LEFT HAND RULE

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 11, Issue 53, 14 July 1947, Page 8

LEFT HAND RULE

HISTORY STATED INSTINCT’S PART “Keeping to the left was probably the natural thing to, do when man was governed by instinct and was not ordered by law,” stated the secretary of the Automobile Association of Great Britain, Mr Edward Fryer, in a letter to the N.I.M.U. which was received by the A.A., Manawatu recently. “Going back a long way, primitive man became right-handed and settled the hold. on his stone club. His wife would have carried the baby on her left arm to leave the ofher free for her duties in the cave. Later, man» carried a sword that it is a reasonable conjecture that he kept over to the left, with his ladye faire on his left, with sword arm free to engage on the right. The cavalier mounted his horse from the left and doubtless rode on that side when faced with combat. “The horse driver has always sat on thb right of the box with free play for whip. That’s where the British steering wheel is today and it’s a bet • they would find it more convenient to keep left when encountering other vehicles. Finally, even in America, where they drive on the right, racehorses and athletes run around on the left.

“A rough summary showed that 65 territories and 1145.81 millions of population adhere to the left rule, and 66 territories with 835.29 millions adhere to the right,” he concluded.