In this column, an annoyed editorial writer argued that the time had arrived for government to issue flying licenses to responsible pilots, while keeping the others grounded:
"...President Harding and thousands of spectators at the dedication of the Lincoln Memorial are placed in jeopardy by an irresponsible, low flying aviator; and the lives of countless thousands of innocent spectators at the Yale Bowl and other stadiums are risked unnecessarily because the House of Representatives has so far failed to provide, as forty other nations have provided, for Government regulation of civil aviation"
This magazine article states that there were pilot licences issued as early as 1912...