Nappanee High School - Napanet Yearbook (Nappanee, IN)

Page 17 text:

Should Education he Compulsory By IVY STAHLY A S question after question confronts our young American government we ,♦ see tier with troubled brow ponder patiently over them considering, contriving and planning in her kind hearted way what would t e best for her people in general. And as our child nation grows older she at last comes face to face with the great and weighty question. Will compulsory education be a benefit to our beloved cities and villages?” Hut now there is a sudden stand still and our government wavers for she fears that a little over-rashness may be detrimental but yet she also fears that the very lack of this rashness may injure the intellect of her people. With her ever present insight into all. our government clearly comprehends the fact that the future of this country Is more than ever in the hands of the public schools. “And what Is this education.” we may ask that the nation should thus endeavor to thrust It upon all men withor without their consent?” It is through a careful study of the forces that have promoted and retarded the progress of the human race that eminent thinkers of modern times have been enabled somewhat clearly to ascertain the true value of these public schools and of this education. Hut it has not been a matter of modern thought only, for we Hnd the ancient Plato found by his own experience that education was that which gave to the body and to the soul all the | erfect ion of which they were capable. Hut no less has Webster, the deepest of American thinkers, considered t he question of education. For while pondering over his great questions he, too, lias concluded that education is that w hich disciplines the feelings, restrains the passions, inspires a true and worthy motive, and instills a true religious feeling Considering these definitions of the most deep-minded philosophers and statesmen our govern men t is at last convinced that without the virtue of education no man can Ik a true American citizen. And we feel that she is right; for when we consider the lives of our truly great men we find that in almost every case that everyone has had a taste of the advantages of education. On the other hand we find that the average criminal has had no educational training, hut that he has been given daily lessons In crime while he should have been in the school room cultivating his intellect. When we think of our government how she has been striving to do her best and her watch word lias ever been “Excelsior” we must wonder that she lias even hesitated to adopt t lie plan of compulsory education. For when we turn hack over the pages of history we can not hut admire the pure and noble lives our Pilgrim forefathers lived. And knowing, as we do, that tills has largely come of then strict educational and church laws, we must fear that our country Is not living on a much higher level now than it did at that time. It was within fifteen years of the landing of the Pilgrims that every child was compelled to go to school in order that lie .night see more clearly what would lx best to do with bis life, ran not our government form some plausible plan to induce the child to enter the school loom, thus keeping him from crime? While considering this great question our government must needs look into every crevice of city and village life in order that she may better estimate the difference between the boy who Iro had an educational training and the one who has not. Looking Into one of the streets where there has been no training (except the horrid information imparted by the ordinary street loafers) one is made to shudder and turn back. There stands a group of boys in the very prime of their years with the stigma of crime upon their faces. Considering that In nine cases out of ten truancy is the beginning of the downward course, we think with a sigh how many crimes could have been prevented if only our strict school legislation bad existed earlier. And now we feel with certainty that nothing Is left to do but to place “Compulsory Education in bold letters at the head of our national laws. The child by coming in contact every day with men of the very lowest type, himself I -comes a criminal. By forcing the child to go to school we can thus bring him in daily contact with the cultivated and refined minds and instead of a criminal we might have a noble young man. One great step toward this desired educational legislation has been the parental school of Boston. In all the streets of the city all the child loafers are hurried off to the school house where they are taught with the utmost care to prepare themselves for the future as well as for the present. In this way Boston is trying to lessen her sensational crimes. The government with a pleased eye looks on. feeling that at last she has gained a priceless jewel and only waiting for Time to bring her more of these model schools. But our government is looking forward to something that will lie even better than this. Briefly speaking, she Is looking forward to the time when every school will he able to place something within Its limits that will win the interests of every young individual and thus make compulsory education liecome a stepping-stone to voluntary education.

Page 16 text:

Tiieodori By CARIE G TTlIBODORE THOMAS. late conductor of the Chicago Orchestra, was Ixirn in Easens, Hanover, Germany, on October 11. 1835 and came to New York when ten years old. His father was a musician, and the son early showed talent for the violin. He had made some concert appearances as an infant prodigy. At the age of six lie was able to play a solo in public. For the next two years the youthful Theodore devoted himself to study, although he frequently was heard in concert. Late in the year 1849. the young violinist started on a concert tour through the southern states. He rode horse lack from town to town, carrying his fiddle and posters announcing his concerts. Arriving in a town lie would make arrangements with his landlord for a concert in the ••parlor.” These arrangements completed he would distribute his posters and drum up patronage. Promptly at the hour announced for he was punctuality itself he would close the door, march to the platform and play his first number. This tour through the south lasted more than a year. In 1851 young Thomas returned to New York and took a position as one of the first violins at the opera there. In the company during these first seasons were Sontag. Jenny Lind, Grlsio. Mario and other celebrated artists. In 1853 lie gave up most of his engagements and devoted himself to musical study, under Rudolph Schelllnger. The next year Mr. fhomas became a member of the New York Philharmonic society, which in after years he directed. In 1855 he organized a chamber music organization, of which William Mason, .1. Mosrntha), Carl Berg-mann, G. Mat .ka, and F. Hergner were the other members. With these noted musicians he gave New York the first quartet evenings ever offered, introducing a number of compositions which had never been played in this country Mr. Thomas also returned to the opera and under Ardltl was concert master of the orchestra during the season when Madame Lagrange was the particular star. One evening Halevy's “The Jewess” was announced for performance, and when young Thomas arrived to take Ills place at the first desk of the violins. Anschutz the conductor was missing, as was the orchestral score. A hasty search for the score was made, and Thomas conducted the orchestra so successfully that he was engaged for such work. This was the beginning of four years of his life as conductor of German and Italian opera companies. In 1862 he was elected as conductor of the Brooklyn Philharmonic society, and the following season commenced his first series of orchestra I concerts. Li Thomas UISS During 1864-65 Mr. Thomas was also director of the musical department of the New York institution for the blind. His concerts in 1866 were given in Irving Hall. He had organized his orchestra in 1866 because he realized that efficient and satisfactory work was to be obtained only when the company was constantly associated. This orchestra was known as the Thomas Orchestra and soon its fame was as wide as the United States, for during more than twenty years which it existed it visited all the prominent towns and cities from New York to San Francisco. In 1864, Mr. Thomas, then a man of thirty-four, came to Chicago with his orchestra and was heard there for the first time as a director. In 1X71 he and his players were to give a series of concerts in the Crosby opera house, hut the great lire destroyed it so that Mr. Thomas and his men were unable to get nearer down town than Twenty-second street. I uring these years Mr. Thomas had been battling against odds. Others were beginning to reap the benefits of his labor in developing a taste for good music. New conductors appeared and patronage had to lie divided. The Thomas concerts lost money, and when a number of Chicago gentlemen associated themselves for the purpose of establishing an orchestra in Chicago, offering the place of conductor to Mr. Thomas, he accepted. He had a hard struggle at first, but maintained his high musical standard in the face of opposition and complaint. However his backers were faithful to him. and Just before he died liad erected for the orchestra a permanent home, the cost of which, $800,(MX), was raised by popular subscription. It is a monument that bears witness to the untiring efforts of the dead musician. There is an erroneous belief that he was the first advocate of Wagner In this country. Whatever credit belongs to that place must be awarded to Carl Hergmann, for it was he who played Wagner in season and out of season. Mr. Thomas greatest claim as a conductor Is to catholicity of taste. He saw Wagner, but not Wagner alone. There were unusual elements of technique in the Thomas orchestra at that time. The violins lx wed together, and learned to make ercsendos and diminuendos together, so that the quality of the sound would remain the same through the selection. His orchestra was small, forty-seven at first, fifty-seven later, but he soon reached a point where he would not willingly undertake a Beethoven symphony with less than sixty men. The Thomas orchestra is now considered one of tlie best in the world, but this honor sliould f e awarded to its first conductor who always maintained his high musical standard in t lie face of criticism and complaint.

Page 18 text:

SciiiLLiiR's Idealism By HILDA BAER .CHILLER one of the greatest of German poets has written the most truly artistic ami U-autiful poems of German literature. His thoughts were noble, lofty and pure admitting of nothing common or ordinary. He was innately a poet of freedom and sympathy with his patriotic enthusiasm conspired with admiration of his poetic genius to make him more and more popular toward the close of his life and after his death. People called him an idealist and a visionary. He was indeed possessed by ideals but these were so true and so powerful that they insisted on being converted into realities. Thousands who fell on the battlefield carried with them into the struggle the enthusiasm kindled by Schiller’s poetry: his songs were on their lips and his spirit fought along with them. He studied long and deeply esteeming his vocation more than his earthly life, he was crowned with more than the admiration with the love of ills people and he died as he touched the goal. His thoughts were far above the sordid things of life and so lofty was the poet’s notion of culture that lie made it though not a substitute for morality a most important aid for the renovation of society. The influence of a sincere and idealistic literature is wanted to soften the contradictions which exist between our poetry and our actual life and to promote such a literature the man gifted in this way must add to the power of imagination the virtues of fortitude and patience and this endeavor to be a good man as well as a great poet made Schiller noble. Schiller’s drama, “The Maid of Orleans, is an example of his idealism. The secret of the influence of this heroine is found in that unwavering conviction of Divine guidance through which she roused the courage and kindled the sentiment of the people. It was this idealism in her character that spiraled to Schiller. With genuine poetic intuition he availed himself of the romantic temper of the fifteenth century and with the highest art. the poet makes the idealism which transformed the shepherd lass into the heroine of a nation stand forth in the setting of an age of superstition that could not comprehend her. Under ordinary circumstances we question the supernatural manifestation of the power of this young girl in leading her army so victoriously but when by his own deep feeling the poet lifus us above the ordinary plane, reveals to us the prophet’s vision, then our scruples are forgotten and we permit him to use any means he will to fulfill the purposes of his art. Schiller's aim is to show the triumphant victory of Joan’s idealism and at her appearance we accept her supernatural power and her heavenly visions as natural and proper to bring out in dramatic action, the spiritual enthusiasm that inspired her and her followers. Some of the most noted examples of his lofty Idealism are, Die Toiling der Erde, Das ideal und das Lel en. Die Hoffnung and his famous apostrophe to the maid of Orleans, in which he says: “To degrade the noble image of mankind ridicule has dragged Thee Into the deepest dust. Wit wages eternal war against the beautiful, It does not believe in angels and the gods: The heart it would rob of its treasures, it opposes fancy and does violence to faith. “Vet even as thyself from a childlike race. Even a pious shepherdess as thou art. Does the art of poetry extend to thee her divine rights. Ascends with thee toward the eternal stars. Poesy lias surrounded thee with a divine halo; The heart lias created thee. Thou shalt live eternally. “The world loves to bedim that which is glorious And to drag the sublime into the dust, Yet fear not! there still exists beautiful hearts. Which are aglow for the lofty and t lie sublime. The spirit of sarcasm may entertain the loud market: A noble mind loves nobler tilings.” Thus with liis sublime and beautiful idealism Schiller pictures tlie maid of Orleans only as a pure souled and patriotic representative of her people and her memory is cleansed of tlie tilth with which Voltaire sought to detile it. Schiller’s life was as gentle and blameless as ids ideals were pure and lofty, and remembering that he died before lie was forty-six one cannot but marvel at tiie greatness and brilliancy of ids achievements as a poet and scholar.