THE DRAMATIC CENSORSHIP.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 621, 25 September 1909, Page 11

THE DRAMATIC CENSORSHIP.

The report of tho evidence givoh bofpro thi Joint Committeo on tho Censorship of Plays makes good reading. The latest English mail brings us the evidenco and opinions of-many uotaulo. men of letters. ■;'..

v Mr. John Galsworthy said, ho,considered that d'ii irresponsible censorship vory heavily handtoau'ped tho drama as .compared *ith other | branches of literary art. lie thought it <leiterredvirien of letters..froni writing .for ,tha regarded .tho censorship as an m-'sult-ib I 'their good, feeling and sense, of .duty 'tb'the'public. "An imaginative: writer._ continued Mr. Galsworthy, "should ' be.' ablo_tO' handloihis emotioiis, feelings,- and.;'thoughts freely, arid thisarbitrary and irresponsible censorship : is'always,'-as'it.were,, saying-to.anim-' aWnatiye'writer,!, ;You;niust not' do so. lou 'niust'only.touch;them with .tho tips i of your fingers.''; It is li vorydifficult thing to ■explain ■tb'-ariyohe' who; an imaginative; writer, but thero is no doubt:that tho censorship doej havo-that, indirect effect, on tho. writing .-.n[ creative art./ I.•think; the eeiisorship directly deters ; men of letters when' they come- to tno ;bhoiqo- of si' subject. -It has dotorred mo lrom .attempting-to dramatise a . subjects which 1 1 think.ought to bo dramatised and'would ,o«, perfectly legitimate on the stage. I do not.intendvtor bo'tempted- to.dramatiso this subject so'long-as an arbitrary censorship.exists ; '.. .Mr; Galsworthy said, further,,that in view of giving evidence .before the .'conimittcpaie.-.had writton .to soven'".of, tho--leading ■imagihatiy'j authors asking.for, their views- on tlib censorship. 'In his letter to them he.said:— I propose to bear witness that tho existence of.thii • arbitrary -censorship, besides. being ' felt _ by dramatic authors "as a ; standing: insult to their good-?feeling'and-senso of duty.; to the .public,: tends'directly.'or./indirectly to deter men .of ■letters; who .have other forms in 'which to ex-press-;themselves from .-writing for the stage—., that'itis/at all.ovents/one of .several deterrent" factors.: Would it bo true, to say that yon fblt.as rdo.in b'Ptli theso'respects?" .

-Mr. T.Bardy.'replied: "All I- eon say is that , something ..or .other—which probably is con- " sciou'sness.of tho-censor—appears to deter, me a of. letters' who'iavo other .channels "for-com-, municating, with . the: public ;from writing for, the/stage; -Asan' ounco of experience is worth : a ton - 6f;theory,'l may add that the|-ballad' which" I published in the 'English Review' for' last December .entitu'ed 'A Sunday .Morning ■ t Tragedy' K wished to produce as a tragic play beforel printed tllo.ballad form of it, and I went so far as to shapb the scenes, action, etc But it then occurred to inc..that' tho subjectlone in: which the. fear of transgressing-conven-tion' over-rules natural feeling to the extent of bringing dire disaster—an eminently proper and moral subject,'would ; prevent, my over: getting ,' it ■on tho': boards, so I abandoned it/'... ..;'/... : ; Mr.'Henry■ James's letter was as follows:—"I ans'werXyour 'appeal on-tho., censor''question to. thev'best. of my :small.ability. I do considor that the situation mado by tho English man of letters' ambitions''of.'writing for the stago: has less dignity—thanks to fho censor's arbitrary, rights upon 1 , his work—thari. thac of i any other nian of letters in Europe, and ..that .this fact may-well, be, or rather must be, deterrent, to /men of any intellectual independence and self.respect.,- 'I think, this circumstanco ,represents, accordingly an impoverishment of our theatre, and it tends to deprive it of intellectual life, of tho importance.to which a freo choice of subject and illustration directly ministers, and to confine it,to the trivial and, tho puerile; It is 'difficult to express the depth of) dismay and disgust . .with ; which.. ..an '■;'■ author ' of books "■■■■ in this country _ finds ,it'' impressed upon him in-passing into the province of tlie-.theatre with tho view:of labouring £hcre : that he has to reckon anxiously with,an obsouro:and irresponsible Mr. So-and-so,' who may by law peremptorily demand of hiui that he shall-'mako-his:work-square:at vital points-with.Mr.-So-and-so's personal—andi'MriteUectu'-" ally, 'and icritically speaking, lvhollv unauthoritative— preferences;' prejudice's, and ignorances, and that tho less, original, tho less important, and'' tho,;less, interesting'-'it "is,': and ithe-'mor* Vulgar, super'fiicial,;. -and .futile,, : the moro. it is .likoly so'to square. He t.hus encounters 'ah ' arrogation of critical authority and .tho critical-veto, with the power' to : enforce- its•decisions' fehata.imaviihoufe aii pawMß-iminny; other civiliscd : country,'and which.has in this 'one'the'effect of-relegating tho;, theatre .to the position'of a'.mean minor art, and of condemn-ing,-it tb-igheblo- dependencies,-poyerties,.;and, .pusillanimities:. We.rub our eyes-we .writers" 'Sccustbhicd .to-treedoiiv,- in -.Till'other, .walks— to' think'.tUaJxf.he : -ca%se_lias.. still to T ,bs ,arguea>,in.. ' Etiglaiid^:J'AT-T' '■ '■' '*W^i&%*; '' r t'-:'S-'e ''ft'/.W) '''ililr.*-Maurice:,--Hewlett- sent ■ the-.following-:—; '"I think'you-had better not cito me as agr.ee-, ing with your views, i Certainly. I-, should not be.deterred.from w,ritingia„ , p.layiby i fear, of the Cehsor-.as ■ he is'now.'-', should shrink'., much more from the horriblo scandal of, a -•police ■prosecution v or-a county:council.ragging. .WO, 1 anv'-bv' no, means suro that I, dpn.t prefer, the/Censorship': of the Lord . Chamberlain, to the county-..council.': : . ■'-.-■;'■■:,. Mr/i Joseph. Conrad .-wrote':—JfTbu'vknow' my feeling's as'to,the,Censorship,of li lays. 1 1 1 have ' always looked upon' it- with indignation.; It is an outrage''upon tho-dignity and ot tho-calling.' '-But whether;a. dramatic author, is ever deterred from producing .a 1 good. work bv- the'existence, of the Censorship I caniipt say' lam certain that, he may-bo shamefully ' hindered .and that such, a .situation ls-intoler-' ' able—a v disgrace:-:to the tone.jo tho character. of ;this country's civilisation.!' '. -'~ ■ -,iMr -H G.-Wclls's a'nswer. was as follows:— "Tho' Censorship with -its quite Wanton-power ■' of-suppression has always been ono-.oi the : 'reasons' why.'l. lmven'tj ventured into ' play- ■ writing."..': - ; ;' . ■• . 'Mr. Zangwill, wrote:-"Tcs, I agree-with you ' generally-about the. Censorship, though it is far irom being gravest deterrent factor., .. ~ ■"' -M'r;'-Arnold 1 Bennett, in a long letter,- said :— "Most- decidedly the existence .of the Censorship makes it impossible for mo-oven-to.-, think. of writing,plays,on tho s.amo piano of realism and thoroughness as:my novels." ,■:-. ■.-. r ■ The witness added .that, tho great resentment recently displayed against the- Consorship was a marked'indication that men of letters-wished • at thn present tiuio. to .express themselves in the dramatic form. There was a strong...feci:'ilia that tho dramatic form hud at-present a ' greater-chance than it-had. "But,.', ho cou- ■• tiiiucU "an iristitutioii.which class,ilies as grossly ', indecent such '.plays as the -Cnuci.'jMpnna Vunua.' -Ghosts,' - •Materhite,' .'Mrs. -Warren sProfession;'- 'Waste,' - 'Tho Three. Daughters of i M/Duporit,' 'The Breaking Point,) and B.othle-; i hem''is 'an .institution-which inspires Imciv'.pf • 'letters 'with:thd sort of 'feeling which, would :'■ be .'■■inspired':'iii a; soldier if --k-brother ..officer wore accused, of gross indecency without having d : chance.; of - deionding -ihimiclf." ■ ■•; • •■ •' ■ .- 'Continuing, Mr.. Galsworthy, said ho could i 'coiiccivo.. Of- plays to .which, grave -objection - 'mightbe takeni'aud his view; was that it would ; be a sufttcicnt protection to the', public, if.':the' ■Public Prosecutor:had power to.intervene. The ''■ Censorship,: he'-said ;,fmally, ..was: not., tho :.pro- \ 'tectoi-of morality, but of prunes? and prisms.,