Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 29, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 February 1910 — THRILLING SPECTACLE. [ARTICLE]

THRILLING SPECTACLE.

Modern Auto Raelna Compared to the Chariot iacee ot Old. All that 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 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 feath 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 some of the terrific mix-ups, where horses, drivers and chariots came together in an inextricable Jam, it was nothing uncommon for men, horses gnd spectators to go to their death. Tbs speed that the modern automobile cab make was never even dreanv ed of In the period of ancient Rome, when men of wealth counted It nothing to spend a fortune on the team ot horses iMt was expected' to bring w victory In the racing contest of the amphitheater, \ - ■ Sometimes the battles of the modern charioteers Are held over the open roads of the rural districts. But wherever it may be there is ever the certainty that a huge crowd- will be present, for the automobile race appeals

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 onp 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 on the danger spot in the road. It is a bad turn to start with. Hours of being plotred up by powerful machines have chipped it into a mass of email stones, and deep ruts have bean marked In its-surface. But the intrepid driver of the modern form of the chariot has Just as iron nerves as his predecessor of centuries ago. There is no thought of slow wpTin his mind as he approaches the tum. Straight at: the cUrvea he goes. The car skids and sways. Let anything go wrong with the steering gear or a tire come off and it is not hard to imagine rwhat would be the fate of thejMvefc. dr, for that matter, the fata- ofthe spectators, for att of them wboate close by Are in constant danger. , .;//» All during the race, no patter bMr often this incident is repeated, it always finds delighted spectators. And the greater the peril, the narrower the escape, the greater the delight. joyanfr' thrill of those who are looking on Automobile racing Is not very old as yet, bat as a thrilling spectacle it bids fair to hold its own with the chariot race of old, if it dees netoat-elsss it altogether. Gallantry is that sentiment which holds up a .man of 125 porsdi JII, r slippery walk, when escorting a wornan weighing 175. A woman’s reel secrete bw show up In her diary. Ij. •/ f