Evening capital and Maryland gazette., 1913-01-06
HINT FOR MOVIES
TO TEACH HEALTH
Pictures Might Show Dread
Wrought by tuberculosis.
ESPECIALLY C0LORED RACE.
New York Correspondent Suggests
Benefit for colOFed Folk.
ESPECIALLY COLORED RACE.
n Iean Cabell O'Nelll !

Centuries of advancement in culti-
vation of boIy and mind have brought
no better plan Of popular appeal than
| the medieval method Of miracle plays.
The object to be attained may not
now be the saving of the soul, but the
benefit Of the body individual and po-
little; however, healthy bodies of both
kinds are cousin german to healthy
souls.
The latest adaptation of middle
ages method to twenty-century ills,
comes from London where, instead of
! the ancient pantomime of the holi-
days, health-hint plays are the vogue.
The chief foe to be vanquished of
the many that threaten the human
foundations of that great city, is con-
sumption. Every physical condition
f an ancient and over-crowdeu city,
built on marsh, and over-populated
by a pauper population, conspire to
make it the fit breeding ground for
the great white plague so ii is the
acme of wisdom that wider crusade
be carried on without further delay.
The ne@-old way just being adpot-
ed is the giving in moving picture
plays of sketches showing the triumph
of the he alth fairy aided and abetted
by the sun and his attendant beams
in routing disease, as represented by
the one most familiar to ALL IL is
said that this new use of the "mc-
vies" has had an effect, but some-
thing more elaborate has followed.
. ha Court Tba..fvsa - ov1n,,
play is having popular success in
which real actors take the part of
healthful and unhealthful influences.
The real villain is tuberculosis, with
host of demon-germs, to do his bid
ding. The hero, all in shining armor,
appears against the suns bright disc
to rout the hosts of illness The plot
of the simple play shows a woman
dying of the disease, and her hopeless
littls daughter in rags and filth,
weeping against a table of unwashed
dishes A fairy queen, Health. and
her little helpers, called snnheams,
arrive on the scene and begin the
good work in showing the child how
70 clean up and scare away the demon
and his imps, who can do no evil work
against their ministration.
The villain fights desperately, but
the outcome is never in doubt. The
hero, Sun, aided by fairy Health, win,
the curtaiA falling on "The Tri-
umph,' az the play is called, and the
audience goes home, supposedly,
greatly impressed with the practical
lesson. To the American business
mind comes the query-does the play
reach those at which it is directed?
Have those that need this sort of
teaching the price of a ticket, the
cheapest standing room privilege
would take all the coin needed for
soap and soda with which to practice
the cleanup lesson.
Thankful should Annapolis be that
natural situation and splendid salt
air viii always keep its death rate
low; but we cannot. in this thankful
ness. forget that there is a great dc al
more of illness from the modern
scourge than there should be. Much
of it is the direct outcome Of ignor-
ance. Our colored people are the
chief victims, partly because hature
intended them for more genial eli
mate, and partly because, despite
their best efforts, they are often un-
derted with the right sort of food.
and unsuficiently clothed, but chiefly
because they know so little of the lave
OF hygeis, and to our shame be it said
we do not take che trouble to teach
them.
Might it not be a practical and
Tar reaching charity for the churches
of Annapolis to enlist their young
people on a great free play built on
the idea of .'The Triumph, = to be
given to the Ecolor I'd people and for
the benefit of the colored people Of
the town? Out of rehearsals the
young people could get great amount
Of fun, and the different &C mmunions
being brought together in the common
aim of "love to our neighbor, would
get pretty fine spiritual uplift, and
a lesson in church unity.
The expense would not be great
when divided between many, and a
thing done by the ladies aud gehtle-
men entirely for their colored neigh
bors. would do good in so many ways !;
those Jf US who understand the good
in this chiid-like race cannot doubt.
Incidentally, some big-hearted local
merchant might be induced to give
souvenirs of washing powder to all
the children over twenty-one in the
audience.