Members in trouble with the law

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The very light fine (2s 6d and 2s costs) imposed on Mr W.S.Foster of Lincoln , by the Kesteven magistrates on Friday cannot but be taken as something of a hint for the Police. At least they will perhaps take it that way, and in future refuse to molest motorists who, while in no way proceeding furiously or to the common danger, may be exceeding that absurd legal limit of 12 miles an hour. If Mr Foster had been summonsed for dangerous or furious riding the case would have fallen through, but the pace no doubt was just over the legal limit, so that a technical offence was committed.

As Mr Foster urged, the absurd limit of 12 miles an hour is exceeded by everybody everyday, but the powerful brakes fitted to all motors make them perfectly safe at any reasonable speed, as witness the enormous distances covered by the Lincoln Motor Bus Company, some hundreds of thousand miles, and through traffic too with never an accident to anyone.

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Another motor case heard on Friday was the rather hard one of Mr Jecock’s, who was fined by the Lincolnshire City Magistrates for driving a car on the wrong side of the road. He was going down from Mint Street, and to save an accident from the sloping road, the lower half of which was very greasy, he hugged the wrong side of the road which was on his right for a few yards. A telegraph lad cycling down Park Street on a brakeless machine was unable to stop, and jumped off letting the bicycle go, with the consequence that it was run over and injured.

Mr Jecock, a most careful driver, appears to have had to pay for taking the best possible course under the circumstances. Mr Jecock took out the Superintendent of the Gainsborough Police, Mr Edgley, the other day, to show him how easily motors are controlled. Mr Edgley was greatly impressed, and, like the rest of us, welcomes the spread of such knowledge.