The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-02-09
MOVIE ..AD". ON
LIBRARY IN N. Y.
STARTLES FOLKS
Police Can't Find Anyone
But Press Agent and Hold
Him irresponsible.

New York, Feb. Swell, that's the
limit. They plaster the countryside
with screaming posters; they disdgure
the streets with advertising crimes in
color. and now they slap us in the face
with that hideosity.'
s SO walled an angered, elderly citi-
zen taking his constitutional between
Clubs in Fifth avenue last evening, as
he pointed to the brilliant sign of the
more or less we'll known-and. now
better known -(name elided by
advertising censor) motion picture
manufacturing company displayed on
the Fifth avenue side Of the Public
Library building.
The sign was gorgeous and glazing.
On a field of bright blue, was the
name of the picture company in bold
letters Of white.
'.Something ought to be done about.
it," grumbled the citizen as he passed
ION.
other citizens saw the offensive sign
and exclaimed in wonder thatSs"such
thing should be allowed. what
are we coming top some one said.
One indignant woman said that she
would write to the paper about it,
and another promised to tell a friend
OF hers who was a friend of a man
who had met the mayors secretary.
Even the stone lions guarding the
thing was wrong and tured to stare
at the imitation of Broadway.
The sign, which seemed to have
been painted upon the hitherto un-
sblemished Library building and then
illuminated was first seen shortly af-
ter dark, and from that time on every
citizen whose eyes it offended remark
ed upon the atrocity.
BY o'clock the Fifth avenue
crowds had begun to thin so there
was little left for the sign to ac-
complish. About that time the tele-
phone in the office of John H. Fedler,
s1perintendent of the building at 485
rang and a mans voice told the SUI
perintendent about. the sign and said
that possibly an investigation in the
office Of the advertised motion picture
company on the ninth floor of the
building would reveal the origin of
the sign and also, possibly, a violation
OF the law prohibiting the deface-
ment of public buildings with adj
Refreshments II
FedIer went to the night floor and
found no one but a telephone girl,
who denied knowledge of the sign.
But the superintendent went through
the rooms Of the office, and in a, win
dow facing the library found power
fuI protector lantern, and in the lam
tern a blue slide with a border or
white and the neme of the company
in the middle, He withdrew the slide
and the sign on the library disappear
ed,~to be replaced by a bright rec
tanz1e Of light
SO the sign was really not painted
on the library at all, but was only re-
Aected fromsthe white wall. This dis
covery transferred responsibility from
the guardians of the library to the
Guardian of the office building, who
IT,
rfed to the street and found Police
Sergeant Gum and Policeman Milky,
to whom he made complaint. The
policeman went to. the offices of the
motion picture company and. after an
argument with the telephone girl and
a walt, received there a man who
confessed that he was employed in the
office and belonged to that ubiquitous
and futile species of public nuisances
commonly known-and avoided-as
Press Agents.
OF course he knew nothing about
the sign, Of course. he had not put
the lantern in the window, and OF
course he was very much surprised
that any one should seek publicity
through the DETACHMENT of a. noble
building = s.
But Fedler, as he talked to the man.
thought his voice sounded strangely
like the voice he had heard over the
Milky, who, adumbrating his future
abandonment of a uniform for a de-
tectfve's disguise of thick-so1ed shoes
and a, loud necktie, exclaimed:
tsAh, ha! Pres; agent lights Ian
tern. and projects sign. People pass
ing see sign and become familiar with
the name Of company. Crowds go
and no one is left to see the sign.
Press agents wants more publicity.
Looks UP statutes and finds that fine
for advertising on public buildings is
$40. Publicity through arrest and
court trial worth SO. Press agent,
impersonating. Indignant citizen. COM
plains to superintendent An, ha.''
The police were unable to find any
responsible person at the motion pic
ture company's offices did not
consider the press agent responsible
so they went away, saying that they
would be back in the morning to ar
rest some one, the president or man
ager OF the@company. Also they prom
ised to report the offense to the di-
rectors OF the library