The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1907-09-19
PRIZES FOR CHILDREN
TOWN ENCOURAGES INDUSTRY IN
YOUNG ONES.
Unique and Interesting Custom Fol.
lowed at Ashfield, Mass.-AWards
Given for Sewing, Washing
and Other Work.

Boston.-The town of Ashville,
Mass, has one custom which ts
unique as we'll as interesting to its
citizens and to the outside world, so
far as 1t has come to notice. This is
the children's labor and prize day.
For the last nine years, on Labor
day, there have been distributed to
the children of the town under is
years of age prizes to an amount IN
aggregate of nearly 500 for the best
evidences of their industry, ingenuity
and special intelligence and capacity.
These prizes, which are nearly all in
money, are given by citizens and sum-
mer residents and are awarded by a
committee chosen for the purpose.
This year, following the usual GUS
tom, there will be an exhibit in the
town hall on the day appointed, at
which time the names of the winners
will be publicly announced. All
through the year the sdldren of the
various schools throughout the town
have been preparing for this event,
for besides individual exhibits, col
lections are made and work done in
common by the children of the differ
ent schools with the aid of the
teacher.
This work consists of the adorn.
ment of the schoolhouses or school
yards, the making of school gardens,
collections Of wild flowers and Of min.
erals, lists of birds seen in Ashf1eld
with dates of arrival and notes on
habits drawings and paintings, mod
els, compositions, number work, etc
Each school in town has its school
garden, and these are visited once or
more during the summer by some
member of the committee, either in
person or by proxy, and such garden
products as may be in season will be
exhibited on Labor day.
The exhibits for individual prizes
are divided into the following classes:
1. Plain needlework and darnfng:
(a) prize for the best dishcloth OF
towel with plain hem and three ini
tials in crossstich, by child under II
years of age; (b) for the best apron
or undergarment with hemstitched
hem at the bottom. by a child under
IA years; (c) for the best shirtwaist
or skirt, by child under Is years.
2. Embroidery and fancy work.
3. Knitting and crocheting.
4. Plain washing and ironing
5. The best arranged bouquet oi
garden or wild flowers.
6. Collections: (a) of pressed wilt
flowers; (b) of pressed leaves of for
est trees native to Ashfield; (c) o.
woods of forest trees, of sections no
less than two inches in diameter; Cd
of grasses; (e) of ferns; (f) of fungi
(g) of seeds of native plants; (h) O.
insects found in Ashfield; (i) of relics
or other curiosities.
7. List of plants observed during thu
year on any single half acre.
s. List of forest trees native to Ash
field, with a statement of the specia
locality in the town where rare or re
markabI fine trees are to be found
with the measurements Of the larges
trees and with an account of the use
to which the different kinds are put.
8. Wild animal, squirrel, woodchuck
or any other, tanned.
TO- Chickens, rabbits or other tam
animals.
II. Work with jackknife or othe
tools.
IL. Miscellaneous, any work showin
ingenuity, such as basket making
frame making, etc, or anything no
specially enumerated in the list whicl
may seem deserving of a prize.