The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-05-07
OWN
The STREETS
Tram" Ting-a-ling"
Doesn't Suit
Wilcox.
SAYS PEOPLE
HAVE RIGHTS
Fines Car Driver SIS for At
tempting to Telescope a
Palama Bus.

Pains tramcars and their mongrel
Wilcox, who has decided that one of
these cars and its two small mules
went the pace that kills for yesterday
afternoon he fined one of Pains drivers
s25 and costs, amounting to $3.50, for
having violated the rule which says that
fast furious and needless driving"
shall not be allowed.
That one of these rattletrap arks
could be drawn at a speed which any
one could term fast, furious and heed
the ordinary mortals who suffer them
selves to add their nickels daily to the
fare boxes in the ends of these cars. Yet
it~has been officially decided by a Po-
lice Magistrate-and none other than the
Solomon of the local jurists, Judge VIII
cox himself--that such an event took
place a few days ago. The driver who
was able to make his beasts work to the
extent that any one could call the pace
fast and furious should be given a
vote of thanks by the community. Judge
Wilcox donated a SIS reminder to keep
the young drivers memory fresh on the
incident.
1t all came about in this wise: The
driver of the tramcar, a young Hawaii
an, says he was driving on King street
toward Palama. One of the big buses
on that route, driven by man named
White. was also heading in the same d.
rection. The driver says that White
tried to play tag with him; first the
tram was ahead and then the bus, and
so the fun continued until the curve
was reached near Liliha street. The boy
says that White knew the space between
the curve and curb was too narrow for
him to get through, but he nevertheless
made the attempt, with the result that
the car and bus met in a collision which
knocked the car off the track. The boy
says that he attempted to stop White
from crowding in by striking his horses
heads with his whip.
White, who is an old man, says that
the whole trouble arose from the fact
that the driver wanted to be funny
and did the collision act maliciously. He
says that the boy did not strike his
horses heads with his whip but that
| he struck them on the rump, while they
were in front of him and not behind
him. His evidence was corroborated by
! other witnesses. The boy said he could
not put on his brake because he had the
lines in one hand his whip In the other,
and therefore the car and bus came to-
gether with thud. Both admitted that
| they were travelling pretty fast.
| 1t was alleged in the defense that
White was intoxicated at the time of the
accident. White jumped up, raised his
right hand solemnly and said:
II was not drunk. sir; no, sir. And I
| defy any man who can say that / nave
| been drunk in the past ten years; and
| tho affirm tjon was 0I1ly recorded
st know how you boys drive those
cars out Palama way" said Judge Will
| cox addressing the defendant. You
boys think you own the streets because
/ you drive cars. Just because you hap
| pen to be driving a tramcar is no reason
why other people haven't got any rights
on the streets. This thing of 'ting-a-ling.
| ting-a-ling!' with that bell of yours and
expecting people to jump out of your
| way, has got to stop. Other people have
| just as much right on the streets as you
| have with your cars It's the same with
these newfangled machines, the automo-
| biles. They come buZzing along, and if
| anybody happens to get in their way
| they ring their gongs and expect them
| to get out of the way. They don't own
the street yet, either. I suppose when
| you drove that car the other day you
| wanted to race with the bus and when
you came to that curve you thought
you'd try to squeeze the old man out.
I suppose you had some chums behind
| you who said, Go on! Go onp and you
| went on. I find you guilty and fine you
| s25 and costs.''
An appeal was noted.