The courier., 1902-10-18

club officers are. president. Miss Bios
som Wilson. secretary and treasurer,
Miss Ethel Burkett. The club will
meet next Friday with Miss Burkett
and will probably give halloween
party.
The literature department of the
Woman's club met yesterday after
noon. Mrs. George Elmen gave an ad-
dress on Brownings Ring and the
Book
The Fortnightly club met on Tues
day with Mrs. E. L. Hinman. Mrs.
on Congress at Vienna-lSl4. Fall of
Napoleon" Mrs. John Tuttle was elect
ed member of the club.
The Candlelight club met for a din
ner at half after six o'clock Monday
evening at the Lindell hotel. After
the dinner. Mr.. James Manahan led in
a discussion of sstEikss." +
The following interesting paper, writ
ten by Mrs. Ida v. Tilden, chairman Of
the city improvement committee Of the
Omaha Woman's club, was read by
her at the meeting of the Nebraska
federation Of women's clubs at Colum-
bus last week. The Pingree plan Of
a success in our neighboring city, and
might be tried to advantage elsewhere:
Perhaps you wonder how my topic,
Vacant Lot Cultivation" or "Pingree
Gardens as the work Is often called,
is connected with city improvent. /
will state the connection as our Omaha
city improvement committee saw 1t
last spring. The city of Omaha is well
called, from its situation, the Gate City.
but extending, as it does, with a popu-
lation Of about 10000. over as many
square miles as, 1t is said, are en-
braced within the city limits of Paris,
with her millions of people, you will
realize that it might also be as appro-
priately called the City of Vacant
Lots" This unimproved property is,
largely, in the hands of agents, who
feel little responsibility for it's appear
ance, consequently We have each year,
with our extremely fertile soil, boun-
tiful crop Of weeds which are allowed
to grow to maturity and which rival
our famous Nebraska corn in height.
These always grow, no matter whether
We have rain or drought.
Our city charter is such that the
council has not the power to have the
weeds cut and assess the cost against
the property. so the only relief We have
is the small amount of work that is
done by the city and county prisoners.
except where the owners do feel a
pride. in DISAPPEARANCE of their
ground. This was the condition con-
fronting the committee last spring, as
regarded the vacant lots. Owing to
the severity of the winter and the scar
city of work, there were many needy
and unemployed, who were willing and
anxious to do something to help them
selves and families. We decided that
these two conditions could be utilized
to improve the appearance Of our city
and to aid the worthy poor, and that
it was certainly within the province Of
city improvement work to improve
vacant lots by having well cultivated
gardens take the place Of worthless
weeds, thereby materially assisting
many.
We called on a number of citizens
whom we knew to be public spirited.
and received hearty endorsement Of
our plans and the promise of financial
support. The first one we appealed to
for funds gave us 500, and as soon as
the plan of work was mentioned in the
newspapers, check for $25 came, un-
solicited and therefore the more highly
appreciated, from a member Of the
Omaha Woman's club. The county
commissioners gave us SIS for seed po-
tatoes. Only fifty bushels could be
purchased as they cost $3.50 per bushel.
We secured ground. mostly in one
neighborhood, so the superintendent
could have daily supervision over the
several garden plots into which it was
divided. There were twenty-four Of
these plots, about forty by one hundred
feet each. A number of these were
given to men and women who had
been obliged to have aid from the
county the winter before, but who ex-
pressed themselves as ready and will
ing to properly care for a garden. We
had the ground plowed and narrowed
and furnished one bushel of potatoes
for each plot Of ground. The other
seeds we secured from the department