THE BOOK OF THE AUSTIN TWELVE.

THE BOOK OF THE AUSTIN TWELVE.

By B. Garbutt and Richard Twelvetrees. (Pitman, 5s.).

The authors of this manual are to be congratulated on the excellent accomplishment of their task, and The Book of the Austin Twelve is a welcome and worthy addition to Messrs. Pitman’s series of hand-books.

In his preface, the author says : ” One is prepared to spend pounds on some small gadget to add to the equipment of the car, and yet a few shillings spent on acquiring knowledge may be a far better investment.” In the case of the Austin Twelve, this remark is certainly true, and no owner driver of this make should be without his hand-book, which is certain to save time and money, not to mention anxiety and worry. The book is written in roughly three sections. There is the first, which tells the new driver all he should know

before he takes to the road. The second deals with maintenance and the treatment of the car while it is in service, and includes chapters on touring, legal knowledge, etc. The last section treats of faults, running repairs and adjustments.

Each part of the car has received exhaustive treatment in the book, with excellent diagrams and illustrations. H. M. Bateman has helped in the latter direction with some of his inimitable thumb nail sketches, which enliven the pages.

Chapter XV, on ” Motor Driving as a Fine Art,” should be learnt by heart by all new drivers. In this chapter, the author ranges from learning to handle the controls, to the motorist in civil proceedings, and he talks about driving fatigue, road sense, hills, night and wet weather driving, and expatiates at length on the law affecting the motorist.

The book is most handsomely produced, and printed on excellent paper, with some sixty illustrations.