The San Francisco call., 1909-03-27
ATTORNEY ATTACKS
NICK[lODEON BILL
F. V: Meyers Holds That Provi=
sions Would Affect His
toric Subjects
Auctioneers to Be Required to
Make Regular Statement
of Business

Supervisor Murphy's bill prohibiting
the exhibition of pictures portraying
criminal, vicious or salacious scenes in
of attacks at yesterdays meeting of
the boards police committee and some
slight alterations were made.
Attorney F. V. Meyers, representing
the nickelodeon owners. wanted to
know if the provision penalizing the
exhibitions of scenes of violence would
prevent panoramas of the battle of
Gettysburg, for example. "At Gettys-
burg" he said, "they shot each other,
stabbed and dubbed"
Supervisor McLeran asked why the
ordinance did not take theaters in it's
scope, and Meyers then held that the
plays of Shakespeare would come un-
der the ban for their scenes of violence
and passion.
The fact that theatrical representa-
tions of Shakespearean tragedy were
for the eyes and ears of adults, while
the nickelodeons ground out assaults,
pocket pickings. murder and arson was
Supervisor Murphy's answer to this.
CENSORSHIP SUGGESTED
At the suggestion of Secretary Skelly
of the police commission, the word
Shooting" was struck out as too gen
eeral. The suggestion that an inspec-
ton of pictures should be required be-
fore use was taken under advisement.
Rev. S. C. Patterson said of 20 nickel
odeons visited by him 16 were present
ing scenes unfit for children's eyes.
and Rev. Cecil Marrack told of families
who had been compelled to move from
neighborhoods overrun by the cheap
show places. Probation Officer w. II.
Hutton stated that the street urchins
had a way of passing around the word
where the widest and wooliest scenes
We're put on and blamed the pictures
for the excitement of much juvenile
crime.
The committee took the ordinance
under advisement.
The bill prohibiting the wearing of
stars or uniforms by private patrol
men not reporting to the chief of po-
lice, which was backed by the special
police organization, was considered by
the committee, but will not be recon-
mended for passage. The supervisors
took the ground that it aimed to
discriminate against the Morse and
Pinkerton forces and in favor of the
special patrolmen.
Auctioneers' License
Auditor Roster has served notice on
the IS auctioneers doing business in
the city that their practice of paying
merely the s6 minimum quarterly
license will no longer be tolerated.
Hereafter, Roster has informed them.
each must submit a sworn statement
of the receipts of every business day,
and their licenses for the ensuing quar-
ter will be based on this return, s6
for $4,000 sales or under. and grad
uated up to s201 in case sales exceed
$500, 600.
The board of heaIths contention. that
the duties of inspecting the health of
school children were so different from
those required of a nurse in the city's
hospital services that the civil service
eligible list for the latter posts could
not well be drawn upon for the educa-
tional positions, was sustained in an
opinion of the city attorney yesterday.
Long stated, however, that such ap-
pointments should be temporary and
an examination ordered to create a list
of inspectors.