THE CENSOR'S BAN

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 11, 13 July 1931, Page 11

THE CENSOR'S BAN

HINTS TO READERS

Some amusing • suggestions ' were made by Mr. Lloyd Koss in an address at Otago University, : says tic Dunedin "Star." Mr. Boss entitled Ms address, « Eluding tlio Censor." .., ' His motive in travelling the world was to see plays and read books he was unable to witness'or read in this country, although it was impossible to sec and read all tho plays and .books pro-, duced, said Mr. Koss. In Sweden lie read a work of .Torrence, in Pans ho dipped into <'"Ulysses," and m Vienna he read other books that were banned elsewhere, but it was impossible to buy all the books' ho would have liked to. Not long ago a book called "Grrth Control" was banned hpre. because ,the invoice was blurred a. little , and, iit was thought tho book had something to do with family limitation. ■ SpeaHng of the films shown in New Zealand, Mr, Ross said people would say that one was good just because it was British, while another was bad because it was American. The reason for this reckoning was that there were so many complicated judgments, by censors that the people had to draw upon something simple themselves. There was a second problem, and that was'whether there were any tests of insanity or immorality in books in any country to justify their being banned by the censor. The "Cberammergau" spiritually uplifted those who sat it but for eight hours, yet what strengthened the faith' in Bavaria" was^regarded in England: as blasphemy.. .An. English . censor,', .was once invited t& travel to America at: ni> expense to himself "to. see .a play, "Green Pastures," in which the.Deity, was represented, but because, he considered this wrong he would not view thfc play; •• -~. . :.,■■■- ■•■■v ■■'■' ■ ,:-- -' • Summing up his remarks,- Mr, Kosa said that what was wantd .was an automatic censorship. "I am going to propose that every twelfth.;play produced, that every twentieth film, and that every, fiftieth book' be banned. We have to realise that someone has to read bad books, so why not abolish censorship merely because of the evil it must do the censors We are told that in 1928 New Zealand censors inspected 6& million feet of film. Therefore' these men every day watch films, thereby murdering their own lives to prevent us from murdering ours. There are three men in Wellington who are inoculated ■from evil, and by their daily functions they must be arrogant' and/devoid of humour. Let us, then, set up a society to censor for, ourselves, and let us read banned books."