New-York tribune., 1921-09-30
Miller Attacks S
Enrigght g for Dry
Raids on Homes

ment. The fact is that there are
various ways of enforcing the law
One way is to respect all the laws
Another way is TO so enforce an OBJ
noxious law that it can be made still
more obnoxious, and that is method
that does not commend itself to the
American people, and it does not COM
mend itself to me.
The Governor declared that regard
less of his personal opinions and be-
l;efs, he had to enforce the law. The
same responsibility as to obeying the
law he said, rested upon citizens CT
the state. 1t was for neither of them
to pick and choose. For each the law
vas the law.
I'VE hear a good deal about inter
ference with personal liberty" the
Governor continued. "I think it is un-
American for the government to under
take to regulate the lives and personal
habits OF it's citizens. Such attempts
always meet with resentment and that
resentment brings about disrespect for
the law itself. But when we have
laws it is neither for the individual
citizen nor for those charged with
executing the laws to choose what
laws are 10 De ODeycu ana cNlOTCeO.
"l've never disguised the fact that
I did not like the Eighteenth Amend
ment, but | cannot choose the laws
will enforce. And | want to say that
1t is unfortunate when any consider
able body OF a community feel that
they are at liberty to choose the laws
they will obey"
l. commenting On the unemployment
situation the Governor said that the
one sure solution of the problem was
the resumption of operations by indus
tries, and declared that conditions are
now slowly but surely improving.
In speaking of the tiln commissions 8
operations the Governor said
'I'm sure that no legitimate enter
prise has been injured, and that the
mistakes that have been made else
where by such bodies have not been
rereated here. Pm sure that the board,
with good, plain, common sense. is
working out its problems in such q
manner that will not injure legitimate
business, but in a way to promote
morality and decency.
Opposes Censorship
81 want to say that I do not believe
in censorship, and l want to say also
that this board is not censorship
board and that the act in creating it
was net a censorship act IN the strict
est sense of the term
The Governor explained that the film
measure was a regulatory act, and that
he would not have favored it save for
q conceded evil which had grown to
proportions that needed regulation
Levenson Defends Producers
Mr. Levenson. IN discussing n otion Il
pictures and motion picture censor
ship, said:
at is a mistake to believe that the
motion picture industry has been com
pletely in the control Of men who
sought to appeal to the most degraded
elements of the community. l cannot
say emphatically enough that the great
majority of people in the industry
an industry which has now become the
fifth largest in the country-wlth
enormous amounts of money invested,
have fully realized their responsible
ties to the people.
THE great majority have tried hard
to improve the standards guiding film
production. They have realized that
the growing feeling of dissatisfaction
on the part Of thoughtful men and
women would ultimately lead to drastic
measures which would result in tinan-
cal loss to them They have been un-
able, however, to bring about that per-
feet control of production SO necessary
in order to maintain the proper ethical
standards to govern the industry, be-
cause of the very large number of in
dividuals ready to visualize and COM
mercialize all that is abhorrent and
abnormal in human life"