The Voice of Art Newby (1910)

The article in the attachment below originally appeared in the May 15, 1910 Indianapolis Star.
 
I love these articles that allow us to hear the voice of giants of early motorsport as if they were speaking out from the grave. In this article Indianapolis Motor Speedway Co-Founder and First Vice President Art "A.C." Newby discusses the burgeoning popularity of still-new sport of auto racing. This interview appeared just days before the May 1910 "national championships" race meet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Newby  represented the views of his car manufacturing firm, the  National Motor Vehicle Company, with respect to the value of motorsport and their passion for it.
 
"It is the firm conviction of the National Motor Vehicle Company that motor racing has been a leading factor in the development of the self-propelled gasoline vehicle. The policy of this pioneer concern has always been to submit its product to the severest tests, and it found the superlative degree of severity in testing lay in the greater speed events on track, hill and road. This, with genuine love of the sport of racing, has kept the National car to the front in automobile speed events."
 
He spoke of how the company was was founded on the ethic of competition by saying, "From the beginning the company sent its machines through the most severe punishment. And it accoints much of its success to the improvements which were the direct result of information gained by its engineers from the racing game. Nothing tears at every detail of a motor car like long flights at high speed."
 
Interestingly, Newby comments on the long-term viability of motorsport.
 
"The commercial incentive for promoting automobile races was what caused so many of the followers of the industry in the early days to predict that automobile racing would be short lived. And today one can hear many people express themselves as confident that the exhibition of high-speed cars will not last long. However, these prognosticators overlook the fact that during these exhibitions wherein the commercial intent was the bigger factor, a genuine love for the sport has been developed among hundreds of thousands of people. It is established, and firmly. It is rapidly being organized under the watchful eye and shaping hand of the American Automobile Association and promises to take a place in the hearts of the sporting public second only to the great game of baseball."
 
Newby touches on the magnetic, sensory appeal of racing with the following comment.
 
"There is a glamour about the racing game which appeals to almost everyone. It is fascinating and alluring. There is a peculiarly distinctive atmosphere that hangs over a motor speedway on the days when man is paying tribute to the god of speed. The burning oil, the dust and haze of smoke and the thundering of big cylinders and the snapping of smaller power producers, which with the leaven of danger and the thrill of contest, all create a scene which makes the pulse quicken and the red blood flow more swiftly in the veins." 
 
Newby also believed that the sport would continue its robust growth both as a complement to the auto industry and on its own merit.
 
"Hundreds of thousands of people flock to these contests. Motor speedways are being built. More manufacturers and individuals are joining the ranks of entrants. It is the time for the sport of motor racing. And the very manufacturers who entered the game solely for the good to be ascertained from the results of high speed can be relied upon to continue to support the game when automobiles have reached the point of practical perfection. The National Company plans to enter its fast stock cars in every event of importance this season. They have a two-fold purpose in doing so. Firstly, they believe that these cruel fights sho high quality as nothing else will, and secondly, they are imbued with the love of the sport itself and desire to promote it."