It has been defined as the customary unit in which is expressed the rate at which mechanical energy is equal to 33,000 foot-pound per minute. In other words, it is a rate of doing work, this in turn being the force required and the distance it moves.
So the horsepower of a machine is measured by the length of the piston stroke and the pressure in pounds per square inch exerted by the piston, all considered in relation to the number of revolutions per minute of the crankshaft.
This is determined by the use of the friction brake, electric generator, water pump or fan, a weight being attached to measure the pound factor necessary to calculate the horsepower.
The term "horsepower" was originally used by James Watt, the inventor of the first practical steam engine, after he had conducted numerous tests with the idea of determining how much load the average horse could pull in continued service. His method was to have the animal raise a weight by means of a rope running over a pulley.— by ‘Accelerator’
Southland roads slated
Some recent comments which were not flattering to certain roads in Southland have drawn an explanation from the Mayor of Invercargill (Mr J.F. Lillicrap). He claims first-hand knowledge because "he has travelled all over the country roads in many other parts of New Zealand but has seldom found them to be in a better state of repair than those in Southland". "Has he ever found them worse? That's the point," asks a Canterbury critic who follows his question with an indictment: "The Gore-Kingston road is notoriously bad, and cases are known of horses being utilised to pull cars out of the mud. The road between Garston and Athol does not deserve the name. Any squatter in the locality will speak heatedly of the roading conditions. Take, for instance, the alleged road running for eight miles from Parawa to the Cameron homestead on the Nokomai. That magnificent thoroughfare is apparently left to the tender mercies of the Lakes County Council, which, no doubt, has a portion of the Gore- Kingston road under its jurisdiction. Whether byways or highways, the roads on the Waimea Plains and higher up depend for their good quality wholly on natural advantages, and not on any care bestowed by the several local bodies concerned. From a motoring point of view the Southland roads offer little to be proud of. — by ‘Accelerator’
Unsavoury loiterers at St Clair
Some residents of St Clair and visitors to the beach there during the bathing season are becoming familiar with the figures of the rough-looking men whose conduct promises to lead them into serious trouble if it is continued.
It has become evident that their chief interest at the beach is to spy upon ladies who are engaged in changing their clothing, and on Saturday they were detected using field glasses as an aid to an evil eye.
It is safe to predict those who are interested in St Clair as a popular resort will find means of ridding the vicinity of such undesirables. — ODT, 20.2.1922
