South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1917-12-30
AUTO ACCIDENTS
NOT ALL CAUSED
BY GHAUFFEURS
State and City Authorities
Study Records and Revise
Opinions as to Need
ed Remedies.

Much public misapprehension re-
garding the causes of street and
road accidents persists notwith-
standing official records and state
ments THAI are available 10 anyone
who cares TO ascertain the truth
Recently the New York state com
missioner Of health issued a state
nent at Albany showing that while
deaths from typhoid fever in the
state during September were less
than the average cor the same
month in past years. the number of
fatalities due 10 automobiles show
ed a market increase and was great
or than the combined deaths from
typhoid and scarlet fever. These
figures" ne said. emphasize the
imperative need for stringent en-
1 forcement Of traffic regulation
against reckless drivers as well as
education of pedestrians in careless
ness on streets and highways. which
they must share with vehicles
The health commissioner appar-
pOrtant facts: First. that while au-
tomobile accidents increased. the
number Of automobiles in use had
also Increased but the ratio of ac-
Il cidents 10 cars did not increase:
second. that the increase il use OF
i motor vehicles and the decrease in
horses i'm the cities contributed ma
4 teriaily TO the decrease i'm typhoid,
scarlet fever and other infectious
disease through reduction OF the fly
danger.
Conditions i'm New York.
New York enforces vehicular
regulation more stringently and eff
4 ciently than any other city in the
y country. yet after years Of study Of
the problem IL says in its annual re-
port for 1915:
should a law be passed giving
the police some control OF the move
ments Of pedestrians, and should
the enforcement of the law be sup
i ported by proper public senti-
Il ment. il is quite likely that not only
will the increase in street accidents
4 be checked 'ut that a decrease in
the present lumber may be accom-
plished."
This is a very modest statement.
I'm its 1916 report the police depart
ment RETAINED from tabulating the
records showing the number Of ac-
cidents and deaths due 70 the fault
Of the injured. but in its report for
1915 the figures showed that 90
percent OF the accidents were at
tributed TO the injured This is
conclusive evidence that no fur
Their amount Of regulation OF We
hicular traffic can possibly reduce
street accidents more than 10 per
cent
An exhaustive Investigation of
AN facts connected with the more
serious motor vehicle accidents in
Massachusetts, during the last eight
OF nine years has been made by the
state highway commission. which
employed trained investigators for
the purpose. six Investigators spent
wo weeks making a careful study of
: 675 selected cases OF serious acct
dents and compiled a report, the re-
suits OF which are published in ex-
enso in the annual report of the
commission for 1915, just issued.
AS a result, the commission makes
he following statements.
Commission Makes Report.
- The public has many erroneous
IDEAS as to what causes automobile
accidents. The impression
s gets abroad that most of the acct
Hients are caused by reckless or
drunken operators running at ex-
,essive speeds and that many op-
2 orators are never caught. These
Impressions are not correct i'm fact
n any large proportion OF the acct
dents.
"Out or the 675 cases examined,
ne operators were believed 20 be in
oxicated in AZ instances only, or in
= ust about six percent.
Women are unusually careful
r operators. being involved i'm only
our percent ofaaU the accidents al
hough they constitute about eight
percent OF the licensed operators.
they were held not at fault in
even out OF eight fatal accidents.
I'm the 265 cases in which 243
- pedestrians and % others were kill
t. the pedestrian or other user of
- he highway was wholly az fault in
81 and partly 10 blame i'm As. The
perator was wholly az fault in 81
asses and partly 20 blame in as
Two hundred and FIVE deaths out
j. 265 would not have occurred II
easonahle care had been exercised
n the deceased. In more than half
Z al the cases in which pedestrians
Z pa other users OF the highway out
De OF the motor vehicle were either
He'd or injured. the accident would
OF have occurred III the ordinary
rccaution had been taken OF look
- g before crossing.
" I'm 433. or in nearly two-thirds
|xsM Z these cases. the motor vehicle
as soing less than is miles an
- 6u- (and in us was going at less
8 ian p miles,
I'm 1918 there was one fatal ac-
n dent for every ISL registered mo
n b. vehicles. while in 1916 there was
ne fatal accident for every 46S mo-
r vehicles registered This GER