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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 17, 1964)
■^1 e in baii ’'rick’s of! tacular, 3 jcct in n) dually diij 0 b ig ^ork Yani lilies are expected •tof the ( ; of the the Yi Battalion Special Safety Edition Cbe Battalion Texas A&M University Volume 61 Price Five Cents COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS THURSDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1964 Number 118 Will An Aggie Be Counted In Record Fatality Toll? Dwsy wti or driviij . . perk i ve NoDoi !. 6 LibonM Once again the most joyous season of the year has arrived. To the students, faculty and staff of Texas A&M University, Mrs. Rudder and I extend best wishes for a Merry Christmas. We hoye this will be a season filled with joyful appreciation for your families, your friends and for the bountiful blessings which we have received. Let us approach the New Year ivith hope and confidence. The heavy volume of holiday traffic no doubt will f be evident this year. We know that you will exercise every safety precaution to avoid tragedy during this season for rejoicing. Earl Rudder, President Texas A&M University Front Tire Blows; elts Prove Worth $12 Allows Driver To Walk Away ,k.A nd t costs year?' elievei an if 1 ' oronet >aler' s ' tes to r By HAM McQUEEN Do you know what happens when a right front car tire blows out? The results can be fright ening, to say the least. I know, because I ended up in a ditch eight feet deep. One reason I’m here to tell this story is because I was wear ing a seat belt. When I bought by first car, it wasn’t equipped with seat belts. I installed them about a month later. I thought as the clerk made out a saleslip, $12 is a lot to lay out for seat belts, but advertisements say they are good, so I’ll try them. While driving back from a date one night, the right front tire blew out. The tire was relatively hew, and the treads were in good condition. My story as I live it over: Just as I approach a bridge, there is a loud noise. Then an immediate pull of the car to the right. At 60 miles per hour, I don’t have much time to think, and as I approached the bridge at this speed there isn’t much to think about. I see the bridge loom in front of me. The next thing, impact. It seems like eternity before the car quits turning and bouncing. Then into the ditch and sudden $uiet. My first thought, “Can I move?” I can. At least I am alive. “I must get out if I can.” I open the door and begin to get out, but something holds me tight; my seat belt. As I un buckle it, I say a short but sin cere prayer of “thank you God.” While waiting for the highway Patrol to arrive, I take another look at my car. The motor is torn from its mounts. The front of the frame is broken. The hood and fenders & re a mass of crushed steel. The steering wheel is broken, air con ditioner jammed against the front scat and the dash resembles a V. Now I think again, “Were those seat belts expensive ? ” At the hospital I was treated for bruises and strained muscles, caused by the restraining seat belt. I didn’t know pain could ueel so good. When by father came to get me, he asked if there was any thing I needed from the wrecked car. I quickly replied, “My seat belts.” Those same belts are in my pre sent car. They saved by life once. 1 want them with me should I need them again. If you drive a car, buy a set of seat belts as a Christmas pre sent to yourself, your family and friends. There is still time to have them installed before you make that trip home for the holidays. Seat belts spared you from one Silver Taps ceremony this year. Why not spare me the same after the Christmas holi days. “If only we could go back to th’ good ole days just for Christmas, maybe all our Aggie buddies would make it backv’ Garrison Issues Special Appeal To A&M Drivers Col. Homer Garrison, public safety director of the Texas De partment of Public Safety, issued a special reminder Wednesday to all A&M students “to stay aware of the vital role they play on Texas streets and highways dur ing the holiday season.” Garrison pointed out that much of the increased volume of traffic during the period would be col lege students driving to and from their homes. “Younger drivers are physical ly better able to handle their ve hicles than some of their older counterparts. By staying con stantly alert they may be able to prevent an accident which some one with slower reflexes and re sponses could not avoid,” he said. Garrison pointed out that stud ies indicate that at least one vio lation of the law is involved in almost every incident of a traffic fatality. Thirty-five percent of such deaths last year were caused by speed too fast for existing con ditions. He added that drivers can keep accidents down by observing these basic rules followed by profes sional drivers: Ball Safety Issue Will Be Entered In Annual Contest This edition will be submitted to the Lumbermens Mutual Cas ualty Company college newspaper safety contest, originated in 1948. Today college papers across the country contribute their pre- Christmas editions to safety cam paigns. Last year The Battalion won first place in the national contest and has won 12 awards in the past 14 years. 1. Aim High In Steering—Look farther down the highway than you normally do. 2. Get The Big Picture—Be aware of what is going on around you at all times. 3. Keep Your Eyes Moving— To be an effectively safe driver you must see as much as possible of the conditions affecting your driving. 4. Make Sure You Are Seen— Even though you take an extra measure of caution, another driv er might not ... if there is any doubt as to whether or not an oncoming driver has noticed you, be ready to take evasive action. 5. Leave Yourself An Out — Some accidents may seem un avoidable, but if all drivers would follow this final rule and take necessary action to avoid an ac cident, the Texas death toll would drop sharply. operation "DEATHWAT’CH” DEC. 24 4U JAN. 3 ESTIMATE 105 M0T0RCIDES mmimmmmt mtmmmmim The figures above represent the estimated toll of 105 lives expected to be lost in Texas traffic accidents during the 11-day holiday period from December 24 through January 3. During this period, the Texas Department of Public Safety will tabulate these tragedies as they occur and make periodic releases in an effort to focus public attention on the added dangers of holiday travel. A special appeal has been issued to Texans to do their part in proving the estimate is too high. WILL YOU BE A STATISTIC? DPS Begins Deathwatch On Dec. 24 As Aggies prepare to leave for the Christmas holidays the 1964- 65 school year has yet to see a Silver Taps ceremony. Will there be one when school resumes in January? The worst year for traffic deaths in Texas history is ex pected to end with 105 traffic fatalities over the holiday period, according to estimates prepared by the Department of Public Safety. Will an Aggie be in cluded in that toll? The DPS’ “Operation Death- watch” begins at 12:01 a.m., Dec. 24, and ends at 11:59 p.m., Jan. 3, pnd by the time the 11-day holi day period is over 190 Texans will have died. Texas traffic deaths reached an all-time high last year with 2,729 persons killed on the highways. As of Dec. 4 of this year traffic fatalities for the year totaled 2,642. Quincy V. Tuma, president of the Texas Safety Association, noted that traffic deaths for the first 11 months of this year in creased about 12 percent over the same period in 1963. “This trend, plus the fact that December is one of the most dangerous months of the year and that both Christmas Day and New Year’s Day this year occur on a Friday, increasing the pos sibilities of highway travel, could bring the total figure for 1964 traffic deaths to the 3,000 mark,” Tuma said. “If we are to stop this need less loss of human lives, we must accept our moral responsibilities for the safety of fellow citizens— and, we must stay alert to stay alive,” he added. During the nine-day holiday period last year 132 Texans died, including 84 traffic fatalities and 48 in other types of accidents. December was the mostly dead ly month for violent deaths in 1963. Six hundred and forty-five persons were killed, including 312 traffic deaths, 180 from home ac cidents, 34 deaths work accidents, 69 deaths public accidents and 50 from miscellaneous accidents. Christmas Eve took the heav iest toll of holiday deaths last year with 14 fatalities, while 13 persons died on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. Several state agencies and pri vate organizations are cooperat ing in the Department of Public Safety’s annual drive to cut down on holiday deaths. The Texas Highway Department is distri buting reminders on danger spots and construction areas, and in formation on signs and markers to help keep drivers informed and alert. Night Before Leaving Warns Student Of Trip Half Asleep, Half Awake, He Was Just 40 Miles From Home By LEONARD KENT Special Writer It is the night before Christmas and I am alone on the road. Twelve hours on the highway, stopped four times for gas, engine running wide open, and I am an Aggie 40 miles from home. Half asleep, half awake, I got to stay awake, ’cause I got 40 more miles to go. I look at my watch, I figure my time left on the road. Boy, I will be lucky if I get there by dawn. The road is pretty crooked, looks like a snow is coming on, boy I wish I was home. Got to cut that speed boy, sure hate to. Oh! I wonder if I will ever get home? I look to my left and I look to my right, sure is dark out there . . . then I remember my radio saying that it sure is cold. There is a light up ahead, some car coming this way I suppose, boy it sure is cold. Snow falls hard, and then a little harder. It should though, for tomorrow is Christmas, you know. Half asleep again, I got to stay awake, for I am an Aggie 40 miles from my home. Well, the windshield is covered with snow now boy, got to slow that speed down if I want to make it home. I just got that 40 miles to go. That car up ahead, I see the lights better now, I don’t think it is too far up the road. It is just a thought, but I wonder if he is 40 miles from his home. That car up ahead, his light suddenly dis appeared; I guess he turned off this crooked old road. Suddenly I am afraid, I fear that something is wrong on up the road. I guess I just dozed off again, cause I know that nothing could go wrong so close to my home. Just 40 more miles on this crooked old road. Half awake again, half way to my sense, am I dreaming or is that really something up there out in the middle of the road? Whatever it is, it had better move on, for I have only 40 miles to go. Something has happened, looks like a wreck; slow that speed boy, the road is slippery you know. I press on my brake, my foot goes all the way to the floor and my car races on down this crooked old road. There is a crash, a flash, and I feel my head breaking the glass. Then all is still, all is quiet, and suddenly now ... I feel the cold. Suddenly I yell; will someone please help? I am so very close to my home. Someone grabs my feet, pulls hard . . . and then I hit the floor. “Wake up roommate, don’t you remember that today you got to head for home ? ” I flash a smile back to him and say . . . “Fellow, it might interest you to know that a minute ago . . . well ... I was just 40 miles from home.”