THE SPEED LIMIT.

Press, Volume LXV, Issue 13611, 21 December 1909, Page 4

THE SPEED LIMIT.

IN TROUBLE

I'LAIN SPEAKING BY THE BENCH.

"William Jennings was charged, he fore Mr IJ. \\\ iJj s ) K >p, at tin Magistrate's Court yesterday, witl drivino; a motor car over '. street at other thai a walking nace. There was n< appearance of the defendant. Th. Magistrate remarked that he was goin< to treat the offence as a serious one A lino of 40»s and costs was inflicted J- C. Bradshaw was charged witl: having driven his motor car at. a speet dangerous tv the public. •Servant .Miller and Constable Poolc gave evidence, to the effect that ttiey marked off a mile the Nortl: road. 'J hey kcH their stoo watehet ait defendant a> "lie traversed the distance, and found that he was travelling at the rate of i>o miles an hour. Fhoru were several school children about at the time. Defendant denied that he was driving at an excessive speed, and said tnat had these been school children about he would have travelled slowly. His Worship said he would reserve his derision until other cases of a simnar nature 1i;m1 been heard. Robert Martin (Mr Hunter) wrs then similarly charged, evidence the same as that heard hi the urevious <:>=>e being called. Mr Hunter contended that the watches were not suitable for timing. Tnere was no i>vider.ee as to the presence of second hands on the watches held by the constables. The timing was romrh and ready. '1 he defendant's car had a and it showed that the car went only 16 miles an hoar. The speed limits in the open country .were in Austria -rf miles, in France Id}' miles, in Italy '2Z miles, in the. United Kingdom I'D miles. Mr Justice Denniston had said that mc motor ear, while capable of great spewls, was capable of great control. On this occasion the driver had eantrol over the machine. The evidence called for the defence was that Martin, wlso was driver lor Ballantyne and Co., nad not driven any faster than 'JO miles an hour during the afternoon, and not more than Id miles an hour over the mile. Archibal<l IJoyd (Mr Johnston) was charged with driving a taxi-cab at a dangerous speed. The police set the time for the mile at three minutes. In answer to a crossexamination, Sergeant Miller and Constable Poolo £*iid that the mile had been stepped out. The timing was done by the minute hands. Tho defenoo was that the measurement was not necessarily accurate, and might have been a hundred yards short; that the timing by minute hands was unsafe, and should not be taken as accurate. The taxi-cab in question could not do more than twenty miles, even under the best conditions. Taxi-cabs wero heavy and incapable of high speeds. On the day in question there was a head wind and the cab wcis fully loaded. There was very little traffic, and the car could have been pulled up in its own length. W. 11. Tisdall (Mr Alpors), siniilaily charged, was said by the police to have covered the milo in 2| minutes. Mr Alpers submitted that if the Police Department were going to make the time a standard for cases of this kind they (should supply the constables with efficient materials. They should have stop watches, as in England. None of the defendants who had appeared at the Gourt could be said to l>e v fast driver. The constables had not even been supplied with a chain to measure the mile. The defendant said liis ear cnnld not do more than twenty-four and a hnlf miles an hour under favourable conditions. On the day in Question there was a head wind and the road was bad. There was very littlo traffic and no children about. Mr Bishop said that, allowing an ample margin for error, there, was still complete evidence to justify him saying that the speed was dangerous. Ho was strongly of the opinion that the mutter had got to such a point in Christchurch, judging by what one raw, that the motor-cars were frequently a menace U> the public in public thoroughfares. There were -drivers ,vho were thoughtful of the safety rf tiic public, but there was a_lar>;o section who were not. "I'm going to £toj> it, or make it an expensive amusement, and if the so fines arc not snificioat, I will increase them." The defendants were each fined £3 and costs. Mr Hunter ar.cl Mr \lpcrs applied to have the fine increased to to Is, with a view to appealing, but the Magistrate declined to alter his decision.