Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-07-14
MAY CURTA|L RIGHTS
Commissioners Considering
Question of Visiting Motorists.
TAGS MAY BE REQUIRED
Maryland and Virginia Ignore De-
sire for Reciprocal Arrangement.
LETTERS ARE UNANSWERED
Automobiles From Adjoining
States Now Have Merely to Reg
lister at District Building.

Although the District Commissioners do
not want to put up the bars against
Maryland and Virginia automobilists. 1t
is possible that unless the governors
of those two states enter into the
reciprocal arrangement with the District
of Columbia proposed by Commissioner
Rudolph for the board there will be a
very strict Interpretation of the laws
which govern visiting automobilists in
the District
The Commissioners are not anxious to
have any visiting automobilists arrested
for running into the District for a few
hours without license, but owing to the
lack of answers to two letters to each
governor asking that the automobile reci-
procity arrangement be put into effect
between the two states and the District
it may happen that the subject will be
brought home to the authorities of Mary
land and Virginia by protesting motor
car people who have been arrested here.
Required Merely to Register.
At present the District allows Maryland
and Virginia automobiles to come to
Washington practically at will. The own
ers go to the District building. give notice
that they will be in town for few days.
leave their temporary address and re-
ceive permission. to travel the streets of
the capital. The disposition is to invite
automobile people here. The way Com
missioner Rudolph expresses 1t is that
people with motor cars usually have
money to spend, and it is good thing for
a community to welcome them. For this
reason the Commissioners have encour-
aged visitors.
The police regulations requiring the
placing of number tags on motor vehi-
cies brought into the District by tour
lists and other nOn-residents for use
during a transient period do not apply
to those owners who have complied
with their own state laws and whose
cars show the state number tag. The
visitor must leaYe his name and address
at the District building. in the Office of
the secretary of the automobile board,
the day he comes to town. This allows
him ten days stay. At present the
stay is practically stretched out to any
length
The visitor can run back into Mary
land or Virginia and return to Wash
ington and renew his registration within
an hour if he wants That Is the Kind
of ruling the District Commissioners
want TO get from the two states men
toned. p
Governors Ignore Letters.
Early in June Commissioner Rudolph
was authorized by the board to ask
Gov. Crothers of Maryland and Gov.
Mann of Virginia to allow District of
Columbia automobiles the same privi-
leges i'm the states as the state automo-
biles are allowed here.
At present Washingtonians are not
even allowed the two exempt periods a
year of seven days each, granted by
Maryland and Virginia to motorists OF
other states" Beyond those they
have to take out licenses in the two
states. The Commissioners knew that
the legislatures of the states had au-
thorized the governors to make recip-
rocal arrangements with other states
No answer was received. and the
Commissioners wrote again. Still no
answer. From an outside source the
suggestion was made to the Commits
sioners that the governors were au-
thorized to make arrangements with
states" and that the District is not
considered a state.
1t Is probable that no more letters
will be written, but that strict en-
forcement of the visiting license laws
will be enforced in the very near fu-
ture.