> it would not be until 1904 that driving licences and vehicle registration numbers were introduced

A fun fact is that for many years, to get a driving license you just had to apply at the Post Office. There was no test at all. My grandmother obtained her license this way in the 1930s, and drove on the same license right through til she became too unwell to drive in the 1990s, and never took a test.

Back in the day in my country, you could apparently get milder punishment if you were driving while drunk, because it's harder to steer properly then. From https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ABilkrock_i_%C3%A5s...:

> In 1928, a serious accident involving considerable property damage occurred on the main road [...] At the subsequent trial in Klippan, it was said that the Örkelljunga resident, who had caused the accident, received a more lenient sentence because he had been drinking spirits and therefore had difficulty steering.

Different times :)

This is also how one would obtain a firearm or shotgun certificate - apply at the post office for a few (shillings?). I believe when introduced these certificates weren't even mandatory to purchase or own a firearm, and merely served to evidence your good character if a firearm dealer didn't like the look of you.

My grandfather got his driving licence in 1940s Australia without doing a test, because the police sergeant who was supposed to conduct the test couldn't be bothered and was more interested in a ten-shilling note.

> There was no test at all.

It may sounds crazy to us europeans but it is not much different than current situation in North and South America and probably many other parts of the world.

My spouse and her friends passed the test on a simulator. She got it at first attempt while forgetting to put her seatbelt on + a few other minor violations. A friend of her told me she got it although she ran over a pedestrian on the simulator in the exam! She later got her licence in the Netherlands after several failed theorical and driving tests.

In Belgium it was until 1977 that you could buy the license.

today, right now, there is no driving test in Mississippi. Its a paper test and eye test and BOOM you get a license.