The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1910-08-02
4 WORD IN
BEHALF OF
THEt AUTO
GUTHRIE NOT A JAY TOWN
AND PREJUDICE SHOULD
he OVERCOME

buthrle, Okla, Aug. 1.-Editor Daily
Leader: would like to say few
words on the subject of automobiles.
The city clerk has addressed letter
10 owners OF automobiles. urging up
on them the necessity OF care in driy-
Ing about The city, 80 as to avoid ac-
cldcnts. This letter was entirely
proper and too much care can not be
exercised IN the use Of automobiles.
| think, however that this fact Is
much more apparent TO the man who
drives an automobile than II Is to
any one else. Until one has driven
an automobile, he would not believe
II possible that pc sons in TIM streets
could Dc so utterly careless and In
different to their own safety. Auto
mobiles are becoming q regular part
OF city life and any town which has
metropolitan ambitions must expect
to put with the things which are
usually found in the city. The
streets of city are necessarily more
dangerous than those of country
village and persons on the streeI
should take notice OF conditions, ana
as far as possible look out for their
own safety. Any one sgoing into d
city will find that there are many
rules for the use of the streets on the
part Of drivers and pedestrians that
a e not called for in smaller towns.
Whenever the streets of town be-
come dangerous on account of the
number Of vehicles and au,omobiieA
in the streets 1t is evident that the
Town Is growing and instead OF coin.
planning Of these conditions, the thing
to do is to meet them A person go
Ing into a city will observe, for JIM
stance, that all vehicles are required
to keep TO the right hand side OF the
street and this does not ,mean the
middle Of the street. but aA close to
the cub as circumstances admit. This
is called for by several conditions.
in the first place, the middle ofNthe
street should ordinarily be Kept open
Tor street cars. In the second placeA
one vehicle passing around another
going in the same direction, rs reuuir-
ed to pass on the left hand side and
to pass around On the left hand side
of vehicle which Is IN the middle OF
the 81. eet, will throw the vehicle pass
ing left of the center OF the street.
or, in other words, into the space re-
served for traffic passing in the op-
posite direction.
Therefore. drivers should keep as
we'll over to-lhe tight nanG side o,
the street as they conveniently can,
not only because it leaves the center
of the street open but also because
IL allows an opportunity for faster
vehicles to pass around them on the
left-hand side without encroaching on
the space reserved for vehicles com
ing from the opposite direction. An
other rule is that in lining corners
to the right. Vehicles should turn
close to the corner, but in turning to
the left. they should swing out away
from Lhe copner so as not to inter-
fere with vehicles which may be turn
Ing The corner from The opposite di-
rcction. Again. pedestrians should or
diDarlly cross the street at street
crossings and not promiscously IN the
middle Of the block. In cities, these
rules are observed If pedest .ians
make IL rule TO cross the street on
" at street crossings. drivers OF We
hicles are thereby warned to be care
ful about street crossings, as this is
The place where persons VII, be cross
Ing the street and All parties will be
better able to protect themselves
There Is one piece of carelessness
that all parents should lend their aid
to abate. | refer to children playing
IN the street The streets are not
Intended for q play ground.
The great DANCE to children In
the street Is not SO much the mere
fact that they are in The street, but
their inclination and tendency TO pur-
posely throw themselves In the way OF
danger They do this because they
are thoughtless and needless and do
not realize the danger they subject
themselves to. In a spirit OF playful
ness they will purposely dart in front
OF an automobile or take stand di-
reetly In the course of one. intending
to jump out OF the way when the au-
tonobiles gets near them. The dam
ger in this il. that an automobile or
dinarily approaches much faster than
they make allowance for ana IL they
should slip and fall at the moment
when they attempt to Jump out OF the
way they are In danger of being run
owe and In such circumstances the
automobile driver would. by many per
sons be blamed for the accident. AS
Young children do not and can not be