Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The Alliance herald. (Alliance, Box Butte County, Neb.) 1902-1922 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 4, 1921)
TWO THE ALLIANCE HERALD. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1921. QJlr AlltMtrr litmlh BURH HUNTING CO., Owners Kntered at the postofTice at Alliance, Neb., for transmission throueh the mails as nerond class matter. Published Tuesdays and Friday. GKOIU;K"l71Vuiilirik Kditor EDWIN M. HUKU- Iiusincss Manager Official newspaper of the City of Alliance; oTici.il newspaper of Hox Ilulte County. Owned "and puhl'shrd by The burr Printing Company, George L. Ilurr, Jr., President; Kdwin M. Kin r, Vice President. C- objects to are matters of common occurrence in every day life. If the moving pictures are to be of any value to the imaginative child or to the adult, either, for that matter they must poiiray life with some degree of accuracy. If censorship is to be simply the following of the prejudices of the censors; if everything to which someone may have an objection is to be eliminated; if there is to be nothing shown but stories similar to the thrilling yarns from the "Elsie Books," it ought to be a simple matter for the level headed in any community to decide that they don't want any of it. OIK INTELLIGENT LEGISLATORS. THE PRIMARY ELECTION The sight of a dozen nominating petitions in circula tion so soon after the time for filing is most encouraging to those who believe that public interest is essential if we are to have an efficient city government. Another notable feature is the calibre of the candidates that have been Miggested. Under the old system it would not have been possible to get many of these men to consider making a race for councilman. It is quite xissible that some of the candidates have not been consulted. Some of them will probably need con siderable urging before they will be resigned to allowing their name sto go on the ballot. It's up to the citizens in general to supplement the urging of particular friend.-, to the end that no good man be permitted to withdraw from the race. The mere adoption of the city manager plan will not Insure any better city government than we have had. The best city manager on earth will not be able to make a go of it in this city unless he has the backing of forceful men. And unless the new council is composed of pretty good material, it isn't likely they will select a manager who can deliver the goods. There is a disposition on the part of a few of those who helped win the city manager fight to see to it that only friends of the manager plan are elected ou the council. This is a serious mistake. The whole nim of the new system has been to make the council responsible. It will take a pretty brave man to vote for an incompetent city manager in order to discredit the new system. Every faction of the city should be represented on the council, if possible, and certainly it would be most unfair to at tempt to deprive the big majority, which didn't lack many votes of being a majority, of the right to a voice in the Affairs of the city. Such a disposition will do more to discredit the plan than the failure of half a dozen managers. THE CRIME OF THE MOVIES. Most of the argument in favor of the censorship of moving pictures by a state board have been a collection of generalities about the evils of uncensored films. It re mained for an Aurora divine to make an actual investiga Xion, and after giving the movies his uttention for ten nights, he has charted what he saw there. This is the in-indictment: " r ive murders, several numircu people ueserieu 10 uie, two divorces, five drinking scenes, five gambling scenes, two birth scenes, nine cases of duplicity, two cases of de sertion by wife und two by husband, two wives and three husbands unfaithful to the marriage contract, two cases of .child desertion, and in every one cigarette smoking, and in eight of them the hero was a cigarette smoker. lie saw girls fight three times for their honor, law officers ridi culed three times, one suicide, religion ridiculed once, "en geance sworn four times, evil men marrying good women twice, five dunces, three cases of seduction, three cases of jealousy, und in trying to count the gun play he counted an one plav aloiiC 117 shots and then quit. Among the good thitt he saw w:i: religion upheld in a splendid way three times, the preacher made use of three times, law (ficer-. and cou:ts give justice and fair dealing three times, one l.wver who prvferred to do right instead of re- re vim- a tie and brought about a union between man and wife, two lessons of patriotism, two cases of forgivenness, Christ levealed once, fa'r business men once, two lives de voted to social uplift, and two cases of greater devotion of husband and wife, and three scenes that taught the love of ch'.Mi en. Tialixod amusement," 'and if !Ja'l to favor taking amuse ments of all kinds out of the hands of their owners and put them in the hands of the church, the school or some .Institution which has the moral welfare of the community solely at heart. A careful study of the indictment shows the tendency of the reformer toward the old "blue laws." The Aurora preacher mentions rs among the evil things he had seen such things as divorces; cigarette smoking, even by the heroes; and dancing. A number of the other things he Some idea of the intellectual caliler of the average legislative solon may be gained from reading the debate on the various measures that are up for passage. The argument on the bill to legalize the practice of Christian Science healing is particularly illuminating. The truth is that the men who oppose the measure do not believe in the efficacy of the drugless healing, and they have manufac tured other reasons, most of which sound pretty thin, but nre given with a great deal' of enipTiasis to make up for lack of weight. The struggle for legal recognition of Christian Science healers has been a part of every legislative session for the past ten years, and each time it has been defeated. This year Senate File 10S has passed the nenate, and therefore stands u fair show of success. Some thirty-five states have similar laws, and Nebraska's name should ic added to the list without further delay. But one thing can de feat it the effort of uninformed legislators who place too great value upon their own beliefs. As the matter now stands, there is nothing to prevent the use of Christian Science methods, but the man who practices them has no legal standing. This the bill grant", with certain sensible restrictions. The argument advanced is that the passage of the mearure wi'l open the door to a host oT quacks and charlatans, but this has not been the result in other states where the Christian Science prac titioner has been recognizer, and there are no grounds for belief that it would be the result in Nebraska. Let us nil shed a tear for ScottsblufT. The "blue noe" element of that city is slowly and surely gaining the upper hand. Sunday movies were killed there last year because it was argued, not that the workers were entitled to spend their day or rest as they saw fit, but that someone made money out of running the shows. The latest move of the blue law advocates is to ask that th curfew ordinance be enforced and that public dancing be stopped. Curfed ordinances belong to the dark ages, along with the whip ping post and the stocks. OPPOSITION AND OTHER THINGS (Nebraska City Tress) The newspapers of Nebraska have a program of legis lation which they would like to put through at the present session. Among the bills they are supporting is one which requires the publication of the personal tax list in each county ami to make it obligatory on the county commis sioners to do so. The most bitter opponent of this bill is a man who seems to bitterly hate the newspapers of his state and everyone connected with them. A few days ago a man connected with the newspaper bureau at Lincoln decided to find out something about the bitter-ender rep resentative and why he was so "ferninst" to publication of the tax lists. He wrote to the legislator's home town for advice and discovered that while the legislator was con sidered to be a very rich man. his personal tax was almost negligible; in fact, it was so small that even the average ni-v-wuu naim in iu nume lown pmu more taxes man did the puiTed-up "big gun" legislator who swelled around the halls at Lincoln, expressed his disapproval of everything the newspapers have done or expect to do and, in short probably expects the Lord to get up and give him his seat when he gets to Heaven, if he gets that far. DISCRIMINATING FREIGHT RATES (Hamilton County Register) At Alliance the potato growers' exchange have taken up the matter of discriminatory freight rates in favor of Minnesota, so that Nebraska growers cannot even profit ably supply the state in which they live. There are other states which we are as near to and could as well supply if they were given a fair break, and the instance only calls attention to the unfair system under which our freight rates are conducted. It is an outrage that Nebraskans who live near where potatoes are grown should not have advantage of lower prices. It is an outrage that Grand Island sugar consum ers living within twenty miles should have to pay for a long haul never made. It is an outrage that on coal which is in other ways a robber price should bear at Aurora freight to Omaha on an imaginary haul. Theoretically the -railroads make lower rates to distributing points, but the opportunity is with them to exact double pay, and more or less they doubtless take advantage of the in equitable system, so largely in their own hands. The legislature now in session could do nothing of greater advantage to their people than to nact something that would not only lower freight rates, but nut them on a sraight distance basis, giving cities no advantage over small towns and country; giving other states no ad vantage over Nebraska, and making computation so much easier that one would not have to be a crook to follow the short turns made in fieurintr out a tariff schedule. COMMENT & DISCOMMENT Earl Mallery, who put in a couple of years in the legislature, recalls with considerable amusement the atti tude of the moving picture producers at the previous sessions when the question of censorship was under de ntate. The first time the legislature x was pondering the censorship prob lem, the producers were objecting strenuously, to local censorship, but expressed themselves willing to 6tand for state censorship. The next session, , when state censorship was proposed, the movie men gracefully reversed themselves and declared they were unalterably opposed to state censor ship, but that they would be glad to accept local censorship. - Now, it seems, the movie men want neither state nor local censorship, but national Whatever may have been their attitude previously, their present position is well taken. National cen sorship is certainly the only sensible answer to the problem. Some writers, notably the State Journal, btmia that while national censorship is th real . remedy, it wil "be difficult to secure it, t0-' measure of Protection for Le public is needed. Therefor it U argued that if we cannot get what we want, we should take what we can get. The Journal favors state censorship because of the difficulty of getting na tional supervision. That's a cheerful way to look at it If you are suffering from a diseased throat and there is no throat specialist at hand, the thing to do is to visit an ye doctor and have yourself . fitted with glasses. . True, your throat may be giving you a whole lot at trouble, ! but your eyes may need some atten tion too. iiT The Herald editor wants it under stood, once and for all, that he is not opposed to censorship of moving pic tures. Indeed, he thinks it should be done, and it cannot come about any too soon to suit him. What we are objecting to is the particular law that has been presented to the Nebraska legislature. It is the work of profes sional reformers, men and women who have been attempting ever since our undergraduate days to secure restric tive legislation of one sort and anoth er. Our whole university carver is filled with memories of the activities of some of these reformers. They used to confine a good share of their acti vities to the university. They wanted certain holds barred in the dances, they wanted the number of parties cut down, or certain rules of conduct adopted. They were the prize meddl ing pests in those days, and the habit has clung to them. Sometimes he gets something handed to him. The fact that in one week there should be two exceptionally stupid plays is suffiicent evidence that cen sorship of some kind is needed. So far as we are concerned, we think the censorship should be based on literary and art values rather than on moral ity. The plav. "As a Man Thlnketh " which contained all sorts bt rot based on the authenticity of paternity, and the Wednesday evening attraction, the name of which escapes us, are exam ples of the stupidity of producers. In the Wednesday feature Alice Joyce was the star. It is the first occasion we ever saw this particular star in a play that was almost devoid or any thing to recommend it. She did the best she could, poor girl, with what she had to work with. Every time we write a stirring editorial agatast Die proposed movie censorship bill, however, we attend some movie which gets our goat It is probably accidental that the worst films always appear at those times. We have attended a number "of movie shows, and we are frank to confess that we know of no picture house, in N.KrucLa nr 1iuwttr. which Tiro duces as many good films as Harry Dubuuue's ImoeriaL lie has mighty good fortune in selecting bis shows, Srobably due to the. fact that he has eveloped a good judgment But it's a physical impossibility for him to see all the films before they are shown. What is a showman to do in a case of this kind. A photoplay starring Alice Joyce is usually exceptionally good, and if the movie man accepts one. based on previous successes, he 1 the loser if it doesnt turn out well. But censorship won't eliminate the stupid plays or those which only bore the spectator. The censorship, such . . ... . . . . . ... i as is proposed, win see 10 u mac me skirts of all the aetorines are the proper length, that soul kisses last no longer than ten feet, that bedroom and bathroom and bathing beach scenes will not offend the narrow-minded or the prudish, but that is about its limit This being the case, we see no reason why we cannot wait until the federal government gets ready to go me cen soring lor us. A want ad in The Herald will do it 1 t "MMM Ml m The Sanitary Meat Market The only exclusive Meat Market in the City of Alliance. Dealers in fresh and cured meats. All prices on cuts of meats as low as the lowest in the city. . Just and Honest Weight Good Treatment Home-made Sausage and Home Render ed Lard. Meat by the quarter, half or whole, sold at lowest prices. ; Come and See for Yourself The Sanitary Meat Market will meet all competition on the lowest prices in the city, with high grade meats. Can Save Ranchers Money on Large Grocery Orders. The Sanitary Market F. E. Melvin, Prop. PHONE 40. araen Have You Heard How rhe Fern G Meets With Approval? Everyone is Enthusiastic Over the Pleasures Of the New Dancing Room Plan to Come Soon You are missing lots of good fun if you are not acquainted with the Fern Garden. The Alliance Hotel has opened a new dancing room with a new maple floor, a pepful orches tra consisting of piano, violin and banjo, special decorations and tables for refresh ments while you dance. It's an Ideal Way to Spend an Evening There is dancing every evening except Sun day, from 8:30 to 12. If you have not been there yet, come soon, because you are missing just so much fun. Prices are Reasonable a 25 j each cover charge is made and our regular Palm Room Menu is available The Alliance Hotel J. IL MILLER, Proprietor ,