The Mena weekly star., 1917-06-28
.NENA CHAUTAUQUA
 CLOSES SESSION
Considered by Many As the Best in Mena's Experience--KiIties Band Drew a Large Crowd Sunday
 Contract Made for 1918.

The Chautauqua session which started under such suspicious eondi- tions last "Wednesday afternoon with the concert by Castclucci's Milano the concert by Castalucci's Milano fScrenaders. closed Sunday night with a great band concert given by the Kilties band an organization that has been in existence for i7 years, and has travelled in twenty countries and has made one com |plete circuit of the globe. The pro- gram both Sunday afternoon and night was by the Kilties, and on both occasions there were record break ing audiences in attendance, the au- dienee on Sunday night being per- haps the largest that mas ever at tended a chautauqua session ia Mena. The concert was a fitting close to week of splendid attrac- tions, and hundreds of people were given the opportunity to hear some of the finest music that hase ever been written, which opportunity might never have come to them had it not been for the chautauqua or- Iganization. Khe program was var ried, including selections that have been favorites with the greatest hand masters and the lovers of clas- sic music to the simpler selections of the old-time plantation melodies, together with the selections on the bagpipes, played by the director,
 Murdoch J. Macdonald, and tenor solos by James pearse.
 The program Saturday afternoon and night was given by the Berkeley
 Sextette and by Miss Pearl O'Neil, reader. The sextette gave a delight ful program of orchestra numbers, costume songs, pianologs and read ings, making a well balanced and pleasing chautauqua attraction, one that is eminently refining and re- freshing. Miss O'Neil, who shared the afternoon and night program with the Sextette, is a young lady from Canada, who has striking personality, and enters into her work with an earnestness that makes her an inspiration to chau- tauqua audiences. 44e
 Taken all together, the Chautau- qua of this year measures up well with the three others that have gone before, and in some particulars it was the strongest session ever held in Mena. There was something for teveryone who attended, and as re- suit t is notgsurprising that there is
 a wide divergence of opinion as to which was the best attraction
 Among the lectures it was a close
 race between Hon. Ali Taylor and
 Dr. H. V N.sAdanis as to which was the
 most popular and yet their lectures
 were so entirely different that they
 are not to be judged by the same standard. To many, on the other
 hand. Ernest J. Powell gave the best lecture of the session. The Kilties
 easily won first place as the most popular musical attraction, tho even five days after their appearance, the
 Castellucci's Milano Serenaders were klNtu ilfSl pldCt, ny SOiHt, diilOuS
 the musical attractions.
 That the Chautauqua spirit has come to stay in Mena was evidenced by the fact that after the executive committee had agreed upon con-
 tract, with the representative of
 the White X Myers Chautauqua sys-
 tenn, it was only a short time until
 the required number of signatures
 were secured on the guarantee, and when the contract was closed, sev- enty Mena men and women had sig
 nifed their willingness to stand
 back of the Chautauqua for next year. The program for next year will be even stronger than the one
 this year, one of the new attrac-
 tions being the Hinshaw Opera Com pany in the "Mikado.n
 The local executive committee in
 a day or two will conclude checking up the business of the year, and aft
 CT that they will make statement
 of the receipts and expenditures,
 which will doubtless show balance 4