The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-07-17
Ihe Fact That Our Government Is Encouraging Music Both In the Fighting Armies and the Home Armies Should Inspire Us to Continue Community Singing
Rx DOLLY pALR1MpLE

| HH0TI HE fact that our government i is encouraging music both in
 ! S the fighting armies and the home armies should inspire the good people of this city do to their utmost | to help US continue cur community sing l ing" said Mrs. w. J. Adams, president | of the community sing committee, in l speaking of the tremendous influence
 that community singing has had in every place it has been inaugurated.
 1 Mrs. Adams, with her enthusiasm and splendid spirit of comradeship and her earnest desire to maintain musical stan dards during the war, has done every i thing in her power to arouse the spirit of Birmingham to continue the commu- nitv sing. which has been discontinued for lack of funds during the past few weeks
 of our people could hear the many expressions of disappointment from the large numbers of people who have en-
 ioyed the community sing as l have
 heard relative to it's discontinuance, l
 feel sure that they wouldn't let the mat
 ter of a few dollars withhold from the
 people this enjoyable and highly educa-
 tional form of entertainment" Mrs. Ad-
 ans said. "Our governments approval
 of music-its insistence upon our army
 being a singing army-snging to victory
 ought to make us show our patriotism
 in this way as well as other ways. Many
 Of our best singers-our finest musicians
 and conductors-have volunteered for
 musical work in the various canton
 ments Madame Schumann-Heink has
 sung her way into the hears of our
 boys over there.' Mr., or rather Lieut.
 John Philip Sousa is adored by the boys
 in the army. Kenneth Clarke, Percy
 Hemus, our own beloved MT. Robert Lawrence-all these men have been de- lighted to contribute their talent to the musical uplift of the army; and no less are we admonished by our government to Keep the Home Fires Burning; in other words, the community sing is re- garded as the outward and visible ex- pression of our love for our boys over there. The fact that we assemble one afternoon in the week-and especially as the day is Sunday-the day of all days when home and love and comfort sug- gest Inconsistencies our boys realize that we are thinking of them-singing for them-and trying to keep ep the sta ndard of music while they are away, and give them aA rouSing welcome when they return.
 ''Of course I can't make any new sug- gestions as to how to raise funds neces- sary to carry on the community sing, Mrs Adams said. ',The letters we have sent out placing before the public the conditions, tells the story; the commit tee which will make the canvass for funds will of course, be able to make plain the statement of facts Just as they exist. It has been suggested that the | price of cents be asked from everyone | who attends the community sing as means of defraying the expenses. Others l have suggested that the community sing | should be absolutely free of charge to | he people who attend. being maintained [ as it was formerly by donations, sup scriptions and otherwise. Just what IS | pest must be determined and De deter- mined soon, because the community sing IS as essential to this communlty-more so-than many other things TOT "iich nor.ey is freely given.
 Our boys over there expect us to carry on with our music over hefe | just as much as they are dolng, Mrs. Adams said. and I can't see how we | can fail them when they ask iaVor ol is MT. Lawrence would be distressed i to death if he thought that all ms worh If the past few months-his time, his en- arsv-had been wasted; indeed, l can't |
 ina zine any of us allowing his eiforts fo go to waste like that. MT. Lawrence l 5ave his services to the community SHE freely and generously; he could ask TOT ! n,onev and get it when nobody else l ,ould: but now that he is gone-propaply he is on the high seas now on ms way to the boys in France, We must nave somebody to continue the work ne start- ed. we cannot let it fail
 ..The community sing has been a per feet boon to Birmingham, Mrs. Adams sa,5 ,"Thousands # people have en- ;oved singing the songs our soldier boys