New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-10-04
BE1UTIFY THEIR HOMES.
Factory Employees in Rhode Island
w; Prizcs for This.

The employee OF a certain factory in Rhode ISL
and live in n park. They are not squatters on
public property relatives OF a political boss
They have simply made the park themselves and
,r,nsformed the yards around their houses into
picturesque gardens. Mornings and evenings the
men folk seen carefully grooming their
lawns. while the women trimming shrubbery
and watering flowers. On Saturday afternoon. too.
when the looms OF the mill are still. thu lawn
mower and the pruning shears are busy.
Strangers to the town Of Thornton, where this
cooneratfve park Is situated. just outside the city
limits Of Providence. wonder what strange impulse
actuates these factory workers
Are they all landscape gardeners!
Are they getting ready to sell out?
These are some OF the questions visitor asks
himself
The factory people. themselves. call their series
~ gardens by the prosaic name OF Rush City"
There are forty-one double cottages In ALL with
their yards divided TO furnish a separate approach
10 each door In street live the overseers OF
the factory, and in the rear facing IN another
street are the homes of the operatives
push City is owned by the Pocasset WorsJed
Company and for many years the officers os this
corporation had sought to their employees
to beeutIfy their homes and surroundings
"a man who lives amid neat and pleasant sur
roundngs" said one officer, is superior intel!ectu
srv to one used to filth and saualor. He is more
orderly in his habits He takes better care of his
machine He turns out better product. As soon
n. nersous become careless with their homes ct
with their work. Accordingly. our desire that
employees should have beautiful homes was not al
together altruistlc 1t has proved altogether prac
teal"
But until last year there were some residents of
.Rush city who preferred to live the average
milIhand lives where things are thrown down. in
stead OF being put down; where the clothsslire was
Stretched between the two most convenient trees.
no matter whether they were IN front or behind the
house and where the washtub was put out TO dry
on the sunny stoop. matter II visitor had 10
stumble over it get into the parlOr.
one plan after another was considered. and
finally the factory officials decided year ago to
offer prizes to those employees who improved their
homes most. For the reason that the operatives
were at some disadvantage because Of living in the
rear street the prizes were classified in two sets
one for the oyerseeTs and the other for the opera
tves The first and second prizes for the over
seers were SsQ and $40 respectively For the opera
tves there ten prizes, with sS5 $50 $50 and SIS
for the first four and 80 for each of the next six
All the prizes for both classes thus amounted to
500.
The announcement OF the prize scheme had a
magnetic effect the inhabitants of Rush City
~ friendly rivalry sprang up between neg hbors as
TO which had the best looking yard. When one
operative started a violet bed another viIlager
would whisper Ii about. and soon other violet beds
Aprans No along the street. To encourage such