Since the Mitchell had no top, my grandfather had one made
at a carriage shop, which could be raised during a shower to keep dry or
on a summer day for shade. The top had a celluloid wind-shield that
rolled down and fastened to the dashboard — a won-derful protection when
driving in the rain. This was one of the earlier windshields; they were
not in general use on automobiles until a year or so later. |
