Putnam patriot., 1908-12-25
cAildrea's Playground. .re r.as~,sa...se

l sAS NY "ttAtVut t~SfAiNNNNs VI Joseph Lee of Boston, is quoted ss say ing, ais father to the aaa without \ loh's The nation is waking ap to this sad fact. Ky play ground vferendam recently held in Massachusetts, all the cities but one, in the old Ray state. voted te adopt piaygtonads--tweaty- two in ali--a proud record.
 Massachusetts leads in whatever ole yates or in any way benefits its people. ] Connecticut is little behind ia keep. ing pace with her sister State tn hcne- iieent improvements to enhance the ;, happiness of it's citizens. tt Is no fault of the people, however, for they arc as prompt to favor every good measure AS their adjoining neigheofs when the op. pertunity Is offered them. They hssc 10 rely upon their Legislature for tho l opportunities, and President Luther, of Trinity College, describes its make up In an article elsewhere printed in this issue. The ahlest men iu each town and district are not sought eut la do the profound work for which the i Legis latnre is designed. which demands intellect of tue highest order aS well men do accept the duty of help iegis, lating for the State, they may sas, as did President Luther, "halt the ses~ sion Is spent In gei,iag acquainted and the other half regetting that you did get acqnaintedn He found himself unpieasantly out of place esea among the Senators. Bills arc voted upon hy members who know nothing about them. When good measures were pre- senied In the New York Legislature, Senators voted them down until the people were aroused hs their grand Governor pointing out how they were being wrongcd by thcir leading polili- clans of hts own party controlling le- gisla,ion in the interest of horse racing gamblers and rejecting bills to benefit all classes and to secure purer admin istrstson Of public affairs. Now tho same men proclaim themselves willing to follow Governor Hughes lead.
 Connecticut needs the same arousing to get the same good measures adopted as in New York and other progressive States. Governor Woodruff was not sustained by the Legislature when he urged upon II the adoption of the same reform measures as those of Governor Hughes in New York. Gosernor.eleet
 Iilley has promised ia favor Governor Woodruiiis < policies. Bnt the question k, can he get the Legislature ts fHvnf them? Nol very likely unless the peo- i pie are more enlightened as to their great importance through the press and forum. This ought to be done by systematic effort throughout the Stale. Among the laws that ought ta be passed k one Ia allow cities to employ an expert commission .to manage it's ii- nanciai affairs withof without a Mayor and Council. Another one is tn allow the people to vote directly Tor represen- tatises instead Of choosing them by caueuses. There are other good reforms that will he brought up at the next General Assembly. That of play ground referendum, appointing day | on which the citizens shall vote "yesn | or "nop on the question of having n children's play aground, may be over looked, however, at the coming session. 
 | By the general action of the voters of the State of Massachusetts, the play ground movement has been given the most emphatic endorsement ever done In any form in this country. It ought to arouse interest in Connecticut, enough at least to have il made well under stood by the voters. We have spoken oi Il occasionally for the past ten years, but mol an encouraging response was eliciied. We went into 1t so far IN to explain how an organized company
 could then have bought suitable plot of ground within the city limits and it would prove good investment sim.
 ply by holding on to 1t, without i'm,
 proving it, in ten and even twenty years time. wepointed out how large tracts are held for long periotts, by pri-
 vste owners, In this city, who expect to gain good psotiis from the rise In
 value of the psopesty.
 But with . suitable plos thus held and improved fos the various purposes of a playground, h could te made t0 pay all expenses, with interest on the investment, with consideration of its rise In value This is our belief.
 That ehildrcn's playground Is an advantageous knstitution to the city is Insiisputable. It Is one of the things that can bs held out as an inducement for desArsble families b make their homes in the city.
 IL may he said there are open grounds that can now be used as play. grounds. 1 That k so; but who will guarantee they will always remain open t0 be used ~ play-groundsg There is not such . plot that may not bc demanded any day for q yelling ef manufacturing pur. poses. Putnam is growing, fsst-erow- ing city, and inside and outside of It's business sections lots and parcels of land are leing taken up for permanent use. The longer the possession of Il playground is put oil, the further back Ii will .be necessary b go 70 get land for the purpose, and thus disadsanta- ] ees Will be multiplied.
 l some twenty odd years ago Putnam haa n ssNecs5auscst Park v a rough