Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 28, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 February 1910 — THRILLING SPECTACLE. [ARTICLE]

THRILLING SPECTACLE.

Modern Ante Racing Compared to the Chariot Races of Old. Alinhat wild excitement the ancient Romans found In a chariot race is being supplied to the modern world through the thrilling contests of the automobile speed kings. Whether held on the open roads or on a track, the mad dash of the automobiles, with .their dare devil drivers at the wheels, more closely approximates the chariot races in the amphitheaters of the ancient world than anything that could be imagined. It is thought by the world that the chariot race belongs to a bygone, age, yet here Is Its counterpart. The jockey or the driver of the trotting horse never occupied a parallel place. They were heroes, but they went through no such terrifying experiences as the old chariot racer. The death at a running or trotting meet of any driver or jockey is the rare thing. In the chariot races of ancient Rome, death was a never absent entry, and in tome of the terrific mix-ups, where horses, drivers and chariots came together in an inextricable Jam, It was nothing uncommon for men, horses and spectators to go to their death. ' The speed that the modern automobile can make was dever even dreamed of In the period of'Tnclent Rome, when men of wealth counted it noth-, ing to «b*nd a fortune on the team of horses that was expected to bring a victory In the racing contest of the amphitheater. Sometimes ths battles of the modern charioteers are held over the open roads of the rural districts. Bntiwfter 1 * •ver it may be there lb ever the certatety that a huge crowd will b* prsnbnt, ter thg- *«te<sebile me* appeals r:

now as much to the modern public as the ancient chariot race did to the populace of the ancient countries. The element of danger is one of the biggest attractions, as It was in days of old. In all of the big road events it is a significant fact that the most frequented points are those where the danger is greatest. „ At top speed, a mile a minute, a machine bears down ouj the danger spot in the road. It Is a bad turn to start with. Hours of being plowed up by powerful machines have chipped it into a mass of small stones, and deep ruts have been marked In its surface. But the intrepid driver of the modern form of the chariot has just ns iron nerves as his predecessor of centuries a *° .... •.4 w* There is no thought of slow up In his mind as he approaches Ute turn Straight at ths chrves lie goes. The car skids and sways. Lit anyththg go wrong with the steering gear or * tire come off add It is not hard to what would be.the fate of the drlirer, or, for that matter, the fate of the spectators, for all of them who are close by are in constant danger. All during the race, no matter how often this incident is repeated. It always finds delighted spectators. And the greater the peri),- the narrower the escape, the greater the delight. Joy and thrill of those who are lookftag on. Automobile racing Is not very old as yet, but as a thrilling spectacle It hide fair to hold lte own with the chariot race of old, if It does not out-class 14-altogether. —.-—-■ .... .._. Gallantry is that sentiment which holds up a man of 126 pounds on a slippery wajk, when escorting a woman -weighing 176. A woman’s real JwafcAhow up In her diary.