The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1905-12-14
MUST HAVE EXPERT ADVICE
Competent Engineers Must Be Em-
ployed to Plan improvements with
a Minimum of Expense 70
the Tax Payers.


Association, gave an entertaining and
lecture on "The Awaken
ing of Harrisburg" to large and
appreciative audience on Thursday
evening in the auditorium of the Nc
Mynn High school building at Racine.
AS our own city has just made be-
ginning in civic Improvement under
the leadership of some Of her most
public spirited women, it is with
pleasure that we call attention to Mr..
McF ar1and's presentation Of this most
interesting and vital subject.
Harrisburg, four years ago, with a
population of $4,000 inhabitants, was
awakened from her s1umber of me-
dieva1 indifference for the health and
happiness of her people, as evidenced
by imperfect sewerage, bad water,
dirty streets, filthy, unsight1y gar
bage dumps one of these in the i'm
mediate vicinity Of the governors
residence, and another called "Con-
gressman's Dump" this being near
the legislator home ugly bi11-boards
and telegraph poles, unkempt public
buildings and schools, with gross mis-
management of civic affairs; first, by
an intelligent, wide-awake, forcefu1
little woman, who had visited many
European cities and was dissatisfied
with the prevailing civic conditions at
home. Second, through her instru-
mentality, a civic organization was
formed, a SIS, 900 fund was raised by
private subscription to employ civic
engineers or doctors" as Mr.. Nc
Farland presented it, needed for a
sick civic. condition. The speaker
emphasized the Importance in under
taking civic work of proper under
standing of the problems to be solved
and the necessity of securing experts
for this work. These "doctors" care
fully examined the patient and pre-
scribed plan or course of treatment
which was adopted with most salts
factory results.
After securing plans which called
for the expenditure of over million
dollars, three-fourths of which went
for a pure water supply, sewers, river
protection and dams, and the paving
of intersections in streets, $3.50, 900
we're appropriated for parks, drive
ways and for civic beauty.
Next second subscription of SIS, 600
was raised to promote publicity and to
educate the people to vote in one time
for improvements, which Mr.. McFar-
land commended were not 1uxuries, but
necessary for the physical and moral
health of the city.
Photographs we're taken of the un-
slightly and noisome portions Of the
city garbage piles, ugly bi1l-boards,
trees butchered and ruined, school
Yards bare and dismal, with children
playing in gutters-a1 all presented
with lantern slides, along with con-
trasting beautiful scenes taken in cit
tiles already awake to civic beauty
and rational living. These were given
with plain tryth-talks, in ali parts Of
the city, IN season and out of season,
until the lesson went straight home.
Sermons we're preached in the
churches on the righteousness of
green grass and parks; on cleanliness
not next to goodness, but necessary
for the proper attainment of spirit
ua1ity. The newspapers flooded their
pages with health and mortality sta
tistics, the trif1e Of expense by taxa
ton for good living and happiness, as
compared with sordid saving under
existing conditions, which meant
death and disaster through polluted
water, filth, &C., low standard of
living.
When election day came all the can
didate or Democrat
who represented the advan ce in civic
life, were elected by large ma iorities.
The result is that Harrisburg today
has attained substantially all needed
improvements-pnre water, a compre-
hensive sewer system, paved streets,
which are cleaned every day., cer-
trail flower and grass plots; also in the
streets, we'll planned, not hit or miss,
and park system has been attained,
80 acres being added to Reservoir
Park" besides 900 = acres outside.
Eight tennis courts and a golf course
have been placed, the river front has
been reclaimed and beautihed, and
parks connected by driveways twenty
miles in extent.
All this, gentle reader, in a city not
four times as large as Kenosha, and
at cost to her taxpayers averaging
two mills per annum.
Other points were touched upon by
the speaker school gardens and their
refining effect on pupils; the con
tagion of civic imp Syvement; the good
work being done byVMiss Miller, the
curator Of school gardens; the distri-
button of seeds for nominal price.
and, best of all, 5000 school children
have become active members of the
Civic association.
The Kenosha Civic Association
ought to secure such an enthusiast as
Mr.. Mcfarland to present this i'm