The Republican., 1920-06-17
IN MATTER OF ENFORCING
THE NEW HEADLIGHT LAW
Automobile Commissioner Baughman


Asks Cooperation OF Motorists.
! Surely everyone who has done any
amount of night driving in the State
during the past year or so appreciates .
the fact that radical change is nee
essary in the law in so far as it ap- ,
plies to automobile headlights. The !
tremendous number of machines which |
use our highways at night has made |
the use Of strong and powerful head
lights seem necessary to the majority
of motorists. The average person
thinks that if he has a sufficient
amount of light to get along with at
moderate rate of speed, he i; not
doing his duty he feels that he must
secure bulbs that will make the light
shine at least half mile down TIE
road SO that other people can see him
coming. Il was to meet this tendency
that the headlight law was amended
SO as to provide that no bulb of great
er than thirty-two (32) candle-power
could be used. Even with bulb OF
this size, unless the headlights were
bent we'll forward, it was impossible
to avoid a glare when plain lens was
used. Consequently, the last legisla-
ture, realizing the dangerous c9ndi-
tions resulting from the use of high
candle-power bulbs and plain lenses,
made it unlawful for any automobile
TO be used or owned in this State on
which there was not some sort of az
| proved headlight lens. While this pro-
vision will undoubtedly cause some in
convenience on the part of motorists
now owning cars in this State by re-
quiring them to secure approved
lenses, it will eventually secure the
results desired inasmuch as it will
compel the manufacturers of motor
vehicles to install approved lighting
devices at the various factories. A Sc
ries Of tests shows conculsively that
a better light for driving purposes can
be secured from certain makes of
lenses. properly adjusted, with a bulb
of medium candle-power, without IN
convenience to other users of the road
and with greater safety to the driver
of the car. than will result from the
use of a high candle power bulb be
hind lenses improperly adjusted CT
with no means of preventing glare.
A tabuation of accident reports in
this Office shows that there has te II
decided decrease in the number Of
deaths from reckless driving and as a
result in the PAST year
On the contrary. the number of deaths
and accidents occurring at night as 4
direct gresult of glaring headlights
shows an increase. Many accidents
resulting in injury, have been cause
by the operator of car running Of
the road or striking an obstacle or
person in the read for the reas n that
4 he was blinded by the ligh Of an ap-
preaching car. The evidence invarta-
bly,, in cases of accidents happening
at night, is that the approaching car
had such bright lights that the oper-
ator of the car involved in the acci-
dent was temporarily blinded. Inves-
tigation usually discloses the fact
that the approaching car was equipr ed
with clear lenses.
i trust that the motoring public will
eive this office all possible co-opera-
tion in order to remedy these cond :
tions, and while the enforcement of
the new headlight law may result n
some inconvenience due to its drastic
provisions, believe the betterment CT
conditions in the near future viii more