THE DECLINE OF COURTESY

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 220, 6 December 1927, Page 6

THE DECLINE OF COURTESY

NECESSITY FOR PLAYING SAFE

SOME THOUGHTS BY THE WAY

ONLY BY THE GOODWILL of all who use our roads is it possible to achieve safety, comfort and convenience. If a friendly spirit of give and take between mo tor-vehicle drivers were more pronounced we should avoid a lot of unnecessary inconvenience and anxiety.

That is the thoughtful advice of the R.A.C. of Australia, and its essential, sober truth is applicable to all the roads of the world. There has been a decline in the courtesy of the highway, and the oldtime brotherhood of the road has been ousted by a selfishness, autocracy and lack of tolerance which do not redound to the credit of the present-day motorist. In the good old times of the onelungers, the wheezv, breezy, ever-so-easy pioneers of the modern almost-fool-proof-car, there was a bond between all the drivers. A breakdown meant the solicitude and help—practical help—of every driver who happened along until the Oldsmobile, Rover, Benz, Rambler, or whatever it was, had been fiddled with until it rattled along again. That was yesterday. To-day, what do we find? \ tyre is punctured or a plug or two slow down on their life’s work. Along come the modern motorists, scarcely slacken speed, call out ‘"all right?” and smother the harassed driver with dust as they speed on satisfied with hurling a ques- 1 tion to which they had no chance of hearing the answer. While many motorists are innately too selfish and thoughtless to give help, there are many stranded drivers who don’t deserve assistance because they are ungrateful. . I have come in contact with several instances of ungratitude. Motorists who have been thoughtful have stopped by broken down cars and rendered assistance. . In one instance a driver has parted with a tin of petrol to another, a second ha s loaned a tyre, or a tube, and a third has parted with several tools to a driver careless enough to leave his toolkit behind. In all cases the persons assisted have promised immediate payment or the return of the articles, but the promises have not been redeemed. That is the sort of thing which breeds discourtesy. Here is an outstanding example not only of ungratefulness, but of deceit. A motorist picnicking at one of the Banks Peninsula bays was approached by a motorist who failed to start his bus after a breakdown. The picnicker quickly decided that the disabled car had stripped a gear, and the stranded motorist made such an eloquent appeal for help that the picnicker let pleasure go by the board, and settled down to work, and in the end effected temporary repairs so that at least two of the gears were usable. Then the grateful motorist, who would have had to pay several pounds to be towed over

the hills some 40 miles was asked if he would care to be nominated as a member of the Canterbury Automobile Association. Most certainly he would—out of gratitude. His name was taken, but inquiries showed that he had given a false address and the Good Samaritan has not seen him since. So there is a duty on all motorists to stop and give assistance by the roadsl J r e, 11 there is a duty on the part ot all motorists to display courtesy in gratitude. Play the game, be human, and act by the age-old injunction, “Do unto others . . .” That is the best rule °f. the road that I know of, and it applies to all walks of life just the same. Courtesy, however, comprehends much more than, help by the roadside. It apples to driving in the city, on the plains and on the hills. It is not courteous to: “Cut in,” crowd the other .fellow off the road, jam a car on a parking place, dazzle with headlights, use the spotlight spitefully, dash through waterfilled potholes and splash pedestrians, abuse a driver who has made an error of judgment, give a motorist your dust for mile s for some reason known only to yourself, or refuse to give the right-of-way to an ascending car on hills. There are dozens of other little acts of discourtesy which might be listed—acts which are symptomatic of the stature mentally of the man behind the W’heel. Do unto others .. . And now a few golden rules for motorists in the art of playing safe. Obey all traffic signals given by inspectors or police. Go slow, passing children or vehicles, round corners or approaching intersections. Give the car on your right at an intersection the right-of-way. Stop, look and listen at railway crossings, and stop behind halted trams. Give adequate warning of approach, and. keep to the left. Give hand signals adequately and not at the last second. Be sure both headlights are adjusted and focused. Don’t use your headlights in welllighted city streets. . Dimming is dangerous in badlylighted city streets or in the country. Be sure your brakes are in order; inspect them frequently. When in doubt slow down or stop. Accidents do not happen; they are caused. Do your utmost to restore the brotherhood of the road and make the highway safe. Always be courteous and remember that the A.B.C. of safety is always be careful.