West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1909-09-09
GOOD HOME MAKING
Direct Bearing of Women's Work
on Town Sanitation.
HOW ONE AFFECTS THE OTHER

Fensity For Bad Conditions Is Paid
BY the Whole Community In Some
wsy-what Women Did For q New
Jersey Town.
One OF the most important factors In
the line OF town improvement Is the
work that women can do. Making OF
good homes can affect to a large ex-
tent the problem Of municipal house
keeping.
The condition of the school which
children attend is manifestly in the
line of n mothers closest interest.
What sort OF children come together
In the public school? Are their homes
the kind that make healthy children?
III not, Is there something wrong In the
housing or Industrial conditions OF the
town-underfeeding. overcrowding or
inadequate play space? The penalty
for bad conditions is paid by the whole
community in one fashion or another,
just as we oil share together whatever
| beauty exists I'm n well planned town
or village.
If your town Is smoke laden, II its
streets are full Of litter and dirt, II
| every vacant lot is q repository of
| rubbish, the individual dustpan md
brush will be of little avail. Even
though your house may be a model
| one in every matter pertaining to
health and though you set your chill
| dren the highest example II may profit
you nothing. You cannot tell at what
moment your children may suffer in
health because of some disease breed
Ing district that you did not feel 1t was
your business to know about or when
your growing boys may come In con-
/: tact with depravity bred by under
feeding and overcrowdlng.
| So In the final analysis we find that
everything that has to do with town
sanitation has n direct bearing on the
individual household. We know that
tuberculosis breeding slums are
menace to those Of us fortunate
! enough to be living In pleasant and
well ventilated homes. 1t has been
demonstrated time and again that
clothes made under insanltary condi-
lions In sweatshops are disease car
rying agents. So It is increasingly diff
hcult to tell where the business OF the
home ends and somebody else's bust
ness begins. One thing is sure-the
relation between municipal housekeep-
ing and good home making is a close
one.
Nine years ago the Pennington
| Woman's club was formed In New
Jersey. 1t began with only twenty
eight active and five associate men,
bers. At first, like so many women's
clubs which are not formed for the
specific purpose OF remedying some
abuse, the work was purely OF n self
culture kind. But, unlike the club
before described, the ladies found
some work they liked better. They
realized that there was no reading
room in town, so they hired one at a
cost OF $500 year and some hard
work. That library, so modestly be-
gun, has now over 1000 volumes and a
librarian; also building lot has been
left 1t and a legacy for library
building. Some years ago village
Improvement committee was appoint
ed. Beginning with the railway sta
lions, which were untidy, the com
mittee by vigorous action cleaned up
the town. Four hundred dollars was
collected for n drinking fountain,
which was presented to the town. In
the rear Of the courthouse was n
large lot belonging to the county, in
| closed In tumbledown fences over
| grown with weeds and used generally
| for dumping ground for wornout
carts. A resident Of the town gave
the committee 800, and with this at
a foundation 1t began soliciting funds
| to improve the lot. Workingmen gave
days work; carts and horses were
loaned; fertilizers, seed, trees and
shrubs were given. The woman's club
kept the park in order until three
| years ago, when the village trustees
voted a sum for its maintenance.
| A woman in Massachusetts, was sent
| by her club to read to n blind man
Being a clubwoman, she knew the
value Of cooperation and at once sci
about interesting others I'm the blind
AS n consequence the Massachusetts
Association For Promoting the Inter
ests OF the Adult Blind was formed
and through its influence the Massa
chusetts legislature appointed a com
mission TO investigate the condition OF
the blind within the commonwealth
and to recommend legislation.
Some ten years ago the New Jersey
Federation Of Woman's Clubs, togeth
err with New York clubwomen, formed
a Palisade league. Their object was
to buy the land Immediately bordering
the Palisades and turn IL over TO the
state for n natural park, for a bushes.
corporation had already turned its eyes
on these ornaments to the Hudson and
was cheerfully blasting them away
After ten years the club was success
full In its plan Of preserving the Pal
isades.-Success Magazine For August