A COMMUNITY BENEFIT Why have a chautauqua in a community?

It doesn't make any money for us and we have to dig in our pockets to make the thing pay out. We have to guarantee before hand that we will make enough money to pay the expense and then if the poople do not buy tickets, we have to make up the balance.

The above seems to be the opinion of some in the community regarding the Culver chautauqua which starts tomorrow.

Not only do these people actually feel that way, but they refuse to give the thing their support. That is their own business and far be it from this paper to criticize these individuals, collectively or separately

However, some startling facts can be gleaned from a little study of the proposition from a financial and educational standpoint.

The financial standpoint seems to be more interesting, so lets give that angle due consideration. For ihe business man of the city, lets see some actual figures. People that come into the town connected with the chautauqua will spend for room and board (bare necessities) $213.75 inasmuch as they stay at the hotels and eat at the restaurants.

The average traveling person will spend at least fifty cents a day (low estimate) for other things such as laundry, clothes cleaned, toilet articles and soft drinks. That will make an addition of $29.00.

There will be about 400 tickets sold and the average attendance at a performance that will be 35 cents. Supose that each individual will spend on an average of fifty cents per day. There is 875.00 hard rocks which go to the business men of the town. Take a total of the whole amount spent as a result of the chautauqua and we have $1117.75 which is a very conservative estimate.

Then there is another income from the chautauqua which can not be measured in dollars and cents.

Such men as our late President Warren J. Harding and Woodrow Wilson would stand for that statement. Harding has said, "It has been to me a personal satisfaction, as well as an intellectual and spiritual opportunity, to be numbered among the lecturers who have carried the message of chautauqua throughout the country."

The chautauqua brings to the community, people who are specially etlucated in a particular line. They come to entertain and educate peopile In a little different way than is employed in schools.

However, they educate and leave a better community educationally, after they have gone. If people of any community are to do away with chautauquas because it is purely an expense, why do we not take out the schools and churches. They are purely an expense and we pay an enormous amount of taxes each year for those institutions.

How many children in a community enjoy going to a lecture? Very few for the most of them would rather spend the time swimming in the lake. But take a look at the front row of a chautauqua program and you will find that the children are there and paying good attention to what the speaker is saying.

Isn't that education? Watch the children on the front row when an evening of good clean wholesome fun is going on. They are paying attention and becoming educated to enjoy the good things of life. No one would think of doing away with our schools and churches so let us all stand behind the chautauqua for it is a benefit to the community educationally and financially.