100 years Back on This Day (13.11.1921)
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 10.—A new Russian invention for propelling railroad cars by the use of airplane propellers has Just resulted in a smash up. Captain Simolov of the Soviet army had rigged up a flat car with a motor to drive a big airplane propeller And built a little triangular house on the car. At a railroad Junction outside of Baku, he tried to induce 1 a conductor of a train to hitch his airplane car on behind. The conductor refused and the train went on for about three miles and halted. As the passengers In the rear coach were making tea, the airplane car came around a curve going at about, sixty miles an hour. Most of the passengers got out of the rear car by way of the windows and the captain and a girl companion leaped from his flat car which banged into the rear coach, doubled itself up and jumped the track, a mass of wreckage. Nobody was hurt but the proud invention of Bolshevik land had gone to smash. The captain said he did not see the train in time to stop but, he added, ‘‘anyway the brake does not work”. The Russians have been applying this airplane propeller device to push trains, automobiles and boats. According to recent figures, there are 9.245.195 passenger cars, trucks and commercial motor vehicles registered in the United States. Trailers number 28.114, and motorcycles 117,234. The total registration revenues collected to July 1, for motor vehicles In this country, amounted to $108,213,165.33, an Increase of $5,669,953.08 over the amount collected for the entire year of 1920.