The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1917-01-24
Five Which Had Been Re-
ported Adversely Were
Promptly Killed Today
SENATORS BUSY
FILLING HOPPER
Peck and Villas Of Ch:ttanden County
Have Produced % Bills - Primary
rearing Tonight =. Senator Dunton
Defends Measure Aimed at Movies.
Especial to The Reformer.)
MONTPELIER. Jan. "a

Especial TO The Reformer.)
MONTPELIER, Jan. "a.
The house this morning began to use
the AK, five bills of minor Importance
being killed. In all eases these bills
were reported adversely.
In the senate Senators Villas and Peck
OF Chittenden again introduced several
bills, putting them easily in the lead
as the long-distance bin introducers of
the session.
Together Peck and Villas have intro
dueed - senate bills out of total of
Al.
The most important bill introduced
this morning was the measure to in
crease the salary of fish and game com
missioner to $4,000 a year.
A committee hearing considered Gov
ernor Graham S bill creating an insur-
ance commissioner and it is expected
the bill will be favorablv reported TO-
morrow. This evening an important
meeting, which is public, will consider
the repeal of the direct primary law.
There was lively hearing last even
ing before the senate committee which
has IN charge the Dunton "movie'
bills. The senator appeared in person
and defended the bills in an eloquent
speech in which he referred to adj
tions in Portland, Oregon, and 0lse-
where where immoral conditions of a
most startling nature had been charged
( 70 the . dcmoralizing atmosphere of
the movies =
The doctor particularly condemned
''sansual and lustful presentations
which he described as having been de-
Pieted ON the screen and he urged the
committee to establish standard of
morality therefor.
Hiram /. Miller of Lynn, Mass, for
merly principal of the academy in
West Brattleboro, criticised the Ian
guage Of the bill, particularly the
word vulgar, which he said had no
definite, legal meaning.
There is no more reason, - he said
| for censorship of motion pictures
than OF newspaper, magazine, novel
speech or sermon. The ANALYSIS which
the speaker has read of screen drama
would apply to any great work of lit.
erature. 1t would apply to Shakes
peare, the Bible or George Eliot s
great book, Adam Bede
Orrin G. Cocks, secretary of the ma
tioral board of censorship, gave a
concise account of the work of the vol
&
cart.
"Our standards have been progress
sivc,' he sad. " We found pictures
which were making light OF the clergy
and OF RELIGIOUS ceremonies of various
kinds Such pictures have been elm
mated. We were faced by the problem
Of the so-called white slave pictures
and decided that they did more harm
than good. No more pictures of this
sort will be shown.
"1he so.callad educational pictures
regarding forming drugs have
/ been eliminated After showing the
great film Hypocrisy in which nude
figure was displayed, we decided that
| there should be no more nudes.
Very recently a decision has been
tttAiNCb az Nh1IA VIII dll
pictures having q sensual salacious or
prurient motive
Mr., Cocks closed his argument by an
Teal for constructive instead of de-
structive regulation.
Rev H. X. Sherburne and Rev. Will
liam Shaw of Montpelier made brief
arguments in behalf of the Dunton
Ii Is.
The hearing was adjourned until
Thursday evening at 7.30.
The first organized opposition to the
governor 5 program developed before
the house agricultural committee when
Senator Kicker of Caledonia county
appeared as the champion of separate
department for the livestock commits
sioner. Fred l.. Davis of Hartford
the incumbent of the office, also ap-
9eared before the committee and told
in detail why separate office was nee
essary for proper protection of Yer
mont live stock.
| 1t is freely predicted that this first
administration bin to consolidate the
Offices Of commissioner of agriculture
state forester and livestock commits
TONER. would meet with determined
opposition in the senate and might be
/ defeat ed.
| Legislative Notes.