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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1924-5-14, Page 3Here's a study In black and white of two budding youngcitizens taken In a lumber. camp in the Mississauga forest reserve north of Blind River, Ontario. The little Indian and his white companion prepare for a day in the woods. How to Have a Community Pageant J By Mary M A community pageant fa nothing but' a big series of living pictures or xnantomines in witioh the local people not out their ideas of local history or traditions lust as the kindergarten child acts out fairy tales—and in both cases the attempt at expression is a great deal of fun. We are all•children in our delight in dressing up and play ing a part and the community pageant gives just the right opportunity for 'this sort of enjoyment which ie also educative. Any community—your community— is the place for pageantry, But if there were a choice, then the small town, just beginning to feel that it will some be a city, is the ideal situation. Nothing can equal the ein thusiasm with which the people in such a town ferret out the details of their history and represent the most striking incidents. They suddenly realize that they aro a part of the great world, and that down their main Street all the currents of national his- tory have flowed, and will continue to flow for all time to come. They are lifted out of the humdrum of their daily lives in seeing themselves in their relation to great bLstorical events, and thie exaltation of spirit Stas made many a small-town pageant significant and beautiful quite out of proportion to its size and its cost. A Home -Grown Production, Perhaps the best thing about a peg- cant is that it can be infinitely adapt- ed to local conditions. It can use al- most any kind ot material effectively and it eau be performed in the Par- ticular beauty spot which fe the pride of the town. If the local dealers are timid about undertaking the pag- eant 'without assistance they nut em- ploy a trained pageant -manager to as- sume general direction. Of course this greatly simplifies the project. But anyone with ability for managing peo- ple and some actiatio.knowledge, who enn give time and energy can produce a fairly successful ,performance. And the town will have an additional ren- eon for pride in that the =tire produc- tion has been made at home; Sometimes a girl just out of college and eager to do'something for her. home town, is the local pageaut-man- ager, She hoe seen pageonts present- ed resented at college and she studies the gen- eral principles of pageantry from books and magazine articles, .Another excellent way to obtain a knowledge of pageantry, and at the pante time to arouse the interest of Everybody is to arrange for some ex- pert apert in pageantry to give a lecture, perhaps under the auspices of the see- m/it's clubs of the town. As soon as it has beep decided to Rive a pageant, a. meeting is called of all individuals who will probably be interested and helpful, and the general phut of organization worked out, The selection of the pageant man- ager is of first importance, since he as - mimes control of tate entire organize - eek Atkeson Cion and has the final voice on all plans. Four Committees. Chairmen then are elected for the four general committees—the Histori- cal Committee, the Finance Commit- tee, the Cast Committee and the Pro- duction Committee. The pageant - manager acid these committee chair- men constitute an executive body to work out and bring to success all the larger problems of the undertakigg.. The Historical Committee has the task of ferreting out the local history, deciding upon the number and char- acter of incidente to be presented, writing or adapting the pageant book, borrowing and caring for historical properties, preparing the program and sometimes attending to the publicity fpr the pageant. The Finance Committee, has charge of all business arrangements, includ- ing the guaranty fund, budgeting of expenses, ,sale of tickets and programs renting of grounds or hall, seating, transportation, building of back- grounds and so forth. Under this oom- mittee may serve any number of sub- committees, each assigned one or more particular tasks. The Cast Committee tries to inter- est al the people of the town in the project and sees that every person is asked to help In some way. It also appoints the leaders of the episodes, as the separate incidents of history are called, assists the episode leaders in choosing members of the Cast and calls the general rehearsals. The production Committee, assisted by important subcommittees on cos- tumes, music and dancing, and by the leaders of the episodes, has charge of all the details of the actual presenta- tion. Choosing the Subject. The pegeantmanager 1s, of course, an ex -officio member of all committees as; he has the task oa making the pro- duction a harmonious whole, This is a very simple form of organization but it covers all the necessary activi- ties for the smaller pageant and can be elaborated indefinitely to take care of the great numbers of people in the larger community, 'The pageant-utau- ager's aim should be to divide the re- sponsibility among as. many persons as possible so that practically every- one in the community feels himself a necessary and important part of the production, The choice of material for the pag- eant is very important. Most popular in the smaller communities is the his- torical pageant, made up of significant items of local history presented in a series of pictures or pantomimes, these being reviewed and interpreted by the Spirit of the Community, Cana- da, or some ether symbolic figure. Even though the wording of tiro story be crude, if the real spirit of the lo- cality is expressed and the historical incidents arc well presented, the gen- eral effect is excellent, The pageant. A party of over 100 bays told girls, ranging from tern to sevoriteen years of age, from Or. Bernardo's JJomes, bave left England fur Canada.Some of theist are slsi i h waving gond bye to London. Writer On get many valuable aitggie!, tie= iretn pageants written for ether eomraunittes, its 8000 tie the pageant has been written or edspted thq working out begins, Tho Madera et the episodes are chosen by the Cast Committee from many groups 00 that there is a demoeratle rapreeentation:al the sons- mainly, Any number or persons can be used in a pageant, extras. being used as n background for these taking pert • in the action, Too large groups are 1111 - wieldy, yet it is desirable to have it few persona in each epieodo, so that the places of players who may drop out from illness or other causes at the Leet moment may be Ailed by these who are familiar with the action, Costumes Are important, In costuming the pageant almost the whole community can take part. Or- iginal costumes of historical periods can be found in some of the attics of the neighborhood. The older people will enjoy giving deseriPtionea of the costumes worn in their youth. The style of colonial dress is well known, An effective ball -room scone Cap be copied from pictures of the peeled, in old rose, blue and creamy- yellow sateen and gaily flowered ere - Mime. In a pioneer episode the men wear ill -lifting trousers, of gray or homespun, held by galluses of the ma- terial over shirts of bright chlor. The pioneer women wear tight -waisted, full -skirted dresses of dark colors with bright aprons—or bright calico Greas- es for beet wear, Indians wear suits of brown canton- flannel, fringed to simulate buckskin, decorations of bright colors and headdresses of feathers. Their faces and hands are copper color with blue and yellow war •paint, Costumes for heralds and pages vary greatly, . The, medieval costume, consisting of a loose jacket or tabard, long stockings, low shoes, and a soft cap, can be used with any kind of pag- eant. Advertising for the pageant. can best be done with bright, artistic post- ,ers, large enough to attract attention. It will arouse interest to announce prizes for the best posters made by school children. Newspaper advertis- ing should take the form of little stories about tate pageant. Each epi- sode can be' written up separately, giving the cast and something about the incident to be portrayed. Sha --"I could scratch my eyes out for saying my mother is a cat" Hubby -"Well, that proves you in- herit her disposition." Luxor to Wembley. A remarkable .reproduction of Tut- ankhainen's tomb at Luxor has been constructed by experts for display at the British Empire Exhibition" et Wembley. Wonderful chairs of ivory and ebony, fearsome elongated lions and cows, golden chariots, chests armed black slaves—all ,have been faithfully copied. Tho "tomb" will have three cham- bers, each the exact size of,the orlgln- aI. In an ante -room will be the golden couches, the chests, and tee chariot wheels just 'le they were found In the. Luxor tomb; and at the entrance will be the two black guerilla= 01 the inn- er shrine. One of the most remarkable objects in the "tomb" is the ISing's ''tailor's dummy." To save himself the trouble of being measured and fitted for his clothes, Tutankhamen had a repro- duction .of himself made from his exact measurements, ori which his clothiers fitted all his now clothes, This dummy has been reproduced even to the pin-holes made by the fit- ters. What We Owe to China. China prodeces discoveriea and im- ventions of the greatest value to the human race long before aha rise of. Western civilization. The Chinese invented the compass In 1122 B.C.; paper in the early part of .the first century; Diluting about the year A,D, 93S; glass in the early Part of the =court eentnry; the eeis- utogtalthin i]te. tirat century, and an- ticipated modern medicine. Metal colas were in circulation in Mina in 2562 710. The mantifacituro by the ancient Chinese of gongs and tom-toms, with their portae; tones, still remains a mystery to its, although their chemical rotnpnsilion has boon determined. O s mevation is to merit what sirens is to i1 handsome person, "Education that .stresses inherent' good qualities iii every child is motel interesting to me than the culture ci' plants, Entirely without, biological comparison, the child as wc11 as the plant has: desirable tendencies and qualities• --those of the rbild to be nur- tured into • an active Appreciation or good.".- T,uthcr Burbank. Secrets of Camp Cooking Learn Thera, Young Fells, and Hilae for the Woods! By Richard Bond, Thirty years ago 1 was the •kind. sf it "bare -foot boy" the poets lice to idolize—a real farmer'a boy; tanned, beaky, active, may for anylbing ex- cept work, and dreaming of the time when I could see big clues and all that There is the Indian lire, the itbnter's with the riee. Let them boil for an lire, the trench Are, the boy -built even, hour and then add the other More - the council ire --all kinds Of Ares— dients• evcrythieg being out in linin each of which has its uses, convent• cubes or disks. Boil the whole for an- epees, dlsadveetagos end jays, other hour and a half and then dish it The trench fire 13 ons of the mast Mut to your crowd. You'll Have It stew suitable of cooking lire', Take along that will hit every hungry spot Jo went with them, To -day, no mutter; a short handled spade,. 'Or, if the every stomaeb. What the WPM instal my feelings mond to soft, yon can soon dig your When the days begin to get cold, should be, the prinetpal reason I seek trench with a stick of wood. The the bunter's stew is just the bests It every posatbie chance to leave the city trench le a little one. Leine inches warms you up even better thou 00000, and get back to the flail is that I may indulge In some of the tbjngs I never indulged in when a boy, Now, after thirty years 01 01ty fi10, with'e boy of MY own who demands a hike or a camping trip every Saturday from March to November, I am begin- ning to realize the things I might bave done when a boy—bad' I known what i now know. With woods and atream and fields and vegetables and game and trait all around me for year after year, I sel- dom if ever' ate a meal, worthy of be- ing called a meal, on Nature's table— the beautiful, wonderful, natural ground. Of course we had pienicel Sunday School picnics and family reunions and publlo =Mice picnics and com- munity picnics and • harvest picnics and all the other picnics that !aria folk enjoy, but the food we ate on those plantes was the very food that the city folks usually eat when they too decide to go out into the wilder- ness for a meal: Potato salad, beets, pickles, cheese, sandwiches, fruit— and all the- rest of the usual picnic fodder that we claim "tastes so good" all because we have hada delightful time in the great outdoors and are so hungry, that plain bread and butter is a genuine treat. Several Kinds of Fires. My bay, a city boy, has taught his father, a farm boy, just what kind of meals may be had in the woods or on the banks of a stream—the best meals in the world. We scorn prepared foods as we start for the country now. We much prefer the "makings;' a few utensils and the anticipation of the huge delight be- fore us. In the depths of some grove or on the bank of a friendly stream, son and I pitch our camp and prepare our meal. Usually we are not alone, for every scout in our troop who is able to get off on that particular day sees to it that he is with us. Now there are several kinds of fires. deep is ample. Forty mels ]rug and Good ofd -fashioned flannel cakes about fifteen inches wide, Over the, come in handy here too, You may 1 trench, lengthwise, I lay my cooking ' line a dozen reelpes for Hanel oaken iron, but were I a boy again, I should and fall to make good with every one of them, but try this some Bute when yon are camping in the open and sea 11 your cartes are not just as good as those ltiotlter makes: Take along a cup and a hall of sift- ing but an eight -or -nine -foot piece of ad dour; two eggs; a small bottle of half-inch iron rod, bent until the ends milk; a little baking powder; a table - are about six inches apart, and welded spoonful of brown sugar, maple sugar, in that position 'to make it stable. or molasses; a little salt—half a tea - near the narrow end my coffee spoonful will do; and some lard for pot simmers. Further down my fry- greasing purposes. You will also need ing-pan holds sway. Where the rods a griddle, frying pan or some thick are far apart,. my big pot of hunter's stew or my pail of potatoes, boils, The rod is' light to carry end plenty large enough to Cook an excellent meal for eight or ten campers. r Take a couple ot good roasting ap- will do foa mixer. A little practice pies back to the woods with you the is necessary before your mixing will next time you go, Wrap them care, be satiatactory. You will have to learn fully in some large aromatic leaves how flour and milk may be combined and then encase the whole Jn about with coarse grained sugar and eggs so half or three-quarters inch of ' plain that there will not be a lump or a everyday clay or mud. Bury them in string or anything else to inilr the the ashes of your Sire and cover them creamy mass. You will have to learn with glowing coals. Let them stay also just how much baking powder to there, half an hour while you are mak- use so that the mass of griddle batter ing a hunter's stew or baking twist. will bubble and raise delightfully and You'll And the best dessert you ever yet not become so thick that the Cakes tasted, bubbling and sizzling within those leaves --clean, delicious, baked to a turn. Making Hunter's Stew, - The hunter's stew I have mentioned is known by every boy scout in the country. It is the first "big dish" he learns to cook. As he grows more ex- perienced s perienced he is able to improve on the stew mentioned In his handbook or book of rules. To my mind, the ideal hunter's stew 4s made as follows: Take along a handful or two of rice, some good beef, a few potatoes, a car- rot, two onions, a little salt, if you wish, an ear or two of corn. The ker- nels you can cut off when making the etew . Cut, the beef in tiny cubes and put in the kettle of boiling water, together to your kabob and hunter's stew. A MESSAGE ON THE FORESTS SITUATION Tbo preseet situation in Canada generaily, with respect to the wastage of our forest resources through forest Ares is a matter of great couoern, Tile losers in the past few years liavo b.00si appalling. Statistics compiled for 1110 British Empire Forestry Contereneo last summer show that on the average 8,7715 fires occur .each year, These tires burn over 720,000 acres of mer ohantabie timber and 1,520,000 acres of young growth, The annual tinlber ons is estimated at nearly 4,000 million board ft. The monetary loss, :figuring stumpage value of timber only and property damage, ate., amounts to over $14,600,000. This sum, while large enough of It- self, does not represent the full econo- mic loss. In our forest 1i dustriee, more than in any other, the cost of the manufactured product is made up of labor charges. The'destructton of pre- sent and future stumpage' results, therefore, in direct loss of the means of livelihood of an important part of our population, It is further a menace to the permanency of the forest Indus- tries themselves which to -day produce five hundred million dollars aunuaily in wealth and are second only to agrl oulture in importance, A world shortage of softwood tim- bers looms on the horizon. Our pros- perity and our national safety alike demand careful use and preservation of the forest resources, The lavishness of nature has been more than matched by the prodigality of man. Our forest flus have destroyed more timber each year than is converted, into lumber, and this despite the Mot that over ninety per cent. of all forest fires are directly attributable to human neg- eat. These facts speak for themselves. We have been "doing these things which we ought not to have done, and we have been leaving undone those things which we ought to have done. The remedy is within our reach. If ninety per cent. of Canada's forest fires are caused by human neglect, hen ninety per cent. can be prevent- ed by human care and precaution. Every settler, every Jogger, every anter, every pamper, every railway mployee, every true citizen of Cana - a .must do his part. The individual are required is soslight, and the gen- ial carelessness so appalling in its esuits. Canada has lost in direct values alone $73,000,000 in the last Ave years through forest fires. Let us 11 resolve to reduce this loss during the -next five years.by ninety per cent. —Charles Stewart, Minister of the In- terior. probably use two long green eatUage. Chief Cooking Utensil My cooking iron, which takes the Place of stove, oven and all, is noth- bottomed pan, unleaa you have ad- vanced far enough to use that ideal griddle—the fiat, thin, cooking stone, The kettle la which you have brought your flour and other supplies will burn on the top and bottom {what '1 was the top once is of course the bot- tom later with a griddle cake) while the middle is yet uncooked. But these things come with experience. Do try this, folks! A country boy who didn ot have an.opportunity to try it until he was a city man, passes this word back to •all those who are interested. You'll find those meals in t the open well worth having. You'll find them so much better than the food you get at the annual picnic, that you h will appreciate why I fail to enthuse e AIM over sandwiches and potato salad. d The more advanced you become in the lore of the great outdoors, the more ; e enthusiastic you will be over camp I cooking and, if you ever becoine a city man, like me, the more anxious you! will be to get back as often as possible !,a The Flight. We are two eagles Flying together Under the heavens, Over the mountains, Stretched on the wind. Sunlight heartens us, Blind snow baffles us, Ravelled and thinned. We are like eagles; But when Death harries us, Hunan and i1uinaled When one of us goes, Let the other follow— I{et the flight be ended, Let the fire blacken, Let the book close. The Ship's Band. An old naval officer was describing his experiences and comparing the present condition of music on the ships with that of •his active days. "Now -a -days," he said; "you have a band provided, and it's a band of Eng- lishmen and everyone of them a naval man, When first I waaapromoted Cap- tain, however, things were different. My commander fancied himself as a musical man, and he would write to London and ask for one trombone, of whatever it was ho wanted, and he might get it or be might not, and the men who played were es often ns not foreigners who did not know how to play together. I had to insist on their playing 'God Save the Queen' each nothing and night, a thing a lot of them didn't like and some of 'em' couldn't do. But now -a -days there are no bands in the world to touch ours." Which is quite true, Historic Ring. Every electric light in the world, from the small pocket lamp to huge advertising signs, owes its existence to a little ring about six inches in diameter, This ring, which is In the Royal Institution Museum in London, is that front which Faraday, the groat inventor, obtained the first induction apark, thus making a ciiscovery'lvhioh is aha basis of our tnodera eiectrie lighting system. Human Hair Rope. I0 seine, Japanese temples may be seed suspended great retie of rope woven from human hair. Such ropes, glade of hair secs-ifIcod by thousands of women and girls, were used to heist stone'and timber` for the torple, and are preserved as raft,. a. - True to Form. "Titer= been quite it ,ttttnptts in the satinet yard, ,'hilt's it alt about?" asked the principal. "Why," explained Baroid, "the doe, tar iter just been around examining its, and oneof the denote=boys is knocking the stuffing out of a perfect kid' q Void of purity in tncrnie, faith is lrut a ltypnc rite of words, Documents in ']Cut's Tomb Verify History. Dr. James H. Breasted, head of the Oriental Languages Department of the University of Chicago, has returned jfifrons a four months' stay in Egypt, ig where he has been deciphering manu- scripts found in the tomb of Tutank- hamen, which, by the way, is now spelled by those who know, Dr. Breast- ed included, "Tuttankhanton." In the tomb are manuscripts that will and out and amplify all the history of II Egypt known, he says, and will also throw a light on ancient Grecian his- tory. For example, there have been found documents in the tomb to show the seriousness of Tntankhamon's revolu- tionary belief in freedom of thought and individuality had on the politics of his time. They supplement the vague nformation'regarding the fran- tic efforts :of his girl -widow to save her throne. by en alliance with a Prince of The Hittites in Asia Minor. It is in this ancient correspondence that Dr. Breasted bas discovered documents .supplementing recent dis- coveries in Asia Minor, showing that there was a Trojan war, and that Beg • en, the lady for whose sake ships were sunk and battles raged, was a real woman, and not the figment of the imagination of it roving Greek mins- trel, "The tomb of Tut," he declared, "is a treasure house of ancient art. It survived from a revolution which woe the first period of spiritual emancipa- tion in human history, III HKri-r „ r C.1-4°7 Explosions Caused by Flour. It fs not generally known that flour, sugar, starch, or grain dusts are cap- able of working greater havoc than a high explosive such as dynamite, In a barrel or sack flour is harm- less. But if you were to take hand- fuls andfuls of it and throw It about until the air in the room was Pull of it, and then light a match, the house might be blown to pieces. Flour is a combustible substance. When a cloud of it Boats in the air of a room every particle is in immediate Got Smoked Thera. contact with oxygen, and a flame or "Just back from a trip, eh? Why en ova spark will cause it to burn, In- de you wear smoked glasses?"the whole of it is eon - "I don't—lust in from Pittsburgh, you know." �' Persistency. Ross --"Aren't you the boy who was here a week ago looking for e. posi- tion?" Boy—"Yes, sir." Boss --"I thought so. And didn't T tell you then that I wanted an older boy?" "Yes, sir; that's why I'm here again. I'm older now." Says Farmer Fumbiegate. The radio spreads wide the news, And it is mighty flue;; But still for gossip I prefer The good old party line. Air raids on Great Britain during tho War resulted in 1,418 deaths and 3,407 Injured. It ME 5 i) Ot+ TELL i 13`iRrtt.s verted into gas, which, expanding in a closed area, blows out the walls. Powdered sugar is also extremely ,dangerous, while powdered apices, oat• meal, and even soap will explode( Some months ago a workman lifted tate lid of a bin containing flour, and held a lighted match inside to see how full it was. An explosion took place immediately, and the unfortunate man was badly injured. Yet it was not the mass of the flour that went off, but only what was afloat in the air of the bin. A cake of soap does not burn unleaa put into a furnace or coal range, but if dry, and distributed, in in powdered form through the air of a room, it will explode with violence. The requisite conditions in aauch cases are that the substance shall be combustible and that it shall be plentifully mixed with air in a confined apace, The feet that coal dust will explode has only been reaiized within the last few years. A tremencimts explosion in France, in which one thousand lives were lost, was proved to be due to illi' cause. Means of safeguard against ell sorts of dust explosions are now being evolved, and many factories ass suo- tion fins to remove particles of crust front the air. Avenging a Telegram, On arriving In Manchester, .s man who was fond of playing practical jokes ,sent n telegram to a friend. in London that read: "1 ant perfectly well." The charges were "collect" Tho iitfornratlon must have been grata:y^iug, for about a week later the joker received an express peeling° on which he was obliged to pay heavy charges. Opening it, he found a large street paving lilock upon which was pasted the following message: "This is, the weight your telegram lifted from 01y heart," Giese Models of Sea Life. Merman Miller,ttiniros lifelike glass models . of strange undersea animals for the A,nnrk :an Museum of Natural 1ilst: ry iu Mitt) York. The boy who is on tho. bit every pollute 15 111e 10y who will enema whether to 36o01 05 at ,,•ork.