Evening star., 1919-04-13
WHAT AUTO DRIVER SHOULD
DO AT TIMES OF ACCIDENT
Get Witnesses Names and Make Measure-
>ments and Diagram-Other Details to
Be Followed When Smash Occurs,

With Maj. Pullman and his whole
: traffic squad. the Safety-First Asso-
,ation, the Washington Automotive
Trade Association and every local or
;anization that has the solving OF
!, Fashington's complex traffic problem
It heart all doing their best to hit
1pon some plan that will relieve the
errible congestion and help prevent
serious accidents to both the motorist
and pedestrian. il might be well to
call attention to a few precautions a
motorist should take when an acci-
dent does happen.
To the owner of a brand new car
| who Is Just testing his wings. so to
speak. on the highway it may seem
ghoulish to talk of accidents. Never
| theless, accidents involving motor
cars do happen, though in majority
of cases the car owner is not to
blame. But no matter how blameless
the motorist may be. unless he knows
what TO do whensthe accident occurs.
in a very unpleasant predicament
simply because he has failed to take
certain precautions. s-:
OF course, the thing dreaded most
by everybody is doing bodily injury
to some other persons. Yet accidents
of this kind occur every day. and in
practically all of them the injured
contributory negligence. To begin
with. the car owner should try to
keep his mind as calm as possible and
note all the attendant circumstances
a the time of the accident He should
get from any bystanders their names
and addresses and also those of peo-.
pie in nearby buildings, provided
those people witnessed, the accident.
Get Names of Witnesses. -
If the motorist knows that the fault
has not lain with him he should
point out to the people whose names
he has gathered particular phases of
the accident, measure any distances
that may be germane to the subject.
by pacing, II no other means is at
hand. Be certain to get some corrob-
oration of the rate of spe ed at which
The car was being driven. If the horn
or other warning signal was sounded
:be sure to have witnesses ready to
help prove this fact. In case the ac-
etdent has occurred at the intersec-
prove that the veticle had been slow
ed down before coming to the cross
ing. y
One Of the most important points
oHered for juryis consideration is
whether OF not the car was in its
II on the right hand side of the thor
oughfare where it belongedo Testi-
mony to this effect will help the de-
lendanr. II the emergency brake was
nrmiy set unprejudiced witnesses
may he shown this for later use in
court - So. ~i4'S~
When an accident happens at night
is important to prove that the
nights were properly burning and in
oraer. eWhen the mishap occurs in
rainy weather or when the streets are
slippery 1t should be shown, if pos
siole. that the nan-skid chains were in
place on the tires. In some cities, De-
trolt for instance, there is an ordi-
nance making the use of chains man.
datory In slippery. weather. So when
the car is involved in an accident the
owner should call the attention of
witnesses to the chains, if they are on
the tires. In case the trouble comes
when the car is making a turn, call
attention to the fact that.it was max :;
ing wide turn. in accordance with
the statutes, and was on the proper
side of the road. If a person has been
injured, try to remember his con-
duct Just before the accident Was he
behaving in way to make him
guilty Of negligence. as, for instance,
sheltering himself under an umbrella
and not Keeping a proper lookout?
Were you. the operator. looking ahead
and attending to your driving, or were
you talking or otherwise permitting
your attention to be distracted? Be
sure to get measurem ents. showing
the distance from. the nearest crossing
and from both cufbs at the time Of
the accident. If the accident occurred
at night. how near was the nearest
street illumination. Try to prove that
you slowed up your vehicle and did
not trust to a blast of the warning
signal. In other words, try to prove
that you took due precautions and did
not put the entire onus on the pedes-
TRAN oe.other person injured.