Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-05-12
Beautiful America.
ny ]. HORACE MCFARLAND.

In cities that have no parks or Fairgrounds
KNOWS Just what sort of beautiful Amer
lea will suit the children Grass to roll
upon, dandelfons to pick. with long pipes of
stems to make hose with; violets and
daisies coming with and after the dande-
lions. and other flowers to look at but not
10 take; trees to shade big enough to hide
pehlnd in play; pond to wade in and to
SAIL little boats upon; q tennis court base
ball diamond, foot ball field-ali these be-
long to beautiful America for children.
And this much of beautiful America must
be near enough to all the children's homes
to reach every day before school and after
school and on holidays.
Holidays forgot about the picnics that
belong to the holidays when we want to go
ON longer walk into the woods, where the
squirrels and the rabbits live. and birds
nest and sing in the trees, while we look
and listen, and eat the lunch spread out on
the grass or the last years leaves!
This sort of beautiful America for chill
dren. as have said, ought to be near our
homes. whether we live In big towns or
little towns. or in the real country, which
is for the most part beautiful America any
way-but not alwaysi
Now when Columbus sailed across the
Atlantic ocean to that island in the BAHIA
mas-down near our state of Florida-which
came then to be called San Salvador. but
Is now just plain ''Cat" Island the great
America close by had no cities or farms
no factories or houses. The Indians lived
there, In tents or "wigwams." and America
was surely beautiful, even IL 1t was wild
and 1t was clean-fit to live In, work in and
play in.
Is 1t clean now? Any boy or girl who
6aSiIy al fhoft
DIRTY yards in the towns, dirty streets dirty
corners! Many dirty houses and more dirty
factories. dirty rivers and even dirty snow
In the winter. when the smoke from the fac
tories sticks to 1t!
The real country Is only little better I
fear. for there are dirty stables and barn
YARDS nasty pig pens and home yards
shut-up and smelly houses
Are these dirty cities and country places
NJ 10 really live in or play in? I think not
Men and women, as well as boys and girls
do better work and have the fun that be-
longs to them In the clean brighter places
Inc real beautiful America would be good
place for clean towns and the right kind of
factories. and clean streets would make
cleaner business. too,
1t isn't telling a secret to the boys and
girls to say that the pigs are not really fond
OF a nasty pen. If they have a chance, they
Will clean themselves, and they live in dirt
only because they must. to live at all. So.
having a really beautiful America means
giving the pigs a chance to be clean!
But some older folks will tell YOU that
this is poor talk. and that the country must
be improved" To be sure, we can't have,
and don't need the great woods of the time
OF Columbus, but we don't need either to
have piles of tin cans. ugly bilIboards, dirty
back yards and farm yards to be i'm
proved. We can Improve" all the time
Now some will wonder why 1 am preach
Ing such things to the boys and girls. I'll
tell you why.
Some years ago some good women began
10 clean up the city / live In by putting up
large iron cans for waste paper. and ask
Ing people to put in them not only the waste
paper, but banana and orange skins and
such things as had been making the streets
nasty. These ladies went to all the schools
and talked to the boys and girls about help
Ing. OF course, the boys and girls were
willing. and they remembered what was
told them. My own boy was one of them.
One day after that my boy went with me
to the post office. and as we walked along
the street / tore the wrapper from maya
zine and threw 1t away.
You mustn't do that. papa" said the
boy; "the ladies told us 1t Is wrong to throw
loose papers in the street"
I was ashamed and picked up the paper
putting 1t in one of the iron boxes My
boy was better citizen than I,
This convinced me that the boys and girls
had great part IN making things clean,
and as l think about 1t. sure that chill
dren can do a wonderful work for this
great country that we all love.
Most of the dirt Is made a little at a time
one tin can on the dump, one paper in the
street That Is. each thoughtIess person
helps to make America dirty. If the chill
dren-the boys and girls who will in a few
years be the men and women of the coun-
try, would do a little toward cleaning up
we would soon be all stirred up about it,
and America would get beautiful again.
Each girl can try for a cleaner place
about the home. Each boy can help keen
the stun off the street. Many of the chill
oren can easily induce their parents to plant
some vines or flowers. and 1t would be fina
10 nave one tree planted each year by each
child. or for each child.
The boys and girls can ask their fathars
loo VINO nave votes, to try to have tha
streets made cleaner and to try also ~
nave parks and Fairgrounds for both big
ana little Americans. All these things ra
quire votes, and the boys In a few wars
are the men who vote These Same hovs
become the officials OF our cities and towns
ana some of them are sent to legislatures
ana TO Congress at Washington
All my message to the children. then ia
10 get them to do two things First Tn
ciean up, and keep clean, about home and
school; pick up papers and boxes on tbe
street: take care of green growing trees
and plants. and have some flowers OF your
own, IL possible. Second. to talk about IL to
eacn other, and to your parents and horna
people, trying to get them to HELM. Do This
and you Will be helping much toward q
beautiful America for children and ali tbs
rest. 'Ho