Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1908-01-17

would it be possible to show into what
states an automobile had gone, or what
was the proportionate amount of auto
mobile travel in the respective states,
and thus to what share of these fees
any individual state was entitled Or
is the federal government to issue as
many licenses as there are states; pass
ing over the fee to the state on behalf
of which license had been given out !?
But this would make the general govern
ment mere clerk of the several states.
and all for the benefit of automobilists.
Where and when has the government
undertaken to perform service OF that
character?
Or, again, is it proposed that the Ii
cense fee shall be merely nominal; only
large enough to pay for the license blank
and the clerical work of issuing it; leav-
ing nothing to be distributed and no
compensation for the privilege of passing
over and wearing down the highway
where the traveller can not be reached by
taxation II this is the intention it will
be sufficient to remark that our national
government has never been in the habit
of confiscating the property of law-abid-
ing citizens, even for its own use, and it
is not apt to do like thing for the adj
vantage or convenience of class, and
certainly comparatively small class,
however influential.
Then what about police regulations
If the license is to be issued by the
national government, of course, breaches
of its provisions will be violations of a
| federal law and must be dealt with by a
federal court. Well, in Vermont, for
instance, we have one such court. The
Judge resides in Brattleboro. Fancy the
convenience of dealing with an offense
committed up in Grand Isle or Franklin
county. This would be nothing less
than absolute immunity from punish
ment. There would be just as much
propriety in turning cases of intoxica-
ton, and breaches of the peace, and all
petty crimes and misdemeanors for juris-
diction of which we have more than a
thousand justices of the peace in the
state over to the national government.
An offense of this nature must be dealt
with on the moment or not at all
Should this scheme be given effect, an
automobilist might break the law and
then be hundred or a thousand miles
away before the appropriate legal ma
chinery could be set in motion to secure
his punishment. This consideration
alone, is sufficient to show the senseless
ness of demanding federal licenses fol
automobiles.
But there is another objection which j:
even more decisive. 1t is that such q
method would be the handing over OF
highways to the national government fol
its regulations in the matter of private
use. Whatever the control the fedora
government may exercise over our roads
in the carrying of the mails, or what
ever may finally, under the lead of our
splendid President, be determined as tC
its supervision of railroads engaged ir
interstate commerce, these are matters
entirely apart from the regulation of
automobile travel. However important,
in the eyes of their owners and users
automobiles have not yet risen to the
dignity of being public utilities nor ira
vel by them to level with domestic
commerce and the postal facilities of the
nation; and, possibly. the general public
may be pardoned for declining to place
these three things in the same category
when 1t comes to their control by law
At all events, we shall venture to do 81
and, furthermore, to suggest that any
congressional delegation which lent itsel
to scheme for requiring, or allowing
the national government to determine
the rate of speed, the qualifications of 1
, driver, the license fees, ETC., etc., of We
hicles used by private individuals, and as
such, upon our highways, would no
have long to wait before, clearing some
thing to its interest" from its constitu
ency. This federal license idea is sheel
nonsense.
There is one other matter to be noticed
In the early days of the automobile il
was urged, as point in its favor, tina
it not only did not harm the roads
but that it actually benefited them. Il
| was claimed that the rubber tires pro
| duced no wear, but merely pressed dowr
and smoothed the roadbed, so far al
, they had any effect. This might have
, been true of the machines at first in use