The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1904-07-27

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island, has begged money from indi-
viduals and given freely from his
own pocket. The site has been en-
larged by the addition of territory,
through purchase and condemna-
ton, large play grounds have been
laid out for boys and girls, a large
building has been erected where
poor mothers may take their babies
and leave them in charge of trained
nurses while they (the mothers)
are sick or at work, or wish to spend
a day in visiting or shopping. A
restaurant has been established
where fairly substantial meal can
be gotten for from five to ten cents
and the place has resolved itself in
to a gigantic institution for the re-
lief of the poor people of st. Paul.
1t is this same spirit of lettering
the conditions of the poor people,
by increasing their means for hap
piness, that has caused the park
board of ST. Paul to lay out new
parks in every part of the city
where women can take their chill
dren and spend few hours of every
warm day under the shade of the
trees. It is this which has put
drinking fountains and free seats in
all 1the public parks and removed
the Keep Off the Grass" signs. In
Como park, the finest in the north
west, a pavilion has been built for
the benefit of women with the chill
dren, and large tract has been fit
ted up for picnic parties, where
they may eat their luncheon and
where the youngsters may run and
roll and swing. From first to last
the principle to which the park
board of st. Paul has held fast is
that everything shall be absolutely
free; and as a result all the band
and concert music furnished Sun
day afternoon and every evening
during the summer season may be
heard without the payment of cent,
and the best seat in the auditorium,
or wherever it may be, is held by
the one who first gets it.
This spirit of helping the poor
and the young by providing for them
the means of enjoyment has mani
tested itself the present summer in
a new way. In different parts of
the city of st. Paul the grounds
about the school buildings, or the
grounds of unoccupied lots nearby,
have been fitted up for children S
Fairgrounds. The gounds have been
leveled and swings, horizontal bars,
may poles, merry-go-rounds and
other pleasure devices, and lady,
skilled in the care of children, with
assistants placed in charge. These
grounds are busy places from morn
ing till night. The children are
there in swarms. The play, which
to their nature is indispensable, is
good exercise and their parents
know that their children are more
closely looked after there than at
home.
This scheme has been largely ex-
detrimental the present season, but
it has given so much enjoyment to
the children, as we'll as relief to
their parents, that the result has
been pleasing to every one. In fact
the enthusiasm over the success of
the experiment. is so great that the
Civic league, which organized the
scheme, is now talking of establish
ing play ground next year in every
school district in the city, or per-
haps beyond the number of dis
tricts, depending upon the number
of vacant lots available. There are
many other things in the cities that
one can not help observing which
show that the humanitarian spirit
is coming to the front. People in a
position to observe this do not be-