The Motor Car
Motor cars were invented about eighty years ago, and even fifteen years ago there were not many in India. Then Indian gentlemen drove about in carriages, traps, and buggies, drawn by horses. But nowadays we hardly see in the streets of a big town any horse-carriages, except the common tongas; for all the people who used to keep horses and traps, now have motor cars. Motor cars are now so common, that even the villagers do not bother to look at them as they rush along the roads; whereas several years ago they stared at them in wonder, or ran away in fear.
One reason why motor cars are so much used now is that they are such perfect and trustworthy machines. The early motor cars were very clumsy and rather slow, and they often broke down. But now they are well made, and run smoothly and very quickly, and give very little trouble. A good car will run thousands of miles without wanting any repairs.
Another reason is that they have become so cheap. Of course, the best cars, like the Mercedes or Toyota, still cost a lot of money, and only rich people can buy them; but there are many good cars that even men who are not rich can buy. The Fiat or the Maruti or the Ambassador is the cheapest, and, though it is not pretty, it is very useful and can do a lot of hard work.
When one has once had a motor car, one does not want to go back to a horse and carriage; for a car goes much more swiftly, and it can travel for hundreds of miles without getting tired. Also nowadays it costs less to keep a car than a horse. Some cars can go eighty to ninety kilometers an hour faster than some railway trains in India. They are also easy to manage, for one can soon learn to drive.
Motor cars are used not only for pleasure, but also for business, for carrying goods, and, in the army for carrying troops and supplies.
