Loose Leaves.
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JUST when the inquiry was being held into the Port of London Authority's recommendation that oil vessels should be allowed to proceed so far as Purfleet, in the River Thames, the mishap to an oil tanker in the River Mersey proved particularly inopportune, for it brought home to everybody the risk entailed by the release upon tidal waters of large quantities of highly inflammable liquids. The Minister of Transport's derision upon the report of the board which considered the recommendation is that it is undesirable that petroleum-tank ships
B18 should proceed beyond Thames Haven, the. present limit, but ships carrying not more than 1,000 tons of petroleum or petroleum spirit in barrels or drums should be allowed to' navigate the river as high as Bow Creek, and that ships carrying not more than 2,000 gallons should be allowed to navigate throughout the Port of London ; in other words, to proceed to the oil-storage depots above bridge.
THERE seems to be some .confusion about the
need, according to law, for the name and address of the owner of a " wagon, cart or other such vehicle which is constructed or adapted for use and is used solely for the conveyance of goods or burden in the course of trade or husbandry" (to quote the Act of 1888) to be displayed on the vehicles in letters one inch high. We hear very little of this old requirement because it applied to vehicles which were exempted from the old carriage duty (of Vis., if we remember rightly), but a few weeks ago the owner of a van was summoned at Kidderminster for not displaying his name and address on his vehicle and was fined a sovereign. Police officers have told him that the regulation is obsolete, and his own solicitor advised him to contest the case, but he paid the fine and then put the case to us, asking us to give him our opinion upon it.
wn have had to tell our inquirer that the section of the Act of 1888 is still in force, although, so far as motor vehicles are concerned, its object appears to be entirely replaced by the fact that such vehicles have identification plates by which the names and addresses of the owners can he ascertained should occasion arise. If it is still considered necessary for the name and address of the owner of a vehicle engaged in the carrying of goods or passengers for hire to appear somewhere upon the vehicle, the provision should be incorporated in the law relating to such vehicles.
A LITTLE while ago the type of speedometer which was included in the equipment of motor coaches gave readings up to 40 miles per hour. That does not seem to meet the ease nowadays, however, for chassis makers now find it necessary to ,fit instruments which are scaled to a speed of 60 miles per hour. Verily the march of progress cannot be stayed!