The sun., 1919-10-05
Possibilities OF the Camera rs Pre-
yentive Of Mobs.

A good many years ago some hum
BILE genius discovered that as a dis
perser Of mobs the stream from fire
hose was more potent than bullets
from a machine gun. The bullet made
pseudo martyrs; the water converted
raging men into sopping, ludicrous In
dividuals. The machine gun often
concentrated more dangerously the
psychological macs the hose broke II
up by recalling painfully to each
member of the crowd the fact that
he was miserably wet and that he
ought to 90 home and change his
clothing.
Now, perhaps, the law has found
machine which will do something
better than dispensing mobs; will pre-
vent them from collecting. This Is
the camera, in the form of either the
snapshot box or the kinetograph. We
| note that as soon as Major-General
LEONARD, wooD took hold in Omaha
he despatched men to get every pic
| ture that had been taken at the scenes
| of crime and disorder in those savage
hours when the mob was at its work
of lynching the negro Brown and
hanging the courageous Mayor SMITH
Persons who appear on the plates as
rioters will be arrested as soon as
they are identified and the photo
graphs will be used against them.
Nobody who Is familiar with the
conduct of mobs when conscious per
sonality has vanished and the blood
madness possesses the entire GROUP
will contend that camera will detel
a hundred or n thousand men from
their unlawful purpose. But wha'
| of the effect upon the individual who
is about to join curious thront
which later may be an insensate mob
He does not fear machine guns, be
cause he does not think, at the mo
ment, that they will be used. He may
be a man who obeys the law in his
normal moments, and 1t is not unit
his individual responsibility is los
in the sea of riot that he becomes ont
of the criminals.
But when that man sees other In
dIviduals assembling In excitement
will he join them If he knows that
whether lawlessness comes of the
gathering or not, motion pictures will
be taken of the assemblage, showing
practically every face and every &C
ton? If he values his job, or thu
reputation of his family, or the re
spect Of his neighbors, he will thinl
twice before he puts his responsibility
in jeopardy. To be photographed IL
that crowd means that If evil comes o.
the gathering he will at least b.
called as witness.
} The only reasonable excuse giveI
for the conduct of mobs.is the expla
i nation that their conduct descend
below the civilized level of the indl
viduals, a fall due to the primitiv,
forces which are set free from ordi
nary inhibitions. No such excuse
however, may be given for joining
the aggregation which presently be
comes a mob the individual can onl!
say that he did not know what wa
coming, and that excuse rarely cal
be given by mob members in thos'
States where lynchlngs are frequent
These men join the mob knowing
what the inevitable result must be
Mob law is the fashion in those re
gions, and frequently 1t appears tina
there is no process In which the prim
five impulses overcome the civllize,
senses. The ancient forces are al
ways on tap.
Mobs have worked without fear o
the consequences because of the fan
cied security in numbers. Each mem
Der of the lawless crew has believe,
that he could hurl a stone, FIRE a sho
or touch a match because his identit
was lost in the crowd. 1t has beel
the general anonymity Of the mo-
that has often led men normally Law
abiding TO Join gatherings which hav
; turned into bands Of murdererx Eyi