The Western news., 1906-05-16
VINES FOR .EYESORES
HOW AN OKLAHOMA TOWNS POST
OFFICE BECAME BEAUTY SPOT.


and Rose Garden Planted Where
Ashes and Cinders. Bottles and
Bricks Used to BE Deposited.
Often the most unsightly and di-
lapidated building in a town is used
for the public postoffice. Visited sew
eral times day by citizens, the latter
in time become familiar with it's taw-
driness, cease complaining and accept
as unavoidable a condition that weak
ems public sentiment in its demand for
clean streets and attractive buildings.
Occasionally, however, is found a re-
bellious citizen, with enough energy
and pride in making beautiful his town
to resist this lethargy.
When w. r. Little, the father of ex-
perimental forestry in Oklahoma, the
founder of Perry's tree parks, was ap-
pointed postmaster at Perry several
wears age he beheld with loathing the
building and grounds assigned to him
as an office by the federal government,
says Perry correspondent of the Nan
sas City Star. The postottice building
stands in government acre" at the
northwest corner of the three acre park
which Little planted to American white
elm trees The building was of native
red sandstone lending itself admirably
to the ornament of vines and foliage.
but without them garish heap of bowl
ders in sun baked street, defiled with
waste paper and broken bottles and
surrounded with chaSmS made by wash
ing rains. Mr.. Little has spent more
than 5000 of his private funds i'll max
ing necessary repairs to the building
and in laying cement sidewalks. With
out counting the cost of trees and yard
decorations.
The town council passed special Or
dinance for the protection of the two
beautiful trees that stand in front OF
the building These trees were planted
over two years ago and at that time
were single branches, each about six
feet in length. A single tree can now
give shade enough to cover three bug
gies standing in the street. The ground
circumference of the tree Immediately
| in front of the postoffice door is nine
~
height when planted, this tree now
measures fourteen inches in crcumfer-
ence This means growing a cylinder
of solid wood nearly four and onelalf
| inches in diameter in a growing sea-
son of sixteen months and on upland
! over which the wagon and poStoftice
| traffic of q town with a free city de-
livery and seven rural routes passes
daily.
The south wall of the building was
an eXpanse of dead stone two years
ago last spring when Little filed a
nearby ravine and planted cuttings Of
Japanese ivy. Southern exposure in
this climate offers little encouragement
to Japanese ivy or kindred plants in
ascending only by sticking their feet
against the sun scOrched and wind
swept stone wall, but under Little's
care the ivy thrived. The soil was
made so warm with manure that the
vines budded earlier than usual and
were killed to the ground by the freeze
that destroyed the peach crop in the
winter of 1905. From the ground the
east vine reached the caves three times
last summer The west vine touches
the caves in three places. The other
vines climbed halfway to the shingles
in 155 days. The beauty of this vine
clad building will increase with the
growth of the ivy and Is now the envy
Of housewives, who ask Little almost
every day to tell them chow to make
vines grow" And he tells them.
"Look at thai tree" said Little last
fall, pointing to one standing near the
south door of the pOstoffce. at came
as a volunteer two summers ago, ant
it's branches now arch the door an(
cast their shade from the morning SUI
twelve feet into the postoffice."
If the south side of the building wal
made more beautiful with the green o
clinging vines the beauty of the eas
side became immeasurably create
: when Postmaster Little, at his own ex
pense, planted a rose garden in whic
he placed nearly 100 of the choices
varieties of roses. This spot for min
years had been depository for Goa
ashes and cinders, bottles and bricks
through which rainfall percolated int
constantly degeneratlng soil. I'M
5 rubbish was removed and the soil purs
4 ed and renewed. The roses were plan
e ed little over two years ago, and d.
l spite the fact that ravages of ros
e worms required the replanting of nea
|, ly half the bushes the first season thel
i was a yield of fully 10000 fragra1
blossoms. 81 know that seems like e.
4 ~ H.
r in his bright colored garden, pointin
y out his favorite roses, "but l counte
Il 200 roses on one bush last June, ar
S the day a picture of the garden WI
It taken there were 5000 buds blowing
the sun. The buds open monthly, ar
l believe that each month last SUNNI
there were not less than four tim
n that number"
y The roses as cut were given
ID churches or used for decorations ,