Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1925-04-09
CHAUTAUQUA

Under Opinions of Others" the
local Post of the American Legion
has an article in this issue desiring
a correction in the news item of last
week regarding the proposed Chau-
tauqua in Askov this summer
Whether they wish to reprimand
the American or one of their men,
bers is not known to us, but the
item was reported about as it was
given to us and we presume it was
correctly stated when it said: "V. S.
Petersen is going ahead with the
plans for this summer" If the Le-
gion is sponsoring it may we ask if
they had anything to do with decid-
ing that the North Branch Singing
Society and the Governor will appear
here, or any of the other arrange
ments?
So far as the American is concern
ed we do not know that we have ever
wilfully sighted the Legion. In fact
last year after the Home Talent Week
was not put over by the business men
(Which by the way there would have
been no difficulty in doing had a
little GOODNESS and deliberation been
exercised) we supported and boosted
the undertaking under auspices of the
Legion, even going to the expense of
furnishing printed programs free of
charge. And the writer as director
of the band and orchestra worked
diligently many evenings for three
or four weeks prior to the programs
in order to make the best possible
showing with local talent.
The poor" business men, however,
seem to get it." Here we have it
they decided that a success could not
be made of the idea" and last year
after the Home Talent Week an ar
1ticle in an out of town publication
pictured them as reactionary and not
able to warm up to the enterprise.
And the verbal accusations were less
edifying.
1t would be only natural that if the
business men were to pay the ex-
pense of the undertaking, as was first
proposed, that they should have
something to say about it-whether
the free admission was to be ex-
tended to our own community or the
whole state, and other like questions.
But enough of that. The above
will not interest many readers and
may be looked at as see-sawing, petty
jealousy, blabber and the like by
those who had nothing to do with
the arrangements.
While we are on the subject of
Home Talent Week or Chautauqua we
wish to bring out a few thoughts
which may be of interest to the gen.
,eral public and as it is community
project, or at least should be, and
not an individual undertaking, it
wouldn't hurt bit to know a little
more about what others think of it.
Suggestions offered should always be
welcome.
In the first place when we had
the Acme Chautauqua Company of
Dies Moines, Iowa, showing here two
seasons in succession some objection
was raised on account of the amount
of money it took out of the COM
munity and goodness knows that the
company was after every nickel they
could squeeze out. One objection rails
ed by the American (and we believe
it was shared by many others) was
the fact that there were too much
entertainment all in a run, more
than the ordinary person who has
his daily work to attend to, can abb
sorb. In that respect the University
Lyceum Course put on by the Ameri-
can Legion through several seasons
here in the winter time is better be-
cause there are half dozen or more
entertainments spread over course
of five or six months.
Regular travelling Chautauqua COM
NAMES consist of professional actors
and musicians, or at least advanced
and quite efficient, and trained lee
turers who have their lessons learned
and all worked out before they ap-
near on the road. so they need only