THE OPERA HOUSE.

Manawatu Times, Volume XXVIII, Issue 425, 12 July 1905, Page 2

THE OPERA HOUSE.

The new Opera House which the Mayoress will do this townthohonor of opening this afternoon strongly resembles Rome in this respect at least, that it was not built in a day. It resembles the co!o:seum of that ancient capitol in another, that it has been the arena of many stoutfought gladiatorial combats in the past. Is it too much for a militant journalist to hope that it will be the scene of many a hard-fought battle in the future? The history of the Opera House movement in this town would fill a volume from genesis away back in the nebulous past, to revelations of more recent and piquant memory. But all these things—the squabbles of the sites, the struggles for the loans, and the conflicts of the details and the plans —shall be forgotten in the hurrahs and the joy of consummation. We have not. attained perfection, as conflicting critics all conspire to admit, but we have achieved a building in which the finest of the world's dramas may be presented with advantage, and in which our citizens | may congregate in ease and comfort jto do honor to all great occasions. Remembering this, we should [not forget those who have, with i voice and purse, urged this good project forward. To-day's opening ceremony marks an epoch in the development of a town which cares only to chronicle the exigences of the past as marks and sign posts of the possibilities of the future. It is a matter of pride to our townspeople and settlers that our development has been on the lines of self help and hearty co operation. Those who opposed the erection of an Opera House had many excellent grounds for so doing; but the real wisdom was with the progressives, for, even though pessimistic statisticians may yet be able to prove that " the Opera House does not pay," the optimists will still be justified in their claim that all measures which contribute to the attraction of new-comers and to provide facilities and amenities for an enhanced population are largely though indirectly reproductive. For these reasons we baiLwith pleasure the proceedings of today.