CENSORSHIP OF PLAYS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 175, 18 April 1908, Page 10

CENSORSHIP OF PLAYS.

DEPUTATION TO MR. HERBERT . ■ . GLADSTONE. SPEECHES BY PROMINENT DRAMATISTS. A deputation of authors and- plawrights waited on Mr. Gladstono (acting 'for the Prime Minister) at tlio Homo Office on Tuesday, February 18, to protest, against the censorship of plays. Mr. Barrio claiiticd that the deputation represented every movement for-the better that there had been for tlio past fifty years. AVhfethcr dead or alive, great or humble, Englishmen of letters had boon united as an almost solid body in passionate protest for nearly 200 years agaiiist tho humiliation of a censorship. Charles Dickens, fifty years ago, undor tho-, title , " An; Official Scarecrow," wrote: "If any Right Honourable . Prime Minister of England were to request the favour of my attendance at the Treasury ono morning, and, when I. was standing - before him upon alio Turkej' carpet , in ,'t|o : lofty, room, ,wero to say to me, heartily arid, benevolently, with an absence-in .-his voice and manner of all official, restraili't, 'Tomltfns, you have in your time, doiie the State-soiiio-ser-vice, and liang mo if you; shall riot .hayo. any oflico you like to lianio,' I solemnly believe that I should respond by-naming tho office of Examiner and Licenser of Plays, .' .•: Tho office of Examiner- of Pl&ysV .must,;-said Mr. Barrie, appear -to - be one of .the moist' feeble, ..the most ineffectual,r'the..most-; -uii-r----necessary, and,tho most,ridiculous of. all the* nianyiabsuvd offices that. custojri and.an iudolent.cbuntr,v have placed;, at; tlie disposal ofa Bi'itiSh.iMinister. I would gladly find willingly accept tlio appointment' of t ExattiiriOr,of I'lays from . the Priine ! Minister's. hands, that I might lock up tho department and put • the key in my. pocket, writing outside tho door, thoSe familiar words, "Gone away; return uncertain." ■ . t . ■ MR. .'piNERO'S PROTEST... ' - Mr. I'mero said: "Tliis deputation represents the. great , majority , of the dramatic Authors,gf England—probably, in the proportion of something like five to. one. -The oppressiveness of, tho '; Censorship: cannot be adequately',, measured :b.v a . iiiere, recital.',-of. plays ;'aotually vetoed. Theyfaob.tiiat.scveral 'acknowledged masterpieces y of..,jthe world's literature aro under the Censor-s;ba,n is suffi- ' cjMtly, and w&uldi .Jutpnturo^to • sayV/bei,incredible. in any Other civilised- coun-1 fry. 'But we have not coriie hero to discuss,] the, case of any particular. play.Wo, aro -hero indubitable factsthat.'aio' serf-1 ibus i and; self-respecting artist, j can, in - tho long; r>iri;- ; do. himself. justice;, when-ho knoiVs that his. work and the proceeds of his workt may. | bo-.destroyed, at a poll's stroke-by tho arbitrary action of a single'official, who is neither responsibleto Parliament J, nor' amenable,/ to iaWi ; ~ W e;i'espect'fully',but very urgently suggest to you that the British drama cannot possibly hold its true rank among tho arts so long as .tho dramatist is subject to'thoimenaco and the insult implied in this .state Of things. • f OF the-Whole English-speaking .world, this 'island, alone-is .-subjected ..to a Censorship of plays. The; jurisdiction.,;of",..the Censor, does,- 1 not extend to Ireland, a nourishing and morally'. am^oaoiia.blcj:;i!3^ama. has recently dominions be'youd cities arid iiumerojis.'ikheatres'; : tai&v%of no such ■authority.; Of all the forty-&Yp; : ptates Of the American Ropubljc, not Of os-' tablishing a .Censorship. ■'it is time' 1 that the; British, natyon-.s%jj!d be relieved from' the 6tigin'a of :appeariiig:iiqjbe tho only part of the ,Engli^h-spe.'jki.ng»' , xotld;which is ;ihcapivble .of kecpitig ; its' CstagOl/ciean and \whblesomc save under the guardianship of aii ■irresponsible, official. But while we drama-, ■tists are ripo for it is, wo admit, ■possible that tho : publiC-.niirid,,, habituated' to Ithe, fallacious-.notion- - thatthe Censorship ' nft'o'rds soirio 'sort, of, guaran&fpr, tho,-morals 'of the stagc;': may' not' v yot'., i bo.'ijujte ljipo for •Jflio according!.of.' the' .demand." , ! . A'COURT OF APfEAIi- . Sir W. Si ; : ,G.ilbeft.. sditt-:—■'.f SiJjjlPinero lias set forth," objections : %;>'driittate';aywiers;''. as a Ibody, to_ th'e : , ; ■ dramatic Censorship,'; and; 1 liii've been entrusted with jthn task pf.' of this deputation as; to tho;'.means whereby a satisfactory adjustment of. the principle of clramatic Censorship.' may i-be." attained. Whether tho liioni'ent .has arrived.at .rfhjch the Censor- ; ship'can. be- sifely stock, arid barrel—is '.a-' which f do liot, at : present, lii'tipcjSo to raise. frank,, j'jwe.recogniso' the.'policy of for more than We, arc' likely to are .to .err, .we prefer .to err oil'.thertsido <5f moderation and restraint. As Mr.fPinwoHias ably suggested, _ou'r gHevanco -is .riot so that our work is lsnbject to Goyerjimental criticism, as that-.that criticism' isVexereised.by.lan' " arbitrary iiTosponsiblo;omcialv wliose 'ultiword'is, .".Sib; volo,'■sic^'jubi'o; sit. pro Vatione voluntas,'' and frorii whose';decision there is absolutely; no appeal;;. The'.suggestion with' which 1 am'entrusted 'is; that tlio office of ■ Examiner' of Plays shall 'take ' the status of 1 a. Court-,of . First liistance, .from whoso decision there shall" be! an appeal to. ; a Cdurt .of Arbitrators, cbiistitutjed undpr .tiio Arbitration Act of. 1801;: and ' coii'sistilig' of three''mertibors^—one to : be appointed ' by tho" author whose play is under,consideration; oiid to bo . appointed; by tho' Lord ..Chamberlain', and be chosen 'by. the' two. so'ippointed,!. or' by the. ■ Lord - ChinccllOr, or-as-may 'bb ;tO , or'•sfiolij;;a; .C-orirt. Of Appeal..\would ■ factory, to, tho author as 4hat' 'iiis ,workhriU:'iccfeive,anipl6:rind Jiiad litl eaa^; con-;' ;. to ..'the .Consbr .liifri,'.;or, a very grave,and iiividioffi"Responsibility-; aiid.to the public at large as insuring that ndtliiiig' will bo placed before 7 tb6iii that'' they should.net hear, and that 'nothing will be kept' from , themfforr r reasons which tlireo liberal ,ajid broad-minded men of the world would regard as trivial, inadeduate, Or unjust"':;; ' ■ ■ '•

MR/ GLADSTONE'S REPLY,

Mir. Gladstone said thoproposal put before his was .that there' should be established a C^urt'of-'Appeal of Thrfee. ' '. Whether ;'or not sUch ' Court could be established without altering'the law he was not quite certain, It might be d6rio ; by arrangement if it was,-so desired, but probably it Wojild not be a.satisfactory arrangement and; when it came :to Altering tuo law', 'difficulties, of ..course, inust arise.' However, ho clearly ;i;hss tlio rleW which tho deputatioiiAjiitt forward ,as a substantive,'proposal' was r libt' that. .Censorship should be abolished but' that : a system; should -be;_ established- undfiir •which there would l)o a'right of apjieal. He wtAiid .represent that view for'the consideration, of the Prime-Minister. •• • • .v •***' '•