Captive History

An American Library of Motion Picture History, a subdivision of the Department of the Interior, is a fancy bred in the head of motion picturedom. An attempt is to be made to put it into law, so that in the future true and infallible history may be unrolled by a few reels from the film library.

As a starter, the Rockett Lincoln Film Co. offered a copy of its twelve reel Dramatic Life of Abraham Lincoln to be deposited in a vault at the Smithsonian Institution, there to remain sealed until Feb. 12, 2109 (three hundredth anniversary of Feb. 12, 1809). Said the Film Co.:

"The twelve reels of film, together with a modern projecting machine, with full operating instructions, will be sealed in a steel vault, specially constructed to preserve the film and machine in perfect working order, and with these will be deposited a copy of the working script of the picture and a few copies of the best books on motion picture production and practice. The reason for the projection machine is that in the 185 years to elapse between 1924 and 2109 tremendous changes will take place in motion picture production and exhibition and the donors of the Lincoln picture will take every precaution to insure the proper exhibition of their picture in 2109."