The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1875-12-17
winter An,a-enep Is.


DIR. Holland writes as follows, in
Scribner for December, on the sub
iect of Winter Amusements:
II is an easy thing to establish,
either in country or city neighbor-
hoods, the reading club. Twenty
GIVE young men and women of con-
genial tastes, habits and social be-
iongings can easily meet in one an
others houses, once during every
week, through five or six months OF
the year. With a small fund they
can buy good books, aud, over
these, read aloud by one and anoth-
err of their number, they can spend
an hour and a half most pleasantly
and probably. They will find in
these books topics of conversation
for the remainder of the time they
spend together. If they can illum-
ate the evening with music, all the
better. Whatever accomplishments
may be in the possession nj differ
ent members of the club may be
drawn upon to give variety to the
interest of the occasion. This is en-
tirely practicable, everywhere. Ii
is more profitable than amateur the
atricals, and less exhaustive of lime
and energy. Ii can be united with
almost any literary object. The
Shakespeare Club" is nothing but
a reading club, devoted to the study
of a single author; and Shakespeare
may well engage club for a single
winter. Such q club would cult
vate the art Of good reading, which
is one of the best and most useful
of all accomplishments. 1t would
cultivate thought, imagination,
taste. In brief, the whole tendency
of the reading club is toward cul-
ture-the one thing, uotwithstand-
ing all our educational advantages,
the most deplorably lacking in the
average American man and woman.
There was time when the popu-
lar lecture was a source not only of
amusement but Of culture-when il
stimulated thought, developed
healthy opinion, conveyed instruc-
ton, and elevated the taste. The
golden days when Sumner, Everett,
and Holmes, Starr King, and Prof.
Mitchell, Bishop Huntington and
Bishop Clark, Beecher and Chaplin,
Emerson, Curtis, Taylor, and Phil
lips, were all actively in the field,
were days of genuine progress.
Few better things could happen to
the American people than the re-
turn of such days as those were ;
and the 'lecture SYSTEM" as it has
been called, is declining In usefulness
and interest, simply because it has
not men like these to give it tone
and value. A few of the set linger
in the field, but death, old age, and
absorbing pursuits have withdrawn
the most of them. The platform is
not what it was. The literary trifl
er, the theatrical reader, the second
or third rate concert, have dislodg-
ed the reliable lecture-goers and
the popular lecture will certainly
be killed if bad management can
kill it. The standard has not been
raised or even maintained; 1t has
been lowered-lowered specially,
and with direct purpose, to meet
the tastes of the vulgar crowd.
"Well, the young people, in
whose hands the lecture system"
has always been, can mend all this,
if they consider it worth the pains.
Certainly, the coming into contact
with thoroughly vitalized man of
brains is a very stimulating expert
ence. The privilege of doing so
should not be lightly relinquished /;
and, when a course of lectures is
well conducted, it ought to meet
with q generous patronage from all
who have young people on their
hands to be entertained and inn
proved.
But even the lecture, desirable as
it is, is not necessary. In a city like
New York, there ought to be five
hundred clubs of young people es-
tablished this very winter, for the
purposes of social and intellectual
amusement, with culture in view as
the great ultimate end. The eXer-
cises may take great many forms
which it is not necessary for us even
to suggest. Books may be read,
original papers may be presented,
musical rehearsals may form q part
of the entertainment, products OF
art may be exhibited, there may be
dramatic and conversational prac-
tice, and practice in French and
German. There is no limit to the
variety of exercises that NAV be
profitably entered upon. And what
is good for the young people of the
great cities will be just as good for
young people everywhere.