Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-05-15
MAKE FURTHER EFFORT
FOR BOARD OF CENsORs
Advocates OF Plan to Restrict Nov
ing Pictures Will BE Heard
on Thursday Night.
ORDINANCE NOW is PENDING
Council Committee Has Measure
Which Provides Salaries of ST 200
Annually for Three Members If
Body Is Created.


Further effort to cause the appoint
neht OF salaried notion picture CEN
sorship board will be made Mt the
meeting of the Council Ordinance Com
mittec on Thursday night The COM
mittec now has before it an ordinance
l" create censorship board of three
members. one Of whom shall be a
woman. qualified. in the terms OF the
ordinance, to pass upon all motion
pictures presented to her. All must
be residents of Richmond. and each is
TO receive salary of $1,000 One mem
Der OF the board is to serve as secre-
tarE. and for the general expenses a
fund Of $500 is provided. Power of
appointment is vested in the Judge
of the Hastings Court. to whom appeal
may be taken in case OF contest against
any ruling of the board
AZ its last meeting the Ordinance
Committee heard long and exhaustive
appeals in favor of censorship from
minister and layman and from several
social and civic organizations, and the
matter was tabled, so that more in
formative data might he secured until
the next meeting. Clerk Alfred II. Me
Dowcll was instructed TO write TO Con-
gresham y. J. Montague to learn from
him the progress in the national as
sembiy OF "a bill to provide for ma
tional censorship board. and to try
to get from all cities having censor
ship boards copies OF the ordinances
under which they were created and
under which they are managed.
CONGRESS WILL. NOT ACT
AT PRESENT SESSION
MIR. Mcdowell already has received
Il reply from Congressman Montague.
Mr.. Montague wrote to say that IL was
likely that the bill now pending In
the House would not he acted upor
at this session. Mr. Mcdowell has re-
ccived copies Of ordinances adopted In
several other cities. and others have
been received by the organizations
which are working for the creation %
the censorship board.
The ordinances now before the con-.
mittcc is modelled after Maryland
law. 1t was presented as Il substitute
for an ordinance which would have
placed the censorship in the hands OF
the Superintendent OF Public Schools
Superintendent J. y. G. Chandler. while
approving OF motion picture censor
ship. stated TO the committee that II
would he impossible for him TO take
up the additional duty. his work as
school superintendent being sufficiently
ample TO exhaust all his time.
WERNER DOES NOT FAVOR
CENSORSHIP UN- POLICE
Such censorship as has existed In
Richmond has been undertaken By the
Police Department. and, according to
the Mayor, IL has seemed to be cffcc-
tive and tn achieve the results desired
Major Werner stated 10 the committee
that he had never experienced Difficult
ty with managers OF motion picture
theatcrs. and that they had always will
lingly followed his suggestions as to
eliminating those features against
which objection had been placed He
snid. however. that he preferred that
the department be relieved OF this
work.
II was brought out ut tho last meet
ing. through questioning, that few OF
those who are laborinc for the creation
of motion picture censorship board
arc frcGuentcrs of the movies" and
that they spoke from hcarsay. Mayor
Ainslie. in letter To the committee.
stated that II was significant that the
cry for censorship had not come from
the great army Of thcatcrgocrs who.
he said. are AS able 10 Judge OF the
proprieties as the rest Of the public.
The ordinance calls for an 'appropri-
alton Of $4,000. and if II be recon-
mendcd by the committee. must go be-
fore the Finance Committee for final
recommends ton and rnDOrt