The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-02-03
MOTOR LAWS
 TRAVEL PUZZLE
Lack Of Uniform Rules Con- fuses Cross-COuntry '
 Drivers

The American motorist drives over roads of many states. Can he be suffi- cientiy well acquainted with the traffic 5 laws and usages of the states and con- mtnities through which he passes to avoid the constant hazard of arrest for petty violations, the occasional peril of major tranSgression, and the cer- tainty that some of his actions will em- barrass or puzzle other drivers! If the laws of all states were sufficiently similar, he obviously could. Equally clear is it that the laws of the various states could be sufficiently diverse to render it quite impossible for him to meet this demand, says thes Scientific American.
 For example, in the matter of licens- ing drivers alone, q study of the print cd pamphlet in which thirty-eight states publish their motor code reveals that twenty-six states make no demand upon the man at the wheel save that he have the rrice of q car-there doesn't appear to rest anywhere the obligation even that he learn t drive before he ventures on the public roads. Six states require a drivers license, issued orgin- ally after examination of some sort and renewed annually without further test. Two states issue licenses, but require merely the fee without any examaina ton. One gives a permanent license after test. One licenses truck drivers after test and drivers of passenger cars without test. North Carolina leaves the licensing of drivers to local juris- diction. New York requires examination and license from all residents of the metropolis, while upstate drivers go unsupervised. Practically all states license paid chauffeurs.
 Babies May Drive
 Three states bar driving by children less, than IA years old; four make the limit ,15, nine 16, and one F and one t13. Two others have age limits which apply only in incorporated towns. One restricts the age of paid chauffeurs ! only; another exempts from its age limit children who can prove their competence. Ten states make no provi- sion whatever against driving by in- fants; five others have age limits, but invaldate them by permitting a child to drive when accompanied by an adult. Thus in 15 states, it will be seen, a child 6 years old or even younger, may go on the public roads in charge of an. automobile without 1liOdtlHS any SpeclIlc laW.
 Of course it might appear that the lack of uniform age limit is of minor Importance. Where it actually hurts is in its effect upon the extension of re- ciprocal, privileges. Several years ago "a New Jersey youth of IF, just over the limit of his own state, was fined for driving in New York, where the limit is IS. The first motion on his behalf by the New Jersey motor ve- hicle commission was rebuffed at AL bany. Only a 1ast-minute acceptance of arbitration by the New York com missioner averted drastic retaliation, which would have taken the direction of minute enforcement of every letter of the Jersey law against New York cars, and would have amounted to a suspension of reciprocity. The differ ence between F and IS years doesn't amount to much; but what about, say, Kansas with 14-year limit and Ne braska with none? When Nebraska child of eight drives across the state line, is he subject to arrest for his very serious violation of the Kansas law, or does the fact that he can drive legally at home entitle him to reciprocity? If 1t is safe for an S-year-old to drive a motor ear in Nebraska or a l4-year-old in Kansas, it is equally safe in New Jersey if it is really improper for any body short of IS to drive in New York, 1t is equally improper elsewhere.
 The Street Car And The Motor.
 What do you do when you overtake street car that is standing to receive and discharge passengers? If you are native of Idaho, New Mexico, Penn