ROUGH MOTOR TRIP.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1696, 12 March 1913, Page 8

ROUGH MOTOR TRIP.

AN EXCITING INCIDENT. (By Telegraph— Special Correspondent.)

Auckland 1 , March 11. . A small uarty of visitors who under*I'cok a' week-end trin to Rotorua have reason to treasure the memory of the adventure. They traversed some very bad roads in bad weather, had the car smashed, and reached Auckland fully expecting ; to seo their steamer gone. Fortunately she was specially delayed, and a few minutes before alio sailed a party of bedraggled people, disguised with mud, clambered ruefully aboard. the driver (Mr. J. Hemiing) drove his battered machine away with pardonable pride in having conquered circumstances. The trin afforded an illustration of the atrocious stalo of the country roads in wet weather, and of tlio capacity of the big touring cars to overcome great difficuUics. * The narty, which consisted of five mombars of the "Got-I?iuh-Quick Wallingt'ord" Company, and an Auckland- lady, left Auckland shortly before midnight on Saturday, and reached Cambridge at daylight. Rolorna \vas reached in the -forenoon. and all the way the roads were found in fair order, though in parts, on the Rangiriri Road for instance, they were rough enough to make travelling unpleasant. The road through the Maiiiaku bush was also found to be very rough. Opportunity was found to view all the scenery on the rouite, and the main sights of Rotorua were visited on' Sunday. ;

The return journey was begun at niiie o'clock yesterday, morning, and the trip' was comnarativolv uneventful as far as Hamilton, virtually, the half-way house. Indeed, the pumice roads were generally in excellent order for motoring, and confident in t.lie possession of sparo time, the narty made a stop of half a" hour at Okoroire, but when near 'Hamilton rain began to fall, and as the car reached the clay roads it begun to plough inito inches of mud, which splashed over everything.

The ■ "Devil's Elbow" has a. sinister sound, and for motorists is an interesting episode in the mursa of a drive along a narrow truck. With tlio unfavourable weather and 'the roads. in a very bad state, the track was almost the scene of disaster. Rounding an awkward turn the side of the tonneau crashed into the wall of rock on the left side of the road, and was practically torn amy. The nassengera received a severe shaking, and when the car stopped to wait until the dangsr-noint had been passed. 1

To make matters worse, 'tlip smashing of the tonneau carried away rame of the supports of the hood. which collapsed on top of tho driver, and for a moment Mr. Honnin? was driving practically blindfold. The car lurched down a dip.. and then ran within a hair's breadth of the edge of tho road, where a precipitous fall awaited it. Dragging the steering-wheel round, the driver averted the danger, almost dashing tho fronlt of tlic car into the cliff as the result.

Then the party got aboard again, and resumed the journey. The main parts of the car were undamaged, and the 50horso power engine ran without a hitch. The rest of the journey was accomnlishcd in what was, considering the soft and roufh state of one_ of the worst main roads in the Dominion, remarkably good time. The party did ndt come through scatheless. ' for one of the ladies, during the wild gymnastics performed bv the cor, had her elbow and arm badlv bruised. The rest of the party suffered no morn than a good shaking, and a thorough soaking.