The Belding banner-news. (Belding, Mich.) 1918-1973, 1921-08-17
CHAUTAUQuA WAS
THE BEST EVER
AND WILL RETURN
TALENT WAS VERY SATiSFAC-
TORY. REQUIRED NUMBER
OF TICKETS WERE SOLD

passed into history and with III goes
the record that never in the eight
times that the Redpath people have
covered this circuit, have they pre-
sented better talent, nor pleased
greater number of people than they
have his year. The crowds in at
tendance were always good and at
the Shakespearian play AS You
Like TT, "The Man From Home"
and Ralph Brigham's performance,
the attendance was record breaking.
From the time that the Oceanic
Concert Company opened the series
of seven day programe, until the
last smile had left the faces of the
people in Ralph Bingham's audience
the people who attended &C. more
than their moneys worth and there
was never a suspicion that the splen-
did summer attraction would fail TO
return for next year.
To give par. -ular credit to any
particular person or group in the
several which appeared here would
be a hard matter The Oceanic Con-
cert Co.'S. afternoon performance and
their evening prelude before the good
lecture of Montaville Flowers, was
excellent. Mr.. Flowers America
Looking Ahead" was timely and
while he may have painted the Jap
question with little too much color
in spots, still it will pay us to OBJ
serve his admontions and watch the
yellow race. The Chapel Singers on
Saturday afternoon and with their
prelude in the evening pleased their
audiences with a splendid and varied
program and the evening lecture by
Lewis A. Convis on his per. ! al eX-
periences with the Bolshevicks in
Russia, was particularly interesting
and full of enlightenment. His de-
scripton of the vastness of Siberia
itS natural resources, etc. was rev.
elation to many.
The Monday afternoon program
was by the Harry Yeazelle Mercer
Company and was of high order,
as was also their prelude in the
evening which was followed by an
interpretative recital by Miss Kath-
crime Ridgeway This was excep-
tionally good and the delightful wit
and charming personality of Miss
Ridgeway, coupled with the real art
in her program, were commented
on by many as being simply grand.
The Tuesday afternoon program
was opened by Miss Belle Forbes, a
soprano of beautiful voice and at
tractiveness and was followed by
Harry J. Loose, for % years con-
nected with crime life and criminals
as a detective and policeman in Chi
cago. Too bad that we cannot give
his entire lecture here and also too
bad that there were not more peo-
pie to hear him. He laid a great
part of the cause of crime to the
,~,Nxy.ncr hn,tgn 70 10
girls and boys themselves and a
whole lot of it to the moral decay
in the care of their children on the
part of parents, who have let down
the bars of religious training and
practice in the home and community.
He stated that each year in the
United States there disappear
something like $4,000 girls, from
whom nothing is ever heard and
warned against the man who is al
ways ready to help young girls in
strange cities and the slick female
who is also looking for a chance to
gather in a recruit for the white
slave trade. Mr.. Loose was a good
talker and his lecture alone was
worth the price of a season ticket.
Tuesday evenings play, Shakes
peare's "As You Like IT., was a
little too ancient for a modern red
blooded audience and while they got
a little applause occasionally, it
sounded like as if it came from some
che who did not want the rest Of the
people to know they were applauding
Really, to the minds of many, the
best part in thew hole evenings en-
tertainment, was the appearance of
Miss Grace Halsey Mills, in her fore
word before the play While we
would not try to form the impress
sion that the Ben Greet Players
were not good actors, still we do
think that but very few people like
English too far back and too high
and thishererunning yourwordsinto
eachother as the actors in the play
did, failed to draw a great deal of
applause and appreciation In fact
we really think that those who en-
joyed the play the greatest were
those who dropped asleep early in
the evening.
The National Male Quartette was
just little more than could be de-
sired and the boys made a hit with
their audience, Mr.. Cox, in particu-
lar, excelling his companions in that
in addition to his voice, he was also
SOOu dS al lilpeTSOHdlOT. TOIOW-
ing their perlude in the evening. DIR
Frederick Monson talked on the truth
about Mexico. He alleged that Pan
cho Villa was regular fellow and
that all the talk about banditry and
Villa was largely bunk. He told OF
his personal acquaintance with Viii
la and also showed a number OF
beautiful pictures which were, like
his talk, appreciated.
Thursday afternoon, DR.. Frank
Loveland talked on the "Perils OF
Democracy and the talk was meat
all the way through and was sc
thoroughly enjoyed by the audience
that it was with regret that the
conclusion was reached In the
evening he was banquetted by the
members of the board of commerce
in the city hall, where he also spoke
OF all the PLAYS which have struck
town, it is safe to say that none ever
pleased more than did "The Mar
From Home" and the cast which