28 APRIL 1939, Page 42

Its Real Value The Rally is to be encouraged from

two highly important aspects, reliability of gadgets and sensible design of ceach- , work. It imposes little or no test on engines and chassis, even though hard driving must often be inevitable if the various controls are to be reached on time. The course lies for the most part over modern road surfaces, and although there may be steep and difficult hills to climb, none of them will require the prolonged effort imposed by the scaling of real passes, half an hour on end at a time. It is easy enough on the cars. An average speed of 30 miles an hour on British roads should be no test at all for modern design, material and workmanship ; but for the driver on our congested roads it must often be as harassifig as some of the stages in the Monte Carlo, without the fillip given by great distances and foreign lands. It is a great pity that the rally is. confined to Great Britain. Starting- points in France and Switzerland and Italy, as well as in Scotland and Ireland, would add• enormously to the interest and value of the event ; might even make it a formidable rival to the Monte Carlo. It could hardly fail to help the Come to Britain campaign and form an easy introduction for foreign tourists to the amenities of the open road this side of the Channel.