DAZZLING HEADLIGHTS

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3173, 25 August 1917, Page 8

DAZZLING HEADLIGHTS

■ AGAIN BEFORE THE CITY ' COUNCIL. ■ The City Council is showing its keenest, auxiiety.to legislate against glaring headlights on motor-cars. Only a few weeks ago the council passed a. resolution calling on motor-car drivers to see that the top half of the lamp glasses.was frosted. ■ This action was hardly, known to the. ■ motoring world before a new devico was introduced in the form- of ; a' certain lens, which glass front is so designed by the provision of projecting concato ridges of glass in the upper half of the l«ns, to deflect the point of greatest brilliancy t:t a. spot oni.v about. 18 or 20 feet ahead 'of the car. The committee was so pleased with this lens (and the inspector said it was .tho best device of tho kind within his knowledge) that they incorporated in their report on Thursday evening the following recommendation "The committee have to Teport that tho Motor Inspector has submitted for the consideration of the committee a device for tho elimination of glare from motor headlights. The committee directed the inspector to thoroughly lest the efficiency of the device, and the inspector now reports that systematic tests havo been conducted with the lens, and he is perfectly satisfied that the lens reduces tlic glaro from electric, gas, or oil headlights to a reasonable limit. . . . The committee have to 'recommend- the council to rescind their resolution requiring drivers of motor vehicles to provide headlights with the'top half of the giass ground or frosted, and authorise the drafting of a by-law requiring i lie installation of the lens in questiion in headlights of motor - Thero was much desultory discussion on ths jsoint. Councillor C. B. Norwood doubted whether the - council. naj not going too far .in. adapting a lens of a ' make' with h name attached to it. After all tho only thing that tho council ci uld do was to prevent; glaring headlights _ c*i tho public streets within its nrisdiciion, and if a motorist reduced his lights'to half their power ho might bo doing what any court wou.ld hold to bD reasonable. Ho pointed out that tho council's action might be held to be quite arbitrary. On tho price being mentioned, Cr-un-ciltor W. IT. P. Barber, who v-as in the chair, stated that the lens were rot dear. The price was 12s.- 6d.; and if .the recommendation was carricd ;hey ciuld pu.t in a proviso that the price was not to bo increased. Councillor Barber invited tho members of the council out to. look at the lens. The councillors visited the Town llall vard. where there was a car fitted with the lens.. Opinions were divided as to its utility. On returning to the chamber, Councillor M. 1. Lutikio pointed out that there was a statute dealing with glaring headlights on caw, and there had lieen prosecutions already under that statute, in which, case -,he moved that the be referod back ■ to the committee, which cou.rso was . agreed upon. . ■