Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-01-16
TAKE DEEP INTEREST
Cities Await Congressional
Action on Fairgrounds.
LEGISLATION FOR DISTRICT
Authorities Elsewhere Governed
Largely by Its Scope.
MATTER BEFORE THE SENATE
Hope Expressed That Amount AL
lowed by the House Will Be
Largely Increased.
BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS

|
| Herald.
Millions of good people in every part
of the country are awaiting with anxiety
and interest the action Of Congress con-
| corning the children's Fairgrounds in
the District Of Columbia. Very few mem
bers of either house realize how far and
| how deep the interest in this movement
| extends, and the action Of the municipal
councils, boards Of education and other
authorities which have jurisdiction and
have been asked to do something for the
same purpose will be more or less infiu-
| enced by whatever Congress may do on
one side or the other.
The Senate committee on the District
Of Columbia will certainly accede to the
appropriation Of $1,000 which the House
has made, but will strike out the spite
full clause which charges the entire ap-
preparation to the taxpayers Of the Dis
trict, as If the nation at large had no
interest in the welfare of the children OF
it's capital. But it is hoped that the
Senate will be broad minded enough to
treble or quadruple the appropriation. or
at least to give the $4,000 which is
needed to provide and maintain recrea-
ton grounds for the little ones.
Last year Congress refused to do any
thing. but ten Fairgrounds were main
tanned by pubiic-spirited citizens. and the
average attendance during the summer
season was 4, 437 per day. The total at
tendance up to December I was 1.41606S.
Day after day from 400 to 700 children
were enjoying the amusements that had
been provided them. and no one can tell
the benefits they derived.
Expenditures in Other Cities.
New York spent $4,000 for the sup
port of 261 Fairgrounds last summer;
Chicago spent 100000: Philadelphia,
$39. 1894: Boston. $4,000: Baltimore.
s45,539: P1ttsburg, $22,65O; Cleveland.
$43.s1o; Buffalo. $17.42O: San Francisco,
S35. 600: Cincinnati. $12 900 for the support
of twelve Fairgrounds. and $5OO,OOO for
the purchase of two sites. the money be-
| ing raised by the wOmen'S clubs.
| Other cities spent similar amounts, and
indeed nearly every city in the United
States of 5000 population or more is now
providing the children of the poor with a
chance to have healthful enjoyment and
| exercise.
The people Of this country are begin
ming to recognize the Importance and the
value of the play spirit and play oppor-
| tunities for all ages and both sexes 'as
essential to the development of child and
community life, besides those offered b.
the formal playground. The leaders OF
the movement regard the making avail
able for wholesome play of door yards
blocks and the roofs Of tenements. armor-
les and other suitable buildings as nc
less important than the Fairgrounds
| themselves. They consider the promotion
of play festivals. picnics. tramps in the
| woods, summer camps, wading ponds,
swimming pools and play periods in con-
nection with the school. and all the many
| sorts of activities that call either chill
! dren or grown people to recreative life
in the open air as legitimate objects OF
| endeavor.
German Plan of Extension.
The Germans understand this better than
We. Their Organization for furthering
folk and childrens play has the mat
ter thoroughly in hand and is broaden
ing its work every year. AS its name
implies. 1t is not an organizations for
promoting Fairgrounds but play, and as
such 1t takes account of and seeks to
provide all sorts of facilities for sports
| and amusements outside of as we'll as
inside of the Fairgrounds Its work is
no more for the children than it is for
adults. 1t has taken for itself the large
purpose OF molding the spirit OF the COM
mon people so as to give them deep
sports. To this end. it is seeking to en-
courage peoples festivals. excursions,
tramps, water sports by the rivers and
lakes in summer and skating and ice
|
Producing athletic games from abroad.
1t Is promoting curriculum of games;
afternoon for compulsory or voluntary
play and the school journey in connec-
ton with the schools. 1t is holding in
stitutes for the teaching of games in
many cities.
| Play Institutes for men teachers were
given in forty-one cities of Germany last
| year, and in twenty-seven for women
| teachers. Thirty courses for men and
| nj l.
ready been organized for next year. The
play inspector has not merely the play
grounds to oversee, but he seeks to pro-
vide facilities for all sorts of sports as
well. He has charge of the play courses
| for teachers. who can give the children
ideals which will be followed in their
outside play we'll as in the play
grounds new and worthier play inter-
| ests and games of real value.
| Arrests Among Young People.
Jane Adams said not long ago: Eff
teen thousand young people under the
age of twenty were arrested last year
in Chicago because they had failed to
keep the common law of the land. Most
of these young people had broken the
law In their laundering efforts to find
adventure in response to the old i'm
| pulse for self-expreSsiOn. 1t is said
that practically the whole machinery
| Of the grand jury and of the criminal
!, court is maintained and operated for
the benefit of youths between the ages
of thirteen and twenty-five. Possibly
these 1900 youths were brought to
grief because the adult population was
deaf to the appeal of these young crea-
| lures, who were claiming their share Of
the joy of life. flinging out into the city
their desires and aspirations for un-
known realities. their unutterable long
.ings for companionship and pleasure.
| Their very demand for excitement is a
protest against the dizziness OF life to
| which we ourselves respond.
During the debates In the House Of
| Representatives last year several narrow
| minded members. who have given the
subject no attention. sneered at the idea
| of employing teachers to show children
how to play. when all the world or at
least the Intelligent part of 1t. is accept
ing the theory that there Is right and
| wrong way to do everything The young
| men Mrs. Adams referred to did it the
wrong way. They had never been taught
better ways The Germans. who are the
| leaders in human analysis. long ago rec
| ognzed that there was evil in the best
/ of things unless they are properly used.
| and they discovered that a playground
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