SAFETY OF MAYORS

Taranaki Daily News, 2 April 1934, Page 15

SAFETY OF MAYORS

ARMOUR PLATE SUGGESTED. AMERICAN FIRM’S OFFER. Wellington, March 26. The Mayor of Wellington, Mr. T. C. A. Hislop, received a surprise- by. mail from New York in a personal letter written by the manager of the ordnance de-, partment of one of the oldest . steelmaking firms in America. The letter sets out the dangers of life to-day for those in the higher realms of authority and stresses the safety which comes to those who are wise enough to guard against bomb, knife and bullet. The firm undertakes to supply fully-fabricated armour plate ready to be incorporated in car bodies or made into vests or coats. Notwithstanding the warning, Mr. Hislop does not propose to “take action, which the writer of the letter urged should be done at once. Accompanying the letter was a brightly illustrated bulletin containing sketches of the comparative fates of armoured and unarmoured men who were attacked by assassins. A second enclosure deals with a highly developed tractor tank armoured against light gunfire and carrying one machine-gun, a 37-millimetre gun for ground level or anti-aircraft use, and gas equiment. It is recommended as very suitable for municipal as well as for military use, for when all is peaceful the armour plate, guns and poison gas equipment can be detache . and the tractor used for public works of haulage. The bulletin states: “The construction of the armoured bodies does not sacrifice beauty to safety. There is no. outward sign of the bodies being armoured. AU the solid portions of the body are protected with armour plate, Windows and windshields are made of 1 I- B * l }' nonshatterable bullet-proof glass, which will stop bullets fired from up to .45 calibre pistols.” j “We are living in troublous and troubled times,” writes the manager. "Political and civil crime is rampant all over the world. Men in the public eye are exposed. to the whims of the crank, to whom human life L meaningless. Protectors of law and order fall victims to the desperado whose only language when facing capture is the quick shot. Leaders must protect themselves and their adherents,”