Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-09-27
WILL INVESTIGATE AUTUMN
PYRAMIDING OF FATALITIES
National Conference on Street and High
way Safety to Make Canvass
During Fall Months.

as ice on a mountain road-even more
So since the danger often exists In the
most innocent-looking places, and as
likely as not on . beautiful day. Here
is one Of the insidious pitfalls awaiting
the unwary user of the highway during
the season we are now. approaching.
The driving public Is more alive to
the danger Of skidding on slippery and
sleety pavements. But at the same time
it has been somewhat lulled into asstlr-
ance by the effectiveness of good brakes,
sound tires and chains. Important
equipment is an asset to safety. It Is
not by any means foolproof, and GER
tainly not a substitute for the exercise
Of maximum care and the employment
at all times of q speed to suit condi-
tons.
Need of OverhauIing.
The fact that there are in the coun-
try today millions Of very old and de-
crepit automobiles, many of them car
rying WORKOUT equipment, places q
greater premium than ever on the over
hauling of the car In preparation for
the conditions of the next few months
and at the same time renders the exer-
else of maximum care and the observ-
ance of reasonable speed obligatory on
every highway user.
We are now approaching the season
of the year when twilight Is short and
darkness comes swiftly. There is a
special incentive to speeding home from
the office ahead Of darkness. At The
same time, conditions for driving are
liable to be less favorable than they
were q few weeks back. Unnecessary
hurrying is one Of the greatest breed
ers of accidents. Instead of hurrying,
which means the taking of chances, The
motorists should realize now that what
they must do is to give themselves more
time for the run home from the Office
or the plant. An additional five min
utes will afford margin Of safety that
will reflect itself in diminution Cf &C
cidentS.
Poor Visibility.
One of the things that should be
particularly stressed at this time, In
my opinion, Is the Importance Of max
ing preparations to meet the conditions
of poor visibility that normally come
during the next few months. In this
connection particular attention should
be devoted to the condition OF the wind
shield to see to it that it Is kept clean;
to see to 1t that the windshield wiper
is mechanically efficient, and, above all,
to see to 1t that the headlights are
functioning properly and that the ad-
justment meets standard requirements.
Accustomed as they are to the long
twilight of Summer, many motorists do
not realize how stealthily the Fall and
early Winter twilight comes. The re-
suit is that thousands of highway users
have developed the habit of delaying
the turning on Of their headlights. Here
is one bad practice which every motor
ist can do his part to eliminate. In
doing so they will be making very
real contribution to safety.
AS cold weather approaches there Is
a natural tendency to keep the windows
of the automobile closed. This prac-
tice makes hand signaling difficult and
results in turn in many unnecessary
accidents, and particularly large crop
of minor collisions, causing glass to fly
in all directions, infiicting painful in
juries and putting a strain on our emer-
gency hospitals at time when all our
hospital resources should be dedicated
to handle accidents and illnesses over
which we have no control.