The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-08-11

confidential moment revealed the fact
and Leah was encouraged to make her own
doll clothes and in time embroidered her
own pctticoat.
The X family lived in a swarming tene-
ment. When after a weary stress the
little one got her first violin the neiGhbors
wanted TO come in and hear her play. To
find n place for the neighbors to sit down
" was necessary first to pick up the things
that strewed the room. Instead OF the
dirty shiftlessness Of that family, life there
il now decency and order. and the first
evidence OF the Americanization OF an ellen
f~amily-the KS sit down together at a
table for three regular meals
Deborah and her brother were among
the most promising pupils. Deborah now
gives lessons at home. Commercially II is
an interesting ~corollary that in this district
thirtv-four pianos were sold to these
families within three years. The pianos
were bought on the instalment plan and
rented out in practice hours to different
children to pay the i~nstalments..
The physical wellbeing Of the children
was looked after, and the public school, In
sisted upon. In vacation II was the custom
Of Miss Wagner and her assistants to take
several Of the children camping with them
in the Maine woods.
Here the girls put On boys clothes for
roughing IL. and learned to paddle canoes.
row and take their early morning dip. On
fine DAYS. az IL might be the Forest OF Arden,
the little masqueraders pinned their music
on TO the trees and practised under the
hospitable branches. Other volunteer
teachers took their groups for outings by
the sea or at the farm and devoted the sum
mer TO sunshine and Bach. Later a regular
summer home was organized az Newfound-
land. n. j.
From out Of these iourishing conditions
Miss Wagner has now stepped and the
Peoples Music School emerged.
sAn IDatifnflOn 40 thOrOuDhlv GROUNDED
IA the Settlement Music School naturally
does not care to make experiments. Al the
same time | do not want to foreRo trying
further my own theories" said Miss Wagner,
in explanation. "The People's Music School
is not to reform these children.
They need no reforming. There will be
no better citizens than these children will
make. My idea is without any sentiment
tally to put the new enterprise on a prac-
teal business basis. We do not expect to
supporting. and to keep our self-respect.
The financial scheme Is very simple.
We now nave fifteen teachers. Each OF
these pays to the school 10 cents room rent
for every hour used in teaching. The
pupils paw on an average 20 cents for a
This gives the teacher 50 cents and 10
cents for the school. Al this rate each
room more than rays for itself. The teacher
is at liberty to charge more for her lessons
u sne can ReI ". iHs IL an iicctNlNc. w
her ambition and does not interfere with
the simplicity Of our bookkeeping.
"One feature OF our work is to be our
neighborhood concerts. The orchestra ia
under the leadership Of W. II. Humiston. the
organist n For these con-
certs we will hire different halls.
PERHAPS in time our work here in famil-
iarizing the East Side with the hest music
NAV have its effect in the larger schemes
up town for sup orting and popularizing
the opera. according 10 the vision OF MIR.
Hammerstein. We, too. have our schemes
looking TO the future. These wen include
the orera.- But however ambitious these
may be. they will fall in with the regular
work of the school,
While Miss Wagner spoke small pigtailed
and closely cropped heads we're going and
coming and the scratch Of the bow and the
sound of the pianos never ceased. The
rooms were bare OF all but the necessaries-
piano chair and music Standard a few
photographs and black and white ems
auctions were on the walls TO reliev their
meagreness. But there was no installing
the serious purpose of these little Rumani-
ans. Poles. Russians. and all the little
Palkans who we're at work.
There is a great deal Of idealism on the
Fast Side, Miss Wagner continued, refer
ring back to her first thought. What
would you say of a child who saws to you
I'D rather have a rose han a dinner'p
ITO many Of these children music is 80
the breath of life. Name are important
and cleanliness is important. But we DO not
have To insist on these. because they take
their nlace as the musical susceptibilities
are educated. So you see how from every
roint of view this seems to me should be
the centre FOR our musical enterprise"