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Show Large Increase Seen In Automobile Fatalities The constant increase of automob.'.c fatalities, reaching last year the enormous enor-mous total of 33,000, has resulted in a corresponding increase of responsibility responsibil-ity which the courts are placing npon the autoist, according to a survey made hy the legal department of the American Motorists' association, in co-operation with the Automobile Club of Illinois, citing recent court decisions deci-sions showing the trend of judicial thought. "Decisions, Indicative of the attitude atti-tude that courts are taking towards the autosist's responsibility, are being rendered almost daily," declares Si Mayer, president of the Automobile Club of Illinois and vice president of tile A. M. A. "This fact, that autoists are being held to a higher degree of accountability, witli no criticism of the judiciary, should serve ;ts a prophetic pro-phetic warning to autodom." Following are a few of the recent cases epitomized by the association's survey, as illustrative of the trend of current court decisions: "An automobile driver, on meeting or passing a street car which has stopped, must anticipate that some of passengers who have alighted may pass from behind te car to the other side." . . . Maine Sup. Jud. Ct. "Where a trallic officer, after beckoning beck-oning a deaf pedestrian to cross the street, signaled a truck driver to proceed pro-ceed and the truck driver pursuant to the signal proceeded into intersection, intersec-tion, and struck the pedestrian while proceeding slowly and with nothing to obstruct his .view of the pedestrian, a verdict finding the truck driver negligent neg-ligent was warranted, notwithstanding notwithstand-ing the officer's signal to the autoist to proceed." . . . Mass. Sup. Jud. Ct. "The statute, giving the autoist on the right the right of way, does not warrant drivers in taking close chances. If the driver of an automobile automo-bile approaching a street intersection sees a vehicle approaching at a fast rate of speed so that there is reason- |