PICTURE PLAYS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 234, 27 June 1919, Page 6

PICTURE PLAYS

THEIR INFLUENCE ON CHILDREN.

The character of many of the picture plays exhibited to children was condemned at yesterday's sittings of the Council of Education. The question was intvo?duced bv Mr. F. H. Strong, wbo moved: That," in the opinion of this council, many of tho picture plays now intro- ■ dueed into the Dominion are such as to tend to weaken the morai iibre-of Mie people, and are especially injurious to young people. That this opinion be communicated to the Minister responsible. - ■ Er. Strong said (hat a great many of the picture plays shown could not be said to ba morally uplifting. The who.e atmosphere of many of tho picture plays was exceedingly harmful to young people. In fact, so decadent had the plays become that the authorities should say, "This thing has gone too far;' He had no wish to criticise the work of the censor, but it was true that the ckaracter of many of the pictures was harmful to tlie minds'.of the children. ; ' • Miss E. A. Chaplin seconded the motion. She said that much harm was dono by pictures, and she threw out the suggestion that young people under sixteen should he prevented from going to pictures in the evening unless accompanied by their parents. It was her opinion that something should be dono to remedy the evil. Some time ago representatives of the picture companies had stated that better films could he supplied if the public wanted them. . Miss A. B. A. Butler said that in Geneva children were not allowed to see pictures depicting murders or dealing with sex problems.. "Professor MacMrllan Brown was of opinion that a certain proportion of the pictures should be educative and that special matinees should be provided ioi children. He would like to see the Government license picture theatres and insist that children of certain years should not be admitted to sea particular, kinds of pictures. 'Ho strongly supported the m Mi°F. H. Campbell considered that tho censor was largely to blame for what had occurred. It was an undoubted fact that many of the rjicture plays had a demoralising tendency. ; • DrW. J- Anderson thought the motion would have the effect of directing tlio attention of the authorities to the need for doing something in, the matter. The motion was carried. .