The Waterbury Democrat., 1934-10-06


 local newspapers, and who, of late, has been favoring the Hart ford Courant with his literary efforts, has received a most iri- etresting replay" to one of his recent communications. The re- ply is printed in the current is- MT Parsons few days ago wrote "Clerical Censorshop". He asked why newspapers were permitted to publish crime news' with out censure.
 Apparently the. letter would have passed with scant notice had not someone in New Haven, an apparent admirer of MT Par sons, written to the Catholic Transcript, praising him for his ability and paying him the high tribute of--scholar! The Tran script was asked to print his classical letter to the Courant. The letter to the Courant, the challenge and the Transcripts answer are as follows:
 The Letter
 To the Editor of the Courant,-
 Just how far this spontaneous demand for censorship on nov ing picture films Is to bS applied will be decided, not by the pres sure of ecclesiastical coercion that has for its ally the weapon of boycott, but by the multitude that comprises public opinion. The films that ecclesiastical agencies claim offend the moral sense of their pafishioners are true to life, and in order to edu- cate the public it is necessary. to know the seamy side of life's existence. If church adherents and their spiritual advisors want to apply the thumb-screw of au- thority, they should extend the scope to embrace the source from which they emAhate, for 1t fs apparent to all that our inu- nicipalities are the breeding nests that stimulate the movie companies to make films that are true to life. It is said requests are made to sign pledge cards signifying their decision not to patronize theaters that display what they term offensive" films. A request is paramount to an order, as muftitudes of com municants never use their own judgment, but are swayed by their spiritual advisors, who know from past experience that mass action will result.
 Why not have pledge cards include gambling. graft, drunk en driving of autos, all of which aIA =. 4~n AA,,o ko% %f~er k@ of a community than all sala- cious films run off from the be- ginning of filmdom?
 A speaker recently. stated that three agencies for the upbuild- ing of the morals of youth are homes, churches and schools. True. And after passing through three grades, the teaching must have been inefficient to immu- nixe the youth. If the teaching in the home, church and school had been thorough, no innocula- tion would have occurred to mar the moral fibre of the commu. nicants.
 If ecclesiastical circles will let the people. alone, the public will decide for itself. Regardless of the compositions of the films, many states have film censors and all films displayed have passed the censor. Our daily press publishes reports of raids on gam bling dens, slot machines, bandits, raids on banks, murders, kidnapings, and details of sor- did night life, which are eager ly perused by the public, and yet ecclesiasticism wars on finn dom which portrays the passing events of real life that we read about.
 FRANK B. PARSONS.
 waterbury, Sept 24, 1884.
 The Challenge
 A CRITIC OF CLERICS
 New Haven, Conn.
 Oct 1st, 1894. Editor Transcript, Sir: For many weeks, I have been reading in your valuable, paper, attacks upon the Film Producers. Here is a man who dares to speak in their defence. I hope you will be fair enough to give space to his wonderful . letter. Even if you do not agree with him, you will have to ad-- init that he is evidently a scholar and that he knows how to write the English language. Hoping that you will publish his classical letter. I am,
 Yours truly,
 The Answer
 Unt,r nAs.raonAnAnnf fa axiAanf. ly a disciple of Goldsmith's vil- lage schoolmaster, whose words of learned length and
 laundering sound
 Amaz'd the gazing rustics ranged
 around"
 MT Parsons scholarship is evil dently of piece with his Eng fish, or command of the Eng fish tongue. A careful reading of his letter to the Cournnt will make that clear. His logic is abominable, and the learned length of his words is too. much both for himself and his intelli- gent readers. What does he mean when he tells us that "a request ia paramount to an or- der"? Paramount" is big and learned. It would make any group of rustics gaze, but as Mir Parsons uses. 1t is nonsense and nothing better.e What he wanted to say was probably "a request Ia tantamount to an order" Strange that the scholar did not use the proper word, especially as it is . bit bisger than the ono he did uses
 Iie is learned Indeed when he speaks Of our teaching, at home. ln the school, and Co the church. Rs inefficient Co immunlze the youth ' He is, equally learned sraph with these words; "no in-