|
It's Against
The Law!
"Residents
of Chicago are required to keep fire buckets in front halls."
"In Elko,
Nevada, no one shall walk upon the street without wearing a mask."
"In
Kentucky it is illegal to sleep in a restaurant."
"It is
against the law in Omaha for a policeman to appear in uniform with
his hands in his pockets."
"Hattiesburg,
Mississippi, forbids one to swing on or hang signs across the
sidewalks of the city."
"In
California a housewife may go to prison if she doesn't cook her
dusting cloth after using it.
Many of these laws go back to the
horse and buggy days, but no one ever bothered to erase them from
the books. Today a few of them have been canceled out by the
states, but for the most part they remain dormant and ineffective.
Do you remember the
'Good Old Days'? Well, here's one from the 'Good Old Days'.
All motorists at
one time or another are irked by regulations imposed on
automobiles. But consider the potential plight of the driver
90 years ago, when an organization called the Farmer's Anti-Auto
Protective Society sought passage of even more restrictive traffic
laws.
The proposed
regulations make current vehicle laws mild by comparison.
The suggested rules were as follows:
-
Automobiles must
be seasonably painted, that is, so they will merge with the
pastoral ensemble and not be startling.
-
On discovering
an approaching team, the automobilist must stop off-side and cover
his machine with a tarpaulin, painted with the scenery.
-
In case a horse
will not pass an automobile, notwithstanding the scenic tarpaulin,
the automobilist will take the machine apart as rapidly as
possible and conceal the parts in the grass.
-
In case an
automobile makes a team run away, the penalty will be $50 for the
first mile, $100 for the second, $200 for the third mile, etc.,
that the team runs, in addition to the usual damages.
-
On approaching a
corner where he cannot command a view of the road ahead, the
automobilist must stop not less than 100 yards from the turn, toot
his horn, ring a bell, fire a revolver, hallo and send up three
bombs at intervals of five minutes.
-
Automobiles
running on the country roads at night must send up a red rocket
every mile and wait 10 minutes for the road to clear. They
may then proceed carefully, blowing their horns and shooting
rockets.
-
The speed limit
on country roads this year will be secret and penalty for
violation will be $10 for every mile an offender is going in
excess of it.
WOW! Can
you imagine where we would be today if these rules had become law?
These are presented for your
entertainment and will be changed periodically. I hope you
enjoy these.
---Gordon Burnham |
