The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1911-07-31
ATTACKS PAGEANT
John spars0 Attempts 10 Stir Up
Glass Feeling IN Town


Editor OF The Banner:-Will you
kindly allow me through your col
umns opportunity to make a protest
against the ridiculously and needless
! ly high rates of admission to the
/ Pageant performances?
Bearing in mind that very large
number of workingmen in this dis
trict earn pitifully and shamefully
small wages--there are thousands in
the neighborhood who do not earn
more than a dollar and half day
it would appear that the committee
responsible for fixing the prices of
admission intends the pageant perfor-
mances to be attended only by the
better classes" (so-called) and to ex-
clude the great majority of the labor
ing people.
How can a man who earns only
dollar and half or dollar and sew
enty-fve cents a day, upon which he
must maintain a family, be expected
to pay such prices of admission? /
am told that it is proposed to close
down some of the factories for a
number of days in the week of the
pageant, so that 1t will involve the
further hardship of loss of wages
to many.
Now sir this coming celebration
will have no significance at all from
civic point of view If it is confined
to certain classes, il one class in the
community is practically excluded
from It, 1t ought to be a Folk-Festl-
val, a celebration by all the people
in simple, democratic good fellowship
Ten cents would have been an ample
charge. Indeed, considering the rel
atively small expense attached to
such a celebration, the whole cost
might have been raised by subscrip-
ton and the performance made free
to all, young and old, rich and poor.
AS it is, by excluding many OF the
working people and their families, the
committee responsible for the ar
rangements has made out of popu-
lar celebration an exhibition OF snob-
berry and class arrogance. Whether
the members OF the committee have
done this deliberately, or whether 1t
is a natural result of their ignorance
of the conditions under which mass
eS vi litlI ltllOM NlilLClo llNN 10 hONf
here and now, matter of any conse-
quence at all The fact is that many
working people will be unable TO pay
the high price of admission. Thus, a
popular celebration will be held up
on terms which exclude one class OF
citizens-and that is the essence OF
snobbery and class arrogance.
There should be one price of admis
sion to everybody, and that price
low enough to enable every citizen &c
attend all the performances. A popu
lar celebration such as this is marrsd
by class pride and conceit from the
start when arrangements are made tC
provide specially good seats for those
whose only title TO such considera
ton is the fact that they have money
| Ii there are to be some seats superior
to others, let them be set apart FOL
the old, the innrm, and others who
suffer physical disabilities. But IL
the name of all that is decent, let US
in this community celebration ge
away for a few days from the rotteI
pride of class and the cringing servil
lily of class which characterize our or
binary life.
1t is not too late for the COMMITTEES
to rectify the great blunder 1t hai
made II can make a new schedule
of charges. II 1t refuses to do this
no amount of protestation, excuse Of
explanation will suffice TO cover th'
fact that this is intended to be Gel
ebration of the local snobocracy
Unless the committee comes to III
senses trust that the working PEG
, pie of the community will have TOT
much sense and self respect TO TAX
any part in it, They should boycott
the entire thing II the better class
es" want a celebration, let them cele
: brate by themselves. The sons ant
, daughters of the working class in tn
, community ought not to be foolisl
enough to take part in the pageantr,
from which a great part OF their owl
class will be excluded. Self-respec
ought to lead the working people I,
: a vigorous boycott OF the whole, IN
I democratic, class governed business
q. The fact that the profits are to b
: devoted to a public park or som
D lother public improvement has moth
a ing to do with the case and In n
wise detracts from the shamefulnes
and folly of the arrangement.
!. Faithfully yours,
IL