The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1911-04-28

. ME ring would not endure any pictured sexual
deprayity. TO me that wonderful revela-
ton Of Anglo-Saxon psychology.
Thus it win always be in our theater, whether
the admission price be five cents or two dollars
American audiences want action; they want
thrills they want desperate courage and wild
heroism; but they want it all clean. They want
the good to triumph, the guilty to be punished.
and wrong to be avenged.
A Partisan manufacturer offered 100000 for
the right to make moving pictures of the ODER
ammergau Passion Play. His offer was refused
He went back to his studio engaged company
of very skillful actors, rehearsed them carefully
and reproduced the Passion Play, almost well
as it was originally DONE and the cost was about
a twentieth of what he offered for the original.
This manufacturer had an eye a new field
for the moving picture. While his imitation WILL
perhaps find comparatively small market, II
cannot hope to reach the class that would have
purchased guaranteed reproduction of the
Oberammergau play viz, the churches.
For the churches have not yet come utterly I'M
der the sway of the moving picture, despite the
fact that the Congregational and Presbyterian
churches Of Redlands California. showed moving
pictures all last summer in their outdoor paw
lion
Yet the moving picture manufacturers are de-
voting lot of time and money to religious sub
jects Joseph Going Into Egypt" THE Repulse
of Herod" "Jephthah's Daughter 1.-The Relief
Of Jericho" and THE Wisdom of Solomon" are
a few of the subjects of moving picture plays
founded Biblical accounts
While the moving pictures are battering at tho
doors of the churches they have already par
TALLY scaled the walls of the schoolhouses. Out
Of every seven subjects passed by the National
Board Of Censorship, one is classed as 'peda-
gogical"
In the catalogues of the manufacturers one
finds films that show lessons in agriculture
aeronautics animal life. bacterioogy, biography
ININ AoNn,
geography. history, industry kindergarten stud
les, mining and metallurgy microscopy MILL
tary and naval life, natural history, ORTHODOXY
pathology, pisciculture, religion, travel and
zoology"
1t looks like the catalogue of an educational
publishing house. Yet It is only the list Of films
that may be and are ordered by "the trade"
Subjects under these lists are shown daily in the
$500 theaters that exhibit moving pictures in this
country. They form entertainment not instruc-
ton They have put the stereoptcon out OF
business, not the schoolmaster,
For the public schools have more surren-
dered to the and plausible invader than have
the churches.
Why?
Why not teach children history by showing
them scenes from the lives of great men,
pageants from the great moments that are duly
and laboriousy recorded in the books Why not
sit and watch George Washington cross the Della
ware on the moving picture sheet, instead OF
having to puzzle your head over the dry print
that records it unlivened page? Why not
learn about the growth of flowers pleasantly by
watching picture instead of having to patiently
dssect the flower and then piece it together
again under the instruction of a botany text
book? Such pictures can be and are constantly
shown. Do they not mean the revolution of
pedagogy?
Not long ago the New York Board of Education
appointed committee to investigate this sub
ject, and find out IL It were feasible to install
moving picture machines in the various schools
of the city. Superintendent Maxwell was on the
committee. l him few days after the ex-
kibtion.
He not very enthusiastic about the pic
lures
"A method will never be devised that will save
any human being the labor of learning" he said.
I'VE learn only by taking thought and that is
work, hard work You cannot insert learning
hypodermcally. You cannot swallow 1t in tab
oid form. There is but way to take 1t. and
that it the oldest way known. You will find after
all OF these willo' the-wisps have vanished that
ii will be the newest way too"
Which throws the moving picture right back
where it beongs-n the theater 1t can have no
permanent place in the church. 1t can have no
real place in the school, though it may be auxil
larry to either, or both.