The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1920-06-18
NEW HEADLIGHT LAW.
Cars Must Be Equipped With APP
u proved Lenses.


Surely everyone who has done any
amount of night driving in the State
during the past year or so apprecl-
ates the fact that a radical change is
necessary in the law insofar as 1t
applies to automobile headlights
The tremendous number of machines
which use our highways at night has
made the use of strong and powerful
headlights seem necessary TO the
majority of motorists. The average
person thinks that if he has suf-
fcient amount of light to get along
with at a moderate rate of speed, he
is not doing his duty; he feels that
he must secure bulbs that will make
the light shine at least half mile
down the road so that other people
can see him coming. 1t was TO meet
this tendency that the headlight law
was amended so as to provide that
no bulb of greater than thirty-tWo
1927 candle-power could be used
Even with a bulb of this size, unless
the headlights were bent well for
ward, it was impossible to avoid
glare when a plain lens was used.
Consequently, the last Legislature,
realizing the dangerous conditions
resulting from the use of high Can
die 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
approved headlight lens. While this
provision will undoubtedly cause
some inconvenience on the part OF
motorists now owning cars in this
State by requiring 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 fac
tories. A series of tests shows con-
clusively that a better light for
driving purposes can be secured from
certain makes of lenses, properly
adjusted, with a hulb of medium
candle-poWer, without inconvenience
to other users of the road, and with
greater safety to the driver of The
car, than will result from the use OF
high candle-power bulb behind
lenses improperly adjusted or with
no means of preventing glare.
A tabulation of accident reports
in this office shows that there has
been a decided increase in the num-
Der of deaths from reckless driving
and as a result of collisions in the
past year. On the contrary, the
number of deaths and accidents oc-
curing at night as direct result OF
glaring headlights shows an increase.
Many accidents, resulting in injury,
have been caused by the operator OF
car running off the road or striking
an obstacle or person on the road Tor
the reason that he was blinded by
the lights of an approaching car.
The evidence invariably, in cases of
accidents happened at night, Is that
the approaching car had such bright
lights that the operator of the Cal
involved in the accident was tenn
ally discloses the fact that the ap-
preaching car was equipped with
clear lenses.
| trust that the motoring public
will give this Office all possible CO.
operation in order to remedy these
conditions, and while the enforce
ment of the new headlight law may
result in some Inconvenience due to
its drastic provisions, I believe the
betterment of conditions in the near
future will more than repay for any
Inconvenience that is now caused.
The officers at my command have
been instructed as to the construc-
ton and proper focusing of lights.
and where an attempt has been
made to provide approved lenses and
have them properly focused, The
officers of the Department will be