Evening star., 1901-07-20
PUBLIC FAIRGROUNDS
HOW CERTAIN kim PERSONS
LOOKED AFTER LITTIsE RESIDENTS,
An Experiment Wen v orth Trying in
Many Neighborhoods and Easy
to AcSompit.h.


Folks never thiIik little bows need any
fun s
This was the protest made by the worst
boy in the neighborhood! captured red
handed, as it were1 in the act Of window
| breaking.
Officer Flannery. who held the urchin in
custody, made no reply. 1t was not his
| province to examine the finer shades of
ethics The policeman silently led the boy
| off to the station house, where, shortly, his
| frightened mother appeared with the price
of the broken window. After being rudely
| hectored by the owner of the window and
sternly lectured by the police sergeant, for
| it was the third offense, the worst boy in
the neighborhood was let out.
| IF you ever darken these doors again
I young man. imprcssively threatened the
| sergeant, I'VE shall chuck you into a cell
for the night, and when the judge sees you
| it's little chance you'll have of escaping the
| reform school"
The worst boy blubbered all the way
| home. He not such a bad little chap,
| after all, but misfortunes seemed to fol-
low him in his attempts to establish a
| record as the champion boy batter of the
ward. Far from feeling himself a delin-
| quent, he regarded his position as that of
| a martyr
| Boys amt got chance!' he blub-
| bered. 81 amt no dead un, 1 amt. 1
| ike TO nave 1un sometimes, do, ana
| tain't my fault if the ball breaks their
| ole winders!"
The boys sorrow-stricken mother re-
proved his slang and condemned his SEN
| timents.
You just wait till your father attends
| to you. Jimmy Bangs. and l guess you'll
| be glad to keep still for awhile!'' she re-
| marked.
Boo, hoo"' was Jimmys eloquent re-
| sponse.
Jimmy had a spinster aunt, wiser than
most of her kind, for when she heard his
| protests she declared:
The boy is right!''
| Now it happened that the aunt, Miss
| Euphemia, held the women's tennis cham
pionshp for that town. She was likewise
a prize golf player and could sprint a
| mile in the heat without shedding her
complexion or bringing an attack of
| nervous prostration In his base ball prac-
tice Jimmy had found her advice sngu-
| larly intelligent, and when she went blk
attendance, she never objected to her
| young nephew joining the party. There
| fore, when scoring girls" in general the
small boy cynics of the neighborhood were
| inclined to make an indulgent exception of
| Miss Euphemia, but when they heard that
she had taken up the cudgels on behalf
of oppressed boys who were dragged into
| police courts for innocently pIaYing ball
upon the public thoroughfares Jimmy and
| his friends pronounced her peach of
| the finest type.
| Jimmys aunt was not one to let con-
| victiOn sit idly by while hapless urchins
| suffered. No; she took out her conviction
| when she went wheeling and tennis play
| ing and golf ball chasing and diligently
aired it. She fluttered it before the eyes of
| her hostess when she went calling and by
| and by 1t became Widely known in that re-
| gion that Miss Euphemia Bangs thought
1t was shame that the boys could not
| play IN peace Miss Euphemias point of
view would be lauded or disparaged. ac-
| cording to the spirit or circumstances of
her hearers. In households where bows
were plentiful parents indorsed her views
| while in conservative, boyless families she
| was sternly criticised.
What the Right Woman Said.
Little by little she agtated the matter
to the point where, harassed parents asked
| What can we do about it, anyway?"
Miss Euphemia rose triumphantly to the
question. '.R
Give them some place In which they can
do as they please"
| Then she went on to tell how In certain
cities neighborhoods considered hopelessly
/ noodlum have been reclaimed to civiliza ton
by the establishment of public Fairgrounds.
| These Fairgrounds paid for by philan-
thropic persons, have been of immense ad
| vantage IN Keeping youngsters off the
streets. Children of the poor as we'll as Of
the moderately well to do have splendid
| times in the inclosures There is no reason
why number of families might not CO.
operate In establishing a neighborhood
| playground for the benefit of their own
children, and Miss Euphemia said so.
| The novelty of the idea commended itself
to several parents of active children
| MI. simpson, the grocer, who suffered
most from the misguided activity of small
| boys, gladly donated to Miss Euphemia the
use of some vacant lots which were at a
safe distance from his place of business.
She Was Well Watched.
| Then the ity
what the lady would do. About dozen
boys and a half dozen little girls at first
| wished to be included in the playground
| association. These Joined the originator in
| clearing out the vacant lots. They were
| FENCED in. but as the people of the neigh
| borhood had always used them as a sort
| or depot for tin cans, deceased cats and
dogs and waste paper, the undertaking con-
| sumed much time. The rubbish was care
| fully piled up and duly removed by the
| garbage man. Then the work of leveling
began. In the center of the plot there
were no Inequalities; so a tent was put up
| there. The loose stones were carefully
pitea .io IN one corner. and a load of nice,
| white sand, begged from a friendly con-
| tractor, was deposited in one corner. The
| father of one of the boys sent some lum-
| Der, and several Of Miss Euphemia's young
men friends displayed real mechanical
| ability In putting up the swings. These
| amateurs also erected seesaw, a horizon
tai bar for gymnastics and a hammock.
AS the membership Of the playground in
| creased 1t was intended to add to it's fit
| tlnSs The boys brought balls and bats
| ana one corner Of the lot was set aside as
| the pail ground In another corner Miss
Euphemia laid out tennis court for the
girls, an old tennis set being contributed
| py one of the families interested in the
project. Some one else brought out a cro-
quet set and the prospect for fun in the
playground looked bright
| Tent Shelter.
In the center Of the lot a tent was
| erected. When 1t was very warm and
| when Ii rainad ha childran x,ral1ld sxathor