POSTERS DISCUSSED

Evening Star, Issue 21622, 18 January 1934, Page 15

POSTERS DISCUSSED

IS CORPORATION OFFICER RESPONSIBLE ? REPRESENTATIONS TO CITY COUNCIL Hie power of the City Council to ipervise or censor posters exhibited on jardings was questioned at last night s leeting., , , Under date of December 12 the Dunedin Presbytery forwarded the followng resolution : “ That this Presbytery heartily supports the protest made in the City Council and other bodies against the unseemly and’suggestive posters exhibited on hoardings in the city, and that representations in particular be made to the council regarding the " hoarding near the George Street School at .the' present time.” CV H. C. ’Campbell moved that the letter he “ received.” “ Is any action likely to tie taken regarding the matter by onr officers responsible for it?” asked Cr W. Begg. “ This sort of thing goes on. ' What is the good of passing these resolutions from time to time? The very next day or the following week, there is something objectionable stuck up again, until some private citizen draws somebody’s attention to it. I have spoken about this often enough, and I have got past the resolution stage. I want to know what action is to be taken in the future.” Cr Campbell altered his motion to read that the resolution be referred to the General Committee for. a report. Cr Begg: That is not the point! Have members of the General Committee to go down there every twenty-four hours to view these hoardings? That is simply absurd. Surely some officer is responsible for these unsightly, things. Cr.J. B. Shaddock said that mere passing of resolutions'would achieve nothing. If the matter came under its jurisdiction the General Committee should act. The Mayor: The committee will act if the question comes under its jurisdiction. The films and posters are censored by the censor in Wellington, Cr Begg: Only films. . The Mayor: Postsers, too, I am informed. Cr Campbell: What does for Wellington does pot do for Dunedin. Cr M. Silverstone: What can the General>- Committee do? : It. is not a censor. ■ ■ . A suggestion was made to Cr Silverstone by Cr J. W. Munfo that he should go and have a look at the posters. Cr Silverstone; I have looked at them, and they do not shock me. It does not take much to shock some people. Hie council has no power to supervise or censor these posters. It is a job for the Government censor. Surely Cr Begg does not suggest that we should appoint the town clerk as censor. It would be a thankless job, and he would probably not' accept it. Too muclv is being made of these posters. Nothing very objectionable has been put up. It suits certain people to have peculiar , ideas of the rights and. wrongs of exhibits, but there is nothing indecent or suggestive hi the posters which the censor would allow to be placed oh.the hoardings in this city. After the Mayor had remarked that the council had the right to take action Presbytery’s complaint was referred to the General Committee.