Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1906-02-09
FOR CIVIC IMPROVEMENT.
Interesting Meeting Held in the
Presbyterian Church Thursday
Evening.
MANY STIRRING ADDRESSES
Aad Good Suggestions Advanced for
Beautify ng and Improving Our
Thriving Little City.

The first public meeting of the
Brotherhood of Andrew and Philip was
held last evening in the Presbyterian
church. Four important phases of civic
improvement were taken up and talked
upon by prominent local speakers.
President II. n Lee told briefly of the
purposes of the Brotherhood, what they
/ hoped to accomplish spiritually, men,
tally and physically, and said that he
hoped those present would thoroughly
digest what was said here tonight, and
then act with them for the elevation of
mankind He then introduced the first
speaker, Hon. w. A Bahlke, who said:
/ LADIES, GENTLEMEN AND FRIENDS:
by civic improvement in its broadcast
sense, we mean the betterment of the
city and its citizens; that is to improve
both, to make both better, and these
sho@ld go hand-in-hand supporting and
comPlementing each other in ways time
forbiGs me to tell.
1T is delicate matter to speak pub
licly about our citizens. 1t is bad
enough to tell the truth about each
other privately; infinitely worse to tell
falsehoOd. 1t is distressing to have
the truth told about us; how natural
therefore to resent a falsehood; how
cowardly and vile to tell falsehood to
ones back.
propose to talk briefly about the re-
lation of the property owner to the
improvement of our city; this of neces-
sity embraces his attitude and conduct,
his relation and duty TO this matter. 1t
is indeed a subject infinitely too broad
TO understandingly and intelligently
discuss except in very limited field of
human action in a ten minute talk.
What have to say may be discussed
from the basis Of legal maxim, viz;
II is the duty Of every citizen property
owner to so use his own as not to injure
his neighbor This maxim has a two
fold application in dealing with the af-
fairs of men. One is the standard recog
nized by the law. and which courts
God, and so far as human action is con-
cerned, conscience alone can enforce.
The one is a legal standard and the other
is moral standard: the latter abstract
ly includes the former; the former can
not always, from necessity, include the
latter. This may seem like paradox,
but it is not. The temples of justice
and of conscience do not travel along
parallel lines. Abstractly they should,
but they do not and can not. This
arises on account of the relative and
particular rights of individuals l can
not for want of time explain this in
detail, except as one may detect the dis
tinction i'll my subsequent application.
Now how does the property owner vio-
late the legal and moral rights of the
individual in his attitude toward the
matter of civic Improvement? How
does he discourage or impair it? How
does he prevent it? What does he do to
encourage others in the attitude of
obstructionists to this really great and
worthy movement of our citizens? I
have time to mention a few methods
common to us all in some degree as
property owners.
/. "By selfishness-a most common
failure of mankind. Let me explain.
a person erects his dwelling house on
his lot so as TO make his back yard
his neighbor's front yard. This puts
things out of orderin the neighborhood.
The neighbor, exercising like brother
love, erects an obnoxious and unsihgtly
wall or fence TO obstruct the view.
Again an owner of vacant property in
good residence district erects bill board
and rents il for hire to bill poster,
who ordinarily cares nothing for the
community or its people. An unsightly
thing to everyone, at least when not in |
a proper place. Or he decorates his
building with signs, advertising matter,
entirely unmindful of the pleasures. |
interests and ambitions of his neighbor,
because he thinks it pays. Perchance
he rents the use of his yard to a circus
at a rental of S25. and the community is
run over with all the disagreeable Incl
dents which such an occurrence invites.
2. by meanness. Did you ever
know person who permitted his prop
erty to become dilapidated, an eye-sore
to the community. because he fondly
believed he could compel his neighbor
of different tastes and wealth to pur-
chase it? On the contrary, did you ever
know a person who refused to improve
piece of property because, as he said,