The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1907-12-27
Is Music Luxury, Necessary Evil
Or a Necessity?
(By Carl Riedelsberger.) }

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Some very famous man said at one
time, that music was the least disa-
greeable of noises. In fact, the value
of music and its teachings are under
stood differently by all classes of peo-
pie. There are any number Of peo-
pie who are opposed to their child
rem, especially their boys, studying
music. So there are any number of
people who oppose the study of for
eign languages, simply because Eng
lish is good enough for them" There
are any number of people who OPP
pose all kinds of education since, as
they say, it units their boys for busi-
ness. Let us put such people down
as so absolutely ignorant that they
deserve no thought from any man or
woman of intelligence.
A business man told me once that
he did not intend to have any of his
boys study music since he had never
known boy who played ''that rag
time who did not go to the dogs,
| told him there was such place
to so to for boy who had studied
that rag time" Rag time leads to
that kind of an ending, as do dime
novels. Good music never does.
DO you know that in all civilized
countries on the face of the globe,
the musical profession furnishes the
lowest percentage or criminals Of all
professions, not one other excepted?
Why SO?
Next to music there is not a single
study which pays for itself so won
derfully and beautifully as the study
of foreign languages. There is not
money enough in the world to buy
from me the enjoyment which my
knowledge of three languages has
brought into my life, not merely
from practical standpoint, but
from the standpoint of mere intel
lectual enjoyment. Every minute
that can spare is devoted to the
reading of some article or poem in a
foreign language, and what an i'm
mense amount of pleasure l have de-
rived from doing so.
If a higher education units a
young man for business, let us quit
business, say. 1t may unfit young
man to become such fine business
man that he becomes a grafter-any-
thing but rare article in these days
1t is better to be poor business man
and an honorable man than to be
multi millionaire and thief. Edu-
cation has rarely made thief, since
it, Of necessity, leads to a higher
standard of morals. The greatest
danger to this country today lies In
the fact that we do measure success
by filthy lucre, that we do not only
look upon rich grafters with pleas
ing glances, but that we often exalt
them and hold them up to our child
rem as shining examples of what we
call success And whatever we can
do to change this state of affairs
which is deplorable enough and no
less than a disgrace to our beloved
country, we should do. Therefore,
in these days of the rankest kind of
materialism, all the softening infu-
ences of life such as music, poetry,
the stage, in its highest sense, In
fact Art of all kinds, has a higher
mission than 1t has ever had.
Confucius said thousands OF years
ago that he could Judge by the songs
of a nation the effectiveness Of Its
laws and the worth Of It's citizens.
Goethe said, that IL each man and
woman might read one good poem,
hear one good piece of music and
see one good picture, once a day,
they would be better for 1t.
No one knows better than music
teacher the infinite enjoyment which
comes to people from study Of the
best there Is in music. In fact, there