Opera has always seemed to me a very necessary thing in the State. It
has a strong educational value in that it develops the musical taste of
the public as well as teaching lessons in history and the humanities in
a very forceful manner. Children should be taken to opera as a regular
part of their education. Opera makes a wonderful impression upon the
child's imagination--the romance, the color, the music, the action are
rarely forgotten. Many of the operas are beautiful big fairy stories and
the little folks glory in them. Parents who desire to develop the taste
of their children and at the same time stimulate their minds along
broader lines can do no better than to take them to opera. Little towns
in Europe often have fine opera houses, while many American cities
several times their size have to put up with moving picture theatre
houses. Why does not some enthusiastic American leader take up a
campaign for more opera in America? With the taste of the public
educated through countless talking machine records, it should not prove
a bad business venture if it is gone about in a sensible manner.