New Britain herald., 1917-07-21

ammunition without a permit from
the mayor or chief Of police. When
this ordinance was framed last May it
was done in a moment Of hysterical
fervor Of preparedness and safety
first that was sweeping over the
country. Without looking into the
future the council evidently thought
that this ordinance would be pan
acea for all such offenses as carry
ing concealed weapons, promiscuous
shooting, dangerous rioting and the
like. Now it appears to be absolute
ly useless and nothing but detrt-
ment to the business of local mer-
chants. The intent Of the ordinance
is as plain and it is mertorious. 1t
is intended to curtail the owning Of
firearms by irresponsible people and
to provide for the officials a record
of all owning them. That was the
intent, but it has worked out any
thing but satisfactorily. Refused a
permit by local officials, a person in
tent upon having a gun or ammuni-
ton will not be baked thus easily.
Hartford, where there is no such ordi-
nance, is only a few minutes ride
away. Painville also offers excellent
opportunities to purchase any guam
tity of ammunition or guns and the
mail order houses certainly advertise
consistently and in manner to at
tract much trade. Thus, there is no
doubt but what there is just as much
purchasing of eapons and bullets as
there ever has been, and yet, because
of the very ordinance that was draft
ed to prevent it, the police are de-
prived of many records such as might
have been obtained previously when
dealers took the name and address
of every purchaser. Since it is evil
dent that there is no dropping off in
the purchase Of these deadly materials,
and that the ordinance only works
out to the detriment of home industry
and makes business for out Of town
firms, why not repeal 1t and formulate
some more fair and efficient plan for
coping with the firearms menace.
The boys have had great sport (?)
during the past week learning their
draft numbers and then looking at
the lists Of the other district to see
who had a similar number and who
would, therefore, be correspondence
shocked if that nunbe was drawn.
It's great sport to win pool,
whether it be baseball pool, pool
on the ponies Or any other game Of
chance. Everybody wants to win, but
yesterday, when in a certain office
where there were a number of men
eligible for the draft and a pool was
formed wherein each man was to pay
a FLYER to the one of their number
whose name should be first drawn
then nobody wanted to win and those
who did lose paid very cheerfully.
According to the Interpretation Of
the moving picture law, backed up by
advice from leading attornies, it is i'm
possible for a child under fourteen
years of age to visit any moving pic
ture show unless accompanied by
their parent or guardian or some
other adult who has the consent Of
the parent. By this 1t will be i'm
possible for a theater man to permit
John Doe, aged twenty years and
eleven months, to take his little broth
err aged thirteen, to the theater on Sat-
urday afternoon. While this Is the
law, 1t is anything but fair and to en-
force 1T thus strictly would seem un-
just, particularly in view of the fact
that the same law prohibits moving
picture exhibitions on Sunday yet we
ell know how this law is observed in
this city. 1t hardly seems fair to
wink at one law and enforce another
which is Of no more benefit than this
one. There is no doubt that the NOV
ing pictures have place TN the COM
munity and many Of the reels shown
are really educational inasmuch as
they show foreign countries, current
events, various manufacturing pro-
or INF
some latitude Of judgment would be
more fair. In fact the fairest way
would seem to follow the idea of the
last charter change committee which
spent considerable time talking over
possible ways to censor the pictures.
If none but proper pictures were
shown, it would seem that the theater
men should be permitted to exercise
their own judgment In letting in the
younger element.
Further protest against some phases
Of the selective draft is heard among
the young mon who assemble nightly
at the club or elsewhere. Their COM
plant Is that while some men will
have to give up their employment and
homes and risk their lives, others, by
reason of their employment, will be
exempt, will have to risk or sacrifice
nothing and at the same time will
continue to draw down their regular
high wages The unfair part, accord
ing to this club room talk, is to per-
nit other men, physically as liable for
service, to get the cream because Of
the nature Of their employment. AS
an example two men are held up.
Both are without dependents, both
physically fit, but one Is a skilled mu-
nitions worker and the other Is q
lawyer. a storekeeper or any other
worker whose pay might equal that
of the munitions man. The lawyer