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diff --git a/old/68514-0.txt b/old/68514-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 598957a..0000000 --- a/old/68514-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,5693 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of The little country theater, by Alfred -G. Arvold - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The little country theater - -Author: Alfred G. Arvold - -Release Date: July 12, 2022 [eBook #68514] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Charlene Taylor and the Online Distributed Proofreading - Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from - images generously made available by The Internet - Archive/American Libraries.) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE LITTLE COUNTRY -THEATER *** - - - - - - - THE LITTLE COUNTRY THEATER - - FOUNDED - FEBRUARY TENTH, NINETEEN HUNDRED - AND FOURTEEN, BY ALFRED G. ARVOLD - - [Illustration] - - THE MACMILLAN COMPANY - NEW YORK · BOSTON · CHICAGO · DALLAS - ATLANTA · SAN FRANCISCO - - MACMILLAN & CO., LIMITED - LONDON · BOMBAY · CALCUTTA - MELBOURNE - - THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, LTD. - TORONTO - - - - -[Illustration: The Quaint Cottage, the Snow-White Capped Mountain, the -Tumbling Waterfall Were Painted in a Manner Which Brought Many Favorable -Comments] - - - - - THE LITTLE COUNTRY THEATER - - BY - ALFRED G. ARVOLD - NORTH DAKOTA AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE - Fargo, North Dakota - - New York - THE MACMILLAN COMPANY - 1922 - - _All rights reserved_ - - PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA - - COPYRIGHT, 1922 - BY THE MACMILLAN COMPANY - - Set up and electrotyped. Published November, 1922 - - - - - TO MY MOTHER - WHOSE VISION CAUSED ME - TO SEE BIG THINGS - - - - - “THE THEATER IS A CRUCIBLE OF CIVILIZATION. IT IS A PLACE OF - HUMAN COMMUNION. IT IS IN THE THEATER THAT THE PUBLIC SOUL IS - FORMED.” - - _Victor Hugo._ - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER PAGE - - I. The Raindrops 1 - - II. Country Folks 17 - - III. The Land of the Dacotahs 33 - - IV. The Little Country Theater 41 - - V. The Heart of a Prairie 59 - - VI. Characteristic Incidents 67 - - VII. A Bee in a Drone’s Hive 95 - - VIII. Larimore 153 - - IX. Forty Towns 167 - - X. Cold Spring Hollow 179 - - Appendices 187 - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - - - Scene—“The Raindrops” _Frontispiece_ - - FACING PAGE - - “Perhaps we will meet again like the raindrops” 4 - - Social Stagnancy is a Characteristic Trait of the Small Town and - the Country 22 - - An Old Dingy, Dull-Grey Chapel on the Second Floor of the - Administration Building was remodeled into what is now known - as The Little Country Theater 45 - - It Has a Seating Capacity of Two Hundred 53 - - The Package Library System 55 - - A Farm Home Scene in Iceland Thirty Years Ago 70 - - Scene—“Leonarda” 72 - - Scene—“The Servant in the House” 78 - - Scene—“Back to the Farm” 82 - - The Pastimes of the Ages 84 - - Scene—“Sitting Bull-Custer” 88 - - Scene—“American Beauties,” A One Act Play 92 - - Scene—“A Bee in a Drone’s Hive” 100 - - Folk Dances, Parades, and Pageants have become an Integral - Part of the Social Life of the State 172 - - Of the Fifty-three Counties in the State Thirty-five have - County Play Days 174 - - The Greek Theater, University of California, Berkeley, California 222 - - “The Crescent,” One of America’s Largest Open Air Theaters, El - Zagal Park, Fargo, North Dakota 223 - - The Stadium, Harvard University 224 - - The Interior of the Stadium 225 - - Rural Community Center, Rusk Farm 228 - - Community House, Leeland, Texas 229 - - Village Hall, Wyoming, New York 230 - - Community Building and Floor Plan 231 - - Auditorium, Hendrum, Minnesota 232 - - Stage Designs 235 - - - - -THE LITTLE COUNTRY THEATER - - - - -THE RAINDROPS - - -One day, about three weeks before the Christmas holidays, two young -men came to see me. I shall never forget the incident because to me it -marked one of the most fascinating episodes in the social life of country -people. One of the young men was tall with broad shoulders and had light -hair and grey eyes. The other was of medium height and had dark hair. -His home was in Iceland. That they both had something important to say -was evident from the expression on their faces. After a few moment’s -hesitation, they told me they had thought out an idea for a play. Both -of them were brimful of enthusiasm in regard to it. Whether or not they -could produce it was a question. An obstacle stood in the way. Most of -the scenes were laid in Iceland. And what playhouse or village hall, -especially a country theater, ever owned any scenery depicting home life, -snow-capped mountains, and landscapes in that far-away region? Above all, -there was no money to buy any, either. - -[Illustration: “Perhaps we will meet again like the raindrops.”] - -When told that they would have to paint the scenery themselves, they -looked somewhat surprised. It is doubtful whether either of them had -ever painted anything more than his mother’s kitchen floor or perhaps -whitewashed a fence or the interior of a barn. They finally decided to do -the job. A painter was called over the phone who said he wouldn’t charge -the boys a cent for the colors if they painted the scene. Up in an attic -of a building near by there was an old faded pink curtain that had been -cast aside. It was thought to be no longer useful. Within twenty-four -hours the curtain was brought over and hoisted, and the floor of the -stage adjacent to the office was covered with paint pails, brushes, -and water colors. With dogged determination they decided to finish the -painting during the holiday vacation. A few minutes before midnight on -New Year’s Eve the last stroke of the brush was made. The quaint cottage, -the snow white-capped mountain, the tumbling waterfall and the steep -ascending cliffs were painted in a manner which brought many favorable -comments from competent art critics. The blending of the colors was -magnificent. It was genuine art. The beauty of it all was that these two -young men found that they could express themselves even on canvas. - -Just as they had painted their scenery on the stage of the theater, so -did they write their play, acting out each line before they put it in -final form for presentation. Often they worked all night until four -o’clock in the morning. They called their play “The Raindrops.” The theme -is told in the second act of the play. The scene represents the interior -of an Icelandic home. It is evening. The family circle has gathered. -Some are sewing and others knitting. The children want to hear a story. -Sveinn, one of the characters in the play, finally says to them, “All -right then, if you are quiet, I will tell you the story of the raindrops -who met in the sky.” And he narrates the following which the children -listen to with rapt attention. - -“Once there were two raindrops away-way high up in the clouds. The sun -had just lately smiled at them as they were playing in the big ocean, and -his smile had drawn them up into the sky. Now as they danced and sported -about in its radiance he decked them in all the bright and beautiful -colors of the rainbow; and they were so happy over being rid of the dirt -and salt that they almost forgot themselves for joy. - -But somehow there seemed to be something that reminded them of the past. -They felt as if they had met before. Finally one said, “Say, friend, -haven’t we met before?” “That is just what I’ve been thinking,” said -friend. “Where have you been, comrade?” - -“I’ve been on the broad prairies on the west side of the big mountain -that you see down there,” answered comrade. - -“Oh,” said friend, “and I’ve been on the green slope on the east side of -the mountain. I had a friend who fell at the same time as I did, and we -were going to keep together, but unfortunately he fell on the other side -of the ridge.” - -“That was too bad,” said comrade, “the same thing happened to me but my -friend fell on the east side just close to that stone you see down there.” - -“Why, that is just where I fell,” said friend. This was enough—they could -scarcely contain themselves with joy over meeting and recognizing one -another again. - -After they had danced one another around for a while, shaken hands a -dozen times or more, and slapped one another on the back till they -were all out of breath, friend said, “Now, comrade, tell me all about -everything that has happened to you.” - -“And you’ll have to tell me everything that you have seen,” said comrade. - -“Yes, I’ll do that,” said friend, and then comrade began: - -“Well, I fell on the west side of that stone, as you know. At first I -felt kind of bad, but I gradually got over it and began to move in the -same direction as the others I saw around me. At first I could not move -fast, for I was so small that every little pebble blocked my road, but -then the raindrops held a meeting and agreed to work together to help -one another along and I joined the company to help form a pretty little -brook. In this way we were able to push big stones out of our road and we -were so happy that we laughed and played and danced in the sunlight which -shone to the bottom of the brook, for we were not too many and we were -all clean. - -“Gradually more and more joined us till we became a big river. Nothing -could any longer stand in our road and we became so proud of our strength -that we tore up the earth and dug out a deep, deep path that everyone -might see. - -“But then our troubles began. We became so awfully dirty that the sun no -longer reached any but those on top, while others were forced to stay in -the dark. They groaned under the weight of those up higher, while at the -same time they tore up from the bottom more and more filth. - -“I wanted to get out of it all, but there didn’t seem to be any way. -I tried to get up on the big, broad banks where all sorts of crops -were growing, but I was met and carried back by others rushing on into -the river, evidently without realizing where they were going. The -current tossed me about, first in the sunshine and then in the depths -of darkness, and I had no rest till at last I got into the great ocean. -There I rested and washed off most of the dirt.” - -“I wish I could have seen the river,” said friend, “but why didn’t you -spread out more, so as to help the crops on the plains and so that all -might have sunlight?” - -“I don’t know,” said comrade, “First we wanted to leave a deep path for -others to see, and then later it seemed that we were helpless in the -current that we ourselves had started. You must now tell me your story.” - -“Yes,” said friend. “I fell on the east side of that stone, and when I -couldn’t find you I started east, because I saw the sun there. After a -while I bumped into a great big stone which was right across my path. It -was such an ugly thing that I got angry and said, ‘Get out of my way, you -ugly thing, or I’ll get all the other raindrops together and roll you out -of the road.’ - -“Oh, no, do not do that,” said the stone, “for I am sheltering a -beautiful flower from the wind, but I’ll lift myself up a little so you -can crawl under.” - -“It was awfully dark and nasty and creepy under the stone, and I didn’t -like it a bit, but when I came out into the sunshine and saw the -beautiful flowers on the other side I was glad that I hadn’t spoiled -their shelter.” - -“‘Isn’t this lovely?’ said a raindrop near me, ‘let us go and look at -all the flowers.’ Then a crowd of raindrops that had gathered said, ‘Let -us spread out more and more and give them all a drink,’ and we went -among the flowers on the slope and in the valleys. As we watered them -they smiled back at us till their smiles almost seemed brighter than -the sunlight. When evening came we went down the little brooks over the -waterfalls and hopped and danced in the eddy while we told one another -about the things we had seen. There were raindrops from the glaciers and -from the hot springs, from the lava fields and from the green grassy -slopes, and from the lofty mountain peaks, where all the land could be -seen. Then we went on together singing over the level plains and into the -ocean.” - -For awhile neither one said anything. Then comrade spoke, “Yes, when I go -back I’ll get the others to go with me and we’ll spread out more—and now -I am going back. See the grain down there, how dry it is. Now I’m going -to get the other raindrops to spread out over the plains and give all the -plants a drink and in that way help everyone else.” - -“But see the flowers there on the slope on the east side,” said friend. -“They’ll fade if I don’t go down again to help them.” - -“We’ll meet again,” said both, as they dashed off to help the flowers and -the grain. - -The story ends. A pause ensues and Herdis, the old, old lady in the play -says, “Yes, we are all raindrops.” - -It is a beautiful thought and exceptionally well worked out in the play. -The raindrops are brothers. One’s name is Sveinn. He lives in Iceland. -The other is Snorri. His home is America. Snorri crosses the ocean to -tell Sveinn about America. Upon his arrival he meets a girl named Asta -and falls in love with her, little thinking that she is the betrothed -of his brother Sveinn. Asta is a beautiful girl. She has large blue eyes -and light hair which she wears in a long braid over her left shoulder. In -act three, when speaking to Asta, Snorri says, “Sometimes I think I am -the raindrop that fell on the other side of the ridge, and that my place -may be there; but then I think of the many things I have learned to love -here—the beautiful scenery, the midnight sun, the simple and unaffected -manners of the people, their hospitality, and probably more than anything -else some of the people I have come to know. A few of these especially I -have learned to love.” - -It does not dawn upon Snorri that Asta has given her hand to his brother -Sveinn until the fourth and last act of the play. The scene is a most -impressive one. It was something the authors had painted themselves. -At the right stands the quaint little sky-blue cottage, with its long -corrugated tin roof. To the left, the stony cliffs rise. In the distance -the winding road, the tumbling waterfall, and snow-capped mountain can -be seen. Near the doorway of the cottage there is a large rock on which -Asta often sits in the full red glow of the midnight sun. - -As the curtain goes up Snorri enters, looks at his watch, and utters -these words, “They are all asleep, but I must see her to-night.” He -gently goes to the door, quietly raps, turns and looks at the scenery, -and says: “How beautiful are these northern lights! I’ve seen them before -stretching like a shimmering curtain across the northern horizon, with -tongues of flame occasionally leaping across the heavens; but here they -are above me, and all around me, till they light up the scene so that -I can see even in the distance the rugged and snow-capped hills miles -away. How truly the Icelandic nation resembles the country—like the old -volcanoes which, while covered with a sheet of ice and snow, still have -burning underneath, the eternal fires.” - -Asta then appears in the doorway and exclaims, “Snorri.” After an -exchange of greetings they sit down and talk. Snorri tells Asta of his -love and finally asks her to become his wife. Asta is silent. She turns -and looks at the northern lights, then bows her head and with her hands -carelessly thrown over her knees she tells him that it cannot be—that it -is Sveinn. - -Snorri arises, moves away, covers his face with his hands and exclaims, -“Oh, God! I never thought of that. What a blind fool I have been!” As -Asta starts to comfort him Sveinn appears in the doorway, sees them -and starts to turn away, but in so doing makes a little noise. Snorri -startled, quickly looks around and says, “Sveinn, come here. I have been -blind; will you forgive me?” Then he takes Asta’s hand and places it in -Sveinn’s, bids them good-by and starts to leave. - -Sveinn says, “Snorri! Where are you going? You are not leaving us at this -time of night, and in sorrow?” - -Snorri, returning, looks at the quaint little cottage, the waterfall, and -then at Asta and Sveinn, pauses a moment, and says, “Perhaps we shall -meet again—like the raindrops.” The curtain falls and the play ends. - -Neither of these young men who wrote the play ever had any ambition -to become a playwright, a scene painter, or an actor. To-day, one is -a successful country-life worker in the great northwest. The other is -interested in harnessing the water power which is so abundant in his -native land. - -When the play was presented, the audience sat spellbound, evidently -realizing that two country lads had found hidden life forces in -themselves which they never knew they possessed. All they needed, like -thousands of others who live in the country and even in the city, was -just a chance to express themselves. - -Authors of play—M. Thorfinnson and E. Briem. - - - - -COUNTRY FOLKS - - -There are literally millions of people in country communities to-day -whose abilities along various lines have been hidden, simply because -they have never had an opportunity to give expression to their talents. -In many respects this lack of self-expression has been due to the social -conditions existing in the country, the narrow-minded attitude of society -toward those who till the soil, and the absence of those forces which -seek to arouse the creative instincts and stimulate that imagination and -initiative in country people which mean leadership. - -Social stagnancy is a characteristic trait of the small town and the -country. Community spirit is often at a low ebb. Because of the stupid -monotony of the village and country existence, the tendency of the people -young and old is to move to larger centers of population. Young people -leave the small town and the country because of its deadly dullness. They -want Life. The emptiness of rural environment does not appeal to them. -The attitude of mind of the country youth is best expressed by Gray in -his “Elegy Written in a Country Church-yard” which runs as follows: - - “Full many a gem of purest ray serene - The dark unfathomed caves of ocean bear; - Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, - And waste its sweetness on the desert air.” - -Many young people find the town and country dead simply because they -crave fellowship and social enjoyment. When an afternoon local train -passes through a certain section of any state, people gather at every -station, some to meet their friends, others to bid their friends -farewell, and dozens to see some form of life. With many it is the only -excitement that enters their lives, except on extraordinary occasions. -After the harvest many a country lad goes to the city to enjoy a feast of -entertainment, in order to satisfy his social hunger. - -A few years ago the national Department of Agriculture sent out hundreds -of letters to country women, asking them what would make life in the -country districts more attractive. Hundreds of the replies which were -received from practically every section of America told the story of -social starvation and the needs of country communities. One woman from -Kansas in her reply wrote: - - “We hope you can help us to consolidate schools and plan - them under a commission of experts in school efficiency and - community education. Through this commission we could arrange - clubs, social unions, and social, instructive, and educational - entertainments. We ought not to be compelled to go to town - for doubtful amusements, but, rousing the civic pride of the - community, have the best at home.” - -Another one from Wyoming in her letter stated that she thought the -country child had the same right to culture and refinement as the city -child. A woman whose home was in Massachusetts gave the following -suggestions in her reply: - - “On the side of overcoming the emptiness of rural life; - articles suggesting courses of reading both along the line of - better farming and of subjects of public interest. Perhaps the - wider use of the rural school or church for social centers, - or for discussion by farmers, their wives, sons and daughters - might be suggested.” - -A letter written from Florida contained the following: - - “First, a community center where good lectures, good music, - readings, and demonstrations might be enjoyed by all, a public - library station. We feel if circulating libraries containing - books that can be suggested on purity, hygiene, social service, - and scientific instruction, that our women in the rural - districts need to read for the protection of their children; - also books on farming and poultry raising, botany, culture of - flowers, and many other themes that will help them to discover - the special charm and advantage of living in the pure air and - being familiar with the beauties of nature and thereby make our - people desire to stay on the farms.” - -[Illustration: Social Stagnancy is a Characteristic Trait of the Small -Town and the Country] - -A letter from Tennessee said: “Education is the first thing needed; -education of every kind. Not simply agricultural education, although that -has its place; not merely the primary training offered by the public -schools in arithmetic, reading, grammar, etc. I mean the education -that unfastens doors and opens up vistas; the education that includes -travel, college, acquaintance with people of culture; the education -that makes one forget the drudgery of to-day in the hope of to-morrow. -Sarah Barnwell Elliott makes a character in one of her stories say that -the difference between himself (a mountaineer) and the people of the -university town is ‘vittles and seein’ fur.’ The language of culture -would probably translate that into ‘environment and vision.’ It is the -‘seein’ fur’ that farm women need most, although lots of good might -be done by working some on the ‘vittles.’ Fried pork and sirup and -hot biscuit and coffee have had a lot to do with the ‘vision’ of many -a farmer and farmer’s wife. A good digestion has much to do with our -outlook on life. Education is such an end in itself, if it were never -of practical use. But one needs it all on the farm and a thousand -times more. ‘Knowledge is power,’ as I learned years ago from my copy -book. But even if it were not, it is a solace for pain and a panacea -for loneliness. You may teach us farm women to kill flies, stop eating -pork, and ventilate our homes; but if you will put in us the thirst -for knowledge you will not need to do these things. We will do them -ourselves.” - -A note from North Carolina read something like this: - - “The country woman needs education, recreation, and a better - social life. If broad-minded, sensible women could be appointed - to make monthly lectures at every public schoolhouse - throughout the country, telling them how and what to do, - getting them together, and interesting them in good literature - and showing them their advantages, giving good advice, - something like a ‘woman’s department’ in magazines, this would - fill a great need in the life of country women. Increase our - social life and you increase our pleasures, and an increase of - pleasure means an increase of good work.” - -All these answers and many more show something of the social conditions -in the country so far as women are concerned. In other words, older -people desert the country because they want better living conditions and -more social and educational advantages for themselves and their children. -Moral degeneracy in the country, like the city, is usually due to lack -of proper social recreation. When people have something healthful with -which to occupy their minds, they scarcely ever think of wrong-doing. A -noted student of social problems recently said that the barrenness of -country life for the girl growing into womanhood, hungry for amusement, -is one reason why so many girls in the country go to the city. Students -of science attribute the cause of many of the cases of insanity among -country people to loneliness and monotony. That something fundamental -must be done along social lines in the country communities in order to -help people find themselves, nobody will dispute. Already mechanical -devices, transportation facilities, and methods of communication have -done much to eliminate the drudgery, to do away with isolation, and to -make country life more attractive. - -An influence which has done a good deal to stifle expression in country -people has been the narrow-minded attitude certain elements in society -have taken toward those who till the soil. When these elements have -wanted to belittle their city friends’ intelligence or social standing, -they have usually dubbed them “old farmers.” Briefly stated, the quickest -way to insult a man’s thinking power or social position has been to -give him the title “farmer.” The world has not entirely gotten over the -“Hey-Rube” idea about those who produce civilization’s food supply. A -certain stigma is still attached to the vocation. As a group, country -people have in many places been socially ostracized for centuries. -A social barrier still exists between the city-bred girl and the -country-bred boy. As a result, all these things have had a tendency to -destroy the country man’s pride in his profession. This has weakened his -morale and his one ambition has been to get out of something in which he -cannot be on an equal with other people, and consequently he has retired. -Goldsmith in “The Deserted Village” hit the nail on the head when he said: - - “Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, - Where wealth accumulates, and men decay: - Princes and lords may flourish, or may fade; - A breath can make them, as a breath has made; - But a bold peasantry, their country’s pride, - When once destroyed, can never be supplied.” - -To be an honest tiller of the soil, to be actively engaged in feeding -humanity, should be one of the noblest callings known to mankind and -carry with it a social prestige. The Chinese Emperor used to plow a -furrow of land once a year to stamp his approval upon agriculture. The -reason Washington, Lincoln, Justin Morrill, and Roosevelt became so -keenly interested in country life was that they saw the significance of -it and its importance to the world. George Washington was a farmer, a -country gentleman. Mount Vernon is a country estate, a large farm. The -father of our country believed that a great country people was the basic -foundation of a great America. Thomas Jefferson once said, “The chosen -people are those who till the soil.” When you ridicule any people, they -are not likely to express their talents and the finer instincts which -lie hidden in them. A weak rural morale eventually means rural decay. -The heart of rural America will never beat true until society looks upon -agriculture as a life, as something to get into and not steer away from -or get out of its environment. - -Another factor which has retarded the expression of the hidden abilities -of those who live in the small towns and country communities has been the -absence of any force which seeks to arouse the creative instincts and to -stimulate the imagination and initiative. Even to-day, those agencies in -charge of country-life problems, as well as city life, direct very little -of their energies into channels which give color and romance and a social -spirit to these folks. The most interesting part of any country community -or neighborhood is the people who live in it. Unless they are satisfied -with their condition, it is little use to talk better farming. A retired -farmer is usually one who is dissatisfied with country life. A social -vision must be discovered in the country, that will not only keep great -men who are country born in the country, but also attract others who live -in the cities. - -The impulse to build up a community spirit in a rural neighborhood may -come from without, but the true genuine work of making country life more -attractive must come from within. The country people themselves must -work out their own civilization. A country town or district must have an -individuality or mind of its own. The mind of a community is the mind of -the people who live in it. If they are big and broad and generous, so is -the community. Folks are folks, whether they live in the city or country. -In most respects their problems are identical. - -It is a natural condition for people to crave self-expression. In years -gone by men who have been born and reared on the farm have left it and -gone to the city, in order to find a place for the expression of their -talents. This migration has done more to hinder than to set forward the -cause of civilization. People who live in the country must find their -true expression in their respective neighborhoods, just as much as do -people who live in the city. You cannot continually take everything out -of the country and cease to put anything back into it. The city has -always meant expression—the country, repression. Talent usually goes to -the congested centers of population to express itself. For generations -when a young man or woman has had superior ability along some particular -line and lived in the country, their friends have always advised them to -move to a large center of population where their talents would find a -ready expression. You and I, for instance, who have encouraged them to go -hither, have never thought that we were sacrificing the country to build -the city. This has been a mistake. We all know it. - -Over fifty years ago a country doctor became the father of two boys. In -age they were five years apart. The doctor brought them up well and sent -them away to a medical school. Unlike most country-bred boys who go to -large cities, when they finished their courses they went back to the old -home town and began their practice. By using their creative instincts, -organizing power, imagination, and initiative, it was not long before -they became nationally known. People call their establishment “the -clinic in the cornfields.” To-day these “country doctors” treat over -fifty thousand patients. Their names are known wherever medical science -is known. Railroads run special sleepers hundreds of miles to their old -home town in Olmstead County, Minnesota, which, by the way, is one of the -richest agricultural counties in America. The great big thing about these -two men is that they found an opportunity for the expression of their -talents in a typical country community. They didn’t go to a large city, -they made thousands of city people come to them. - -Conservatively speaking, there are over ten thousand small towns in -America to-day. More than ten million people live in them. These -communities are often meeting places for the millions whose homes are -in the open country. Rural folks still think of a community as that -territory with its people which lies within the team haul of a given -center. It is out in these places where the silent common people dwell. -It is in these neighborhood laboratories that a new vision of country -life is being developed. They are the cradles of democracy. It is here -that a force is necessary to democratize art so the common people can -appreciate it, science so they can use it, government so they can take a -part in it, and recreation so they can enjoy it. - -The former Secretary of Agriculture aptly expressed the importance of the -problem when he said: - - “The real concern in America over the movement of rural - population to urban centers is whether those who remain in - agriculture after the normal contribution to the city are the - strong, intelligent, well seasoned families, in which the best - traditions of agriculture and citizenship have been lodged - from generation to generation. The present universal cry of - ‘keep the boy on the farm’ should be expanded into a public - sentiment for making country life more attractive in every way. - When farming is made profitable and when the better things of - life are brought in increasing measure to the rural community, - the great motives which lead youth and middle age to leave - the country districts will be removed. In order to assure a - continuance of the best strains of farm people in agriculture, - there can be no relaxation of the present movements for a - better country life, economic, social, and educational.” - - - - -THE LAND OF THE DACOTAHS - - -A skilled physician when he visits a sick room always diagnoses the case -of the patient before he administers a remedy. In order to comprehend -thoroughly the tremendous significance the Land of the Dacotahs bears in -its relation to the solution of the problem of country life in America, -one must know something about the commonwealth and its people. - -North Dakota is a prairie state. Its land area comprises seventy-one -thousand square miles of a rich black soil equal in its fertility to -the deposits at the delta of the River Nile in Egypt. There are over -forty million acres of tillable land. The state has one of the largest -undeveloped lignite coal areas in the world. - -Its climate is invigorating. The air is dry and wholesome. The summer -months are delightful. The fields of golden grain are inviting. The -winters, on the other hand, are long and dreary, and naturally lonely. -People are prone to judge the climate of the state by its blizzards. -Those who do, forget this fact—a vigorous climate always develops a -healthy and vigorous people. No geographical barriers break the monotony -of the lonesome prairie existence. A deadly dullness hovers over each -community. - -The population of the state is distinctly rural. Over seventy per cent of -the people live in un-incorporated territory. Seven out of every eight -persons are classed as rural. The vocation of the masses is agriculture. -Everybody, everywhere, every day in the state talks agriculture. At -the present time there are about two hundred towns with less than five -hundred inhabitants. - -One of the most interesting characteristics of this prairie commonwealth -is its population. They are a sturdy people, strong in heart and broad in -mental vision. The romance of the Indian and the cowboy, the fur-trader -and the trapper, has been the theme of many an interesting tale. The -first white settler, who took a knife and on bended knee cut squares -of sod and built a shanty and faced long hard winters on this northern -prairie, is a character the whole world loves and honors. Several years -ago an old schoolmaster, whose home is not so very far from Minnehaha -Falls, delivered a “Message to the Northwest” which typifies the spirit -of these people. He said in part: - - “I am an old man now, and have seen many things in the world. I - have seen this great country that we speak of as the Northwest, - come, in my lifetime, to be populous and rich. The forest has - fallen before the pioneer, the field has blossomed, and the - cities have risen to greatness. If there is anything that an - old man eighty years of age could say to a people among whom he - has spent the happiest days of his life, it is this: We live - in the most blessed country in the world. The things we have - accomplished are only the beginning. As the years go on, and - always we increase our strength, our power, and our wealth, we - must not depart from the simple teachings of our youth. For the - moral fundamentals are the same and unchangeable. Here in the - Northwest we shall make a race of men that shall inherit the - earth. Here in the distant years, when I and others who have - labored with me shall long have been forgotten, there will be - a power in material accomplishment, in spiritual attainment, - in wealth, strength, and moral influence, the like of which - the world has not yet seen. This I firmly believe. And the - people of the Northwest, moving ever forward to greater things, - will accomplish all this as they adhere always to the moral - fundamentals, and not otherwise.” - -The twenty-odd nationalities who live in the Dacotahs came from lands -where folklore was a part of their everyday life. Many a Norseman—and -there are nearly two hundred thousand people of Scandinavian origin, -Norwegians, Danes, Swedes, and Icelanders, in the state—knows the story -of Ole Bull, the famous violinist, who when a lad used to take his -instrument, go out in the country near the waterfalls, listen attentively -to the water as it rushed over the abyss, then take his violin, place -it under his chin, and draw the bow across the strings, to see whether -he could imitate the mysterious sounds. Most of these Norse people live -in the northern and eastern section of the state. The hundred thousand -citizens whose ancestors came from the British Isles—the English, the -Welsh, the Scotch, the Irish, and the Canadians—know something of -Shakespeare and Synge and Bobbie Burns. Ten years ago there were sixty -thousand people of Russian descent and forty-five thousand of Teutonic -origin in the state. They were acquainted with Tolstoy and Wagner. -Greeks, Italians, and Turks, besides many other nationalities, live in -scattered sections of the state. In fact, seventy-two per cent of the -citizens of the state are either foreign born or of foreign descent. All -these people came originally from countries whose civilizations are much -older than our own. All have inherited a poetry, a drama, an art, a life -in their previous national existence, which, if brought to light through -the medium of some great American ideal and force, would give to the -state and the country a rural civilization such as has never been heard -of in the history of the world. All these people are firm believers in -American ideals. - -One excellent feature in connection with the life of the people who live -in Hiawatha’s Land of the Dacotahs is their attitude toward education. -They believe that knowledge is power. Out on these prairies they have -erected schoolhouses for the training of their youth. To-day there are -nearly five hundred consolidated schools in the state. One hundred and -fifty of these are in the open country, dozens of which are many miles -from any railroad. Twenty-three per cent of the state area is served by -this class of schools. Much of the social life of a community is centered -around the school, the church, the village or town hall, and the home. -The greater the number of activities these institutions indulge in for -the social and civic betterment of the whole community, the more quickly -the people find themselves and become contented with their surroundings. - -In most respects, however, North Dakota is not unlike other states. -People there are actually hungry for social recreation. The prairies are -lonely in the winter. Thousands of young men and women whose homes are in -rural communities, when asked what they wanted out in the country most, -have responded, “More Life.” The heart hunger of folks for other folks is -just the same there as everywhere. - - - - -THE LITTLE COUNTRY THEATER - - -With a knowledge of these basic facts in mind, as well as a personal -acquaintance with hundreds of young men and women whose homes are in -small communities and country districts, the idea of The Little Country -Theater was conceived by the author. A careful study of hundreds and -literally thousands of requests received from every section of the state, -as well as of America and from many foreign countries, for suitable -material for presentation on public programs and at public functions, -showed the necessity of a country life laboratory to test out various -kinds of programs. - -The idea conceived became an actual reality when an old, dingy, dull-grey -chapel on the second floor of the administration building at the North -Dakota Agricultural College, located at Fargo, North Dakota, was -remodeled into what is now known as “The Little Country Theater.” It -was opened the tenth day of February in the year nineteen hundred and -fourteen. In appearance it is most fascinating. It is simply a large -playhouse put under a reducing glass. It is just the size of an average -country town hall. It has a seating capacity of two hundred. The stage is -thirty feet in width, twenty feet in depth, having a proscenium opening -of ten feet in height and fifteen feet in width. There are no boxes and -balconies. The decorations are plain and simple. - -The color scheme is green and gold, the gold predominating. Three beams -finished in golden oak cross the mansard ceiling, the beams projecting -down several feet on each side wall, from which frosted light bowls and -globes are suspended by brass log chains, the indirect lighting giving a -soft and subdued tone to the whole theater. The eight large windows are -hung with tasteful green draperies. The curtain is a tree-shade green -velour. The birch-stained seats are broad and not crowded together. -There is a place for a stereopticon and a moving picture machine. The -scenery is simple and plain. Whenever possible, green curtains are used. -Simplicity is the keynote of the theater. It is an example of what can be -done with hundreds of village halls, unused portions of school houses, -vacant country stores and basements of country churches in communities. - -[Illustration: An Old Dingy, Dull-Grey Chapel on the Second Floor of -the Administration Building was Remodeled Into What Is Now Known as The -Little Country Theater] - -There are three unique features in connection with The Little Country -Theater which deserve special mention—the tower, the attic or “hayloft,” -and the package library system. - -The tower is just to the right of the lower end of the stage. It, too, is -plain and simple. It is used as a study and contains materials gathered -from all over the world on the social side of country life. - -The attic is to the left of the stage and up a flight of stairs. It -was formerly an old garret. For over twenty years it was unused. It -is the workshop of the theater and contains committee rooms, dressing -rooms, a property room, a costume wardrobe, a small kitchen, and a -dining room which will comfortably seat seventy-five persons. In many -respects it corresponds to the basement of a community building, a -church, or an addition tacked on to a village hall. It is often used -for an exhibit hall or a scenic studio. In short, The Little Country -Theater is a typical rural community center, a country-life laboratory. -One significant feature about this experimental laboratory is that the -birch-stained seats, the green curtains, the scenic effects, the stage -properties, the five hundred costumes, the furniture, the dishes, and -all the other necessities have been bought with funds taken in from -entertainments and plays, thereby demonstrating that any community can do -the same. Endowments in the country are always difficult to raise. - -Twelve years ago a country school-teacher sent in a request for some -program material. Three personal copies of plays were sent to her, one -of which she staged. It was not very long before others heard where -she secured her data and many inquiries followed. Out of this request, -together with an acquaintance with an old, white-haired man who had just -started a similar system at a leading western university, the package -library idea came into existence. It is a sort of an intellectual rural -free delivery. One might call it the backbone of The Little Country -Theater. In order to understand thoroughly the importance of the service -which the system renders it will be necessary to say something about the -aim of the work, its scope, how the data is gathered, and the practical -results already obtained. - -The aim of the package library system is to vitalize all the sources of -information which can be used for material for presentation on public -programs. Its chief object is to make the schools, the churches, the -homes, and the village or town halls, centers of community activity where -men and women and their children, young and old, can meet just to talk -over things, to find out the normal human life forces and life processes, -and really to discover themselves. - -The field of work is the state and its people. The scope of the service -is broad. Any individual or group of people in the state can obtain -program material simply by writing and asking for it. - -In order to render the best aid possible, the system gathers data and -information from reliable sources. Briefs upon subjects relating to -country life, copies of festivals, pageants, plays, readings, dialogues, -pictures of floats, parades, processions, exhibit arrangements, -costume designs, character portrayals, plans of stages, auditoriums, -open-air theaters, community buildings, constitutions of all kinds of -organizations, catalogues of book publishers—in short, every kind of -material necessary in building a program which will help people to -express themselves—are loaned for reading purposes to citizens of the -state. A few minutes’ talk with anybody interested in getting up programs -in small communities will soon show the dearth of material along these -lines. - -In the years gone by, as well as in the present, the letters which come -to the desk daily have told many an interesting story. - -An energetic teacher in a country school in the northern part of the -state sent for several copies of plays and play catalogues. None of -the plays sent suited her. She decided to give an original play, “The -Comedy.” When asked for a description of the staging of the original -production, she sent the following letter, which is indicative of what -people really can do in the country to find themselves. - - “When I wrote to you about ‘The Comedy,’ I do not know what - idea I gave you of it; perhaps not a very true one; so I am - sending you a copy. The little song is one I learned from a - victrola record, so the music may not be correct, but with - a little originality, can be used. The little play has the - quality of making the people expect something extraordinary, - but when performed, the parts are funny, but still not funny - enough to produce a ‘roar.’ They are remembered and spoken of - long afterwards. Now around here we often hear parts spoken - of. I enjoyed training the young people, and they were quite - successful. I have found that every place I go people in the - country enjoy the school programs very much and speak of them - often. We wanted to take some pictures, but could not. The - weather was so cloudy before and afterward that we could not - take any, but may this Sunday afternoon. I wish I knew just - what to write about or just what you wish to know. I liked our - arrangements of lights. We only had lanterns. A dressing room - was curtained off and the rest of the space clear. We hung four - lanterns in a row, one below the other, and had one standing - on the floor at the side opposite from the dressing room, and - then one on the floor and one held by the man who pulled the - curtain on the other side. This gave splendid light. There was - no light near the audience except at the organ. - - “Hoping you will enjoy reading ‘The Comedy’ as much as we did - playing and writing it, I am - - “Yours sincerely, - - “A. K.” - -There is something very human about a letter when it solicits your -personal help and suggestions. To quote from several of the thousands -received will not only show the need for the package library, because of -the scarcity of material in small towns and the country, but also give an -insight into the mind of the people themselves. - - “Barton, N. D., October 23, 1911. - - “Gentlemen:—Would you kindly send a copy of the following - plays: Corner Store, The Deestrick Skule, Country Romance, Pa’s - Picnic, A Rival by Request, School for Scandal, Tempest in a - Tea-pot, Which is Which. - - “I wish to get up an entertainment in my school and wish you - could help me select a play which would not require too much - room and too many actors. Will return the ones I do not use - immediately. Any favor which you may render will be greatly - appreciated. - - “Very respectfully, - - “E. S.” - - “Gilby, N. D., Jan. 18, 1912. - - “Dear Sir:— - - “Will you please forward your list of amateur plays. We are - about to stage the annual H. S. play, and find it rather - difficult to select a play not too sentimental in characters. - We would like one for 5-7 boys and 5-8 girls. Our hall is small - with cramped stage room, and the scene must be quite simple. - If you have any suggestions to offer or any sample play to - forward for examination, will you kindly let us know as soon as - possible. - - “Yours very truly, - - “E. F. L.” - - Ross, N. D., Jan. 22, 1913. - - “Dear Sir:— - - “Enclosed find plays, also stamps to cover mailing expenses. - - “Please send me the following amateur plays: Exerbition of - District Skule, Mock Trial, Scrap of Paper, Sugar and Cream. - Please send also the following as listed under package - libraries: Manual Training, School House as an Art Gallery, - School House as a Social Center, Fireless Cooker. - - “Yours truly, - - “M. C.” - - “Backoo, N. D., Jan. 24, 1914. - - “Dear Sir:— - - “I rec’d the packet of information on Country Life and will - return it after our next meeting the 27th. Can you send me two - or three dialogues suitable for a Literary Society in a rural - district. We have 6 or 8 young ladies that might take part but - very few young men. And will you suggest a few subjects for - debate of interest and benefit to a country community. - - “Yours truly, - - “J. B. P.” - - “Austin, N. D., Feb. 11, 1914. - - “Gentlemen:— - - “I should be very glad if you could send me a short play of say - 30 or 45 minutes length as you mentioned in Nov. We are using - the schoolhouse as a meeting place and so have not much room on - the stage. Could use one requiring from 4 to 8 characters. - - “Yours truly, - - “H. W. B.” - -[Illustration: It Has a Seating Capacity of Two Hundred] - - “Verona, N. D., Feb. 14, 1915. - - “Dear Mr. ⸺: - - “While to-day the blizzard rages outside—inside, thanks - largely to yours and your department’s work, many of us will - be felicitously occupied with the mental delights of literary - preparation and participation. Our society is thriving - splendidly. Last Friday another similar society was started in - the country north of here. Went out and helped them organize. - They named their club the Greenville Booster Club. Some of the - leading lights are of the country’s most substantial farmers. - Suggest that you send literature on club procedure to their - program committee. This community, both town and country north, - has for the past many years been the scene of much senseless - strife over town matters, school matters, etc. - - “I believe the dawn of an era of good feeling is at hand. These - get-together clubs are bound to greatly facilitate matters that - way. At their next meeting I am on their debate and supposed to - get up a paper to read on any topic I choose, besides. Now with - carrying the mail, writing for our newspaper, practicing and - singing with the M. E. choir, also our literary male quartet, - to say nothing of debating and declaiming and writing for two - literaries my time is all taken up. Could you find me something - suitable for a reading? - - “Sincerely yours, - - “A. B.” - - “Regan, N. Dak., Nov. 30, 1917. - - “Mr. A. ⸺: - - “My sister sent to you for some plays which we are returning. - We put on ‘The Lonelyville Social Club’ after ten days’ - practice and cleared $39.10 in Regan and $93.00 when we played - it last night in Wilton. It took well and we are much pleased - with our effort. The proceeds go to the Red Cross. - - “Thanking you most sincerely, I am - - “V. C. P. (and the rest of the troop).” - - “Hensel, N. D., Mar. 15, 1918. - - “Dear Friend: - - “I received the paint which you sent me. I thank you very much - for it, it certainly came in handy. Do you need it back or if - not how much does it cost? I would rather buy it if you can - spare it. - - “The play was a success. We had a big crowd everywhere. - Everybody seemed to like it. Some proclaimed it to be the best - home talent play they had seen. We have played it four times. - Whether we play more has not been decided. - - “Yours truly, - - “A. H.” - - “Overly, N. D., Mar. 21, 1918. - - “Gentlemen:— - - “Have you any book from the library that would help with a - Patriotic entertainment to be given in this community for the - benefit of the Red Cross? If you can offer suggestions also, we - will appreciate it. - - “Thanking you, I am, truly yours, - - “G. L. D.” - -[Illustration: The Package Library System] - - “Lansford, N. D., May 25, 1920. - - “Dear Mr. A.: - - “As a teacher in a rural school I gave a program at our - school on last Saturday evening. We had an audience of about - seventy-five people and they simply went wild over our program. - Our school has an enrollment of four girls, being the only - school in the county where only girls are enrolled and also the - smallest school in the county. Our program lasted two hours and - twenty minutes and was given by the four girls. - - “We have been asked to give our entertainment in the hall in - Lansford. Now I want to ask you for a suggestion. Don’t you - think that in a make-up for ‘grandmothers’ that blocking out - teeth and also for making the face appear wrinkled’ would - improve the parts in which grandmothers take part? - - “Would it be possible for you to send me the things necessary - as I would like to get them as soon as possible and do not know - where to send for them. If you can get them for me I shall send - the money also postage, etc., as soon as I receive them. - - “Trusting that this will not inconvenience you greatly, I - remain, - - “Very truly yours, - - “E. B.” - -It is not an uncommon occurrence to get a long distance call at eleven -o’clock at night from someone two or three hundred miles away, asking -for information. Telegrams are a common thing. Conferences with people -who come from different communities for advice are frequent. The tower, -the attic, and the package library are an integral part of the theater. - -The aim of The Little Country Theater is to produce such plays and -exercises as can be easily staged in a country schoolhouse, the basement -of a country church, the sitting room of a farm home, the village or -town hall, or any place where people assemble for social betterment. Its -principal function is to stimulate an interest in good clean drama and -original entertainment among the people living in the open country and -villages, in order to help them find themselves, that they may become -better satisfied with the community in which they live. In other words, -its real purpose is to use the drama and all that goes with the drama as -a force in getting people together and acquainted with each other, in -order that they may find out the hidden life forces of nature itself. -Instead of making the drama a luxury for the classes, its aim is to make -it an instrument for the enlightenment and enjoyment of the masses. - -In a country town nothing attracts so much attention, proves so popular, -pleases so many, or causes so much favorable comment as a home talent -play. It is doubtful whether Sir Horace Plunkett ever appreciated -the significance of the statement he once made when he said that the -simplest piece of amateur acting or singing done in the village hall by -one of the villagers would create more enthusiasm among his friends and -neighbors than could be excited by the most consummate performance of -a professional in a great theater where no one in the audience knew or -cared for the performer. Nothing interests people in each other so much -as habitually working together. It’s one way people find themselves. -A home talent play not only affords such an opportunity, but it also -unconsciously introduces a friendly feeling in a neighborhood. It -develops a community spirit because it is something everybody wants to -make a success, regardless of the local jealousies or differences of -opinion. When a country town develops a community consciousness, it -satisfies its inhabitants. - -The drama is a medium through which America must inevitably express its -highest form of democracy. When it can be used as an instrument to get -people to express themselves, in order that they may build up a bigger -and better community life, it will have performed a real service to -society. When the people who live in the small community and the country -awaken to the possibilities which lie hidden in themselves through the -impulse of a vitalized drama, they will not only be less eager to move to -centers of population, but will also be a force in attracting city folks -to dwell in the country. The monotony of country existence will change -into a newer and broader life. - -If The Little Country Theater can inspire people in country districts to -do bigger things in order that they may find themselves, it will have -performed its function. It is the Heart of a Prairie, dedicated to the -expression of the emotions of country people everywhere and in all ages. - - - - -THE HEART OF A PRAIRIE - - -People are more or less influenced by their emotions. What matters is not -so much what persons think about certain things as how they feel toward -them. Thought and emotion usually go hand in hand. One is essential -to the other. It is through the heart of a people that emotions are -expressed. For centuries the drama has been the great heart strength -through which humanity expresses its higher and finer instincts. Its -power to sway the feelings of mankind by seeking to find out the hidden -life forces in us all can never be overestimated. It is through the -drama that people learn to interpret human nature, its weakness and its -strength. The sad and the happy, the rich and the poor, the strong and -the weak, the young and the old, those with many different ideas and -ideals see their actions reflected in this mirror. The supreme duty of -society is to point out the way to its citizens, whether they live in the -country or in the city, to live happy and useful lives. In this respect -the drama plays an important rôle. As Victor Hugo once said, “The theater -is a crucible of civilization. It is a place of human communion. It is in -the theater that the public soul is formed.” - -In the early generations of the world it was the only form of human -worship. The Shepherds of the Nile conceived a sacred play in which -the character “the God of the Overflow” foretold by means of dramatic -expression the period of the flooding of the valley. The Vedic poets -sang their songs in the land of the Five Rivers of India. The Hebrews -expressed their religious philosophy through a democratic festival called -the Feast of Tabernacles. The country people who made Rome their center -celebrated the ingathering of their food with a festival called the -Cerealia. The Festival of Demeter was a characteristic play of the early -Greeks. The country people of the Orient had ritualistic dramas dealing -with animal and plant life. The Incas, the Indians of Peru, worshiped at -the Altars of Corn. In the realm of nature, Ceres, the goddess of grains, -Mother Earth, Pomona, the goddess of fruits, Persephone, emblematical -of the vegetable world, Flora, the goddess of flowers, Apollo, the sun -god, and Neptune the god of water, have been the theme of many a dramatic -story. All these ceremonies and many more not only signify the wide usage -of this art in every age and every part of the world, but also unfold -tremendous possibilities for future pageant, play, and pantomime among -country people. If civilization’s sense of appreciation could be aroused -to see the hidden beauties of field and forest and stream—of God’s great -out of doors—men and women and children would flock to the countryside. -The drama is one of the many agencies which seeks to stimulate this sense -of appreciation. It deals with human problems by means of appeals to the -emotions. - -The absence of a vision in many country communities has been one of the -chief causes for their backwardness, their dullness, and their monotony. -When the country develops a robust social mind, one that appeals because -of the bigness of the theme, it is then that life in the open and on the -soil will become attractive. The lure of the white way will pass like -ships at night. That a new light seems to be breaking is evidenced by the -establishment of consolidated schools, community buildings, and country -parks. These and other social institutions, together with better means -of communication and transportation, materially assist in the solution -of the country life problems. A country district must be active and not -passive if it would interest the young and even the old. - -If the drama can serve as just one of the mediums to get the millions of -country people here and elsewhere to express themselves in order that -they may find themselves there is no telling what big things will happen -in the generations to come. If, as has often been said, agriculture is -the mother of civilization, then every energy of a people and every -agency dramatic and otherwise, should be bent to make that life eventful -and interesting from every angle. The function of The Little Country -Theater is to reveal the inner life of the country community in all its -color and romance, especially in its relation to the solution of the -problems in country life. It aims to interpret the life of the people of -the state, which is the life of genuine American country folks. - - - - -CHARACTERISTIC INCIDENTS - - -While still in its infancy, the work of The Little Country Theater -has already more than justified its existence. It has produced many -festivals, pageants, and plays and has been the source of inspiration to -scores of country communities. One group of young people from various -sections of the state, representing five different nationalities, -Scotch, Irish, English, Norwegian, and Swede, successfully staged “The -Fatal Message,” a one-act comedy by John Kendrick Bangs. Another cast -of characters from the country presented “Cherry Tree Farm,” an English -comedy, in a most acceptable manner. An illustration to demonstrate that -a home talent play is a dynamic force in helping people find themselves -was afforded in the production of “The Country Life Minstrels” by an -organization of young men coming entirely from the country districts. -The story reads like a fairy tale. The club decided to give a minstrel -show. At the first rehearsal nobody possessed any talent, except one -young man. He could clog. At the second rehearsal, a tenor and a mandolin -player were discovered. At the third, several other good voices were -found, a quartet and a twelve piece band were organized. When the show -was presented, twenty-eight different young men furnished a variety of -acts equal to a first class professional company. They all did something -and entered into the entertainment with a splendid spirit. “Leonarda,” a -play by Björnstjerne Björnson with Norwegian music between acts, made an -excellent impression. - -[Illustration: A Farm Home Scene in Iceland Thirty Years Ago] - -Perhaps the most interesting incident that has occurred in connection -with the work in this country life laboratory was the staging of a -tableau, “A Farm Home Scene in Iceland Thirty Years Ago,” by twenty -young men and women of Icelandic descent whose homes are in the country -districts of North Dakota. The tableau was very effective. The scene -represented an interior sitting room of an Icelandic home. The walls -were whitewashed. In the rear of the room was a fireplace. The old -grandfather was seated in an armchair near the fireplace reading a -story in the Icelandic language. About the room were several young -ladies dressed in Icelandic costumes busily engaged in spinning yarn and -knitting, a favorite pastime in their home. On a chair at the right was -a young man with a violin, playing selections by an Icelandic composer. -Through the small windows rays of light representing the midnight sun -and the northern lights were thrown. Every detail of their home life was -carried out, even to the serving of coffee with lumps of sugar. Just -before the curtain fell, twenty young people, all of Icelandic descent, -joined in singing the national Icelandic song, which has the same tune as -“America.” The effect of the tableau was tremendous. It served as a force -in portraying the life of one of the many nationalities represented in -the state. - -When “The Servant in the House” by Charles Rann Kennedy was presented, it -was doubtful in my mind whether a better Manson and Mary ever played the -parts. Both the persons who took the characters were country born. Their -interpretation was superb, their acting exceptional. In fact, all the -characters were well done. Three crowded houses greeted the play. - -An alert and aggressive young man from one part of the state who -witnessed several productions in the theater one winter was instrumental -in staging a home talent play in the empty hayloft of a large barn during -the summer months. The stage was made of barn floor planks. The draw -curtain was an old, rain-washed binder cover. Ten barn lanterns hung on -a piece of fence wire furnished the border lights. Branches of trees -were used for a background on the stage. Planks resting on old boxes and -saw-horses were made into seats. A Victrola served as an orchestra. About -a hundred and fifty people were in attendance at the play. The folks -evidently liked the play, for they gave the proceeds to a baseball team. - -[Illustration: SCENE—“Leonarda” _By Björnstjerne Björnson_] - -Every fall harvest festivals are given in different sections of -the state, with the sole purpose of showing the splendid dramatic -possibilities in the field of agriculture. A feature in one given a few -years ago is deserving of special mention. Country people in North Dakota -raise wheat. The state is often called the bread basket of the world. A -disease called black rust often infests the crop and causes the loss of -many bushels. In order to depict the danger of this disease, a pantomime -called “The Quarrel Scene between Black Rust and Wheat” was worked out. -The character representing Wheat was taken by a beautiful fair-haired -girl dressed in yellow, with a miniature sheaf of grain tucked in her -belt. The costume worn by Black Rust was coal-colored cambric. The face -was made up to symbolize death. Wheat entered and, free from care, moved -gracefully around. Black Rust stealthily crept in, pursued and threatened -to destroy Wheat. Just about the time Wheat was ready to succumb, Science -came to the rescue and drove Black Rust away. Wheat triumphed. Several -thousand people saw this wonderful story unfolded in the various places -where it was presented. Everybody caught the significance of it at once. - -Just the other day a farmer from Divide County who had planned a -consolidated schoolhouse came to the theater, in order to find out how to -install a stage “so the people in his community could enjoy themselves” -as he put it. Divide County is some three hundred miles from The Little -Country Theater. - -One young man from the northwestern part of the state wrote me a letter -well worth reading. He said in part: - - “Dear Sir:—I thought you might like to know how we came out on - the play ‘Back to the Farm,’ so I am writing to tell you of the - success we had. - - “In the first place we had a director-general who didn’t - believe in doing things by halves. For nearly a month we - rehearsed three times a week. That means after the day’s work - was done we ate a hasty supper, hurried through the chores, - cranked up the Ford and ‘beat it’ to rehearsal. And when we did - give it we didn’t waste our efforts in a little schoolhouse - with a stage consisting of a carpet on the floor and a sheet - hung on a wire for the curtain. Nix! We had an outfit that any - theater in a fair sized town might well be proud of. - - “Well, we had a full house and then some, they even came from - Minot fifty miles north of here and from other neighboring - towns. After it was over we got all kinds of press notices, - nice complimentary ones, too. Our fame even went as far as - Washburn and the County Supt. of Schools asked us to come down - and give it at the Teachers’ Institute, Nov. 4, to give the - teachers an idea what could be done in other communities y’see? - We didn’t go though, didn’t have any way to pay expenses as he - wanted to give it free. However, we went to Garrison, Ryder, - Parshall, Makoti and drew a full house every time except once - and that was due to insufficient advertising, only two days. - We collected enough money to buy chairs and other furnishings - for our new ‘Little Country Theater’ and also the salary of an - instructor to our orchestra we are just starting. - - “Our stage is surely ‘great.’ The wings, interior set and arch - are made of beaver board, with frames of scantling, the frame - of the arch, however, is not scantling, but two by fours. It - is all made in such a manner that it can be knocked down and - packed away, when we wish to use the building for basketball or - other games. The back drop is the most beautiful landscape I - have ever seen, a real work of art. - - “The front drop curtain is what made it possible for us to get - the entire outfit. It has the ad of nearly every business man - in Ryder and represents something like $240. The complete - stage cost us $200 so we still had some left over. - - “The theater which is not yet completed is in the basement of - the new brick consolidated school. It will be steam heated and - later electric lighted, two dressing rooms back of the stage, - and well I guess that’s enough for a while. The auditorium will - be about 19 x 40 ft. - - “Now I believe what we can do others can do as we are only an - ordinary community, our director was a college graduate with a - lot of pep and push, that’s all. - - “Do you ever loan out any of your scenery? Another party who - has ‘caught the fever,’ is going to try the same stunt with - modifications. I am getting to be a sort of an unofficial agent - for your Extension Div. as people here are getting interested - in these ‘doin’s’ so don’t be surprised if you get a letter - from us now and then. - - “Yours truly, - - “A. R.” - -When “The Little Red Mare,” a one-act farce was given, Hugh’s father -came down to see me and tell me that if there was anything needed in the -country it was more life and good entertainments for the young people. He -was a very interesting character and a bit philosophical. When I told -him about the mistakes made in the work, he pulled out a lead pencil, -placed it between his fat thumb and finger and looking straight at me -said, “if it wasn’t for mistakes we’d never have rubbers on the ends -of our pencils.” His son, Hugh, who took the character of the old deaf -fellow in the play, did a superb piece of acting. - -Over in the village of Amenia they have a country theater. It is located -on the second floor up over a country store, and has a seating capacity -of about one hundred and seventy-five people. The stage is medium size. -The curtain is a green draw curtain. The lighting system is unique, -containing border lights, foot lights, house lights, and a dimmer. The -plays selected and produced are only the best. One villager said he never -thought plays would change the spirit of the community so much. - -[Illustration: SCENE—“The Servant in the House” _By Charles Rann -Kennedy_] - -Up near Kensal, North Dakota, about four miles out from the town, the -McKinley Farmers’ Club have a place modeled in some ways after The Little -Country Theater. The country people formed a hall association, sold -stock to the extent of three thousand dollars, donated their labor, and -put up the building. The site was given by a country merchant. It is -a typical rural center, consisting of auditorium, stage, rest rooms, -dining room, and kitchen. An excellent description of its activities is -contained in a letter from one of its members dated April 17, 1918, which -I shall quote in part: - - “The club year, just closed has been satisfactory in all - events. From a social standpoint, this community through the - efforts of the McKinley Club has enjoyed the fellowship of - their neighbors and friends in a manner that is foreign to most - rural communities. - - “The officials of the past year have injected literary work - into its meetings or rather at the close of the club meeting. - Meetings are held on the second and fourth Saturday evenings - of each month. The men of the club meet in the auditorium and - transact regular business while the Ladies’ Aid of the Club - meet in the dining rooms. At the close of the business session - all congregate in the auditorium where a program made up of - songs, recitations, readings, essays, debates, dialogues, - monologues, the club journal, four minute speeches, etc., is - given. With the program or literary over, all retire to the - dining rooms, where the ladies have a lunch arranged which - is always looked forward to. Home talent plays and public - speakers are from time to time in order and always enjoyed. A - five piece orchestra composed from amongst the membership play - for dances, at plays, etc. The dramatic talent of the club has - just played ‘A Noble Outcast’ and despite a rainy evening the - proceeds counted up to $93.00. The proceeds were used to pay - for the inclosing of the stage and stage scenery. They will put - this on again, the proceeds to go to buy tobacco for the boys - ‘Over There.’ Last June the club members and their families in - autos made a booster trip boosting the play ‘Back to the Farm,’ - presented by The Little Country Theater Players. They canvassed - ten towns in a single day, driving one hundred and twenty - miles. The result was that when the ticket force checked up - $225.00 had been realized. The club celebrates its anniversary - in June of each year. - - “The Ladies’ Aid of the club have been a great help and their - presence always appreciated. To date they have paid for out of - their funds, and installed in the club hall, a lighting system - that is ornamental and is of the best, a piano, kitchen range, - and a full set of dishes with the club monogram in gold letters - inscribed on each piece. - - “The stage is enclosed and scenery in place so that the - dramatic talent of the community have an ideal place for work. - - “I have in a hurried manner given you some of our doings in - general. - - “Respectfully, - - “J. S. J.” - -I shall never forget the night referred to in the above letter when “Back -to the Farm” was given in the hall. Automobiles loaded with people came -from miles around. The hall was packed. Children were seated on the floor -close up to the stage. Fifty persons occupied a long impromptu plank -bench in the center aisle, with their bodies facing one way and their -heads looking toward the stage. They stood on chairs in the vestibule at -the back. The windows were full of people. Three men paid fifty cents -each to stand on a ladder and watch the play through the window near the -stage. It was as enthusiastic and appreciative a crowd as ever witnessed -a play. They still talk about it, too. - -One of the most artistic pieces of work ever done in the Theater was the -part of “Babbie” in Barrie’s play “The Little Minister.” The charming -young lady who took the character seemed, as the folks say, “to be born -for it.” “Little Women” a dramatization of Louisa Alcott’s book was also -cleverly acted. - -A group of twenty young men and women from fifteen different communities -dramatized “The Grand Prairie Community School Building” project in -five scenes. The first scene told the story of the organization of the -Grand Prairie Farmers’ Club in the old one-room country school, and -the endorsement of the new structure. The second showed the plans and -specifications of the proposed building, by means of an illustrated -lecture given in the old town hall. In the third and fourth parts -the basement with the installation of the lighting system and the -preparation of the lunch in the kitchen for the visitors were portrayed. -The last scene displayed the auditorium and stage in the community -school building complete, together with the dedication ceremonies. The -scenery, properties, curtains, and lighting effects were arranged by -these young men and women. The two hundred people who saw this dramatic -demonstration will never forget the effect it had upon them. It proved -that any community which is farsighted enough can with imagination and -organization erect a similar structure or remodel a village hall so the -people can have a place to express themselves. The essentials are an -assembly room and a stage, that’s all. - -[Illustration: SCENE—“Back to the Farm” _By Mereline Shumway_] - -Three outdoor spectacles, “The Pastimes of the Ages,” “The Enchantment -of Spring,” and “The Master Builder” revealed the infinite possibilities -of the drama in picturing “tongues in trees, books in running brooks, -sermons in stones, and good in everything.” All of these pageants and -many more aim to teach the people who live in God’s gardens to appreciate -their surroundings. “The Pastimes of the Ages,” as well as the other two -outdoor plays, was presented on a flat prairie, a parade ground about -three or four hundred feet from The Little Country Theater. Over fifteen -thousand people saw the spectacle and twelve hundred people took part -in it. The scene was a most impressive one. At one end of the natural -outdoor amphitheater the silent sphinx and three pyramids rose in all -their Oriental grandeur. At the other stood a temple of glittering gold, -in which the Spirit of Mirth reigned supreme. The play opened with Mirth -running out of the temple singing and dancing. In the distance she saw a -caravan approaching the pyramids. She beckoned them to come forward. The -grand procession followed. On entering the temple the sojourners were -greeted by flower maidens. Mirth then bade the caravan to be seated on -the steps of marble and witness some of “The Pastimes of the Ages.” The -Greek games were played. An Egyptian ballet was danced. Forty maidens -clad in robes of purple with hands stretched heavenward chanted a prayer. -Two hundred uniformed Arabs drilled. The chimes rang. Mirth gestured for -all to rise and sing. The bands _en masse_ struck the notes of that song -immortal, written by Francis Scott Key. The caravan, having seen all the -pastimes in which men and women have indulged in ages gone by, journeyed -back to the place from whence it came. And the story of the most gorgeous -spectacle ever seen, on the Dacotah prairie ended. - -“The Enchantment of Spring” was a pageant in two episodes, with its -theme taken from the field of agriculture. The setting was The Temple -of Ceres. The Herald of Spring came to the temple with Neptune the God -of Water, Mother Earth, Growth, Apollo the God of the Sun, Persephone -emblematical of the vegetable world, Demeter the Goddess of Grains, Flora -the Goddess of Flowers, and Pomona the Goddess of Fruits, to announce the -approach of Spring. The trumpeters signaled the coming of the east and -west and north and south winds. They met, they quarreled and Fate drove -the north wind away. The three winds then counseled with Neptune, Apollo, -and Mother Earth, companions of Growth, as to her whereabouts. They -finally discovered Growth at work and bade her to go to the temple. The -welcome and the rejoicing followed. At the entry of Spring, the flowers -awoke. Ceres called to Spring to come to the steps of the temple. The -Crowning of Spring ended the pageant. When it was produced, it opened up -the vision of many people as to the latent possibilities of the drama in -the vocation of agriculture. - -[Illustration: FESTIVAL—“The Pastimes of the Ages.” _By Alfred Arnold_. -Parade Grounds, North Dakota Agricultural College, Fargo, North Dakota] - -Just recently “The Master Builder” was presented. The scene of the story -was laid in the Great Outdoors. The play centers about a man who builds, -a mechanic called the Master Builder. In his dream a vision comes to -him, a picture of a beautiful temple that he has longed for years to -construct. Around him and about him the dream children dance. They are -the messengers that tell him that the workmen are coming. Before him -in a procession, passes Ahura Mazda and the Sun Worshipers, Vulcanus -and the torch-bearers, Atlas and his men of power, the Great Architect -and his associates, Praxiteles and the stone-cutters, Tubal Cain and -the blacksmiths, Joseph and the carpenters, and Michael Angelo and the -painters. After he consults with the architects and approves the plans, -they sing and rejoice. Nature’s forces—light, power, and fire—combine -to help him realize his dream. Even the flames, often the elements -of destruction, turn their energies into power to help him. Finally, -Praxiteles and the stone-cutters begin the temple, and Joseph and the -carpenters, Tubal Cain and the blacksmiths, Michael Angelo and the -painters complete it. The Anvil Chorus plays, Enlightenment awakens the -Master Builder from his dream, and Achievement shows him that his vision -has been realized. The beautiful temple stands before him. - -All three of these spectacles show untold dramas in fields of thought yet -untouched. They were mediums through which the ideals, the traditions, -and the beauties of nature and human nature could be expressed. - -The great mass of people in the state love good plays. Just like most -folks, they want something with a homely story mixed with a few bits -of comedy. Ninety out of a hundred persons are usually human, anyway. -“David Harum,” a three-act comedy by Eugene Noyes Westcott, seemed to hit -the right spot with hundreds of the Dacotah folks. Personally, I do not -believe a finer piece of non-professional acting has ever been done in -America than that of the young man who took the part of David Harum. His -phenomenal success in the character is all due to the fact that he lived -the part every time he acted it. Naturally, he had strong support in the -presentation of the play. - -One incident in regard to the place of its production I shall never -forget. During the past twenty-five years it has been my good fortune -to see plays and programs presented in village halls, schoolhouses, -churches, homes, country stores, gymnasiums, auditoriums, theaters, -hotels, barns, parks, groves, streets, and other places. But I have never -had the good fortune to see a baseball diamond used for a theater, and -on the Fourth of July, with a play like “David Harum.” It all happened -down at Lisbon. The second baseball game had just finished. It was about -six-thirty in the evening. A frame of two-by-four scantling was erected -and braced like a city billboard. The center of the frame was exactly -nine feet from the home plate. On it fourteen foot green draperies were -hung. A large soiled canvas was laid on the worn ground for the stage. -Three electric bulbs with a few batteries and two good sized automobiles -furnished all the light necessary for the production. The baseball pits, -where the players stay before they are called upon to bat, were used as -dressing rooms. The crowd began to assemble at half past seven, and at -eight o’clock the bleachers were brimful. The overflow crowd was seated -on planks close up to the stage. For two solid hours and on the Fourth -of July, mind you, several hundred people sat, watched, and listened to -David Harum. Not a soul left. The interest manifested by the audience -was tense at all times. It was one of the most unique instances ever -experienced by the writer. - -[Illustration: SCENE—Sitting Bull-Custer. _By Aaron McGaffey Beede_] - -An Indian drama called, “Sitting Bull-Custer,” written by an Episcopal -priest, now a judge in Sioux County, told the story of the Redman’s -version of the Custer Massacre. It was presented on a Dacotah prairie -at sunset, seven years ago. The scene represented an Indian village on -the Little Big Horn River. It was dawn, June twenty-fifth, eighteen -hundred and seventy six. A thick clump of trees, in which the Indian -characters, Echonka, Gall, Rain-in-the-Face, Old-man, Old-woman, -and Old-Woman-Diviner were hidden, furnished the background. There, -secluded as spies, they anxiously awaited the arrival of Sitting Bull, -believing that he would unfold valuable secrets in regard to the coming -battle. Fool-mink, an Indian story teller and singer, the comedian of -the play, was everywhere present. He sang and he danced. His music -irritated Rain-in-the-Face, because it reminded him of the time Tom -Custer handcuffed him. In several sharp encounters which ensued between -Fool-Mink and Rain-in-the-Face, Gall acted as the peace-maker. Silence -reigned. Sitting Bull arrived. He looked at the dawn wistfully, started -a fire, and sat down beside it. He spoke with rapid tongue. He told the -story of the Redman, the most misunderstood creature on earth. He gave -the reason why his race feared the white man—he wanted to be left alone -and have food to eat. He foretold the battle. Suddenly his body became as -rigid as a statue. Mid pauses, he spoke in a far-away ghostly voice. - - “Great Custer speaks. I hear him say, - Brave action crushes calumny. - No lies can crush a glittering fact, - If man, ignoring self, will act. - I’m not a man without a flaw, - What man has not his foibles? Pshaw! - Courtmartial me! For what? To blight - My name! I swear, by yonder light - Of morning, I’ve no serious wrong! - The truth will flame abroad ere long. - Their teeth shall bite the dust to-day, - A soldier’s grave can sing a lay - Of praise, while foibles dare not peep, - And those who twisted foibles sleep - Forgotten. They suppose I shrink - From death as they do. As they think - They judge me. Open your sweet jaws, - Brave death, and swallowing petty flaws, - Make Custer’s rightful honor bright - And clean, as youthful morning light! - To die! To die gives them the shame, - And me, I ask no word of fame, - Save this,—that ere I slept in dust. - He pauses, waves his lifted hand, - He’s beckoning toward the spirit land.” - -In this reverie he pictured Custer as the idol of the Redman. The arrival -of the herald from the enemy’s camp awakened him from his stupor. A -council of war was hastily called. It was noon and after. The battle was -on. The smoke rose in every direction. Soldiers and warriors appeared and -disappeared. Echonka was seen. His gun failed to discharge. A bullet laid -him low. Winona, Echonka’s lover, came running, looked at him with an -agonized face, lifted her hands toward heaven, and shrieked. She knelt at -his side and cried as if her heart would break. The fatal day soon ended. -It was after sunset. Sitting Bull in searching among the dead found the -body of Custer. The wailing for the dead could just be heard. He uttered -a soliloquy, covered Custer’s face with a silk handkerchief, lifted his -own face and hands in prayer, and was silent. The play ended. - -The effect upon the three thousand persons who witnessed the Indian play -was excellent. - -Religious dramas, sometimes in prose and poetry and often in tableau -and pantomime, are given. “The Evergreen Tree,” “The Nazarene in Song -and Story,” and “The Man of Galilee” were especially well presented. -Every year a series of one-act plays is produced for the sole purpose of -training young men and women to be able to stage dramas in the districts -where they expect to live. Programs containing features characteristic of -the activities of a community are frequently given. - -A great many original plays have been written and presented to large -crowds. “The Prairie Wolf,” “Bridging the Chasm,” “Every Ship Will Find -a Harbor,” “The New Country Woman,” “The Country Side,” not to mention -dozens of others, are productions which have come out of the country -people themselves. The place was crowded at the presentation of every -one of these plays. Over eighty per cent of the audiences were country -people, who had come to see dramas of their own creation, plays that had -come out of the soil. “The Prairie Wolf” was written by a young man who -was interested in horses and cattle. It pictured in a most vivid manner -the financial troubles of a great many farmers. The central thought -in “Bridging the Chasm” brought out the gap between city and country. -A city girl and a country boy had fallen in love with each other. The -city prejudice against country people made her hesitate before she said -yes. “Every Ship Will Find a Harbor” was worked out by a country lad who -was very fond of machinery and electricity. The action of the play took -place in a country store, in the woods near the Langer farm, and in the -sitting room of a farm home. The play told the story of a lazy country -boy who decided to leave the farm and go west in search of adventure, -and to study about machinery with the aid of a correspondence course. He -didn’t like school. After being in the employ of a western power company -for a few years, he returned home. His arm was broken. While at home he -became interested in the community where he was born. In order to help -his people enjoy life he showed them how to harness nature’s power, so -that the drudgery of the farm might be done by machinery instead of man -power. The crowd which witnessed this play was a very responsive one. -“The New Country Woman,” written by a girl of French descent, brought -out the leadership of woman in improving the social conditions in the -country. There were ten characters in the play. The action took place in -three scenes. The existing rural conditions in the state were splendidly -portrayed in “The Country Side.” It was exceptionally well written, the -thought and the English well nigh perfect. - -[Illustration: SCENE—“American Beauties”—A One-Act Play _by A. Seaman_] - -Whenever possible, the young people who are competent are broken in as -directors on the original plays as well as on the others. This is done to -give them the experience, so that they can help when called upon in their -communities to assist. It also develops leadership. In other words, The -Little Country Theater is not only a laboratory to try out different -kinds of plays and entertainments for country folks, but also a place to -train country-life workers. - -One could go on indefinitely with hundreds of incidents which show the -magnitude of the work of this particular country-life laboratory in the -Northwest. - - - - -A BEE IN A DRONE’S HIVE - - -Just a few years past a young man from near Edmunds, North Dakota, came -to see me. He said he wanted to try a hand at writing a play. When asked -what was the most interesting thing in his life at that particular time, -he told me about two people who had lived on the farm the greater share -of their lives. One wanted to retire and the other to remain. I asked him -how he stood on the subject and he said if he were to make a decision he -would stay on the farm. “Good,” said I, “there’s the theme for your play, -country life versus city life. Lay the scene of the first act in the city -and have the farmer retired, showing that all the advantages of real life -are not found in the city. Place the second act out in the country and -demonstrate the social possibilities of life on the farm.” - -Nothing more was said. He left the office. In about three or four weeks -he returned with a copy of a play. It was written in lead pencil on -an old-fashioned yellow tablet. I asked him what the name of the play -was, and he said he had called it “A Bee in a Drone’s Hive.” At first I -objected to the title, but after questioning him found that the reason he -called the play, “A Bee in a Drone’s Hive” was that he thought that a man -who really understood the country should never move to the city; that he -was just as much out of place in the city as a bee was in a drone’s hive. - -At first thought, I intended to go over the play with him and correct -it and make a suggestion here and there. Then another idea struck me. -What if this young man were out in the country, would it be possible -for him to have anybody go over a play he had written there? Just about -that time I made a trip east and read the play to several audiences. It -met with a hearty reception wherever read. After a talk with a great -many playwrights, authors, and men of affairs, I came to the inevitable -conclusion that the best thing to do was to bring the play back and let -the author stage it just as he had written it. This was done. Within -several weeks the play was presented in the theater. - -A full house greeted the performance. Men and women from all over the -state were present to witness the production. Everybody said it was the -best thing they had ever seen. Rural workers in the audience claimed it -was one of the finest arguments in favor of country life that they had -ever heard. The author took the part of Hiram Johnson, the philosopher. -His make-up was remarkable. He did it himself. After the play several -persons suggested that the thing for him to do was to go away and take -some courses in writing plays. This did not appeal to him, as he loved -the farm and wanted to return to it. What he really found out was that he -could express himself. - -To-day he operates nearly four hundred acres of land. He has forty head -of cattle, eight of which are registered short-horns. He is a successful -farmer in every respect. During his spare moments he takes part in home -talent plays. He loves the drama. He is married and has a family. - -“A Bee in a Drone’s Hive” is the product from the mind of a farmer who -actually farms and lives on the farm. Following is the play in full form -just as he wrote it and as it was produced. - -[Illustration: SCENE—“A Bee in a Drone’s Hive” _By Cecil Baker_] - - -ACT I. - -_Scene_: _Benson’s home in the city. Room lavishly furnished. Ethel at -desk writing, Mr. Benson sitting in easy chair reading, and Mrs. Benson -darning socks._ - - MRS. BENSON - -Ethel, who are you writing to? - - ETHEL - -Oh, I was just dropping a line to brother Harry. Thought he would be glad -to know how we were getting along in the city by now. You know I promised -him I would write often and let him know how you and father took to city -life. He said you would never like it here after the novelty of it wore -off. - - MRS. BENSON - -Tell him I would write some, too, only I’m such a poor writer and it -hasn’t been long since I did write. You know people like to get letters -often, so if you write now, and then me after while, he may like it -better. I want to read what you have written when you get through. - - ETHEL - -Sorry, mother, but I can’t let you read this one—at least all of it. You -know brother and I always did confide in each other. I’ve often thought -how much better we understand each other than most brothers and sisters, -and how much more pleasant it is. I always feel sorry for girls who have -no brothers and for boys who have no sisters. - - MR. BENSON - -You say you’re writin’ to Harry, Ethel? By jinks, I’d like to know how -he is getting along on the old homestead. S’pose he’s got his grain most -cleaned by now, and just waitin’ till it thaws out so he can get into the -fields. I’d sure like to see that car load of yearlin’s he says he just -bought. Bet that bunch he’s finishin’ for the June market is fine by now; -you know he wrote last spring that they were lookin’ mighty promisin’ and -he takes such pride in them, too. - - MRS. BENSON - -Harry does think a lot of the stock and that dear little wife he got -takes such an interest in things, too, and she’s so encouraging. Did you -notice the way she pulled him out of the blues once when they were first -married? He always goes to her for advice in everything he does. - - MR. BENSON - -Yes, and by Jinks, her advice is worth somethin’ too. Harry always says -that’s just the way he looks at it, but thought he’d ask her first. You -know as how I used to always be against those agricultural colleges and -never had much faith in ’em. Well, that pair has completely converted me. -Harry never did like stock till he went away to school. As soon as he got -back he began talkin’ as how we could improve ours, and as how many we -ought to have more for the size of our farm. By jinks, I’ve got to slip -out there fore long and see those cattle. - -_Ethel rises with two letters in hand and rings for the butler._ - - MRS. BENSON - -Looks as though you were confiding in someone else, too. - - ETHEL - -Oh no, just a letter to Mabel. - - MR. BENSON - -_Rising._ - -Ethel, if you don’t care I’ll take your letters to the box. I’ve simply -got to get more fresh air. I’ve begun to feel like a house plant what’s -bin sittin’ in the bay window all winter. When the hired man comes, tell -him to fix up the fire. - - ETHEL - -All right, father. Be sure you put the letters in a mail box and not in -the police telephone box like you did once. (_Exit Mr. Benson._) Mother, -father makes me think of a bee in a drone’s hive; he’s just dying for -something to do and there isn’t a thing around here to do that would -satisfy him. He’s just aching to be out among the stock on the farm. I -really feel sorry for him, but I guess there isn’t any way to better -things; he’s not able to run the farm any longer. - - MRS. BENSON - -No, he isn’t and I wouldn’t think of movin’ in with Harry and Jennie, -even though they wouldn’t object. It breaks up the home spirit so to -have two families in one home. I’ve never let on to your pa, but I don’t -like the city life half as well as I thought I would, and I really never -thought of what a handicap it would be to you. - - ETHEL - -Oh, don’t you care about me. I have a good home here as long as you live -and I don’t know of a place where I’m needed as bad as I am right here -looking after you and father. I consider it my calling. - - MRS. BENSON - -I don’t see how we would get along here without you, but it’s not fair, -and you don’t owe it. I was just thinking the other day about Clarence. -He must be about through college by now. There wasn’t a better fellow -livin’ than Clarence and he seemed to think so much of you. How’s come -you and him don’t write any more? You used to. - - ETHEL - -Yes, we did write till three years ago, when he failed to answer my -letter and I never wrote again. - - MRS. BENSON - -Maybe he didn’t get your letter. - - ETHEL - -I heard through a friend that he did. I thought that if he didn’t want -to write, that was his own business. I suppose he found another girl. -But mother, it’s hard to forget—I didn’t know I did care so much. But—oh -well, it’s too late now. I’m going to stay by you and father, so I should -worry. - -(_Walks across room to desk._) - - MRS. BENSON - -_Speaking to self._ - -I wish we had never come to the city. Poor girl. - - ETHEL - -Mother, I’ve something amusing to tell you. What do you think, Mr. Smith, -who called to see me last night, asked me to marry him. - - MRS. BENSON - -What! - - ETHEL - -Wouldn’t that make you laugh? - - MRS. BENSON - -Why, you haven’t known him more than a month and a half, have you? - - ETHEL - -No, and I’ve only seen him a few times at that. - - MRS. BENSON - -That beats anything I ever heard of. Is the fellow in his right mind? - - ETHEL - -Oh, I guess he’s sane enough—but he’s so used to having his money get -what he wants, that I suppose he thought it would buy me, too. - - MRS. BENSON - -How much money has he got? - - ETHEL - -I don’t know, but from the way he talks he must have quite a bit. - - MRS. BENSON - -Well, he had better trade some of it for a little common sense. - - ETHEL - -By the way, mother, is this Thursday or Friday? You know we’ve invited -the Asterbilts for dinner Friday, and you know— - - MRS. BENSON - -_Interrupting._ - -That’s what’s the matter, and this is Friday and it’s six-thirty now. -They ought to have been here three-quarters of an hour ago—mighty good -thing they’re late. - - ETHEL - -I wonder if the maid has forgotten, too. - - MRS. BENSON - -My goodness, what if she has forgotten! You be straightening the -room—I’ll go and see her. - -_Exit Mrs. Benson. Enter butler._ - - WALTER - -Sorry, I’m so long, Miss Ethel. - - ETHEL - -You don’t look so very long to me. Fix the fire and see that everything -is ready for company, the Asterbilts are coming. - - WALTER - -The Asterbilts! You having those swell bugs here! You had better order a -butler and have him delivered at once. - -_Exit Walter._ - - ETHEL - -This is an awful state of affairs. Here the swellest people in town are -coming and we’re not ready. I didn’t much want to have them, but mother -insisted. She said it was time I ought to be getting acquainted with some -of the good people of the city. I’m not very ambitious, if they’re all -like Mr. Smith. Some idea he’s got of what love is; and father makes so -many mistakes. He simply can’t learn the city ways and this is the first -time we’ve invited in any society people. Well, it’s too late now to talk -about it—we’d might as— - -_Enter Mr. Benson._ - - MR. BENSON - -Mailed your letters, Ethel. Why, what’s up, girl—be ye cleanin’ house so -soon? Don’t think you’ll last if you go over this house at that pace. - - ETHEL - -We invited the Asterbilts for supper and we’d forgotten all about it -till it was past the time they were supposed to be here. They’re almost -an hour late now. This is enough to give one nervous prostration. Maybe -they’re not coming, though. - - MR. BENSON - -By jinks, I hope they’ll come. I was just wonderin’ the other day why we -couldn’t have in some of our neighbors and get acquainted a little. Why, -we don’t even know the people across the street from us. Out on the farm -we knew people from six to twelve miles around. - -_Enter Mrs. Benson._ - - MRS. BENSON - -The maid says everything is ready. Wonder why they don’t come or phone -us. I wish they wouldn’t come, now. Why, what will they think of us in -these clothes? - -_Enter Walter. Hands Mrs. Benson a card._ - - MRS. BENSON - -_Reading._ - -They’re here, show them up, Walter. - - WALTER - -I’m afraid I’m a poor butler. - -_Exit._ - - MR. BENSON - -I don’t see what there is to worry about—your clothes are clean and neat. -What more can they expect? By jinks, I don’t let a little thing like that -worry me. - -_Enter Mr. and Mrs. Asterbilt, preceded by butler._ - - MRS. BENSON - -_Shaking hands with Mrs. Asterbilt who holds hand high for fashionable -hand shake._ - -How do you do, Mrs. Asterbilt. - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -Good evening. - - MRS. BENSON - -I hope you’ll excuse— - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -_Interrupting._ - -Mrs. Benson, my husband. - - MR. ASTERBILT - -Mrs. Benson, it gives me very great pleasure to make your acquaintance. - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -And I suppose this is your daughter. - -_Shakes hands with her._ - - MR. BENSON - -Yes, that’s her. - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -You’re a very charming young lady. - - MR. ASTERBILT - -_Shaking hands with Ethel._ - -Indeed you’re very charming, Miss Benson. - - MRS. BENSON - -This is my husband, Mrs. Asterbilt. - - MR. BENSON - -_Makes a couple of attempts to shake hands with Mrs. Asterbilt and at -last finding her hand, which is held high, pulls it down and gives real -handshake._ - -I’m so glad ter know you, Mrs. Asterbilt. (_Shakes with Mr. Asterbilt._) -How do ye do, Mr. Asterbilt. By jinks, I’m glad you folks come this -evenin’. I was just tellin’ Ethel as how we didn’t know our next door -neighbor here in town. Do ye know, Mr. Asterbilt, I don’t think the town -folks are near as sociable as us country folks. Won’t ye take your wraps -off and stay a while? - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -_Removing wraps, hands them to Walter, who wads them all up in his arms -and drops Asterbilt’s hat._ - -I’m so sorry we were unable to get here for dinner or to let you know. We -fully intended to get here, but we went out auto riding in the country -and were detained by a breakdown. When we arrived home and saw we were -so late, we took our dinner at the cafe before coming. I hope our delay -hasn’t put you to any great anxiety. Since we couldn’t get here for -dinner, we thought we would call for a while, rather than disappoint you -completely. - -_Exit butler with wraps._ - - MRS. BENSON - -We’re very glad you did, won’t you be seated? - - MR. BENSON - -Indeed we’re glad you have come. Anyone is welcome at our house any time. -Don’t you know people aren’t so sociable as they uster be. Why, when I -was a boy we either called on some of our neighbors, or they called on us -every night of the week during the winter months. I’ve been noticin’ as -how the town folks don’t call at all unless they’re invited. By jinks, -come to think about it, you folks are the first to come since we’ve been -here, exceptin’ one of our neighbors from the farm. - -_Begins slowly to remove shoes._ - - MR. ASTERBILT - -By the way, Mr. Benson, what is your opinion of the commission form of -government this city is going to submit to the voters next election? You -know some of the cities have already adopted it and it is promising to -become quite popular. - - MR. BENSON - -Can’t say as I know much about it. If it’s anything like the commission -the grain and stock buyers get, I don’t think much of it. You see lots of -those fellers getting rich while many of the farmers who haul their grain -in to them are just barely holdin’ their own. So they’re wantin’ to make -a big thing outen the city people, too, are they? - - MR. ASTERBILT - -You have the wrong impression, Mr. Benson. This commission form of -government consists of several committees of three men each and each -committee has some special phase of city work to look after, such as -streets, parks, public health, etc. - - ETHEL - -Father, you’ll have to be reading up a little, so you’ll know which way -to vote at the election. - - MR. BENSON - -_Rubbing his feet._ - -Guess you’re right, Ethel. - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -Miss Benson, I don’t think I have seen you at any of the balls this -winter—it must be that you haven’t been introduced yet, for young ladies -are in quite a demand. I believe you would be a very graceful dancer. - - ETHEL - -I’ve been to a few social gatherings given by the young ladies’ society -of our church—we’ve had some real nice times. - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -Those will do for some people, I suppose, but you’re charming enough to -get into real society. I can give you the name of a fine dancing school -where you can learn to dance in a very short time. They guarantee to get -their pupils into society as soon as they have completed. - - MR. BENSON - -_Has been rubbing his feet, now places them on the back of a chair._ - -These pavements just tear my feet to pieces every time I go for a walk. -The cities talk about their improvements, why don’t they cover their -walks with rubber so as to save one’s feet? I’d lots rather have an old -cow path to walk on. - - ETHEL - -_Leaving room._ - -Father, may I see you for a moment? - -_Exit._ - - MR. BENSON - -I’ll be back in a moment, just go right on visitin’. - -_Exit._ - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -Do you folks like the city life better than the country life? - - MRS. BENSON - -I can’t say as we do—we miss our neighbors so. - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -You should get into society. We have some very cultured people in this -city, with high social standings. Your daughter is good looking enough to -marry a rich young man. You should give a ball in her honor. - -_Enter Hiram Johnson. He looks around the room much awed by its splendor._ - - MRS. BENSON - -_Rises to meet him._ - -Why, hello, Hiram. - - HIRAM - -How do you do, Mary? Golly, but you have a swell home! A feller told me -this was where you lived so I walked right in without knocking. This is a -swell room—don’t you sorter feel like a snake in a bird’s nest? - - MRS. BENSON - -How did you happen to come here? - - HIRAM - -I was just takin’ a little vacation to see the sights. Many of our -learned men get much of their education just traveling. - - MRS. BENSON - -Meet our company, Hiram. It’s Mr. and Mrs. Asterbilt. - - HIRAM - -_Shaking hands in a friendly way._ - -I’m glad to know any one whose friends to John and Mary. I knowed _they_ -would soon get acquainted when they came here, for they’re so neighborly. - -_Enter Mr. Benson with house slippers on._ - - MR. BENSON - -By jinks, if it ain’t Hiram. - -_Exit Mrs. Benson._ - - HIRAM - -_Crossing to Benson._ - -Golly, John, you look like a house plant. I see right now that you’ll -have to get more sunshine, or this here city life will get the best of -you. How do you like the city life, anyway? Gee! but such a room! - - MR. BENSON - -The house is all right, but the life is pretty doggone dull. - - HIRAM - -Just what I told your son, Harry. The conveniences are all right, but -you’re just as much out of place as a pump handle on an ice house. - - MR. BENSON - -I suppose it is the only life for those that is brought up that way. - - HIRAM - -Sure, but it’s just as hard for a farmer to get used to city ways as it -is for a fish to get used to living on land. - -_Enter Mrs. Benson._ - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -Mrs. Benson, I think we had better be going. - - MRS. BENSON - -Oh, you musn’t go so soon—I have ordered a light lunch. - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -But we ought to be going, and then you’ll want to be visiting with your -neighbor. - - HIRAM - -Don’t let me be causing you to leave, the more the merrier. I wouldn’t -advise you to leave until after the lunch Mrs. Benson has prepared. She’s -the finest cook round, they always calls on her to make the biscuits for -the ladies’ aid doin’s at the church and picnics in the summer time. I’d -advise you to stay. - - MR. ASTERBILT - -Mr. Johnson, I suppose you are taking a little vacation to get away from -the monotony of the farm. It must be an awful dull place to spend one’s -life in. - - HIRAM - -By golly, you couldn’t pull me away from the farm with a train of -cars. Why what have you got in the city that’s pleasant? Ye haven’t -got anything but crowded streets and houses. Everything ye have is -artificial. Why you talk about the monotony, I’d like to know where ye -get any more than in the city. Why, everything in the city is always the -same. Ye never have any change unless some one starts a fire to get some -insurance and burns half the town down. Out in the country everything -grows up new every spring and we have the pleasure of seem’ nature at its -great work. What’s more pleasant than sowin’ a little seed and watchin’ -hit go through all the stages till it gets to be a big plant? Why, look -at these flowers—I bet John paid no less than a dollar a head for ’em. -Out on the farm they will grow right in your own door yard. Ain’t that -right, John? - - MR. ASTERBILT - -That may be true, but what about your long winter? - - HIRAM - -Why, what can be more beautiful than to see nature asleep and covered -with a blanket of snow? Why, it makes ye have a feelin’ ye can’t explain. -And, golly, the feelin’ ye have when the sun begins removin’ the blanket -and all nature begins to wake up again. It makes ye feel like ye’d been -asleep with it and was wakin’ up with it and fresh for work. There’s -nothin’ like it. Ain’t that right, John? - -_A maid enters carrying a tray full of large meat sandwiches._ - - MAID - -Har your sanvitches bane vot yu vanted. - - MRS. BENSON - -_Taking tray and offering them to Mrs. Asterbilt._ - -Won’t you have one? - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -No, thanks. Really, Mrs. Benson, we must be going. We have had a very -delightful time. Will you ring for our cloaks? - - MRS. BENSON - -_Placing biscuits on table._ - -I’m sorry you people have to leave so soon. - -_Rings for Walter._ - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -I hope we haven’t inconvenienced you, Mrs. Benson, by our not being here -for dinner. - - MRS. BENSON - -Oh no, not at all. We were only going to have some sausage and sour -kraut. They’re not as good as what we make on the farm, but I thought -perhaps you’d like that better than anything. - -_Enter Walter. Hiram takes a biscuit from tray and begins eating._ - - MRS. BENSON - -Bring their wraps, Walter. - - HIRAM - -Mary, you sure haven’t forgot how to make those biscuits you used to make. - - MRS. BENSON - -But, Hiram, I didn’t make them. We have a maid to do the work here. - - MR. BENSON - -Yes, and by jinks, we haven’t had a good meal since. - - HIRAM - -By golly, that’s right, there isn’t anything like home cookin’. Ye -ought ter be back on the farm where ye can have eggs and bakin’ powder -biscuits and honey for breakfast—a nice young fried rooster for dinner -with good old white gravy, mashed potatoes, dressin’ and dumplin’s. - - MR. ASTERBILT - -Mr. Benson, here is my card. I’m running for commissioner of city -improvement. Hope I may have your vote at the election. - - MR. BENSON - -If you are a Republican, you can count on it. - - MR. ASTERBILT - -_Smiling._ - -Politically, I am. - -_Enter butler with wraps._ - - MRS. BENSON - -_Taking wraps and dismissing butler. Hands wraps to guests._ - -Now that you’ve made a start, I hope you will come often. - - MR. BENSON - -Sure, drop in often, and don’t wait for to be asked; ye’re welcome any -time. - - MRS. ASTERBILT - -Thank you very much. (_To husband_) Are you ready? (_Bowing to Mr. and -Mrs. Benson._) Good evening. - -_Exeunt Mrs. Asterbilt and Mrs. Benson._ - - MR. ASTERBILT - -_Shaking hands with Mr. Benson._ - -Good night, Mr. Benson. - - MR. BENSON - -Good night. - - MR. ASTERBILT - -Good night, Mr. Johnson. I’m glad I met you. - - HIRAM - -Same to you. Meetin’ a new friend gives me as much joy as findin’ a -dollar bill in my pocket that I didn’t know I had there. If ye ever get -out my way drop in and see me. - -_Exeunt Mr. Asterbilt and Mr. Benson._ - -_Enter Ethel._ - - ETHEL - -Well, if it isn’t Hiram! What possessed you to come to the city? - - HIRAM - -Just travelin’ round a little. - - ETHEL - -I didn’t suppose you traveled very much. - - HIRAM - -We didn’t use to, but now we take a trip most every year back to old -Ohio. Back to the old neighborhood where we were born and married. So -ye haven’t got married yet, have ye? Most birds finds a mate when they -get full feathered. Looks like you’d be catchin’ some of these rich city -fellers. They could line yer nest with feathers. - - ETHEL - -Oh yes, no doubt they could. How did you leave everybody at home? - - HIRAM - -Just like a rose in July. Saw your brother Harry the day before I left. -He sent a letter down for you. Said ter be sure and give it ter you and -not let the folks see it. - - ETHEL - -_Opens letter and reads to self—then to Hiram._ - -Oh, Hiram, listen to this. - -_Enter Mr. and Mrs. Benson unobserved—stop and listen as Ethel reads. -Ethel reading._ - -I take it from your last letter, that the folks are out of place in -the city and discontented. I’m not surprised—in fact I looked for you -to write and tell me before, but I suppose you thought I couldn’t do -anything. But listen, I can and I am. I have it all planned. Just across -the road on the south quarter there is a piece of a building spot. I was -talking with the carpenters yesterday and they said they would be able to -start building the house next week. I have let them suffer as long as I -can. Out here they won’t have anything to do but to look after themselves -and enjoy life where they know how. - - MR. BENSON - -By jingo and jumpin’ John Rogers, I’m goin’ to-morrow. - - _Curtain._ - - -ACT II - -_Scene_: _Picnic grounds in the country near Harry Benson’s farm. Scene -is at dinner-time on the picnic grounds. The band is heard playing in -the distance. Ethel, Jennie, and Mrs. Benson are busy taking food from a -large box. Mr. Benson is sitting on a spring buggy seat at one side of -the stage. Toy balloon whistles can be heard at different intervals, some -louder than others. Also auto horns tooting occasionally._ - - MRS. BENSON - -_While working._ - -Ethel, I thought the pageant went just fine. Didn’t you, Jennie? - - JENNIE - -I certainly did. Ethel makes a mighty good milk-maid. That fellow in love -with her seemed to think the same thing. - - MR. BENSON - -By jinks, it did me a lot of good to see her snub that city feller. - - ETHEL - -I’m glad you all enjoyed it. It went better than we thought it would. - - MRS. BENSON - -How did you train that dog to walk across the stage like he did? - - ETHEL - -We didn’t—he walked across of his own accord. It fitted in the scene -fine, but I could hardly keep from laughing. - - MRS. BENSON - -Well, I declare, it looked just like he was supposed to do it. (_Looking -in box_) I can’t find any salt or pepper. - -_Auto horns toot in the distance._ - - JENNIE - -They’re wrapped up in some white paper in one corner. - - MRS. BENSON - -Here they are. - -_Unwraps and puts on table._ - - JENNIE - -Wonder what’s keeping Harry. I saw him right after the game, and he said -he’d be down in a little while. Which dish is the salad in, Ethel? - - ETHEL - -It’s in that large oval dish. - -_Auto horn toots._ - - JENNIE - -Do you know what we forgot? We forgot the sugar for the lemonade. - - MRS. BENSON - -Dear me, now what are we to do? - - ETHEL - -Do you remember I started to get it this morning when you asked me to -whip the cream for the cake? I never thought of it again. - - JENNIE - -I wonder if the Newtons would have any more than they want. - - ETHEL - -I’ll run up to where they are eating and see. - -_Exit Ethel. Enter Harry in baseball suit._ - - HARRY - -My, but this shady place feels refreshing. Wow! Such a hypnotizing odor. -Better watch me. I’m liable to go into a spell and eat the whole works. I -feel like a starved wolf. - - MR. BENSON - -What’s the matter with you fellers, Harry—didn’t I hear you say our club -had a better nine than the Lyon Club? - - HARRY - -Can’t expect to beat that umpire. We got another one for this afternoon’s -game and I’ll bet they don’t beat us then. That umpire this morning was -absolutely “rotten.” He called me out twice on second base and I was -there a mile before the ball both times. Called Jones out on a home base -and the catcher dropped the ball before he even touched him. We had to -strike at everything that came along, for he’d call it a strike anyway. - - JENNIE - -We hope you’ll beat this afternoon. Are you too tired to get a pail of -water from the spring? - - HARRY - -Not if you will have dinner ready when I get back. - -_Takes bucket on exit._ - - MR. BENSON - -I wonder why Hiram and his wife ain’t here to-day. They’re generally -along the first ones at a picnic. - - MRS. BENSON - -I was talking with her over the phone yesterday and she said they were -coming. - - MR. BENSON - -Doesn’t seem quite natural without Hiram around. - -_Enter Ethel with Floyd._ - - ETHEL - -Opal, I brought Floyd down to play with you. - - OPAL - -_Jumping from swing clapping hands._ - -Oh goodie, won’t you swing me, Floyd? - - ETHEL - -Here is lots of sugar. - - JENNIE - -Good, Harry has gone after the water. - - MRS. BENSON - -I guess everything is all ready when he gets here. - -_Enter Harry with water._ - - HARRY - -I feel just like a starved bear. If dinner isn’t ready I’m going to jump -in this bucket of water and drown myself. - -_Ethel and Jennie busy making lemonade._ - - JENNIE - -All we’d need to do would be to pour in this juice and sugar (_they do -so_) and you’d soon drink the pond dry. - - HARRY - -Yes, and I’d do it so quick I wouldn’t even get wet. - -_Exit Opal and Floyd._ - - ETHEL - -If you people are hungry, get around here, it’s all ready. - - JENNIE - -Grandma, you and grandpa sit around here. - - HARRY - -I’ll sit close to the salad. - -_Has lemonade on box close to him—everybody takes seat, leaving two for -Opal and Floyd and enough to set one more plate._ - - JENNIE - -I wonder where the children have gone to. - - MRS. BENSON - -I didn’t see them leave. I expect they went up to play with the Smith -children. - - HARRY - -When you run dry on lemo, just hand your cups this way. Will you pass the -buns, please? - - JENNIE - -You ought not to be hungry after eating that big breakfast this morning. -What do you think—he ate four eggs, six baking powder biscuits and about -a cup full of syrup, to say nothing about potatoes. - - HARRY - -Just the same I don’t believe pa would advise me to go to the city to -cure my appetite, would you pa? - - MR. BENSON - -I guess not, by jinks! We eat to live, so why not live where we have an -appetite for what we eat? - -_Enters Hiram smoking corn-cob pipe._ - - HIRAM - -Golly, but I’m just in time. - - MR. BENSON - -Hello, Hiram, come and have some dinner. - - HIRAM - -Well, I never turn daon’ a meal when I’m hungry. Got some of those good -biscuits, Mary? - -_Ethel prepares a place._ - - MRS. BENSON - -We’ve got some biscuits, but I can’t say as they’re very good. - - HIRAM - -_Lays pipe at side of stage—takes seat at table._ - -Wall, I can say it without ever tastin’ them. John, I reckon ye can’t say -ye haven’t had a good meal since you moved back ter the farm. I can’t -keep from talkin’ about you movin’ to the city. Ye thought everything was -going to be honey, but it turned out ter be merlasses. Ain’t I right, -John? - - MRS. BENSON - -Where’s Rachel, didn’t she come? - - HIRAM - -She woke up with a headache this morning. I wanted ter stay hum with her, -but she made me come down for a while. There seems to be a large crowd -here, to-day. - - HARRY - -A very large crowd. I never saw the like of autos as were out to the game. - - HIRAM - -John, what do you know about these fellers. Henry tells me they got beat. - - HARRY - -The umpire played a fine game. - - HIRAM - -That’s what Henry was tellin’ me, but I just laughed at him. Everybody -hates to acknowledge they’re whipped. John here even kinder hates ter say -the city got the best of him. Of course, that’s different then getting -beat in a game. It wasn’t any honor ter the city, but ye fellers were on -equal footin’ and both teams are used ter the grounds, while John here, -he was on a strange diamond. We never had umpires when I was a boy, but -we found plenty of other excuses for getting beat. - - MR. BENSON - -Harry says they’re goin’ to beat them this afternoon. - - HARRY - -You two just watch us and see. We got a good umpire and we’re going to -beat them on equal footin’ as you say. - -_Enter Opal and Floyd, hold of hands—stop quick and stand looking._ - - JENNIE - -You children are rather late—here’s your places around here between -grandma and me. - -_They take places at table, Jennie places bib around them._ - -Where have you been? - - FLOYD - -We went up to play with Ruth and Harold. They’ve got a swing fastened -away up high and you can swing twice as far as you can with this one. - - OPAL - -It almost took my breath away. - - HIRAM - -The country’s the place to raise children in. Here they have all the -fresh air and good plain food ter make them grow. In the city they are -all crowded up together in a bunch. Their fresh air is all filled with -smoke. They have no place for the children to play exceptin’ in the parks -where they’re so careful with their hay they have signs all around ter -“keep off the grass.” Why, we have to raise their food for them, but they -don’t get it until it’s been in cold storage for a year or so or else -canned. I tell ye people, God intended fer us ter live in the country—if -He hadn’t He’d made the city instead. Ain’t that so, John? - - JOHN - -I hadn’t thought of it that way, but I guess you’re right. - - HIRAM - -Of course, I’m right. - - FLOYD - -We’re going back after dinner, ain’t we, Opal? - - OPAL - -Can we, mama? - - JENNIE - -Oh maybe, if you’ll not get in anybody’s way and not get hurt. - - OPAL AND FLOYD - -Oh, we won’t. - - HARRY - -Pass the salad, please. - - HIRAM - -How was your play, Ethel? - - ETHEL - -It went off very well. - - HIRAM - -We were wantin’ ter see it so bad—such a fine day for it, too. Do ye know -we’d enjoy a doin’s like that, where we know the actors, better than we -would a play we’d have ter pay three or four dollars to see in the city? -Ain’t that right, John? - - JOHN - -I guess you’re right, I never saw anything better anywhere. - - HIRAM - -Ethel, how about you? Do ye think ye’ll ever be wantin’ to move back? -Rachel and I was just talkin’ the other day about what a loss it would -be ter the community if you married a city feller and moved out; we were -just wonderin’ if there were any on yer track. - - MRS. BENSON - -You don’t need to worry. One rich feller tried it and he didn’t get her. - - ETHEL - -Mother, you shouldn’t tell my little secrets. - - FLOYD - -I’m ready to go. - -_Begins leaving table._ - - OPAL - -So am I. - - JENNIE - -Let me wipe your hands before you go. - -_Wipes their hands and mouths._ - - FLOYD - -_As he begins leaving stage before Opal is ready._ - -Hurry up, Opal! - - OPAL - -I’m coming. (_As they go skipping out._) Good-by, mama! - -_Exeunt._ - - HIRAM - -Ain’t that just like little tots? I tell ye, people, we don’t appreciate -being little till we’re old. Did ye ever notice how older people enjoy -sittin’ around talkin’ about the things they did when they were little? -Golly, but I’ll never forget the time when I was about three years old -and my mother started to walk over ter one of our neighbors that lived -about a mile and er half from our place. We didn’t get very far when I -wanted ter be carried. Well, she couldn’t carry me so fur so she goes -and breaks a hazel brush for a stick-horse and gives it ter me ter ride. -Wall, I can remember just as well as if it was yesterday, how I gets on -that stick-horse and begun ridin’, runnin’ on ahead kickin’ up my heels -and runnin’ side ways like a proud army horse. Then I’d get scared and go -to rearin’ and backin’. Then I run clear back again. - -_Enters a little boy and begins fooling with swing._ - -Well sir, I rode that stick-horse all the way over and back and never -asked once to be carried again. Ye’ve got ter give a kid something to do -if you don’t want ter get into trouble. - - Give a kid something to do - And he’ll grow up, pure, noble and true. - -Ain’t that right, John? - - MR. BENSON - -I guess you’re right, that’s the way I was brought up. - - ETHEL - -_Speaking to boy at swing._ - -Hello, little man, why don’t you get in and swing? - -_He does so._ - - MR. BENSON - -How’s your cattle lookin’ lately, Hiram? - - HIRAM - -Fine, by golly, I never seen ’em grow so fast. I get ’em on that new -field of bromus grass. They’ll be in mighty fine shape to fatten this -fall. - -_Enters Leslie Larsen in band suit, carrying horn._ - - LESLIE - -Everybody seems to be happy. - - HARRY - -Hello Leslie, going to play at the game this afternoon? We’re going to -beat ’em. - - LESLIE - -We’ll be right there, but I’m not so sure about the beating part since -that game this morning. - - JENNIE - -Had your dinner, Leslie? - - LESLIE - -Yes, we’ve been through half an hour. I was just going to the bowry. -We’re going to have a little concert before the speaking. - - HIRAM - -Who’s the speaker to-day? - - LESLIE - -Senator McDonald. I saw him coming this way before I started. I met him -this morning. Seems like a fine fellow. - - HIRAM - -John, why don’t yer give ’em a talk on how to be happy in the city? - -_Senator walks across rear of stage without noticing anyone. Leslie calls -him._ - - LESLIE - -Mr. McDonald, come here a moment. - - MR. MCDONALD - -Why hello, Mr. Larsen! - - LESLIE - -Mr. McDonald, this is the Benson family—one of our prominent farmers in -this community. - - MR. MCDONALD - -People, I’m very glad to meet you. It does my heart good to get out and -meet the tillers of the soil. I always consider it a great honor to have -such a privilege as a day like this. I was out walking to get some fresh -air before my talk. - - HIRAM - -No place like the country for fresh air, ain’t that right Senator? - - MR. MCDONALD - -You’re right. Hope you fellows will be at the speaking. I always like a -large crowd. - - MR. BENSON - -You can count on our being there. - - MR. MCDONALD - -Good! bring all your friends. I’ll be walking on. Good-by. - -_Exit._ - - JENNIE - -If everyone has had enough, we’ll spread the tablecloth over the -table—we’ve got to eat supper here before we leave. - -_Women arrange table._ - - LESLIE - -Well, I’ll have to be going or I’ll be late. - - HARRY - -Guess I’ll walk up with you. I guess the women will come together. - -_Exeunt._ - - MR. BENSON - -Hiram, you ought to order you a running water system and an electric -light plant for your farm. They’ve got ’em down now so ye can’t afford to -be without ’em. - - HIRAM - -John, are ye havin’ a nightmare about the city? - - MR. BENSON - -By jinks, I’m speakin’ my right mind. We just sent in an order for an -electric light plant. Harry says we can get a motor so small we can carry -it around under our arms and can attach it to the wire any place and run -our fan mills, pumps, grinders, washin’ machines, in fact everything -dependin’ on the size of the motor. In the house you can take off a light -bulb and attach a “lectric” iron and cooker, make it do the churnin’ and -sweepin’, run the sewin’ machine, and even rock the cradle, besides -havin’ light all over yer buildin’s without any danger of fire. - - HIRAM - -Wall, I’ll be goll durned. John, are ye sure ye haven’t been drinkin’ too -much lemonade? - - MR. BENSON - -It’s right. In the spring we’re goin’ ter git a runnin’ water system made -especially for the farm. Harry has had it all planned for over a year now. - - HIRAM - -Wall, if that don’t beat the cat’s a fightin’. I knew that boy had the -stuff in him when he planned that house for you and Mary. - - JENNIE - -If you folks are going, you had better be coming along. - - MR. BENSON - -_Looking at watch._ - -By jinks, it is time we were going. - - ETHEL - -I’ll be there as soon as I find my fan. - -_Exeunt all but Ethel. Enters Clarence unobserved. Ethel looks through -box and around for fan._ - -Well, I’m sure I brought that fan along, I couldn’t think of losing it, -for it’s one Clarence gave me before he went away to school and before we -moved to the city. Well, that’s funny—I know I couldn’t have lost it on -the way, and we— - - CLARENCE - -You don’t need a fan in this cool place. - - ETHEL - -Clarence! You here? - -_Rises and takes him by the hand._ - - CLARENCE - -Yes, I graduated last week—came home to settle down and do something. -One feels mighty ambitious after going through college and wants to get -right out and begin applying his knowledge and getting the practical -experience. But you? I thought you were in the city. Out for a visit, I -suppose? - - ETHEL - -Visit! Why, the folks have moved back on the farm. Being the baby, I -naturally had to come too. Of course, I hated to leave. - - CLARENCE - -I’m mighty glad to know your folks have moved back on the farm. Now that -it won’t be necessary for you to look after them so closely, I suppose -you will soon be moving back and start your practical applications, there. - - ETHEL - -Oh, maybe—things are mighty handy, you know. - - CLARENCE - -Lots of fine fellows there, too, I suppose? - - ETHEL - -Lots of them. The girls are scarce, too. Tell me about your college days. -Suppose you graduated with high honors? - - CLARENCE - -Oh, no, no! Not many anyway. There was a lot— - -_Enters Hiram, stops and listens._ - -of things I wanted to get at the bottom of; so many things I was in doubt -about. I was too busy to think of honors. I went in to prepare myself for -higher honors to be won later in life and that shall be remembered and -enjoyed by those that follow after me when I’m gone. - - HIRAM - -That’s right, my boy. It ain’t so much what you do in school as it -is what ye get, and you do after ye get out. That’s the time to do -something. Look at Lincoln—he hardly seen the inside of a schoolhouse, -but he studied and got something then went and done somethin’. He came -from the farm, too. Pardon me, children, I left my pipe layin’ there by -this tree when I set down ter dinner. (_Takes pipe and lights, taking -long, loud draws._) I’ll be leavin’, I know young folks like to be alone. - -_Exit._ - - CLARENCE - -I guess he didn’t recognize me. Have I changed much, Ethel? - - ETHEL - -A little more mature in looks is all. - - CLARENCE - -Tell me about your life in the city, Ethel. - - ETHEL - -I haven’t much to tell—we had a fine house and servants, but the folks -were out of place and didn’t feel at home. You see they had lived in the -country too long to get any comfort out of the city life—there isn’t -anything that seemed real to them. Mother didn’t like to let on for she -was the strongest advocate of going, and you couldn’t blame her when she -thought of all the conveniences in the city. But even at that she had -lived in the country too long to get any enjoyment out of the city. As -for me, I’m young and can soon adapt myself to the new conditions in the -city. Can’t you imagine what a good city belle I would make? - - CLARENCE - -Ethel, you have been the best friend I ever had outside of mother and -father and they’re both gone. The reason I went away to school was the -thought that I might some day be worthy and capable of making a home -for you equal to the best found anywhere. I realize that the majority -of farmers buy conveniences for themselves without realizing the -conveniences their wives need in the house, so they have to go on in the -same way their grandmothers did. Ethel, you remember that last letter you -wrote me, three years ago, I believe? - - ETHEL - -Yes, and you never answered it. - - CLARENCE - -No. When you went away to the city you were young and I did not dare ask -you to wait for me. Besides I thought it would be useless for you were -thinking that when the time came you would marry a city fellow who could -offer you a home without the drudgery some women have on the farm. In -that last letter, you were telling me about a certain rich man. Well, I -knew your youthful dream had come true. I didn’t want to stand in your -way. I knew you were old enough to know what you wanted, so I didn’t -write. Ethel, I almost gave up then, and I don’t know but what I would -had it not been for my roommate, noble old chap. He got me started right -again. Ethel, I hope you will be happy in the city. - -_Rises and crosses stage._ - - ETHEL - -I did write about a certain young man, but— - - CLARENCE - -But what? - - ETHEL - -I didn’t think you would take it so seriously. - - CLARENCE - -You mean to say— - - ETHEL - -That I was only teasing you about the city. - - CLARENCE - -Then you’re not— - -_Takes her hand._ - - ETHEL - -Not if I can help it. How about that home you were dreaming about? - - CLARENCE - -It’s yours, Ethel, and it’s going to be the very best (_embrace_). - -_Embrace. Enter Hiram and Mr. Benson. Stop short on seeing Ethel and -Clarence in each other’s arms._ - - MR. BENSON - -_Harshly._ - -Ethel! - -_Ethel and Clarence separate embarrassed._ - - CLARENCE - -_Going up and taking Mr. Benson by the hand._ - -Mr. Benson, I know this is no way to be caught with your daughter, but -since it couldn’t be helped I suppose the only way to get around it will -be for you to give your consent to marry her. - - MR. BENSON - -Are you going to live on the farm? - - CLARENCE - -Would you advise me to? - - MR. BENSON - -By jinks, you can’t have her unless you do. - -_Clarence crosses and puts arm around Ethel._ - - HIRAM - -By golly, it does me good to see the cream of the country come pourin’ -back again. Don’t you know some of our greatest men like Lincoln and -Washington, come from the farm? They’d all like to have gotten back -again but they were so tied up in the world they couldn’t break loose. -The cities are all right in a way, and I suppose we couldn’t get along -without them now, but, by golly, there would never have been a city if it -hadn’t been for the country. Why, I can remember when all the young men -that wanted to do something worth while went to the cities and left the -very poorest fellows at home. And the old fellows when they got enough -money they moved ter the city and spent their money there. By golly, -that’s right, ain’t it, John? - - MR. BENSON - -I guess you’re right, Hiram. - - HIRAM - -Of course, I’m right. By golly, it sure does me good ter see the change -coming where the best people of the country stay on the farm instead of -movin’ ter the city where they’re just as much out of place as “A Bee in -a Drone’s Hive.” - - Author of play—Cecil Baker. - - CURTAIN. - - - - -LARIMORE - - -Somebody once said a pageant was a big outdoor play in which people in -everyday walks of life—John and Joe and Susan—take an active part and -tell the story of what happened in the neighborhood, county, or state in -their own manner. It is something that might be called a human festival, -because the people young and old and even “the animals, the oxen and the -horse, the donkey and the dog” all take part. - -This particular kind of a play was especially well portrayed in “The -Story of Grand Forks County,” a historical pageant in five episodes, -which was presented in the little town of Larimore on June second, -nineteen hundred and twenty. Thirty different communities, working in -coöperation and under the direction of a central committee, selected -the material, dramatized the events, and acted the parts. One thousand -persons, ranging in age from a seven-months-old baby to a white-haired -man of sixty-five were the players. Schools, churches, clubs, bands, -choruses, and various other social agencies contributed their enthusiasm -and energies in making the spectacle a success. Ten thousand people saw -the production. Eleven hundred automobiles were parked on the grounds, -and this did not include those standing in rows in the center of -down-town streets. - -Larimore, after all, isn’t such a big town, but it is a mighty -interesting place. Its population is made up of people who appreciate -the big things in life. And when a worth-while thing comes along they -put their shoulders to the wheel and—well they make whatever it is go. -They showed their mettle when they built the stage for the pageant in a -corner of their newly laid-out park. For several days, sometimes in the -morning as early as five o’clock, the men in the community were up and -at work. They used ice tongs to carry the four hundred bridge planks, -which, by the way, were eighteen feet long, twelve inches wide, and -four inches thick. They borrowed these from the county commissioners and -constructed a huge platform seventy-two feet in width and thirty-six feet -in depth. The background was one hundred and fifty-six feet long and -twenty feet in height. There were two wings, fourteen and sixteen feet -high respectively, on each side. All of these were covered with branches -of trees cut and hauled on hayracks from a nearby brook. In the center -of the background rows of seats were built in the shape of a tree which -held a chorus of two hundred girls, robed in pure white. They came from -different sections of the county and sang during the interludes. The -seats were arranged in amphitheater style. At each corner a band was -stationed. Tents pitched back of the stage were used for dressing rooms. -The stage manager happened to be a local auto taxi owner. - -June second was an ideal day. At two o’clock in the afternoon the buglers -announced the opening of “The Story of Grand Forks County,” a historical -pageant in five episodes. Then came the procession of the bands and a -chorus. The prologue or story of the play followed. It was written by -one schoolmaster and given by another. It is well worth quoting, for it -not only shows a fine poetic temperament but tells the history of one of -America’s finest agricultural counties. - - “Friends, we have gathered here beneath the vaulted sky, - In God’s great out-of-doors, where nature greets the eye, - With grass and trees and flowers—we’ve gathered here to stage - The story of our County down to the present age. - In song and dance and tableau its history will be told; - In interludes and episodes our pageant will unfold. - We journey back in fancy a span of fifty years, - Back to the days of Indians and hardy pioneers. - Here waves a sea of prairie grass upon the endless plain; - Here lies a pile of whitening bones that mark the bison’s reign. - Within a fringe of forest green that skirts a river’s flow, - The Indians are breaking camp—’tis time for them to go. - ‘The white man comes,’ the scouts report, ‘our hunting here is done, - The white man comes and we must go, on towards the setting sun.’ - - “As night comes on and in the west the sun sets for the day, - Full slowly up the valley an ox-team weaves its way. - It draws a covered wagon. On the driver’s seat a man, - His head turned back, is speaking to a woman in the van; - ‘Look, Mary, there’s a likely spot in yonder grove of trees, - There’s water, fuel, fish, and game; the grass comes to my knees; - The land is fertile, level, smooth—what need to farther roam? - Come let us halt in this fair place and build ourselves a home.’ - Thus did they come, our pioneers, brave husband, braver wife, - Heroic souls that sang and worked and asked no odds of life. - So friends, to-day, the picture that first will meet our sight, - Is the leaving of the red man and the coming of the white. - The world is restless, craves to move, and therefore mankind feels - A deep abiding gratitude to the man who first made wheels. - The great improvements made in wheels, the constant evolution - From wagon down to motor car has caused a revolution, - Affecting every phase of life, our business and our pleasure, - And proved itself in countless ways a blessing beyond measure. - It was a happy day indeed when on the frontier trails - The pioneers beheld the sight of shining iron rails, - That spelled the end of grueling trips to market by ox-team, - And heralded the coming of their greatest ally—steam. - When now the growth and progress of transportation’s shown, - It will explain one reason why prosperity has grown. - - “Year after year more settlers came, each year more fields were tilled, - And lavish Nature blessed their work, their granaries were filled - With golden wheat and other grains; their herds of cattle grew; - They prospered greatly and progressed and those who failed were few. - Then one by one the towns sprang up, with smithy, bank, and store, - With elevator, mill, and yard, and markets at their door. - The towns and farms worked hand in hand, theirs was a common cause. - And from the start unto this day, advancing without pause, - Our industries have grown apace, have made our County great— - Till it is known both far and wide the banner of the State. - - “The greatest factor in the growth of county, state, or nation, - No thing is dearer to our hearts than is the common school, - What makes for happiness and peace is public education; - For well we know that it must be if liberty shall rule. - Our fathers when they came built schools, albeit they were rude, - Judged by our standards, poorly taught, ill-disciplined, and crude. - These schools did foster splendid men and noble women too; - And from that small beginning our present system grew. - Our pageant here will show to you how we have forged ahead, - How in the work of betterment our schools have always led. - Yet, we can not be satisfied with that which we have done, - For after all our schools’ advance is only well begun. - - “Whence came these men who wrought these deeds? What land did give them - birth? - They came from distant lands and climes, from far across the earth. - The Frenchman came; the Irishman; the German, Scotch, and Norse; - And every mother’s son of them, a man of strength and force, - That threw himself into the work with hands and heart and brain, - That labored for our Country’s weal with all his might and main, - Their children, born beneath our flag and fostered in our schools, - Hold for the land of liberty a love that never cools; - They all are real Americans—Americans through and through - They stand for order, law, and right, for all that’s good and true. - So in this pageant of to-day as episodes unfold - The marvels of our progress; as our wondrous growth is told, - All is centered round the people; ’tis their story we portray, - For the people made the County what the County is to-day.” - - G. T. Almen. - -After the prologue, the five episodes and interludes were enacted in a -manner highly satisfactory to the ten thousand spectators. Real Indians, -dog and pony travois, an old prairie schooner, a sod shanty, the Red -River ox-cart, the first railroad engine to enter the county, a stage -coach of pioneer days, the cradle, the reaper, the old breaking plow, -the one room school house, the different peoples from foreign countries -who settled in the county, added interest and gave color to the pageant. -The children from the different schools in the county were costumed to -represent the different grains, the prairie roses and the violets, the -strawberries and the potatoes. One set of girls interpreted an original -wind dance. A boys’ band, a business men’s band, a farmers’ band, and a -chorus furnished the music. - -The final tableau or scene was a magnificent sight, something that will -never be forgotten. In the center of the forest background on tiers -of raised seats, two hundred girls clad in white were standing. Above -them the Stars and Stripes were floating. Down on the stage, a thousand -players, real country people, were grouped. On the ground and in a circle -ten thousand people were standing. The bands were playing and everybody -was singing “The Star-Spangled Banner.” - -One who stood there and looked at it all could not help but think what -tremendous opportunities there are out on these prairies, if only the -people can find their true expression. As a certain person who was very -active in making it a success said, “What shall we say of it? What shall -be the future?” The joy of self-expression is a supreme one. “I was in -it.” “I made a poster.” “We made the violet costumes.” “Our dog hauled -the wigwam”—in fact, “I helped,” these are the words on every lip. Truly -it was a pageant “of the people, by the people, for the people,” with -none too great nor too small to participate. - -For everyone it has meant a great lesson in patriotism and coöperation. -For each community in the county it means a refreshing social contact -and an unselfish interest in local affairs. It means the creating of -pure and wholesome pleasure, rather than the purchasing of that which -is often doubtful. It means the discovery of much hidden talent. For -the individual it means greater development of social consciousness, a -broader and deeper appreciation of his brother and friend, a desire not -only to do something for himself but to help someone else. And this is -the real gospel of America to-day, the flower of service, which with -the aid of stirring imagination will develop into one of everlasting -sweetness and beauty. - -Up in Grand Forks County they have a county superintendent with a vision, -one who not only sees but organizes and does the things. The pageant -did what she dreamed it would do. It brought into play all the talent -of the county. The art of the people was expressed through the setting, -the costumes, the posters, and the light effects; the music, through -song and instrument; the organizing power through promotion, seating -arrangement, rehearsal, and presentation; the mechanical genius through -the stage construction; and the literary ability through the gathering, -the arranging, and the writing of the subject matter. - -When all these faculties are brought into exercise, they cannot help but -arouse the creative instincts in the mind of the county or the community. -They appeal to the heart instincts. This is one of the pageant’s great -values to society. - - - - -FORTY TOWNS - - -In order to feel the pulse of the people of the state in regard to their -attitude toward plays, as well as to carry the drama to the people, a -road tour of forty towns was made. Twenty-two counties were visited. The -play selected for this trip was “Back to the Farm,” written by Merline -Shumway, a former student at the Minnesota Agricultural College. It is -a three-act rural comedy. The central thought running through the play -is the old way of doing things on the farm versus the new method. It -appeals to all classes of people and especially to those who have tilled -the soil. One farmer said it was the best thing he had ever seen. Another -told his friends that “‘Back to the Farm’ had ‘The Birth of a Nation’ -skun a mile.” They were both right, because to them the play came out of -the soil. - -A cast of eight characters was taken on the tour. They were given -twenty-five dollars a week and their railroad fares. In the evening -they presented the play and during the day made a brief social survey -of every community visited. For instance, one young man would go to the -livery stable or garage and find out something about the roads in the -surrounding community. Naturally, roads have something to do with people -getting together. Another would measure the size of village halls, the -assembly rooms in schoolhouses, the basements of churches, empty country -stores, and lodge rooms—in fact, any place where people assembled. -Listing musical activities in the town was the duty of one member of the -cast. Still another looked up everything he could find about athletics -in the different places. The various clubs, organizations, and societies -in the town were tabulated by one young man. The three ladies in the -cast ascertained the number of festivals, pageants, home talent plays, -programs, games, folk dances, library facilities, and newspapers. All of -these facts, combined with other data obtained before and since then, -make a splendid social diagnosis of certain phases of country life in -North Dakota. They give one an insight into the activities of country -folks out on a prairie. Many interesting conditions were revealed by the -survey and knowledge gained elsewhere. - -As a rule the roads are good. Travel in the late spring, summer, and fall -is comparatively easy. In the winter it is more difficult, just as it -is in any state. In some places the roads are graded ten, fifteen, and -twenty miles out from a center. The prairie or grass road is frequently -used to save time. It is not an uncommon occurrence for parties to drive -twenty and thirty miles to attend a picnic, a play or a social function -of some kind. Even in the winter and early spring the snow and “gumbo” do -not stop them from attending social activities. Automobiles average from -one to three to a section of land. Means of communication are constantly -improving. Inasmuch as the homes in the country in the state are far -apart, due to the present large acreage of the farms, the roads are an -important factor in developing the social life in the country districts. - -[Illustration: Folk Dances, Parades, and Pageants Have Become an Integral -Part of the Social Life of the State] - -Practically every community possesses some sort of a hall or a meeting -place. In size they accommodate, so far as the seating arrangement is -concerned, from one to six hundred persons. In the forty towns visited, -four had halls with a seating capacity of less than one hundred and -fifty, fifteen with two hundred, twelve with three hundred, five with -four hundred and four with six hundred and over. The seats were not -stationary, the halls being used for other purposes. For the most part -they consisted of folding chairs, kitchen chairs, boxes, saw-horses, -and barn floor planks. The stages were small and the scenery scarce. In -several places one could stand on the stage, and touch the ceiling with -his hands. The front curtains were usually roll curtains and covered with -advertising. Very few stages had a set of scenery. Oil and acetylene -lamps furnished the necessary light. Barn lanterns were not uncommon. -Occasionally some enterprising community would have electricity. In one -village hall electric light bulbs were set in large tomato cans which -were cut down on one side. These served as footlights. Automobile head -lights facing toward the stage quite frequently gave the necessary -light. Plumbers’ candles were sometimes used. Dressing room facilities -were generally lacking. Sometimes a ladder was placed at the back -window near the stage and the characters in the play who found it -necessary to change their make-up would climb out on the ladder and go -down in the basement between acts and make the necessary adjustments. -Screens, blankets, and sheets pinned across the back corners of the -stage make a good impromptu stage dressing room. Several of the halls -had excellent dining rooms in connection with them. All the buildings -were used for many different community activities. Most of them lacked -good architecture, simply because the agencies in education had never -taken enough interest in planning community buildings for country -districts. The present tendency in consolidated schools is to install -stages, platforms, and gymnasiums, in order to make them available for -every activity characteristic of community life. A great many of the -communities had splendid well arranged halls. - -The musical survey showed that in districts where the people were of -foreign descent all kinds of music thrived. The majority of the places -had the talent, but not the leadership and the organization. Music in -the schools was fairly well developed. Dance orchestras were popular. -One town had a good orchestra, a fine band, and a glee club. Another had -just a band of fifteen pieces. Victrolas were popular and in use in every -school for games and folk dances. An interesting feature of the different -kinds of music was the popularity of the violin. Every orchestra was -blessed with this particular kind of a string instrument. - -So far as clubs and organizations are concerned, every community has -plenty of them. Some of them are very active and broad-minded, as well as -farseeing in their work. Others are petty in their attitude and inclined -to do very little. Many duplicate each other’s work. Where there is -leadership, the organizations are alert and perform many valuable acts of -service. - -[Illustration: Of the Fifty-three Counties in the State Thirty-five Have -County Play Days] - -Athletic activities in the various towns and country districts are -extremely popular with both the young and the old. Baseball is generally -played at twilight, between seven-thirty and nine-thirty in the evening. -Basketball tournaments in consolidated school districts attract -considerable attention. Field days at farmers’ picnics create an unusual -interest. - -County play days in which all the children in the county meet at some -particular place and participate in games, folk dances, parades, and -pageants have become an integral part of the social life of the state. -Out of the fifty-three counties in the state over thirty-five have play -days. From two to ten thousand people attend these annual affairs. - -The attitude of the weekly papers toward social functions and public -programs is excellent. Space is freely given. The library facilities for -furnishing data for presentation on public programs are not good, due -primarily to lack of material and funds with which to purchase it. The -possibilities for library work in the country districts in the state and -even other states are infinite. Thousands of letters besides the survey -of the forty towns attest this fact. - -Hundreds of plays are presented in the state every year. Home talent -plays are generally greeted with great crowds everywhere. Everybody -“likes ’em.” Operettas are popular because large casts of characters -are necessary to produce them. And besides everybody likes to see his -offspring, relative, or friend take part. It is human nature to see what -is in a person. The audiences are always enthusiastic and appreciative. -The repertoire consists of comedies, classical plays, Christmas -festivals, pantomimes, operettas, and May fetes. The community without a -play is one without a leader. In a great many towns and rural districts -the play, the picnic, and the Christmas festival are annual affairs. It -is doubtful whether anything proves so popular with the vast majority of -people as a real play staged by honest-to-goodness country folks. It also -unconsciously brings out a spirit of leadership. - -These few facts which were gathered by the cast during the day, coupled -with other information secured before and after the tour, tell one -something, perhaps not much, about the social life of country people in a -prairie state. - -The experiences encountered during the forty-day sojourn were -interesting, to say the least. The audiences ranged in size from -twenty-six persons to seven hundred. A county fair or circus admission -of fifty cents for adults and twenty-five for children was charged. -Sometimes the audiences were made up of cowboys, or cow-punchers, as -the Westerners say. In one community two hundred sheep herders saw the -play. In another, lignite coal miners and their families witnessed the -production. For the most part the halls were filled with wheat growers -and dairymen and their kin. With a few possible exceptions the crowds -were rural in their complexion. Out in the extreme western part of the -state the lights balked and the play never started until nine forty-five -in the evening. In one town a thirteen dollar and fifty cent crowd -enjoyed the comedy. It was necessary to purchase a bolt of chocolate -colored cambric in another place, because only one screen could be -found in the whole community. The cambric was used as a background and -the screen for a left wing. The back of a piano with the American flag -drooped over it served as the right wing. Old-fashioned acetylene lamps -gave the necessary light. A large dry goods box was used for a ticket -stand. Planks resting on saw horses satisfied the crowd so far as a -seating arrangement was concerned. Social functions frequently followed -the presentation of the play. After paying all expenses, the profits on -the forty town road tour amounted to six dollars and sixty-seven cents. - -The tour showed that people actually like plays. It carried the drama to -the people. - - - - -COLD SPRING HOLLOW - - -A little over a year ago it was my good fortune to spend several days in -Berkley County, West Virginia. “Tepee,” a jovial and good natured fellow -and myself were in a camp out three miles from historic Martinsburg. The -place was not so very far from the Maryland border. The festival chosen -was “The Ingathering,” a story about America, in which food for humanity -was the central theme. The characters were the country youth from those -West Virginia hills. The site selected was Cold Spring Hollow near -Opequan Creek. It was a beautiful spot in a little valley on Uncle Nat’s -farm. On the hillsides which rose right and left from the hollow, there -were many stately pines. A spring in the upper part of the valley kept -the grass green and furnished many a refreshing drink. - -The scene of the story of “The Ingathering” is laid in the Garden of -Freedom where the Altar of Liberty is concealed. Mother Earth is escorted -through a field of golden grain to the Garden. Here she stops and tells -her escort that the Holy Earth has a soul and that through the ages her -friends have been, Story, Art, and Song and that the elements of nature -when the seasons were made selected Autumn as the most beautiful of all. -The Spirit of Autumn, arrayed in all the colors characteristic of that -season, moves about the field with graceful rhythm. Story then comes -running through the field into the Garden of Freedom and tells Mother -Earth that her children, representing many different races, are coming in -search of the Altar of Liberty. They enter the field talking, though they -do not understand each other. They babble. As they approach the Garden -she halts them, asks them to be seated and gives Story a basket of bread -that they may have food to eat. Mother Earth realizes that when people -break bread with each other they not only understand each other better, -but they also exemplify the noblest virtues of mankind—sacrifice and -charity. Story then tells Mother Earth that people since time immemorial -have commemorated the ingathering of food. Art comes and teaches the -races many games and frolics with them. In the distance Song is heard. -She enters and succeeds in getting all these people singing together. -Mother Earth beckons Story, Art, and Song to bring all these people to -the Garden of Freedom. They come and kneel with hands outstretched. For -a moment darkness reigns everywhere. Story, Art, and Song uncover what -these children for generations have been praying for. Light again appears -and before their eyes the Altar of Liberty is seen in the Garden of -Freedom which is located in the land called America. - -The Altar of Liberty was constructed out of poles and evergreens cut from -the nearby woods. Joe and Jim, two country lads, were the architects and -builders. Joe was fat and chubby and about as large around as an apple -barrel. He had a pair of merry blue eyes and everybody liked him. One -day after the rehearsal, when we were laying out the frame work of the -altar with poles, I said, “Joe, don’t you think you had better get a -saw and cut the ends of these poles straight so they’ll stand erect?” -Joe looked at me and said, “Don’t you think I can cut them?” He was -standing with his hand and foot resting on the handle and blade of a wood -chopper’s ax. When told he might try, he raised the ax over his shoulder -and with several strokes cut the pole off as straight and clean as any -first-class carpenter would have sawed it. After that day when anybody -saw Joe carrying an ax around the camp they would follow him, because -they knew Joe was an expert woodsman. Jim, his pal, was lean, had brown -eyes, and was somewhat rough spoken. But Jim could drive twenty penny -spikes. His aim was true. Of the many he drove he never missed a head. -The construction of the Altar of Liberty was the medium through which Joe -and Jim got interested in the festival. - -The evening it was presented the automobiles which usually furnished the -lights were not there. The hilly roads prevented their coming down into -the valley. Some other kind of light had had to be found. One day during -the week a fourteen-year-old boy had been seen scratching a match on -the edge of a tin can cover. When asked what made the flame he said it -was pitch. After a few trials as to its light power, the lads were sent -up into the woods to get all they could find. They brought back large -quantities. Chunks of pitch as large as your fists were placed on flat -pieces of limestone near the altar. These natural footlights with a huge -bonfire furnished all the light necessary for the production. A small -organ, about the size of three suit-cases placed on top of each other, -was used for the musical effects. The audience was made up of about a -hundred and twenty-five country people. They were seated on peach crates, -buggy seats, camp stools, horse blankets, and checkered bed quilts. - -The evening the festival was presented was an ideal one. The air was -cool and crisp. The stars were out. In the distance Opequan Creek could -be heard. The scene was a most impressive one. Evergreen boughs laid on -the ground in the form of a circle separated the audience from those who -took part in the play. At the right and up the hill a little way the -organ could be heard at intervals. The most beautiful part of it all was -near the end of the festival when the reflection of the lights on the -flat stones showed the ensemble of the characters. They were kneeling in -the Garden of Freedom with their hands outstretched toward the Altar of -Liberty singing— - - “Our fathers’ God, to Thee, - Author of Liberty - To Thee we sing; - Long may our land be bright - With freedom’s holy light; - Protect us by Thy might, - Great God, our King!” - -The effect was thrilling. In a valley in the foothills of West Virginia a -group of country people were not only finding themselves, but they were -also expressing a great American ideal. - -The message of The Little Country Theater—to help people find their true -expression in the community in which they live—was carried beyond the -golden stubbled field of the land of the Dacotahs into the heart of the -hills of West Virginia. - - Knowledge is of two kinds—We know a subject ourselves or we - know where we can find information upon it. - - _Samuel Johnson._ - - - - -APPENDICES - - - He reads much. He is a great observer, and he looks quite - through the deeds of men. - - _Shakespeare._ - -In order to give the reader of this narrative on The Little Country -Theater an insight into the hidden possibilities for the development of -a life in both town and country, a life with more color and romance, -a select list of reading materials is given. Aside from the program -material sources, a careful reading of such books as _The Holy Earth_, by -Liberty Bailey; _Three Acres and Liberty_, by Bolton Hall; _The Fairview -Idea_, by Herbert Quick; _The Village_, by Ernest Poole; _The Farmer and -The New Day_, by Kenyon Butterfield, and scores of other books cannot -help but broaden one’s outlook upon life. A reading taste could easily -be developed in this and other countries if every community, regardless -of its size, would place a book shelf containing interesting literature -in the country store, village post office, community hall, school house, -or somebody’s home. A few dollars, say fifteen or twenty-five would -be a sufficient fund to begin the reading circle. The school master, -especially the county superintendent, would soon see a changed attitude -and a renewed interest in education. The grown-ups, the folks whose -school days are no more, as well as the school children would, if a -library bookshelf was placed in every hamlet, be given an opportunity to -spend at least a part of their leisure time, with pleasure and profit. -Good books are good friends. Reading one is like visiting somebody you -haven’t seen in a long while. The author dedicates the several pages left -to those who want to read that they may know. - - - - -APPENDIX A - - -Select list of suitable reference material—General References, Country -Life, Suggested Lists of Plays, Presentation of Plays, Promotion of Plays. - - -GENERAL REFERENCES - - _Ancient Art and Ritual_—Jane Ellen Harrison. Publisher, Henry - Holt and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Book of Days, The_—R. Chambers. Publisher, W. and R. Chambers, - London, England. - - _Dramas and Dramatic Dances_—William Ridgeway. Publisher, - Cambridge University Press, London, England. - - _Drama of Savage People, The_—Loomis Havemeyer. Publisher, Yale - University Press, New Haven, Connecticut. - - _Fine Arts, The_—G. Baldwin Brown. Publisher, Charles - Scribner’s Sons, New York City, New York. - - _Golden Bough, The_—J. G. Frazer. Publisher, The Macmillan - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Play of Man, The_—Karl Groos. Publisher, D. Appleton and - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Amateur and Educational Dramatics_—Evelyne Hillard, Theodora - McCormick, Kate Oglebay. Publisher, The Macmillan Company, New - York City, New York. - - _Art Theater, The_—Sheldon Cheney. Publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, - New York City, New York. - - _Book of Marionettes, A_—Helen Haiman Joseph. Publisher, B. W. - Huebsch, New York City, New York. - - _Chief Contemporary Dramatists_—Thomas Dickinson. Publisher, - Houghton Mifflin Company, New York City, New York. - - _Civic Theater, The_—Percy Mackaye. Publisher, Mitchell - Kennerley, New York City, New York. - - _Community Theater, The_—Louise Burleigh. Publisher, Little, - Brown and Company, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Drama, The_—Alfred Bates. Publisher, The Athenian Society, - London, England. - - _Drama League Series of Plays, The_—Publisher, Doubleday, Page - and Company, New York City, New York. - - _History of the Theater in America, A_—Arthur Hornblow. - Publisher, J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - - _Insurgent Theater, The_—Thomas Dickinson. Publisher, B. W. - Huebsch, New York City, New York. - - _Life and Art of Edwin Booth_—William Winter. Publisher, The - Macmillan Company, New York City, New York. - - _Life and Art of Joseph Jefferson_—William Winter. Publisher, - The Macmillan Company, New York City, New York. - - _Masterpieces of Modern Drama, The_—John Alexander Pierce and - Brander Matthews. Publisher, Doubleday, Page and Company, New - York City, New York. - - _Mediaeval Stage, The_—E. K. Chambers. Publisher, A. C. McClurg - and Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Neighborhood Entertainments_—Renee B. Stern. Publisher, - Sturgis and Walton Company, New York City, New York. - - _Our American Holidays_—Robert Haven Schauffler, Publisher, - Moffat, Yard and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Plays and Players_—Walter Prichard Eaton. Publisher, Stewart - and Kidd Company, Cincinnati, Ohio. - - _Studies in Stage Craft_—Clayton Hamilton. Publisher, Henry - Holt and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Ten Thousand Words Often Mispronounced_—William H. Phyfe. - Publisher, Putnam Sons, New York City, New York. - - _Theaters and Picture Houses_—Arthur S. Meloy. Publisher, - Architects Supply and Publishing Company, New York City, New - York. - - _Theater Through Its Stage Door_—David Belasco. Publisher, - Harper and Brothers, New York City, New York. - - _Training for the Stage_—Arthur Hornblow. Publisher, J. B. - Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - - -COUNTRY LIFE - - _Adult Recreation as a Social Problem_—Edward Alsworth Ross. - Source, _The American Journal of Sociology_, January, Nineteen - Eighteen. Publisher, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, - Illinois. - - _American Country Girl, The_—Martha Foote Crow. Publisher, - Frederick A. Stokes Company, New York City, New York. - - _Chapters in Rural Progress_—Kenyon L. Butterfield. Publisher, - The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Constructive Rural Sociology_—John M. Gillette. Publisher, - Sturgis and Walton Company, New York City, New York. - - _Country Life Movement in the United States, The_—L. H. Bailey. - Publisher, The Macmillan Company, New York City, New York. - - _Country Town, The_—Wilbert L. Anderson. Publisher, The Baker - and Taylor Company, New York City, New York. - - _Educational Needs of Farm Women_—United States Department of - Agriculture, Report No. 105. Publisher, Government Printing - Office, Washington, D. C. - - _Fairview Idea, The_—Herbert Quick. Publisher, The - Bobbs-Merrill Company, Indianapolis, Indiana. - - _Farm Boys and Girls_—William A. McKeever. Publisher, The - Macmillan Company, New York City, New York. - - _Farmer and the New Day, The_—Kenyon L. Butterfield. Publisher, - The Macmillan Company, New York City, New York. - - _Holy Earth, The_—L. H. Bailey. Publisher, Charles Scribner’s - Sons, New York City, New York. - - _Introduction to Rural Sociology_—Paul Vogt. Publisher, D. - Appleton and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Little Town, The_—Harlan Paul Douglas. Publisher, The - Macmillan Company, New York City, New York. - - _Our European Neighbors_—Twelve volumes edited by William - Harbutt Dawson. Publisher, G. P. Putnam’s Sons, New York City, - New York. - - _Outlines of Economics_—Richard T. Ely. Publisher, The - Macmillan Company, New York City, New York. - - _Plans of Rural Community Buildings_—W. C. Nason. Source, - Farmers Bulletin 1173. Publisher, United States Department of - Agriculture, Washington, D. C. - - _Proceedings—First, Second, and Third National Country Life - Conferences._ Publisher, National Country Life Association, - Amherst, Massachusetts, c/o Kenyon L. Butterfield. - - _Psychic Causes of Rural Migration_—Ernest R. Groves. Source, - _The American Journal of Sociology_, March, Nineteen Sixteen. - Publisher, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Rural Improvement_—Frank Waugh. Publisher, Orange, Judd - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Rural Life Problem of the United States, The_—Sir Horace - Plunkett. Publisher, The Macmillan Company, New York City, New - York. - - _Rural Planning and Colonization_—Ben Faast. Publisher, - Wisconsin Colonization Company, Eau Claire, Wisconsin. - - _Rural Versus Urban_—John W. Bookwalter. Publisher, The - Knickerbocker Press, New York City, New York. - - _Six Thousand Country Churches_—Charles Otis Gill and Gifford - Pinchot. Publisher, The Macmillan Company, New York City, New - York. - - _Social Anatomy of a Rural Community, The_—Charles J. Galpin. - Source, Wisconsin Research Bulletin, Number 34. Publisher, - University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin. - - _State and the Farmer, The_—L. H. Bailey. Publisher, The - Macmillan Company, New York City, New York. - - _Three Acres and Liberty_—Bolton Hall. Publisher, The Macmillan - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Village, The_—Ernest Poole. Publisher, The Macmillan Company, - New York City, New York. - - -SUGGESTED LIST OF PLAYS—ONE ACT - - _Afternoon Rehearsal, An_—Lizzie M. Knapp. Characters, Six - Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _American Beauties_—A. Seaman. Characters, Six Female. - Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Aunt Minerva_—Catherine Tudor. Characters, Five Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Bank Account, The_—Howard Brock. Characters, One Male, Two - Female. Publisher, Brentano, New York City, New York. - - _Barbara_—Jerome K. Jerome. Characters, Two Male, Two Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Belles of Canterbury, The_—Characters, Eleven Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Between the Soup and the Savory_—Gertrude Jennings. - Characters, Three Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Bishop’s Candlesticks_—Norman McKinnel. Characters, Three - Male, Two Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New - York. - - _Bracelet, The_—Alfred Sutro. Characters, Four Male, Four - Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Brown Paper Parcel, A_—M. J. W. Characters, Two Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Business Meeting, A_—Arlo Bates. Characters, Ten Female. - Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Christening Robe, The_—Anne L. Estebrook. Characters, Twelve - Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Christmas Chime, A_—Margaret Cameron. Characters, Two Male, - Two Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Christmas Tale, A_—Maurice Boucher. Characters, Two Male, Two - Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Clod, The_—Lewis Beach. Characters, Four Male, One Female. - Publisher, Doubleday, Page and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Cooks and Cardinals_—Norman C. Lindon. Characters, Four Male, - Two Female. Publisher, Harvard Plays, 47 Workshop, Brentano’s, - New York City, New York. - - _Courtship of Miles Standish_—Eugene W. Presbrey. Characters, - Two Male, Two Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, - New York. - - _Cut Off with a Shilling_—S. T. Smith. Characters, Two Male, - One Female. Publisher, Dramatic Publishing Company, Chicago, - Illinois. - - _Dancing Dolls_—Kenneth Sawyer Goodman. Characters, Four Male, - Seven Female. Publisher, The Stage Guild, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Day That Lincoln Died, The_—Prescott Warren and Will Hutchins. - Characters, Five Male, Two Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, - Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Deacon’s Hat, The_—Jeanette Marks. Characters, Three Male, - Three Female. Publisher, Three Welsh Plays, Little, Brown and - Company, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Dear Departed, The_—Stanley Houghton. Characters, Three Male, - Three Female. Publisher, Five One Act Plays, Samuel French, New - York City, New York. - - _Dinner at Seven Sharp_—Tudor Jenks. Characters, Five Male, - Three Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Dress Rehearsal of Hamlet_—Mary Macmillan. Characters, Ten - Female. Publisher, Stewart and Kidd, Cincinnati, Ohio. - - _Embers_—George Middleton. Characters, Two Male, Two Female. - Publisher, Henry Holt and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Far Away Princess, The_—Herman Sudermann. Characters, Two - Male, Seven Female. Publisher, Roses, Charles Scribner’s Sons, - New York City, New York. - - _Fatal Message, The_—John Kendrick Bangs. Characters, Five - Male, Four Female. Publisher, Harper and Brothers, New York - City, New York. - - _First Come, First Served_—John Maddison Morton. Characters, - Three Male, Three Female. Publisher, Dramatic Publishing - Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Florist Shop, The_—Winifred Hawkridge. Characters, Three Male, - Two Female. Publisher, In Harvard Plays, Brentano’s, New York - City, New York. - - _Futurists_—Mary Macmillan. Characters, Eight Women. Publisher, - Stewart and Kidd, Cincinnati, Ohio. - - _Gettysburg_—Percy MacKaye. Characters, One Male, One Female. - Publisher, Duffield and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Ghost of Jerry Bundler, The_—W. W. Jacobs and Charles Rock. - Characters, Seven Male. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Girls, The_—Mabel H. Crane. Characters, Nine Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Green Coat, The_—Alfred De Musset and Emile Augier. - Characters, Three Male, One Female. Publisher, Samuel French, - New York City, New York. - - _Holly Tree Inn_—O. Berringer. Characters, Four Male, Three - Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Hour Glass, The_—W. B. Yeats. Characters, Three Male, One - Female. Publisher, Plays from the Irish Theater, Macmillan and - Company, New York City, New York. - - _How the Vote Was Won_—Cicely Hamilton and Christopher St. - John. Characters, Two Male, Eight Female. Publisher, The - Dramatic Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Indian Summer_—Meilhac and Halevy. Characters, Two Male, Two - Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _In Hospital_—Thomas H. Dickinson. Characters, Three Male, Two - Female. Publisher, In Wisconsin Plays, B. W. Huebsch, New York - City, New York. - - _Intruder, The_—Maurice Maeterlinck. Characters, Three Male, - Five Female. Publisher, Dodd, Mead and Company, New York City, - New York. - - _In the Wrong House_—Martin Becher. Characters, Four Male, Two - Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, Chicago, - Illinois. - - _In the Zone_—Eugene O’Neill. Characters, Nine Male. Publisher, - The Moon of the Caribbees, Boni and Liveright, New York City, - New York. - - _Joint Owners in Spain_—Alice Brown. Characters, Four Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Kleptomaniac, The_—Margaret Cameron. Characters, Seven Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Lend Me Five Shillings_—J. Maddison Morton. Characters, Five - Male, Two Female. Publisher, Dramatic Publishing Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Little Red Mare, The_—O. E. Young. Characters, Three Male. - Publisher, Dick and Fitzgerald, New York City, New York. - - _Lonesomelike_—Harold Brighouse. Characters, Two Male, Two - Female. Publisher, Gowans and Gray, London, England. - - _Lost Silk Hat, The_—Lord Dunsany. Characters, Five Male. - Publisher, Mitchell Kennerley, New York City, New York. - - _Maker of Dreams, The_—Oliphant Down. Characters, Two Male, One - Female. Publisher, Gowans and Gray, London, England. - - _Marriage Has Been Arranged, A_—Alfred Sutro. Characters, One - Male, One Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New - York. - - _Marriage Proposal, A_—Anton Tchekoff. Characters, Two Male, - One Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Merry, Merry Cuckoo, The_—Jeanette Marks. Characters, Four - Male, One Female. Publisher, Little, Brown and Company, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Misdemeanor of Nancy, A_—Eleanor Hoyt. Characters, Two Male, - Three Female. Publisher, The Speaker, Volume Two, Hinds, Hayden - and Eldredge, New York City, New York. - - _Miss Civilization_—Richard Harding Davis. Characters, Four - Male, One Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New - York. - - _Modesty_—Paul Hervieu. Characters, Two Male, One Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Mouse Trap_—Burton Harrison. Characters, One Male, One Female. - Publisher, Dramatic Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Mouse Trap, The_—William Dean Howells. Characters, One Male, - Six Female. Publisher, Houghton, Mifflin Company, New York - City, New York. - - _Mrs. Oakley’s Telephone_—Eudora M. Jennings. Characters, Four - Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Mrs. Patt and the Law_—Mary Aldis. Characters, Three Male, - Two Female. Publisher, Plays for Small Stages, Duffield and - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Nance Oldfield_—C. Reade. Characters, Three Male, Two Female. - Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Neighbors_—Zona Gale. Characters, Two Male, Six Female. - Publisher, Wisconsin Plays, B. W. Huebsch, New York City, New - York. - - _Newly Married Couple, A_—Björnstjerne Björnson. Characters, - Three Male, Four Female. Publisher, E. P. Dutton and Company, - New York City, New York. - - _Noble Lord, The_—Percival Wilde. Characters, Two Male, One - Female. Publisher, Henry Holt and Company, New York City, New - York. - - _Obstinancy_—R. Benedix. Characters, Three Male, Three Female. - Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Old Peabody Pew, The_—Kate Douglas Wiggin. Characters, One - Male, Eight Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, - New York. - - _Op’-O-Me-Thumb_—Frederic Fenn and Richard Pryce. Characters, - Five Female, One Male. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, - New York. - - _Orange Blossoms_—J. P. Wooler. Characters, Three Male, Three - Female. Publisher, Dramatic Publishing Company, Chicago, - Illinois. - - _Our Aunt from California_—M. D. Barnum. Characters, Six - Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Overtones_—Alice Gerstenberg. Characters, Four Female. - Publisher, Washington Square Plays, Doubleday, Page and - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Pair of Lunatics, A_—W. R. Walkes. Characters, One Male, One - Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Pantaloon_—J. M. Barrie. Characters, Four Male, One Female. - Publisher, Half Hours, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York City, - New York. - - _Pipers Pay, The_—Margaret Cameron. Characters, Seven Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Playing with Fire_—Percival Wilde. Characters, One Male, Two - Female. Publisher, Dawn and Other One Act Plays, Henry Holt and - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Pot of Broth, A_—W. B. Yeats. Characters, Two Male, One - Female. Publisher, In the Hour Glass and Other Plays, Macmillan - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Prairie Wolf, The_—John Lange. Characters, Five Male, Three - Female. Publisher, The Little Country Theater, North Dakota - Agricultural College, Fargo, North Dakota. - - _Press Cuttings_—Bernard Shaw. Characters, Four Male, Four - Female. Publisher, Press Cuttings, Brentano’s, New York City, - New York. - - _Princess Faraway, The_—Edmond Rostand. Characters, One Male, - Two Female. Publisher, Hinds, Noble and Eldredge, New York - City, New York. - - _Proposal under Difficulties, A_—John Kendrick Bangs. - Characters, Three Male, Two Female. Publisher, Harper and - Brothers, New York City, New York. - - _Real Thing, The_—John Kendrick Bangs. Characters, Two Male, - Five Female. Publisher, Harper and Brothers, New York City, New - York. - - _Riders to the Sea_—J. M. Synge. Characters, One Male, Three - Female. Publisher, John W. Luce, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Rising of the Moon, The_—Lady Gregory. Characters, Four Male. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Sam Average_—Percy Mackaye. Characters, Three Male, One - Female. Publisher, Duffield and Company, New York City, New - York. - - _Side Show, The_—John Kendrick Bangs. Characters, Six Male, - Four Female. Publisher, Harper and Brothers, New York City, New - York. - - _Silent System, The_—A. Dreyfus. Characters, One Male, One - Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Six Who Pass While the Lentils Boil_—Stuart Walker. - Characters, Seven Male, Two Female. Publisher, Little, Brown - and Company, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Spreading the News_—Lady Gregory. Characters, Seven Male, - Three Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Sunbonnets_—Marian D. Campbell. Characters, Eleven Female. - Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Sunset_—Jerome K. Jerome. Characters, Three Male, Three - Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, Chicago, - Illinois. - - _Suppressed Desires_—George Cram Cook and Susan Glaspell. - Characters, One Male, Two Female. Publisher, Plays by Susan - Glaspell, Small, Maynard and Company, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Swan Song, The_—Anton Tchekoff. Characters, Two Male. - Publisher, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York City, New York. - - _Teeth of the Gift Horse, The_—Margaret Cameron. Characters, - Two Male, Four Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, - New York. - - _Three Pills in a Bottle_—Rachel L. Field. Characters, Five - Male, Three Female. Publisher, Plays 47 Workshop, Brentano’s, - New York City, New York. - - _Tickets, Please_—Irving Dale. Characters, Four Female. - Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Tradition_—George Middleton. Characters, One Male, Two Female. - Publisher, Henry Holt and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Traveling Man, The_—Lady Gregory. Characters, One Male, One - Female, One Child. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New - York. - - _Trifles_—Susan Glaspell. Characters, Three Male, Two Female. - Publisher, Frank Shay, New York City, New York. - - _Washington’s First Defeat_—Charles Nirdlinger. Characters, One - Male, Two Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New - York. - - _Waterloo_—Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Characters, Three Male, One - Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Which Is Which_—H. Theyre Smith. Characters, Three Male, Three - Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, Chicago, - Illinois. - - _Wire Entanglement, A_—Robert Mantell. Characters, Two Male, - Two Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Workhouse Ward, The_—Lady Gregory. Characters, Two Male, One - Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Zone Police, The_—Richard Harding Davis. Characters, Four - Male. Publisher, Charles Scribner and Sons, New York City, New - York. - - -SUGGESTED LIST OF PLAYS—MORE THAN ONE ACT - - _Abraham Lincoln_—John Drinkwater. Characters, Thirty-three - Male, Eight Female. Publisher, Houghton, Mifflin Company, New - York City, New York. - - _Admirable Crichton, The_—J. M. Barrie. Four Acts. Characters, - Seven Male, Seven Female. Publisher, Charles Scribner’s Sons, - New York City, New York. - - _Adventure of Lady Ursula, The_—Anthony Hope. Four Acts. - Characters, Twelve Male, Three Female. Publisher, Samuel - French, New York City, New York. - - _Alabama_—Augustus Thomas. Four Acts. Characters, Eight Male, - Four Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Alice-Sit-By-The-Fire_—J. M. Barrie. Three Acts. Characters, - Four Male, Five Female. Publisher, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New - York City, New York. - - _All-Of-A-Sudden-Peggy_—Ernest Denny. Three Acts. Characters, - Five Male, Five Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Amazons, The_—Arthur Pinero. Three Acts. Characters, Seven - Male, Five Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Anti-Matrimony_—Percy Mackaye. Four Acts. Characters, Two - Male, Three Female. Publisher, Doubleday, Page and Company, New - York City, New York. - - _Arrival of Kitty, The_—Norman Lee Swartout. Three Acts. - Characters, Five Male, Four Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker - and Company, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Arrow Maker’s Daughter, The_—Grace E. Smith and Gertrude - Nevils. Two Acts. Characters, Six Male, Seven Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Arrow Maker, The_—Mary Austin. Characters, Eight Male, Nine - Female. Publisher, Duffield and Company, New York City, New - York. - - _As You Like It_—William Shakespeare. Five Acts. Characters, - Sixteen Male, Four Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing - Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Bachelors’ Romance, A_—Martha Morton. Four Acts. Characters, - Seven Male, Four Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Back to the Farm_—Merline H. Shumway. Three Acts. Characters, - Six Male, Four Female. Publisher, University of Minnesota, - Agricultural Extension Division, Minneapolis, Minnesota. - - _Barbara Frietchie_—Clyde Fitch. Four Acts. Characters, - Thirteen Male, Six Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Bee in a Drone’s Hive, A_—Cecil Baker. Two Acts. Characters, - Nine Male, Five Female. Publisher, The Little Country Theater, - North Dakota Agricultural College, Fargo, North Dakota. - - _Beyond the Horizon_—Eugene O’Neill. Three Acts. Characters, - Six Male, Four Female. Publisher, Boni and Liveright, New York - City, New York. - - _Bob, Mr._—Rachel E. Baker. Two Acts. Characters, Three Male, - Four Female. Publisher, Eldridge Entertainment House, Franklin, - Ohio. - - _Breezy Point_—B. M. Locke. Three Acts. Characters, Thirteen - Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker and Company, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Brown Mouse, The_—Mabel B. Stevenson, adapted from the Novel - by Herbert Quick. Four Acts. Characters, Ten Male, Five Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Cabinet Minister, The_—A. W. Pinero. Four Acts. Characters, - Ten Male, Nine Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Captain Rackett_—Charles Townsend. Three Acts. Characters, - Five Male, Three Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing - Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Chinese, Lantern, The_—Lawrence Housman. Three Acts. - Characters, Six Male, Two Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New - York City, New York. - - _Clarence_—Booth Tarkington. Four Acts. Characters, Five Male, - Five Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Christopher Columbus_—Alice Johnstone Walker. Four Acts. - Characters, Eighteen Male, Two Female. Publisher, Henry Holt - and Company, New York City, New York. - - _College Widow, The_—George Ade. Four Acts. Characters, Fifteen - Male, Ten Female. Publisher, Sanger and Jordan, New York City, - New York. - - _County Chairman, The_—George Ade. Four Acts. Characters, - Sixteen Male, Six Female. Publisher, Sanger and Jordan, New - York City, New York. - - _Cousin Kate_—H. H. Davies. Three Acts. Characters, Three Male, - Four Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker and Company, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Country-Side, The_—Harry Hagerott. Three Acts. Characters, - Eight Male, Three Female. Publisher, The Little Country - Theater, North Dakota Agricultural College, Fargo, North Dakota. - - _Cricket on the Hearth_—Charles Dickens. Three Acts. - Characters, Seven Male, Eight Female. Publisher, The Dramatic - Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Cupid at Vassar_—Owen Davis. Four Acts. Characters, Twelve - Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, Chicago, - Illinois. - - _David Garrick_—T. W. Robertson. Three Acts. Characters, Eight - Male, Three Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _David Harum_—Eugene Noyes Westcott. Three Acts. Characters, - Eight Male, Three Female. Publisher, Charles Frohman Company, - New York City, New York. - - _Doll’s House, The_—H. Ibsen. Three Acts. Characters, Three - Male, Four Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Engaged_—W. S. Gilbert. Three Acts. Characters, Five Male, - Three Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Esmeralda_—Mrs. Frances Hodgson Burnett and William Gillette. - Three Acts. Characters, Ten Male, Five Female. Publisher, - Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Every Ship Will Find a Harbor_—Albert C. Heine. Three Acts. - Characters, Five Male, Four Female. Publisher, The Little - Country Theater, North Dakota Agricultural College, Fargo, - North Dakota. - - _Farmerette, The_—Evelyn Gray Whiting. Three Acts. Characters, - Seven Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Fortune Hunter, The_—Winchell Smith. Four Acts. Characters, - Seventeen Male, Three Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New - York City, New York. - - _Girl With the Green Eyes, The_—Clyde Fitch. Four Acts. - Characters, Ten Male, Seven Female. Publisher, Samuel French, - New York City, New York. - - _Great Divide, The_—William Vaughn Moody. Three Acts. - Characters, Eleven Male, Three Female. Publisher, Sanger and - Jordan, New York City, New York. - - _Green Stockings_—A. E. W. Mason. Three Acts. Characters, Seven - Male, Five Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New - York. - - _Hadda Padda_—Godmundur Kamban. Four Acts. Characters, Nine - Male, Seven Female. Publisher, Alfred Knopf, New York City, New - York. - - _Hazel Kirke_—Steele Mackaye. Four Acts. Characters, Nine Male, - Five Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Her Husband’s Wife_—A. E. Thomas. Three Acts. Characters, - Three Male, Three Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Hick’ry Farm_—Edwin M. Stern. Two Acts. Characters, Six - Male, Two Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Hour Glass, The_—William Butler Yeates. Characters, Four Male, - Two Female, Two Children. Publisher, The Macmillan Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _House Next Door, The_—J. H. Manners. Three Acts. Characters, - Eight Male, Four Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Hurry, Hurry, Hurry_—Leroy Arnold. Three Acts. Characters, Six - Male, Three Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, - New York. - - _Importance of Being Earnest, The_—Oscar Wilde. Three Acts. - Characters, Five Male, Four Female. Publisher, Samuel French, - New York City, New York. - - _It Pays to Advertise_—Roi Cooper Megrue and Walter Hackett. - Three Acts. Characters, Eight Male, Four Female. Publisher, - Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Kindling_—Charles Kenyon. Three Acts. Characters, Six Male, - Four Female. Publisher, Doubleday, Page and Company, New York - City, New York. - - _Lady of the Weeping Willow Tree, The_—Stuart Walker. Three - Acts. Characters, Six. Publisher, Stewart and Kidd Company, - Cincinnati, Ohio. - - _Lady Windermere’s Fan_—Oscar Wilde. Four Acts. Characters, - Seven Male, Eight Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Leonarda_—Björnstjerne Björnson. Four Acts. Characters, Six - Male, Six Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Little Minister, The_—J. M. Barrie. Four Acts. Characters, - Eleven Male, Five Female. Publisher, Charles Scribner’s Sons, - New York City, New York. - - _Little Women_—Marian De Forest, adapted from Story by Louisa - M. Alcott. Four Acts. Characters, Five Male, Seven Female. - Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Lion and the Mouse, The_—Charles Klein. Four Acts. Characters, - Ten Male, Eight Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Lonelyville Social Club_—W. C. Parker. Three Acts. Characters, - Ten Female. Publisher, Eldridge Entertainment House, Franklin, - Ohio - - _Man from Home, The_—Booth Tarkington. Four Acts. Characters, - Ten Male, Three Female. Publisher, Sanger and Jordan, New York - City, New York. - - _Man of the Hour_—George Broadhurst. Four Acts. Characters, - Thirteen Male, Three Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Man Without a Country, The_—Elizabeth McFadden and A. - Crimmins. Three Acts. Characters, Twenty-three Male, Two - Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Melting Pot, The_—Israel Zangwill. Four Acts. Characters, Five - Male, Four Female. Publisher, Sanger and Jordan, New York City, - New York. - - _Mice and Men_—Madeline Lucette Ryley. Four Acts. Characters, - Six Male, Six Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, - New York. - - _Milestones_—A. Bennett and E. Knoblauch. Three Acts. - Characters, Nine Male, Six Female. Publisher, George H. Doran, - New York City, New York. - - _Miss Hobbs_—Jerome K. Jerome. Four Acts. Characters, Five - Male, Four Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, New - York. - - _Miss Lulu Bett_—Zona Gale. Three Acts. Eight Characters. - Publisher, Zona Gale, Portage, Wisconsin. - - _Mrs. Bumpstead-Leigh_—Harry James Smith. Three Acts. - Characters, Six Male, Six Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New - York City, New York. - - _Mrs. Temple’s Telegram_—Frank Wyatt and William Morris. Three - Acts. Characters, Five Male, Four Female. Publisher, Samuel - French, New York City, New York. - - _Much Ado About Nothing_—William Shakespeare. Two Acts. - Characters, Eight Male, Three Female. Publisher, Walter H. - Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Nathan Hale_—Clyde Fitch. Four Acts. Characters, Twelve Male, - Four Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _New Country Woman, The_—Lillian Rolle. Four Acts. Characters, - Six Male, Four Female. Publisher, The Little Country Theater, - North Dakota Agricultural College, Fargo, North Dakota. - - _New York Idea, The_—Langdon Mitchell. Four Acts. Characters, - Nine Male, Six Female. Publisher, Walter Baker, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Nothing but the Truth_—James Montgomery. Three Acts. - Characters, Five Male, Six Female. Publisher, Samuel French, - New York City, New York. - - _Officer 666_—Augustin MacHugh. Three Acts. Characters, Eight - Male, Three Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, - New York. - - _Our Boys_—Henry J. Bryon. Three Acts. Characters, Six Male, - Four Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Pair of Spectacles, A_—Sydney Grundy. Three Acts. Characters, - Seven Male, Three Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Peg O’ My Heart_—J. Hartley Manners. Three Acts. Characters, - Five Male, Four Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Pillars of Society, The_—H. Ibsen. Four Acts. Characters, - Ten Male, Nine Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Pomander Walk_—Louis N. Parker. Three Acts. Characters, Ten - Male, Eight Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York City, - New York. - - _Private Secretary, The_—Charles Hawtrey. Three Acts. - Characters, Nine Male, Four Female. Publisher, Samuel French, - New York City, New York. - - _Professor’s Love Story, The_—J. M. Barrie. Three Acts. - Characters, Seven Male, Five Female. Publisher, Chicago - Manuscript Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Prunella_—Lawrence Housman and Granville Barker. Three Acts. - Characters, Eleven Male, One Female. Publisher, Little, Brown - and Company, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Pygmalion and Galatea_—W. S. Gilbert. Three Acts. Characters, - Four Male, Four Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing - Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Quality Street_—J. M. Barrie. Four Acts. Characters, Seven - Male, Six Female. Publisher, Sanger and Jordan, New York City, - New York. - - _Raindrops, The_—M. Thorfinnson and Eggert V. Briem. Four Acts. - Characters, Five Male, Three Female. Publisher, The Little - Country Theater, North Dakota Agricultural College, Fargo, - North Dakota. - - _Rejuvenation of Aunt Mary, The_—Anne Warner. Three Acts. - Characters, Seven Male, Six Female. Publisher, Samuel French, - New York City, New York. - - _Rip Van Winkle_—Charles Burke. Two Acts. Characters, Eleven - Male, Three Female, One Child. Publisher, The Dramatic - Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Rivals, The_—R. B. Sheridan. Five Acts. Characters, Eight - Male, Four Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Romancers, The_—Edmond Rostand. Three Acts. Characters, - Five Male, One Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Rose O’ Plymouth Town_—Beulah Marie Dix and Evelyn G. - Sutherland. Four Acts. Characters, Four Male, Four Female. - Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Russian Honeymoon, A_—Eugene Scribe. Three Acts. Characters, - Four Male, Three Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing - Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Sanctuary—A Bird Masque_—Percy Mackaye. Characters, Four Male, - Twenty-two Female. Publisher, Frederick A. Stokes, New York - City, New York. - - _School for Scandal_—Richard B. Sheridan. Five Acts. - Characters, Thirteen Male, Four Female. Publisher, Dramatic - Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Scrap of Paper, A_—J, Palgrave Simpson. Three Acts. - Characters, Six Male, Six Female. Publisher, The Dramatic - Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Servant in the House, The_—Charles Rann Kennedy. Five Acts. - Characters, Five Male, Two Female. Publisher, Harper and - Brothers, New York City, New York. - - _She Stoops to Conquer_—Oliver Goldsmith. Five Acts. - Characters, Sixteen Male, Four Female. Publisher, The Dramatic - Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Silas, the Chore Boy_—Frank Bernard. Three Acts. Characters, - Six Male, Three Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Sitting Bull—Custer_—Aaron McGaffey Beede. Characters, Nine - Male, Four Female. Publisher, Bismarck _Tribune_, Bismarck, - North Dakota. - - _Shore Acres_—James Herne. Four Acts. Characters, Ten Male, - Eight Female. Publisher, Charles Frohman Company, New York - City, New York. - - _Sweethearts_—W. S. Gilbert. Two Acts. Characters, Two Male, - Two Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Taming of the Shrew_—William Shakespeare. Three Acts. - Characters, Fifteen Male, Three Female. Publisher, Walter H. - Baker, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Tempest, The_—William Shakespeare. Five Acts. Characters, Five - Male, Seven Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing Company, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Three Hats, The_—A. Shirley. Three Acts. Characters, Five - Male, Four Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Thousand Years Ago, A_—Percy Mackaye. Four Acts. Characters, - Nine Male, Two Female. Publisher, Doubleday, Page Company, New - York City, New York. - - _Toastmaster_—Norman Lee Swartout. Three Acts. Characters, - Eight Male, Two Female. Publisher, The Dramatic Publishing - Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Trelawney of the Wells_—Arthur W. Pinero. Four Acts. - Characters, Ten Male, Eight Female. Publisher, The Dramatic - Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Twelfth Night_—William Shakespeare. Five Acts. Characters, - Ten Male, Three Female. Publisher, Walter H. Baker, Boston, - Massachusetts. - - _Valley Farm_—A. L. Tubbs. Four Acts. Characters, Six Male, Six - Female. Publisher, T. S. Denison and Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Washington, the Man Who Made Us_—Percy Mackaye. Three Acts. - Characters, Sixty-six Male, Ten Female. Publisher, Alfred A. - Knopf, New York City, New York. - - _What Every Woman Knows_—J. M. Barrie. Four Acts. Characters, - Five Male, Four Female. Publisher, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New - York City, New York. - - _What Happened to Jones_—George Broadhurst. Three Acts. - Characters, Seven Male, Six Female. Publisher, Samuel French, - New York City, New York. - - _Witching Hour, The_—Augustus Thomas. Three Acts. Characters, - Twelve Male, Three Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _You Never Can Tell_—Bernard Shaw. Four Acts. Characters, Six - Male, Four Female. Publisher, Brentano’s, New York City, New - York. - - _When We Were Twenty-One_—H. V. Esmond. Four Acts. Characters, - Nine Male, Five Female. Publisher, Samuel French, New York - City, New York. - - _Why Smith Left Home_—George Broadhurst. Three Acts. - Characters, Five Male, Seven Female. Publisher, Samuel French, - New York City, New York. - - -PRESENTATION OF PLAYS - - -COSTUMES - - _Bankside Costume Book for Children_—Melicent Stone. Publisher, - Saalfield Publishing Company, New York City, New York. - - _Costumes and Scenery for Amateurs_—Constance Mackay. - Publisher, Henry Holt and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Costumes for Bazaars and Masquerades._ Publisher, The Ladies’ - Home Journal, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - - _Costumes in England_—F. W. Fairholt. Publisher, Macmillan - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Dennison’s Costume Book._ Publisher, Dennison Manufacturing - Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Flower Children_—Elizabeth Gordon. Publisher, P. F. Volland - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Historic Dress in America_—Elizabeth McClellan. Publisher, G. - W. Jacobs and Company, New York City, New York. - - _History of British Costume_—J. R. Planche. Publisher, G. Bell - and Sons, Ltd., London, England. - - _Meadowgold._ Publisher, Extension Division, University of - Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin. - - _Mother Earth’s Children_—Elizabeth Gordon. Publisher, P. F. - Volland and Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Practical Hints on Stage Costumes_—Cyril Bowen. Publisher, - Samuel French, New York City, New York. - - _Two Centuries of Costume in America_—Alice Morse Earle. - Publisher, Macmillan and Company, New York City, New York. - - -MAKE-UP - - _Art of Theatrical Make-Up, The_—Cavendish Morton. Publisher, - Adams and Charles Black, London, England. - - _Brief Make-Up Guide_—Eben H. Norris. Publisher, T. S. Denison, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Hageman’s Make Up Book_—Maurice Hageman. Publisher, The - Dramatic Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Making Up_—James Young. Publisher, M. Witmark and Sons, New - York City, New York. - - -PRODUCTION - - _American Pageantry_—Ralph Davol. Publisher, Davol Publishing - Company, Taunton, Massachusetts. - - _Community Drama and Pageantry_—Mary Porter Beegle and Jack - Randall Crawford. Publisher, Yale University Press, New Haven, - Connecticut. - - _Festivals and Plays_—Percival Chubb and Associates. Publisher, - Harper and Brothers, New York City, New York. - - _How to Produce Amateur Plays_—Barrett H. Clark. Publisher, - Little, Brown and Company, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _How to Produce Children’s Plays_—Constance D’Arcy Mackay. - Publisher, Henry Holt and Company, New York City, New York. - - _How to Stage a Play_—Harry Osborne. Publisher, T. S. Denison - and Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Modern Theater Construction_—Edward Bernard Kinsila. - Publisher, Chalmers Publishing Company, New York City, New York. - - _Open Air Theater, The_—Sheldon Cheney. Publisher, Mitchell - Kennerley, New York City, New York. - - _Play Production in America_—Arthur Edwin Krows. Publisher, - Henry Holt and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Practical Stage Directing for Amateurs_—Emerson Taylor. - Publisher, E. P. Dutton and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Producing Amateur Entertainments_—Helen Ferris. Publisher, E. - P. Dutton and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Shakespeare for Community Players_—Roy Mitchell. Publisher, E. - P. Dutton and Company, New York City, New York. - - -SCENIC EFFECTS—STAGE DEVICES—LIGHTING - - _Costumes and Scenery for Amateurs_—Constance Mackay. - Publisher, Henry Holt and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Electric Stage Lighting Apparatus and Effects_—Kliegel - Brothers. Publisher, Kliegel Brothers, New York City, New York. - - _Secrets of Scene Painting and Stage Effects_—Van Dyke Browne. - Publisher, E. P. Dutton and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Theatrical Stage Rigging_—J. R. Clancy. Publisher, J. R. - Clancy, Syracuse, New York. - - -PROMOTION OF PLAYS - - -NEWSPAPERS - - _Country Weekly, The_—Phil C. Bing. Publisher, D. Appleton and - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Editorial, The_—Leon Nelson Flint. Publisher, D. Appleton and - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Essentials in Journalism_—H. F. Harrington and T. T. - Frankenberg. Publisher, Ginn and Company, New York City, New - York. - - _How to Write Special Feature Articles_—Willard G. Bleyer. - Publisher, Houghton, Mifflin Company, New York City, New York. - - _Making Type Work_—Benjamin Sherbow. Publisher, The Century - Company, New York City, New York. - - _Newspaper Reporting and Correspondence_—Grant M. Hyde. - Publisher, D. Appleton and Company, New York City, New York. - - _Newspaper Writing and Editing_—Willard G. Bleyer. Publisher, - Houghton, Mifflin Company, New York City, New York. - - _Principles of Advertising, The_—Tipper, Hollingworth, - Hotchkiss, Parsons. Publisher, The Ronald Press Company, New - York City, New York. - - _Types of News Writing_—Willard G. Bleyer. Publisher, - Houghton, Mifflin Company, New York City, New York. - - _Typical Newspaper Stories_—H. F. Harrington. Publisher, Ginn - and Company, New York City, New York. - - -POSTERS - - _Art of Sign Painting, The_—Frank Atkinson. Publisher, - Frederick J. Drake and Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _“A Show At” Shocards_—F. H. Atkinson and G. W. Atkinson. - Publisher, Frederick J. Drake and Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Letters and Lettering_—Frank Chouteau Brown. Publisher, Bates - and Guild Company, Boston, Massachusetts. - - _Modern Painters’ Cyclopedia, The_—F. Maire. Publisher, - Frederick J. Drake and Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - _Poster, The_—Publisher, Poster Advertising Association, - Chicago, Illinois. - - _Practical Publicity_—Truman A. De Weese. Publisher, George W. - Jacobs and Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - - _Signists’ Modern Book of Alphabets, The_—F. Delamotte. - Publisher, Frederick J. Drake and Company, Chicago, Illinois. - - - - -APPENDIX B - -GLOSSARY OF STAGE TERMS - - - _Arch_—Doorway or archway in section of scenery. - - _Act_—Division of play. - - _At Rise_—Beginning of play or act. - - _Back Stage_—Portion back of visible stage. - - _Back Drop_—Large curtain hanging at rear of stage showing a - landscape, garden or woods. - - _Borders_—Section of different colored cloths or scenery - hanging at intervals from above. Usually represents sky, - ceiling or branches of trees. - - _Border Lights_—Rows of lights in tin troughs suspended from - ceiling used to illuminate stage. - - _Brace_—Support, usually slender pole to keep scenery in place. - - _Bunch Lights_—Groups of lights on movable standards. - - _Business Manager_—Person who looks after finances of - production, promotes advertising campaign, sells and takes - tickets, etc. - - _Comedy_—A play light and amusing, having a happy ending. - - _Costume_—A character dress of a particular period or locality - worn in a play. - - _Cue_—Last words of a speech indicating time for next actor to - begin. - - _Cross_—To move from one side of the stage to the other side. - - _Dimmer_—Electrical device to regulate quantity of light on - stage. - - _Drops_—Curtains or pieces of scenery extending height and - whole width of stage. - - _Down_—Down stage means direction of audience. - - _Discovered_—In person on stage at beginning of play or act. - - _Drama_—A composition intended to portray life or character to - be performed on stage. - - _Farce_—A light, somewhat ridiculous play usually short. - - _Festival_—A periodical season of entertainment embracing - pageantry, drama, music and dancing. - - _Footlights_—Illumination on front of stage floor. - - _Front_—Part of stage nearest audience. - - _Lash Line_—Rope used to hold sections of scenery together. - - _Left_—Actor’s left on stage when facing audience. - - _Music Plot_—Brief statement of incidental music in play. - - _Off_—Away from visible stage. - - _On_—On stage. - - _Pantomime_—A dramatic performance where words are not used—a - dumb show. - - _Pageant_—An outdoor spectacle or play of large proportions. - - _Pastoral Play_—A drama describing rural life. - - _Prompter_—One who reminds actor of parts forgotten. - - _Property Man_—One who looks after properties in play. - - _Puppet Show_—A small image in human form play. - - _Properties_—Articles used in play. - - _Proscenium_—Arch framing the stage where front curtain hangs. - - _Run_—Portion of stage leading to visible part. - - _Set Piece_—A structure built on stage like tree, wall or - cottage. - - _Set_—Scenery for certain act in play. - - _Scene_—Subdivision of play or act in play. - - _Stage-Manager_—One who looks after arrangement of stage - scenery for a play. - - _Spotlight_—Light aimed at certain section of stage. - - _Tableau_—Representation of some scene by grouping of people. - - _Tormentors_—Passages near proscenium opening. - - _Trap_—Hole in stage floor. - - _Tragedy_—A dramatic composition having an unhappy ending. - - _Up_—Toward rear of stage. - - _Upstage_—Part of stage farthest away from audience. - - - - -APPENDIX C - -OPEN AIR THEATERS—STADIUMS - - -Greek Theater, University of California, Berkeley, California, The -Crescent—El Zagal Park, Fargo, North Dakota—The Harvard Stadium, Harvard -University, Cambridge, Massachusetts. - -[Illustration: The Greek Theatre, University of California, Berkeley, -California] - -[Illustration: “The Crescent,” one of America’s Largest Open Air -Theaters, El Zagal Park, Fargo, North Dakota] - -[Illustration: The Stadium, Harvard University] - -[Illustration: The Interior of the Stadium, Harvard University] - - - - -APPENDIX D - -RURAL COMMUNITY CENTER—TYPES OF COMMUNITY BUILDINGS - - -Rural Community Center, Rusk Farm—Community House, Leeland, Texas—Village -Hall, Wyoming, New York—Community Building and Floor Plan—Auditorium, -Hendrum, Minnesota. - -[Illustration: Rural Community Center Plan, Rusk Farm, Wisconsin - -_Courtesy of Ben Faast_] - -[Illustration: Community House, Leeland, Texas] - -[Illustration: Village Hall, Wyoming, New York] - -[Illustration: Typical Community Building - -Drawn by Sander Anderson. - -Seating capacity four hundred] - -[Illustration: Auditorium, Hendrum, Minnesota] - - - - -APPENDIX E - -STAGE DESIGNS - - -[Illustration: DRAW CURTAIN—CAN BE USED ANYWHERE] - -[Illustration: DIAGRAM SHOWING SCENE FRAME] - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE LITTLE COUNTRY -THEATER *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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