The Hawaiian gazette., 1916-07-25
Regulations Enacted BY Super
ViSors Are Almost Totally
Disregarded by Police
ABOUT ONLY ESSENTIAL
THREE DOLLARS AS FEE
Result Is Drunks, Near-BIind and
Mentally Unfit HurtIe Machines
Through Honolulu Streets

The requirements and restrictions,
adopted by the supervisors in order to
secure license to drive an automo-
bile in Honolulu, are gradually being
forgotten, according to frequent and
persistent reports which reach The Nd.
vertiser daily, from pedestrians. who
have been in danger, and in some in.
stances injured by automobile drivers
who have received licenses and, sup
Posedly, passed the required examina.
ton Of applicants.
There are many persons who are not
lit to drive an automobile and whose
driving is menace to the public, as
few visits at the morning session In
the police court will show. Apparently
oil that is necessary now to secure
license is to fill out statement, pay
three dollars, and the license is forth.
coming.
No attention whatever is paid to
whether the applicant is physically,
mentally or morally fit to drive a high.
power road vehicle, such as the modern
automobile, on the public highways. In
some instances, it is pointed out, even
drivers licenses, permitting the own.
err to hire out to drive, are given with.
out the slightest pretcnse of ascertain
ing the fitness of the applicant for
driving.
Many Clauses Are Violated
According to section fourteen, city
ordinance seventy-One, which specifies
the requirements Of applicants, many of
the clauses are daily violated by the
examining officer. Those violated are
as follows:
CAN applicant shall be familiar with
the terms of the Traffic Ordinance
the Speed Ordinance and of this or
dinance, and of any amendments there
off,
HE shall have sufficiently good eve
sight to be able to avoid danger. No
applicant shall be passed as qualified
whose vision, with or without, correct;
ing glasses, is less than twenty fortieths
upon being tested with Snellen's Test
Types. It shall be unlawful for any
person whose vision is corrected by
glasses to reach such standard, to drive
a motor vehicle without wearing pro-
per correcting glasses
Gan applicants must be free from
epilepsy heart disease. and shall not
be subject to fainting fits"
He shall not be a person of reck-
less disposition.
"He shall be a person who is not
addicted to the excessive use of alec
holic liquors. He shall be a person who
has not been convicted of being in
tOxicated by alcoholic liquors for pc
Rod of one year thereto"
at shall be unlawful for any chauf-
feur to operate knowingly. a motor
vehicle in any street or public place,
while disqualified by reason of any de-
fects stated in this section -
Tests For Railway Engineer
A locomotive engineer has to pass all
kinds of examinations to prove his fit
ness, yet the controls which he has to
handle are siRPle. as compared with
the controls of modern auto. He
does not have to steer, and even his
brakes are automatic in action in case
of an emergency.
True, the lives Of trainload of per
sons -are under his care; nevertheless,
the same is true, only in lesser de
gree, to one driving an automobile and
even to q greater extent, as he is not
provided with a right -of-way free from
other vehicles and pedestrians, but
must thread his route through crowds
of folk and all kinds of vehicles. all
of which take for granted, and act
accordingly, that he knows his business
thoroughly and is a past master in the
art of handling an automobile.
1t is only justice to the public that
more care should be exercised in the
granting of licenses to drive, it is point
ed out. There should be at least the
enforcement of the requirement, as
shown by the above test, that the indi
vidual is capable of driving, before
license is granted, it is argued.