Evening star., 1924-11-22
STAR TRAFF|CF|LM
WINS HIGH PRAISE
Oyster, HeadIey, Watson and
Other Authorities See
Dangers Pictured.

Unstinted praise was heaped upon
The Stars motion picture, Our
Traffic" which is to be shown on the
screens of five of Washington's lead
ing motion picture houses for a week
beginning tomorrow, following a
private showing at the Palace
Theater this morning for the benefit
of District officials and police and
fire department heads
Il only wish" said Inspector Albert
j. Headley, chief of the Traffic
Bureau. that in all of the hundreds
of addresses 1 have delivered before
citizen associations, at public meet
ings and in school rooms, / could
manner as this picture has done, the
danger pedestrians and motorists
alike incur from negligence.
This picture is wonderful. 1t
shows up in truly realistic fashion
the very things I haves been fighting
ever since joined the traffic force i
sincerely believe 1t will d. a great
deal OF good, and in thanking The
Star for its fine spirit. l think the
theaters, too, have shown fine public
spirit in cooperating 50 eagerly in
this good movement"
Commended by Oyster.
Commissioner James F. Oyster, in
charge of the police and fire depart
ments, highly commended the idea Of
using the motion picture as a means
OF educating careless drivers and
pedestrians. Referring to The Stars
film, he declared The believed it would
be OF inestimable value to Washing
ton, and would reach home" with
the lesson for better traffic more quick
ly than any other medium.
''In film Of this kind" he said. "no-
torfsts and pedestrians have an op-
portunity to see themselves as others
see them. Men and women who walk
thoughtlessly across a busy intersec-
ton, without regard to the officers
signal, may realize the chance they
take when they see 1t enacted on the
screen.
, Likewise, the motorist who cuts
corners, fails to give the right of way
and violates other sections of the
regulations, should profit from seeing
the traffic film. / am in favor of any
move that will help bring home to
both the walker and the rider their
joint responsibilities in making the
streets of Washington safer"
Also in the party at the Palace
were Chief Watson of the Fire De-
POI ShiChLb "uO dSSlSlou greatly in
the production Of the film by placing
at the disposal of the camera an en-.
gine company and a big truck in or
der to picture from the machines
themselves the dangers firemen incur
when they race through streets that
are crowded with needless motorists
and pedestrians.
Il think it gives an excellent de-
scription of our troubles" said Chief
Watson. TT is fine picture and
will do a great deal of good. OF
course no one could picture all of the
narrow escapes the fireman must
have in the course of his life. But
this picture does 1t as well as it is
humanity possible"
The rest of the party was COM
posed of the members of the police
and hre departments who figured in
the picture. 1t might be stated that
they were not posed. With the excep-
tion of the fire wagons, the men
were shot" just as they were regu-
lating traffic under the stress of the
rus| hour. Only. one scene in the
picture was posed-the one showing
the wrong way" for a traffic officer
to handle his semaphore
Open to Public Tomorrow.
Beginning tomorrow, the film will
be shown for a week at the Rialto
Metropolitan, Columbia and Palace
theaters, and on Sunday and Mon
day at the Tivo1i. At the latter
place the program is regularly
changed in midweek and that Is the
reason the traffic story will not be
told there for the full week. It will
appear at the others at every show
1t seemed almost like the irony of
fate that Inspector Headley had not
walked tive feet from the Palace
when he ran square into one of the
most common and anonying kinds OF
traffic violators--a motorist snugly
parked between the curb and the
street car loading platform at Thir-
teenth and F streets. He all but
blocked the passage to other motorists
who had to worm" their way past
BY another stroke of fortune, the
motorist came out while the Inspector
watched, and he was collared.
MAY I ask why you presumed to
violate the law in such a fragrant
manner?' asked the ankered police
head. The driver turned quite a few
shades paler as hte inspectors head
was poked into his car, and finally
he stammered out an excuse that he
had "seen Others do it,
Seeing others violate the law Is
no excuse for you," the man was told
After taking note Of his name, ad.
dress and business, Inspector Head.
ley permitted the man to continue or
y fc hr.0 IN a ,ft tas