Show Cant Can't We Stop The Slaughter A motor truck ran down own and killed a 1 little boy six years old For two days the father of the child sat at a window in his home watching the tho passing passing 1 assing cars car's Across his knees he hea field a gun read ready to shoot the first driver who passed the house at a reckless rate of speed Overwhelmed by grief grid he was willing to kill kiU and andr r to to pay with ith his own life the the penalty of his crime in ill order to arous atten atten- attention attention ti tion to the peril a all chil children face Th The co counsel of of fri friends and time turned lime turned the bereaved man man from his sad sacrifice His life and the life ife of f a chance victim could not have ac- ac accomplished ac accomplished c- c the purpose Yet last year eal automobiles killed ap- ap approximately ap approximately proximately proxima y people in the United States and injured about according to the reckoning of a group of insurance companies Every day during durin 1924 on on the aver er average age ag 52 people were killed and 1232 x ere c re wound d cl The World War Var hard hardly hardly ly Iy took L iter to toll of American How h hi him j Appalling loss l s be SI OJ No o 0 di eh r intends to use his hiscar ear eI as yet children lost the through moto motor acct acct- denis dent i la tar ur r H lIr rod ll-rod rod d is execrated in history 1 a 1 q n of children but Hen Hero 11 a J i were few in comb com com- compari pans corn b pari parisi n i in n dern losses Of cou no blame attaches to many of ose se who have the misfortune misfortune misfortune tune to kill others with automobiles O 0 i I i anly malice is lack lacking in even when c are driven at dangerous erous speeds I at al I 1 recent reports have brought out jut the tl-t fact that many accidents occur jutI I IF when cars are arc driven slowly I The way nf out is not simple Little is accomplished by the passing or of more an and more drastic laws Jaws What we all aU need is more knowle knowledge ge The reme remedy y will doubtless be found in two directions the drivers driver's responsibility responsibility responsibility to avoid accidents will j be in- in increase increased in increased crease creased and roads and streets will willbe willbe willbe be made more nearly fool foo fool I Industrial Industria accidents began to de- de decrease de decrease crease with the passage of workmen's compensation laws Jaws When the prin- prin principle prin principle ciple cipe that industry must pay for the waste of human limb and life was es- es established es established engineers were hired to in- in ini in i vent ways woys of or making safe saCe I Most modern factories now employ I safety engineers They arc are constant constantly ly Jy designing machines so BO that work work- workers workers workers I l ers will ril be protected against tHeir tHeirl own carelessness or recklessness The biggest gains have been made inthis in inthis inthis this fashion At the same time safety has been incessant incessant- incessantly incessantly ly y preached to in individuals The re- re result re result sult suIt is that great railroads go yar after year without killing any pas pas- passengers passengers pas pas- passengers and progressive e factories are arc able to report steadily ing ing numbers of accidents The deaths and injuries due to auto mobiles may be lessened and stopped by the application of similar principles principles les es Automobiles are now v nearly fool foolproof foolproof foolproof proof Streets Street are not and some drivers are arc fools Streets and roads must be bo built and regulated with witha a view to making automobiles traffic safe and expeditious The use of cars is extending at a tremendous rate in fact our present civilization is possible only because of the gasoline engine Thatis That Thatis Thatis is fundamental Roads and streets must be so re- re reconstructed re le reconstructed constructed and policed that it will willbe willbe be possible to get the full mechanical utility out of J the automobile It is useless to pass laws and ordinances which are arc impossible of enforcement Yet most states and cities have regu regu- regulations regulations I lations which arc are not obeyed and which ought not to be enforced The laws Jaws of the road ou ought ht to be rewritten by safety engineers en and the thc rules covering the drivers driver's responsibility responsibility ought to be more clearly de- de defined defined de defined fined This is not an easy program The saving of lives and and the proven prevention tion of injuries is however a goal worthy ofa of a supreme national effort We must stop this killing |