Chapter VII: Conclusion 121 (1)

THE FILM

I

HISTORICAL

The rise and development of the cinematograph during the last few years has been truly phenomenal.

GENESIS OF THE FILM.

The history of the cinematograph dates back to the obscure ages of the year 65 B.C., at which period Lucretius, in his “De Rerum Natura,” made certain pertinent remarks relative to the persistence of vision--the base upon which the whole theory of motion photography is built. According to a document in the Bodleian Library at Oxford, the cinematograph has a history as far back as A.D. 130.

The first stage from which the cinematograph evolved was an invention, simplicity itself, which readily lent itself to immediate and successful development. It emanated as a toy for children, and this has been gradually built up, stage by stage, until finally completed as at the present time. I refer to that simple toy-wheel or “cycle of life;” also to the children’s booklet consisting of a series of pictures of various stages of action. The leaves were held between the first finger and thumb, the little book bent backwards, and the leaves released, one by one, as quickly as possible. The whole gave the impression of the subject being in motion; and this optical illusion was the embryo of the modern motion picture.

Before the introduction of the celluloid film, animated pictures from glass plates were exhibited; but without the pliable celluloid film it is contended that cinematography would have been impracticable.

DEVELOPMENT.

The modern cinematograph was rendered possible by the invention in 1890 of the celluloid roll film, on which serial pictures are impressed by instantaneous photography; a long sensitised film being moved across the focal plane of a camera and exposed intermittently. For an hour’s exhibition 50,000 to 165,000 pictures are needed. To regulate the feed in the lantern a hole is punched in the film for each picture. These holes are extremely accurate in position, and when they wear, the feed becomes irregular, and the picture “dances” in an unpleasant manner--hence that irritating feeling which arises from seeing a well-worn film vibrating. The machines have been devised in enormous numbers under the names of bioscope, biograph, kinetscope, mutograph and cinematograph, derived chiefly from Greek and Latin words for life, movement, change, etc.

The first actual attempt recorded seems to be that of a Frenchman named Louis Du Hauron, who took out two patents in 1864. Although they covered all the essential points of the modern cinematograph, the one factor which made it a failure was the slowness of the wet collodion plates of that time as compared with the gelatino-bromide. In 1906, Mr. C. Rider Noble brought out a patent whereby the moving film could be stopped at any moment for examination. Prior to this invention, the film had to speed on to the end without interruption.

New ideas and inventions seem to add improvement daily.

PRESENT AND FUTURE.

It was predicted that the cinematograph, like the skating rink, would have a short life and die in its infancy, but this was a mistaken idea--the “movies,” like “Liza,” have “come to stay.” They are a force to be reckoned with. It would not be overstating the fact to say that more people attend the cinema than all other places of entertainment massed together.

The returns relative to the cinema industry are immense. Regarding attendances at these places in this country, it shows no fewer than 1,075,875,000 attendances at cinema exhibitions in the course of a single year. In the British Isles there are approximately 4,500 theatres with a seating capacity of accommodating one in every thirty-seven of the population. Upon working out these figures it shows that the entire population of the United Kingdom visits cinema exhibitions on an average once a fortnight. About 5,000 new subjects are issued each year, and some 70,000,000 feet of film are running through the projectors each week. From 80,000 to 100,000 persons are directly engaged in the various branches of the trade.

Its increased popularity in the future is assured, and its progress will depend largely upon what uses the nation makes of this new force in national education.

II

EDUCATIONAL

THE CINEMATOGRAPH IN SCHOOLS.

Various boroughs have made forward steps in the introduction of the cinematograph in the school. The Birmingham Juvenile Organization Committee has prepared an exceedingly readable and interesting report for presentation to the Birmingham Education Committee. To expand upon this theory, an open exhibition is to be arranged and will be attended by thousands of children from the senior departments of the schools, the younger element being excluded. Teachers and officials of the Local Education Authority will lend their support.

A synopsis of prepared notes was given to the teachers and scholars. The schools are to be formed into groups, so that pupils may attend a special performance at a convenient centre at regular intervals. The programme of exhibition is to last for one hour; the films selected coming under five headings:--

(1) Literature,
(2) Geography,
(3) Science,
(4) Natural History,
(5) Composition.

Literature is represented by a pictorial representation of “The Merchant of Venice.” It is argued that by this method the children will be induced to turn to the plays after they have seen the characters portrayed upon the screen.

One feature missing is that the film cannot give the child any idea of the beauty of Shakespeare’s prose and verse. In the case of geography it is apparent that the film can efficiently take the place of the text-book. Science and natural history could be represented by films showing the life-history of the salmon and the silkworm. One suggested experiment dealing with composition is that a portion of the story be shown, and that when the children have returned to the school they should be asked to invent a title or to summarize the film as far as it has been shown, and complete it according to their own ideas. At a future sitting the remaining portion of the film would be exhibited and the children would then compare it with their own efforts.

A similar exhibition was given in Manchester before members of the Stretford Education Committee. In this instance a portable projector was used, the lighting circuit being tapped for electric power. It is openly admitted that the cinematograph has a wide field, but the idea that the cinema will ever supplant the text-book is considered unlikely.

One would like to know the definite view adopted by the Commissioners as regards educational films and the benefits derived therefrom. Many authorities are still stumbling along in the dark, unwilling to make a beginning, but they cannot maintain this attitude for long, because the forward march of the utility of the cinema in the school is becoming apparent, and all education authorities who are apostles of progress will have to toe the line.

THE FILM AS TEACHER.

When it is remembered that the moving picture camera may be used in connection with the microscope, that it has an unlimited field in geography, in the recording of social life, and in natural history--it seems difficult to account for the fact that universities and colleges have passed it by. The value is not so much to be sought in the classroom, for there are, of course, objections to its use there, but the founding of this new type of library would possess an interest for future generations which can scarcely be over-estimated.

There is no doubt that the decision of the London County Council upon the question of using the film as a part of the educational curriculum, will, in the main, be governed by the nature of the Report issued by the Special Committee appointed by the National Council of Public Morals to consider the part the cinematograph is destined to play in public education.

The Education Committee was instructed to report as to the provision by the Council of the facilities on an educational basis to enable all London school children to see cinematograph films. These were placed under the following heads:--

(_a_) Purely instructional or educational; travel, science, and
natural history.

(_b_) Suitable in other respects for exhibition to a juvenile
audience.

Certain objections were raised. One fundamental difficulty was eyestrain, and another, ill-ventilated rooms. The whole problem is being viewed by experts from a technical, psychological, and physiological standpoint.

They had exhibited before them a film showing the power to teach history and geography. This was demonstrated in a remarkable way by an exhibition film relating to Christopher Columbus. The scenario was in Spain, for the most part in the actual surroundings associated with Columbus. There could be no better way of demonstrating to the scholar the trials and difficulties encountered by Columbus before and after he realized his life’s ambition.

It was contended that it would be better to arrange a series of lectures beforehand, explaining at some length the persecution endured by Columbus. By this means an oral and visional teaching would be enacted, leaving a more lasting impression than would be attainable otherwise.

SOME EDUCATIONAL FILMS.

To-day Shakespeare is reeled off a spool, and human life taught at the end of a crank. You may travel over land and sea without leaving your seat and see great personages of the world perform their mighty deeds, and unconsciously knowledge of life and the world is derived which makes a difference in the conception of things surrounding us.

The average member of a community fails to comprehend the significance of the new and powerful agency in education. All this means a revolution in pedagogy, the scrapping of text-books in favour of the film. It means a vividness where before had been vagueness. It means a true visualization and realization of life, where hitherto an indefinite printed description of it was acquired. In this country gatherings of teachers have been vividly impressed by animated photography. By means of the silent teacher, young and old have learned more about the physical, industrial and social geography of the world during the past few years than during any previous quarter of a century. It brings vividly before our eyes the idea of intense cold, atmospheric conditions, blizzards, and life peculiar to the regions around the Poles; and, again, the sweltering heat, vegetation, methods of living and transport in the tropics. One is brought face to face with the primitive life, habits, and customs of the aborigines of the least known corners of the world; while even life immediately around us is revealed in a manner which hitherto has been impossible.

Take a film about the volcano, of which most children have heard but never seen. It would explain that a volcano throws up smoke, calcined dust, red-hot stones, and melted matter called lava. The summit is hollowed out in a great excavation having the shape of a funnel, sometimes miles in circumference. The principal volcanoes could be shown, as Vesuvius, near Naples; Etna, in Sicily; Hecla, in Iceland.

A curtain of smoke filling the orifice of the crater denotes the forthcoming eruption. When the air is calm the smoke rises vertically to nearly a mile in height, finally spreading out like a huge blanket, cutting off the rays of the sun, and sinking down on the volcano, covering it with a dense smoke-cloud. A huge sheaf of fire bursts from the crater to a height of 6,000 ft., and the heavy cloud is illuminated by the fiery red of the sky. Millions of sparks dart out like vivid lightning to the summit of the blazing sheaf. These sparks, so small from a distance, are, in reality, incandescent masses of stone, and of a sufficient momentum to crush the most solid structure in their fall.

From the bowels of the mountain through the volcanic chimney ascends a flux of melted mineral substance, or lava, pouring out into the crater, forming a lake of dazzling fire in the sun. Through the crevasses as well as over the edges of the crater the lava flows in streams. The fiery current, formed of dazzling and paste-like matter, similar to melted metal, advances slowly; the front of the lava stream represents a rampart on fire. Animals and human beings flee before it, but all objects stationary are lost. Trees are seen to blaze a moment on contact with the lava and sink down reduced to charcoal; the thickest walls impeding its progress are calcined and collapse; the hardest rocks are vitrified, melted. The flow of lava eventually subsides; the subterranean vapours, forced by the enormous pressure of the solid mass, escape with greater violence than ever, carrying with them whirlwinds of fine dust floating in sinister clouds and sinking down upon the neighbouring plain. Finally the mountain ceases its activity and peace reigns again for an indefinite time.

Visualize the terrible eruption of Mt. Etna in Sicily of two hundred years ago. A dark night preceded the storm. Trees swayed like reeds buffeted by the wind; people fled to avoid being crushed under the ruins of their dwellings. They lost their footing on the quaking ground and fell. Mt. Etna burst into a fissure ten miles long, and along this fissure broke forth a number of volcanic mouths, vomiting clouds of black smoke and calcined sand. Soon seven of these mouths were united in one abyss emitting cinders and lava.

Torrents of lava poured from all the crevasses of the mountain down upon the plain, destroying houses, forests and crops. The stream reached the walls of Catania and spread over the country. There, as if to demonstrate its strength to the terrified Catanians, it tore away a hill and transplanted it some distance; it lifted in one mass a field planted with vines and let it float for some time, until the green was reduced to charcoal and disappeared.

A fierce battle ensued between lava and water. The lava presented a perpendicular front nearly a mile in length and forty feet high. At the touch of that burning wall, which continued plunging further and further into the waves, enormous masses of vapour rose with terrible hissings, darkened the sky with their thick clouds, and fell in a salt rain over the region. In a few days the lava had made the limits of the shore recede three hundred and fifty yards.

The stream, swollen with new tributaries, grew from day to day and approached the town. The inhabitants could be seen from the top of the walls watching the implacable scourge. The lava finally reached the ramparts. The fiery flood rose slowly but it rose ceaselessly. It finally touched the top of the walls, whereupon, yielding to pressure, they were overthrown for the length of forty-five yards, and the stream of fire penetrated the town.

The last scene was that of the inhabitants fleeing in terror. What a realistic geography lesson, never to be forgotten, would a film of this description make!

The films can show anything from the mining of coal to the manufacture of the needle; from the weaving of a dainty handkerchief to the building of a battleship. The films projected would be purely educational, though there are numerous incidents shown, which amuse and entertain, in addition to imparting information. A particular film series of an educational and scientific nature is now available.

The Smith-Urban “Kinemacolour” series depicting the budding flowers and the opening of blossoms--which in nature occupies several days--are disclosed with uncanny realism in less than two minutes.

Marvels of the universe, a scientific film of nature-study and general knowledge, finds many patrons.

HISTORY TAUGHT BY FILM.

It would be necessary for historians to collaborate very closely with the producers in the preparation of historical films. The mere fact of being called upon to provide a scene for a picture and a detailed explanation, however, would go far to arouse a new enthusiasm in their work among students and teachers of history. It might assist us to vision our forefathers out of their portrait frames and parish churches, which are, perhaps, their only extant monuments, and reveal them to us as they lived and moved.

In most cases the educative value was confined to actual performers, or those who took part in the preparation of costumes, and in general the action of a scene was too far removed from the audience for close observation and too quickly over for effective study.

Supposing one could produce a film, actually showing the scenes enacted during the life and times of the Romans; depicting their daily life, court ceremonial and ancient coronations, or their judicial proceedings, their tournaments,--we should add materially to our historical knowledge of the people; and one must not lose sight of the fact, that when we have passed to the “Great Beyond,” and the world still continues to be inhabited some thousands of years hence, populated with people actuated with the same ideas, the same aspirations as ourselves, our present period will stand exactly in a similar relationship,--in regard to time at least.

What could present a more magnificent visual panorama than the procession of events of the Elizabethan period to the eighteenth century, laying open to our view their lives, the arts and crafts of their time, and our progress is then made over the stepping-stones of the past? Imagine the royal events of history, the gorgeous scenes of the coronations of English kings, as they succeeded each other.

Supposing an authoritative film could have been produced of the Great War, showing the whole of Europe in conflict, from the invasion of Belgium to the Armistice. The whole of the incidents--the devastation of property by the mighty engines of war; refugees in flight from the oncoming enemy; the heroic attacks and defence by the British soldiers in spite of tremendous odds; the want, misery and suffering following in the train.

The scope of the cinematograph for educational purposes could be considerably widened by children and adults being shown how things have been and are being done. The use of colour films for explaining history would enable the teacher to demonstrate the growth of British Dominion in India--for instance, Bombay could be represented by a tiny red speck, which would expand in correct historical sequence until the whole of the peninsula was covered. The development of the colouring, as this or that successful campaign was completed, would explain to observers, more explicitly than any printed list, the political effects of history. The scenes would thus be indelibly impressed upon the minds of children. And the same idea might be extended to the other colonies, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, etc., depicting their history from the first settlement to the complete establishment of the Overseas dominions and their activities of to-day. The film, in short, is a fine medium for political propaganda if wisely used.

The following subjects lend themselves to effective treatment as film productions for educational purposes: the growth of the European Colonies, the rise and fall of the Ottoman Empire, the decline and renaissance of Poland, the historical groupings of the various States of Europe in the wars of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, to name but a few.

THE FILM IN AMERICAN SCHOOLS.

The use of films in American schools is already an accomplished fact and is generally recognised as a great educational asset.

The American Red Cross during the War found it extremely useful in aiding its work, and it was decided, in view of the coming of peace, to extend this work and build it upon a solid and permanent base. A Bureau of Pictures was established and an important branch was the origin of a sister Bureau for Europe, its headquarters being in Paris; the aim in view being the formation of a library of films, demonstrating to the New World how the Old World lived and how it had suffered during the War.

The incentive for the development of this idea by the Red Cross was created by urgent representations made by thousands of schools and churches throughout the length and breadth of the United States, a stirring appeal which could not be ignored.

A popular feature in the early days of the educational curriculum was the extensive use of the magic-lantern hour, in which inanimate pictures were thrown upon a screen. This was capital as far as it went, but obviously the cinema could be utilised with a far greater effect and satisfaction. From the commercial standpoint it was found that the monetary return from the exhibition of “educational films” was not satisfactory. One film featuring Mary Pickford would produce greater profits than a perfect and complete library of educational films!

The churches wishing to give film entertainments on Sunday found the ordinary films not suitable to their needs and sought outside aid. The American Red Cross bridged the gap. Thousands of schools and churches are now in touch with this Picture Bureau, whose work is administered through fourteen divisions by which this movement is governed, and every independent division is building up its own library of specially selected films. The aim and object is to procure films of educational, scenic, hygienic, and industrial interest. It also endeavours to cement the allied friendship and cordial international relations between the two great Anglo-Saxon peoples.

This Bureau is equipped with a large and efficient staff of expert photographers, and when a film is taken this is duplicated and a copy is dispatched to every division, accompanied by a list of subjects which are at the service of the schools, and if a certain demand is shown for special films, this demand is supplied.

The range of subjects when this project has matured will be illimitable, and it will be possible to co-ordinate them so that they can be absorbed into the recognised curriculum. It has been proved that children are interested even by isolated subjects, contradicting any contention that a child does not remember a lesson which it receives by means of the “movies.” This film lesson provides a welcome break in the text-book grind, and is the most popular and eagerly sought feature in the school.

From an international aspect, the value of the film is undoubted. All the American children will by this means be able to visualize the marvels of Europe, and, in addition, form an idea of the surroundings in which many of their fathers and brothers made the supreme sacrifice in the defence of humanity.

These Red Cross films seen in their schools will convey to them exactly what is being done, and in this way the film will take its place as an ambassador of perfect understanding, cementing the already friendly relations existing between the two countries. Over 6,000 schools in America have cinema rooms and practically every new school being erected in America is equipped with an up-to-date cinema-operating room and theatre.

It behoves England to make greater strides if she is to keep abreast of the times. The question is asked: “What are we waiting for before taking the plunge into this educative speculation?” Possibly the deterrent is the belated appearance of the completed inquiries of the “Cinema Commission.” If it is truthfully said that England is ten years behind the American in dentistry, the same period applies as regards the possibilities of the cinema in relation to the school.

A conference of well-known educationists recently assembled at Columbia University, U.S.A., to examine a number of film subjects on geography, biology, industry, and popular astronomy, collected for the purpose by the National Committee for Better Films. The affiliated Committee for Better Films has asked for suggestions and criticisms regarding safety precautions, methods of furnishing pictures in large quantities and other matters.

The Federation of Child Study in conjunction with the Women’s City Club, the National Committee for Better Films and the Juvenile Motion Picture League, have formulated a scheme by which entertainments suitable for young people are given in the various picture theatres on Fridays and Saturdays, for which the Committee select the films to be shown and guarantee an audience. The University of the State of New York are making every endeavour to promote “visual education.” The town of Wellesley, Massachusetts, has “municipal movies” two days a week. The State censorship is strongly opposed on the ground that what is required is selection and not censorship.

INSTRUCTING THE DEAF MUTE.

“List with thine eyes, and I will list with mine,” is a revised version of a well-known quotation which applies with considerable point to the modern mode of conversation between deaf mutes, who are taught, by the close observation of the movements of a speaker’s lips, to see, instead of to hear, what is being said. This is where the cinema may help our less fortunate brothers and sisters. An effective film could be prepared which would depict with great precision the lip action which takes place as the various letters of the alphabet are being articulated, and also the similar change of appearance visible, as groups of letters or words are uttered. Such an alphabet and the graphic record of speech, available for use over and over again, enabling mute pupils to commit to heart, would make a tedious task simplified.

IN MENTAL HOSPITALS.

The effect of the film upon the healthy mind is obvious, and its introduction in various mental hospitals is now in the experimental stage. Cinematograph entertainment has already been provided in one of the Birmingham mental asylums, and it is anticipated that the exhibitions will materially help in the recovery of the patients.

MEDICAL STUDENTS.

The “daily press” tells us that the medical profession is the latest convert to the cinematograph as an aid to instruction. The instrument is being utilized to record operations, for presentation before medical students, and in this manner a large number of unnecessary operations will be prevented. It is maintained that many intricate and delicate operations can be more lucidly expounded to the student by these biographic demonstrations than is possible in the operating theatre, during the carrying out of an operation, or by means of anatomic diagrams.

Processes of bone-grafting have been thrown upon the screen. Serial radiographs of the stomach showing all the stages of digestion have been revealed to an audience of surgeons. One professor of neurology uses twenty-five thousand feet of cinema film in teaching and illustrating nervous and mental diseases. Even the blood has not escaped the cinema-worker’s relentless probing. By means of the ultra-micro-cinematograph the corpuscles of the blood are magnified to an enormous degree and one is able to follow with ease precisely what happens when the vital fluid is contaminated by different foreign organisms, and the terrific struggle that ensues for supremacy, and the exact action produced by the administration of various curative specifics. It is evident that, in the battle against human disease and death, the moving picture is destined to play an astonishing part.

The Great War has provided some interesting surgical opportunities, which, had they been witnessed by those other than medical students, would have been gruesome and revolting, yet are interesting to the strong-nerved who can withstand the odour of the warm blood of human life. Take the case of a soldier shot in the thigh by machine-gun bullets which have made the head of the femur resemble a sand sieve; watch the film, from the carrying of the patient from the ward to the theatre, the administration of the anæsthetic, and the deep-chested breathing of the patient who gradually succumbs to the sweet pungent odour; note the interested audience of white-robed sisters, nurses and surgeons; the well-placed incision, the parting of the sinews and muscles, and the removal of the head of the “femur” to be replaced later by an exact replica in silver.

In medical science the cinematograph should become a most important aid in the instruction of students.

III

LIBRARIES AND LITERATURE

SCHOOL, LIBRARY, AND CINEMA.

What a force to be reckoned with would be the combined efforts of school, library and cinema as factors in education. These two former sections have become more united during the last few years. It is only recently that the activities of the Public Library Authorities have been fully appreciated by the Education Authorities. The outlook is now brighter, and a recognized harmony exists; their efforts now being united for the furtherance of educational ideals.

All educational aims should be to broaden, deepen, improve and strengthen the childish imagination, both sympathetic and intellectual. If used without proper supervision, there is not a more harmful agency than the cinema.

Mention is made elsewhere of the Cinema Commission, the London County Council, and the Birmingham Education Committee and what they are undertaking on behalf of the school.

FILM COLLECTIONS.

A nucleus could be a collection of twenty films; four dealing with classics; four with the surrounding things of everyday life, forming general knowledge; four dealing with foreign countries, their social life, games, customs, etc.; four dealing with entomology, zoology, etc.; four depicting the commercial life, showing shipbuilding yards, steel works, cotton and woollen factories, pottery manufacture, etc. These films would broaden the views and strengthen the imagination of children.

The nucleus thus being formed, the films could be circulated throughout the surrounding counties, boroughs and towns; being exhibited at the local library once a week. In conjunction with these films, “reading lists” could be prepared of books for home-reading, and widely distributed. A change of film could be made once a week, which means that before the stock of films had completed one round, five months would elapse, giving ample time in which to procure future additions.

By bringing the cinema within his scope of activities, the librarian adds materially to the usefulness of the library to the community at large, proving the sterling worth of such an institution to the town. How this financial venture is to be met and supported will be the inevitable question, the answer to which is by co-operation; each town or borough taking a share of the burden and contributing financially towards their maintenance. An endeavour must be made to get the local Education Authority interested, and the battle is partly won. Submit to them a practical scheme, on a sound business footing, attractive and definite, and they will, after careful consideration, give unstintingly their financial support.

The whole of the country could be divided into areas, such as North-Eastern, North-Western, South-Eastern, South-Western, etc., where towns, etc., like Stretford, Manchester, Stockport, Bolton, Wigan, Liverpool, Southport and Chester could all produce a repertoire of film subjects. Each Authority could be responsible for the production of films relative to their own manufacture, which could be mapped out as follows:--

(1) Denton and Stockport, for hat manufacture, showing the whole of
the process felt goes through, from the raw material to the
finished “Sandringham.”

(2) Bradford could give a tour of the woollen mills.

(3) Nottingham the lace trade.

(4) Hanley the pottery trade.

(5) Oldham and Leigh the cotton trade.

(6) Atherton, etc., coal mining.

(7) Liverpool, the docks and shipping.

(8) Kent, for the strawberry and hop-growing industries.

(9) Devonport, the dockyards, etc., etc.

There is ample scope for the treatment of such subjects.

As described elsewhere, a Central Bureau could be established, every film classified according to subject, and from this Bureau would emanate a steady flow of purely educational films--teaching or imparting knowledge in a popular manner.

Again, where space does not permit, either in the schools or the local library, the allied sympathy of the managers of the local cinemas could be obtained, and one film could be inserted as part of their programme, securing for them the necessary audience, and at the same time advertising the Education Authority and the Library.

The aim of all libraries is to preserve knowledge for succeeding generations, and films such as those described in the preceding chapter--that portion dealing with history taught by the film--would be of permanent value for reference.

The general idea of providing a permanent record of historical events in the nation’s history is worthy of universal encouragement, and also of making these records easily accessible for public enlightenment.

It has been said that the public library should reflect every phase of mental activity, not only the high and educational kind, but also of the recreative, the social side of life. A vast amount of enlightenment and instruction, with remarkable force and rapidity, can be conveyed by the aid of the cinematograph. “Every picture tells a story,” whether it be of wonder or beauty, or of travels and national customs; some enlightenment may be gained from the exhibition. The seed sown by the pictures of this or that city, whether abroad or at home, may, eventually, be reaped in improved conditions of life and its surroundings. A clearer conception, a more sensible interpretation of the wonderful things around us, is shown than could ever be conveyed by a professor’s treatise, or an artist’s impressions.

PRESERVATION OF THE FILM.

Libraries in general have failed to appreciate the educational value of the cinematograph during the growth of the last fifteen years. For years now the National Board of Censorship has been urging the development of the use of educational films.

The first attempt at anything in the nature of a Lending Library of Films was inaugurated by Gaumont & Co., in 1904. The scheme enabled the amateur or professional possessor of a cinematograph-projecting apparatus, to hire or loan on reasonable terms a selection of film subjects, so that by the outlay of one guinea per night, the private exhibitor could command an inexhaustible supply of film subjects.

There are a number of elements entering into the production, distribution, and the public exhibition of pictures. The raw stock of celluloid from which films are manufactured has a limited existence. The base of the film is usually of a highly inflammable composition. Again, before the pictures are perfected, for public exhibition, the producer’s outfit should include highly perfected cameras, studios, staging, and star actors, and a search, often, for appropriate outdoor settings for the scenes to be enacted. The skilful direction of people and scenes to obtain illusions requires an expert at the business; for it necessitates a high grade of technical ability for the production of scenic, travel, and scientific pictures with the minimum film waste. Once the picture has been constructed, prepared with subjects and sub-titles, and has been submitted to the Board of Censorship, it must be extensively advertised, circulated amongst exchanges throughout the kingdom, and the commands of the public exhibitors awaited. All these complicated processes have emanated from the regular daily demand of the people for entertainment, not necessarily enlightenment. The manufacturers know the percentage of film subjects demanded, whether tragic, thrilling, artistic, humorous, or educational.

I will give some idea as to the film. Each picture in size is roughly three-quarters by one inch; the average length of a black and white film is 1000 feet, giving a total of 16,000 pictures. When rolled this film fills a tin box--allowing for the fact that it is round--equal to the size of a royal octavo volume, but considerably heavier. Thus it is evident that the question of space is unimportant. The number of films produced and published does not equal the number of books published in the same time. A great number of the films published are unsuitable for preservation, and, therefore, would find no place in a National Historical Repository.

The method of the present classification of books would be applied to the classification of the films, covering, as they do, historical, scientific, artistic, and technical subjects. The life of the film depends upon its treatment. The period varies, but when in daily use it should last for twelve years; and, if every care has been taken, and the film is seldom used, it will last for fifty years. Twenty-five years may be taken as a fair average under ordinary methods. Of course, new films can be reprinted from the old, and therefore, no film need be discarded.

A fairly satisfactory solution of the difficulty of making provision for a regular service of films at a minimum cost would be the appropriation, annually, by the State, of a sufficient sum to allow the purchase of a number of the best films by State Libraries, or (seeing that libraries now come under the protecting wing of the Education Authorities) by a State Department of Education. This increasing library of films could be held at the disposal of Library Authorities who contribute towards its acquisition and maintenance.

LIBRARY OF FILMS IN BERLIN.

In October, 1914, a “Library of Films” was opened in Berlin. This Berlin depository already possesses a very large collection of valuable films, dealing especially with scientific and allied subjects, which is probably unequalled elsewhere. In connection with the library an Intelligence Bureau has been opened, where advice can be obtained on all matters connected with the cinematograph and its uses.

Its resources are inexhaustible and the films may be borrowed for purposes of instruction by Educational Authorities and other allied bodies. It is established for the national preservation of historical and other films, and will become invaluable as the years roll on, from the historic point of view.

ADVERTISING THE LIBRARY.

I was once asked the question, “Why do not libraries give greater publicity to their activities, means and resources, and not be satisfied with the fact that they are merely performing an everyday public function, expected of them as a municipal institution which gives some sort of return to the ratepayers for the rate levied upon them for its maintenance?”

True, some of the ratepayers are quite satisfied when they can go to the local library and borrow one or two books to while away a few leisure hours during a wet week-end. Herein lies a small conception of what a public library is for.

The library at the present time, if it is to maintain its popularity, must be aggressive and not passive. We must not be content to rest on our oars and survey what we have done with a complacent smile of satisfaction, and say, “I have done my best,” but we must think what we can do next to keep the vision of usefulness of the public library ever before the public. The library is like the tree in nature, once it ceases to grow it commences to decay, and this food for further thought must be provided by the initiative of the librarian, providing he is an enthusiast. If cheap stories so often depicted could be replaced by such films as “The Odyssey,” “Hamlet,” “Evangeline,” the cinematograph would become a distinct influence for good.

It has been voiced at some of the conferences that systematized propaganda work is needed. I am glad to see that the Library Association has at last awakened to the fact that the educational value of the Public Library is not known as it should be. The appointment of a “Publicity Committee” shows that a determined effort is being made to launch out into something original, and, I hope, something which will demand world-wide attention.

Anyone interested in Library work cannot fail to see that such a popular and powerful agent as the film must have an effect upon the Public Libraries. Cinemas are not on the wane, but are considerably on the increase. Now that the ban on “luxury building” has been removed, these buildings--in some cases “super-cinemas” embodying every convenience--will spring up everywhere. One very seldom, if ever, hears of a cinema being “wound up” for bankruptcy; these picture-houses are too popular, and this popularity will remain as long as one generation succeeds another.

The film can arouse an enthusiasm in heretofore disinterested readers, and expose to them the pleasures and joys of life they are missing, and only the totally illiterate can ignore it.

Possibly it is not generally known by librarians that managers of cinemas are genial individuals, willing to oblige in a little library publicity, and where the library is in close proximity, so much the better.

What I refer to is a “screened advertisement” on behalf of the library authorities, calling attention to the fact that the book from which the film is produced may be borrowed from the Central Library and its branches, which medium has been advocated in Mr. Walter Briscoe’s book on “Library Advertising.”

Here is the idea for a permanent local “publicity” campaign, and in due course the Library Association, backed up by Government recognition, may launch out into a national programme of recognition.

Some may advocate publicity by means of specially trained orators, who would demonstrate from public platforms in forcible arguments the advantages of the Public library; others may convene dinner-hour meetings and deliver speeches to working men and women as during an election; others may urge the use of public hoardings or electric signs in public places, changing colour every few seconds.

It is admitted that the Press is a powerful organ, proclaiming to every reading individual items of interest within its pages. This is good so far as it goes. Possibly advertising in it would be repaid where the paper has access to every home, and even then there is the possibility of its being overlooked, unless the headline be emblazoned in red. Some people when perusing their favourite papers look for one thing of interest to them only. Some scan the stock and share markets; others devour the racing news; some look at the advertisement columns in the hope of finding a house to let; the gentler sex invariably peruse the bargain sales--so there is a danger of library matters being overlooked.

Some new tactics must be tried; something which will yield better results, something which will meet the gaze of young or old--and there is that all-powerful national appealing projector, the cinematograph. This will explain with greater efficiency than either the public Press, the hoarse-voiced orator, or any other medium.

People who remain ignorant or illiterate need no longer remain in this stage. If they do not know the alphabet, they can be taught it; if they cannot write they can be shown how to wield a pen, and the various styles of writing--backhand, roundhand, copper-plate or script, all by means of text-books obtainable at the library.

The poorest man, without any visible means, living in a garret, has this store of wealth at his disposal just for the asking. Anyone wishing to become acquainted with a foreign language to aid him in his business can learn by the “self-taught series.” Thousands of people in these circumstances could be made acquainted with the treasures of the library by means of the film.

“PUBLICITY FILMS.”

The Public Library “Lending Department” would make an admirable film, showing, as it would, borrowers selecting their books and being assisted by the library assistants. Continuing, the books themselves could be shown in the process of opening. In the natural history section the various phases of nature would be seen by the eye; the philology section would disclose the people of the various ages, dressed in keeping with the period, and the language they spoke; and the literary section would open to view the poets of the various ages and the poems they wrote.

A book-stack would revolve; a book would open in the historical section on the history of England, showing early Britons in their prehistoric dress, and these would change as the various periods in the nation’s history was passed through.

Here is the chance of a lifetime for the exponents of the uses and utility of the Library of which they should take every advantage. There are some people who do not even know that public libraries actually exist in their midst, and what facilities they freely offer. They have yet to realize that the Library is in reality the People’s University, instituted to enable everyone to acquire knowledge and enlightenment.

It would not be impossible to prepare a film on a much wider scale, the production of which would probably run into similar figures to those of the biggest “releases.” (I hope readers will not blame me for being an idealist!) For national publicity purposes a film on “THE PUBLIC LIBRARY: ITS EVOLUTION AND POSSIBILITIES” could be prepared, depicting the remarkable modern growth of this valuable institution. The veil of obscurity could be torn aside, and that erroneous impression dispelled that the library is a very modern institution. The interested person could retrace his steps in the annals of library history as far back as it is possible to go.

LIBRARY HISTORY.

Before our eyes would actually be shown the fact that books themselves were not always of the material so familiar to us. Knowledge could be extended far beyond the invention of the printing-press; metal, stone, bricks, walls, pillars, and even the rocks of Nature’s own production were used to convey information to succeeding generations. We should be brought into close contact with the libraries of Assyria, Babylonia and Chaldea, the three ancient empires of which the most is known. There will be seen the palace-temple of Nippur, founded not later than 2280 B.C., the “tomes” classified and catalogued on shelves in the most approved manner, some 200,000 clay bricks being exhibited.

The period of the Greeks would prove interesting, storing the archives in the temples of the Gods, during the sixth century B.C. The Romans would be pictured amassing their libraries as spoils of war; the first to be established in 168 B.C. by Aemilius Paulus--the librarian being a slave or freeman. Time progresses with the passing of the film--Bishop Alexander is seen establishing the first Christian library at Jerusalem in A.D. 212. The libraries later meet with a catastrophe, being swept away by the invasion of the Goths and barbarians of the Western Empire in the fifth century. From the fall of the Western Empire to the Revival of Learning in the fifteenth century the libraries passed into the hands of the monks, who were the collectors of the Middle Ages. Here they could appear, working in the monasteries, writing on parchment rolls. Every Benedictine house was equipped with a library.

Interest quickens as the rapid growth of libraries in England becomes apparent--at Jarrow, Lichfield, Whitby, and other places in the North of England. The gradual developments from these libraries to early town libraries, the various types, remodelled to suit the requirements demanded by mental enlightenment, would all create interest and pleasure.

The modern library would prove the most interesting. The shelves upon shelves of books, closely classified, yet so simple, would evoke admiration. The visual procession of saints and sages, warriors and martyrs, the upholders of justice and freedom, as they stepped from their places upon the shelves, would create wonderment.

Single shelves bridge the intervals of time; generations upon generations of men congregate there.

From the film, the demonstration shows that through the medium of books one can witness the plague of Athens or London, without contagion; follow Caesar upon his marches; stand by the side of Agricola as he regards Ireland and says that some day he will “go over and take it”; rove the Dark Continent with Stanley, and learn the secrets of artificial and natural flight with Sir Hiram Maxim. Similarly, readers would transport their thoughts according to the nature of the literature indulged in by them.

It could be shown that no matter what our tastes are, whether they be inventive or whether we prefer to be in the company of a celebrated humourist, the library will supply all wants.

Other activities in connection with the Library could be shown: the travelling libraries setting out to the rural districts, the door-to-door calls, the issuing of books to our isolated brethren. Lastly, our work with the children in the juvenile library and reading rooms, and the establishment of libraries in the schools.

What more material can the publicity exponent desire than lies here within his reach--the film for perfect propaganda work? It only needs to be utilized. By means of one human effort for the creation of such a film, its duplication to any number, its use either in the libraries, the local cinema, or public hall, the whole of the population of England could be enlightened simultaneously or gradually, and the efforts of the publicists would be rewarded by the Public Library being placed in its right sphere as an educational institution; its use to the community would be recognized and the demand upon its resources would be increased.

We as librarians, custodians of books, must acknowledge the significance of the cinematograph. We have in projectors a valuable aid to our works as educators. The “movies” are the coming apostles of education; in them we have the world in miniature, and its value as an educative force can hardly be over-estimated. In a very few years every well-equipped library will be installed with its own cinematograph apparatus, and possibly its own asbestos-lined cinema-operating room, as at Stockport, for instance.

THE BOOK.

A film on the making of a book could be made decidedly interesting, showing the many processes that go to the making of a book; from the arrival of the manuscript to the purchase of the book at a shop, and the customer reading it at home. Such a film has been prepared by Messrs. Doubleday Page & Co., Garden City, New York. The film can portray the living characters of books, and readers usually derive more pleasure from reading after the characters have been portrayed upon the screen.

THE FILM AS MENTAL ALLY.

Much enlightenment may be derived from the film. There are some people, who during their lifetime spend too much time on petty details, a fair proportion of every community are totally incapable of following any line of thought to its logical conclusion. Some people, whilst reading a book, have to depend upon a bookmark to locate the place where they are reading, instead of being able to pick up the book and recommence, remembering where they discontinued previously. Concentration of thought whilst reading, a complete assimilation of the facts contained in the book, and the capability of understanding what has been read, would obviate the necessity of any temporary bookmark. The fact of remembering what has been read will readily indicate the place to recommence reading.

Some people will read a novel, and at the end cannot recall the characters in the book, or what part they have taken in the story. Such a hapless habit is to be deprecated. Others possess a more retentive memory and read a book with a definite purpose, and at the conclusion, or even some considerable time afterwards, could enumerate every detail, fit in every character, the moral they present, and even tell one the defects therein. To such people as the forementioned, the film would be of great assistance; not only to give a correct rendering, visually, of the book, but to help them to remember facts and characters.

There are the class of people, few in number, who own and use their own libraries, and have little use for the Public Library. Another class, slightly larger, but still, numerically, only a small portion of the population, know books and use the Public Library freely and with intelligence. The remainder, or more than half the average community, need to be taught its value and purpose.

FILMED LITERATURE.

The “movies” make their appeal through the rapidity with which the plot of the story is carried along, and the exaggerated emphasis with which the different points are brought out. It is a primary or kindergarten for the schooling of those people into the region of emotional experiences. By co-operating with the “movies” the Library in time might be able to grade the work so that a brief and simple love-story might be heard or read with understanding. The repetition of the visual presentation of the idea possible in a moving picture would help to make its meaning clear.

Take a novel as an example: in this case Ethel M. Dell’s “The Keeper of the Door.” The chief character is the doctor or surgeon, who makes every endeavour to retain life in the human body, he being the keeper of the door, not allowing the spirit to depart. There is something really beautiful as this picture is portrayed: the vigilance of the doctor, and the kindness and patience of the nurse; yet in spite of all this attention the activity of the patient is slowly waning, and then the last breath is taken and human life ceases to be.

Other features create interest--the surroundings, the way the characters play their part, and the emblematical representations all create a longing to read the book. In reading, the whole scenes return as witnessed; greater interest is created, and one cannot imagine a person losing his place of reading, or the inability to fit the characters in their places, even after some considerable time has elapsed.

IV

SOCIAL

THE CINEMA COMMISSION.

The National Council of Public Morals embraces many subjects in its activities; for some years it has been keenly interested in the influence of the cinematograph upon young people, with the possibilities of its development and with its adaptation to national educational purposes. The President (the Bishop of Birmingham), with the Rev. F. B. Meyer, D.D., took a leading part; the first Cinematograph Congress being held at Olympia in 1913.