Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1903-11-20
Decline of the Lecture Course

A lecture course, bringing as it does to
the doors of its patrons some of the most
famous men of the day and some of the
finest musical attractions at a nominal
cost, is theoretically fine thing, but in
practice it is often a financial failure.
The popularity of the lecture course has
been on the wane for several years. The
older generation used to enjoy hearing
men who have a national reputation, but
times have changed. The younger gen
Grafton has been educated along different
lines. When no school entertainment is
considered complete without a dance,
when cheap theatricals take the place of
the lyceum and the debating club, what
is to be expected? No one ought to be
surprised if Daniel Webster, resurrected,
should appear in any Vermont town and
be unable to compete with the dance hall.
The older generation in Bellows Falls
used to support an excellent lecture
course, but it is doubtful if their success
sor would support one. They haven't
been educated along lecture course lines.
Barre is city where for IA years
lecture course was paying venture, but
even there one now hears the cry of dis
tress. The committee state that the
course has been run during the past three
years at financial loss, notwithstanding
| the fact that the very best entertainments
have been brought TO the city at cost
| to ticketholders of less than % cents per
entertainment. The committee states
| that the course this year will cost $780,
and that the sale Of tickets amounts to
only $648.50. Barre also has too much
dancing, too many saloons, too many
prize fights. too many card parties, too
many bean suppers to render the atmos-
phere conducive to the growth of lee
ture course.
A lecture course will thrive in a rural
community in Vermont, but in the
! larger places where entertainment has
become diversified and all find what they
want and " hat they have been educated
to njoy, the lecture course like the
| lyceum, the choral union, etc, goes to
| the wall.
| The only way to run lecture course
in place like Barre or Bellows Falls is
for those who want that kind of enter
tainment to foot the bills, and that means
So instead of So season tickets. The
community as a whole can no longer be
asked successfully to lend support
Bellows Falls Times.
The above is worthy of serious consd-
Grafton as it contains much painful truth
that it is well to face.
The conclusions of the Times are
wrong, however. A good course will
pay in any town in Vermont, if it i:
started right and promoted on modern
lines.
Middlebury, Randolph, Morrisville, st
Johnsbury, etc, all have good course:
that are financial success.
In each case thorough canvass foi
season tickets is made in advance anC
enough such tickets are subscribed fol
to make the course pay before the com
mittee advertises it or the speakers, anC
entertainments are engaged. There il
no hap-hazard, trust-to-luck methods
In some cases, where no one, or the
members of the committee, feels able t.
give the time required to make thorough
canvass, a canvasser is hired, but "A Ger
tain number of season tickets are pledged
before any course is advertised or en-
gagged.