The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1910-04-29
Same Here

The St. Adams, Vt, Messenger
says: Make your plans to help or
ganize a city improvement society
some time next week. But why wait
till next week? Why wait for a so
ciety to be formally organized, any
way? Why not be up and doing and
making yourself society of one for
city improvement--for making, so
far as your own efforts are able fin
er city, stronger city, a cleaner
and neater city, better city in
which to live and do business and en-
Joy life? If everybody did his best
along these lines every day what
vast Improvement there would be in
life In even the best and most up to
date cities everywhere! There
would be more municipal cleanliness
everywhere; there would be better
kept buildings; there would be better
homes, better assembly places. better
order more happiness, more OF every
thing that makes life worth the liv-
ing. Why not form an Improvement
society of your own, everybody
Brockton Enterprise.
Good advice, as far as Ii goes. But
what we are after here in St Adams
Is TO unite all these individual good
intentions in one common public pur-
pose and set municipal standard OF
neatness and order and beauty that
the individual householder and store
keeper and property owner will fol-
low on his own premises. When we
have done this, we can begin to bring
up the young people of this commun-
| ity to look upon neatness and order
and beauty in public places as part
Of the municipal religion, something
that will become a part Of the men
tai habit and the persistent sugges-
ton OF which will be obeyed as a
mere matter of course.
! But who can say much TO the small
boy now as he filters sidewalks and
cutters with banana skins and peanut
shells and waste paper, invariably
carrying such refuse directly by the
receptacles at street corners intend
ed to take care OF It, when he sees
all about him the equal indifference
of his elders 10 the same things in
their own concerns?
What Is the standard here? Who
Is enforcing it? Streets and side
walks should be kept free Of waste
paper and such litter-not by en-
ploying men to pick II up. but by
preventing the dumping OF 1t on the
street or where II can get into the
street, In the first place The side
walks, street corners. store doorways
entrances TO places of public resort,
should be kept free of loungers. Lott.
rers in these places should be made
TO move on by the police. Mer.
chants should be made to obey the
city ordinance forbidding the display
of goods on the sidewalk. They
should be made TO clean up back al
leys, raise awnings to the regulation
height so that pedestrians do not
have to stoop to pass under them
without knocking of their hats,
wash windows only at the hours fix
ed by the city ordinance, and do
other similar things that all make for
municipal order and neatness.
Anyone familiar with the local sit
uation can think up a dozen different
things OF this kind that might be
done here. things that We all approve
individually, but that will never b.
done until we get together" anC
unite our individual desires In thl
power o: an organized public sentim
ent that Will compel them.
This Is not reform" movement
for the benefit OF the other fellow
= This is simply setting a public stan
dard that everyone OF us must lly'
by. too.-St. Adams Messenger.