Photo by West Ralph Heath From the rhythmic thud of a leg bone on a hollow log to the complicated expressions of a symphony orchestra, music has evolved with man. Today, in our hurried existence, we take time to pause and listen and to be stirred by good music. In our schools, the importance of this activity is well-recognized; individual participation in some form is encouraged. More and more students are taking advantage of the facilities for training and for recreation which Weber College offers in this line, thus enriching their lives through contact with true art. Page Four Rose Among Thorns In the memory of Salt Lakers of the eighties, Oscar Wilde remained a peculiar young man in a grotesque costume. by Richard Layman A droll moment in Utah history opened sixty-six years ago this autumn, not in Utah but in London, England, when Oscar Wilde, famed British Victorian author, received a cable inviting him to make a lecture tour in the United States. The brilliant young Irish-English poet, novelist, playwright, essayist and critic was only three years out of Oxford in October of 1881. The burst of successful poetry written in his final year there had caused some critics to hail him as the successor of Ruskin and Arnold. But Wilde's indolence had limited his literary production since graduation. He had only one volume of poetry and an unproduced play to his credit, and although he was doing a creditable job of living off society, his pocketbook was not filling as rapidly as he wished. Consequently, the author welcomed a chance to speak in America, especially when it meant receiving a third of the box office receipts. The American bureau of the Carte theatrical production company was the maker of the lecture offer. It was not made in the hope of sharpening the literary or artistic sensibilities of the American public. The company was to present a successful production in this country of Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta Patience, a satire directed against the then current Aesthetic Movement, of which Oscar Wilde was the acknowledged leader, and hoped to add to its profits by exhibiting Oscar in cities whore the satire might play. The Aesthetic Movement was an artistic tendency which came about as a reaction to the stereotyped artistic production of Victorian England. It manifested itself in affected admiration for Rossetti's poetry, Burne-Jones' wallpaper, Japanese prints and sundry other ob-jets d'art. Wilde was quick to attach himself to the movement, not so much to promote art as to promote himself. He became aestheticism personified. He is described as appearing in velvet knee breeches, black silk stockings, goldbraided coat and large, flowing green t'e. In addition he usually sported a large sunflower or lily in his lapel, and wore his hair at shoulder length. Such was the Wilde that Gilbert and Sullivan had parodied in the character of Grosvenor. Shrewd busin-nessmen, the Carte producers believed that American audiences would enjoy seeing the real thing and, more important, pay money for the privilege. They were correct, and in January of 1882 Wilde arrived in New York, saying to the customs inspector, "I have nothing to declare except my genius." Tongue in cheek, Wilde started his lecture tour. New York, Philadelphia, Washington, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco appeared on his itinerary. All was not work for Oscar, however. He outdrank a party of miners in Leadville, Colorado, and cleaned up in a poker game in San Francisco. Salt Lake City was his first scheduled stop on the return trip from California. Contemporary newspaper accounts provide an interesting description of Wilde as Salt Lakers saw him. Readers of the Deseret Evening News were informed on April 6, 1882, that "On Monday, April 10th, Oscar Wilde, of extensive face as the foremost exponent of aestheticism, will deliver a lecture at the Theatre, on 'Art Decoration the Practical Application of the Aesthetic theory to Everyday Home Life and Art Ornamentation.' " Wilde arrived in Salt Lake on schedule Monday and spent the afternoon nosing about the city. Of his activity the Salt Lake Semi-Weekly Herald informs us: "On Monday Mr. Wilde visited President John Taylor at the Gardo House and he went through the building. He also visited other points of interest. In fact, he saw as much as possible and was seen as little as possible." When reporters asked him why he carried a large fur coat with him although the day was quite warm, Wilde replied characteristically, "To hide the hideous sofas in all the hotel rooms." It is safe to say that few if any of the members of the audience that Wilde addressed in the old Salt Lake Theatre that night were there to hear his serious views on art. As in the other cities in which he had lectured, Wilde was regarded as a curiosity, and little else. Press reports of the lecture, written in the old highly personalized style of American journalism, are not at all complimentary to Wilde's appearance, his delivery or to the content of his talk. "The noted aesthete appeared in a cut-a-way black velvet coat, with vest and knee breeches of the same material," commented the Deseret Evening News. "The coat was adorned at the neck and wrists with snowy ruffles. He is a tall, spare young man, the aesthetic or attenuated character of whose legs combined with the peculiar cut of his coat caused him to resemble, in beauty of form, a grasshopper on end. His hair is long and flowing, and his smooth face as destitute of manly adornment as his lecture is of hard common sense." Said the Herald: "As a specimen of physical manliness he can boast nothing over the very ordinary among men. Only in the matters of exhibiting decidedly vulgar front teeth, and displaying an abundance of not even wavy hair, is he a success." Wilde started badly, offending his audience by appearing on the stage 20 minutes later than the announced time of his lecture. He commenced with a description of Renaissance Pisa and its artists, and went on for 50 minutes to condemn cast-iron ornamentation, declare that art creates a common intellectual brotherhood, point out that "The value of an article depends upon the excellence of the use to which it is put," and define art as "the workman's expression of the value of his work." (Continued on page 24)