The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-04-26
EVENING CHAT
BY RUTH CAMERON

They we're really very nice looking
girls.
Their gloves were neat, their shoes
nicely polished, their voices we'll modu-
| lated and they sat rather than SLOUGH
ed and put their feet fiat on the floor
instead of crossing them the way SO
many of the girls of today do-ard yet
what do you think they were doing?
Eating peanuts and throwing the
shells on the floor of the car.
1t wasn't the public peanut eating 1
minded-it was out in the country and
they were plainly enjoying Saturday
afternoon-but it was the careless way
they threw those shells on the floor.
1t seems to me that the untidiness of
the average American in such matters
is really something to be ashamed of.
Public spirited women in many of the
large cities in the United States are in
teresting themselves in the matter of
maintaining more efficient street clean
ing departments.
It is an excellent field for their eff
forts. Women are instinctively house
cleaners and why shouldn't they have
something to do with the houseclean-
ing of the city?
But there is another thing along this
line for them to do nearer home, and
that is to try to teach their children to
be tidy out of doors as well as within
the house.
Train them not to think of throwing
a paper bag or a handful of peanut
shells or an orange skin or the wrap
pings from their candy, or any similar
refuse or litter in the middle of the
street, any more than the- would think
of throwing them in the middle of the
parlor floor.
In the home children are taught to
use waste baskets for such things as a
matter of course.
Why not train them outdoors to use
the waste barrels in the same way?
Often I have seen little people who,
from their appearance felt sure were
at least decently tidy in their homes,
throw down paper and banana peels,
etc within a few feet of these waste
barrels.
And not only little people by any
means, but big people, too.
A friend of mine who has recently
returned from a trip abroad told me
of an amusing but thought provoking
little experienced that he had in Paris
One day when he had been on the
other side but a short time he was
walking along the street opening his
mail, which he had just received.
He tore open something he thought IA
letter, found it only a cleverly con-
cealed lad and, in disgust, threw it
A moment later he was approached
by a gendarne, who said something to
him in French.
MY friend, who does not understand
French, said so, and tried to pass on
but the gendarme refused to let him.
Instead he began pointing at some
thing.
The American looked and saw the
policeman was pointing at the piece of
paper he had dropped and making
signs for him to pick it up.
And he had to pick it up and take it
and drop it into a receptacle provided
for the purpose before the gendarme
would cease his unwelcome attentions.
Too much red tape, too much govern
ment, you say.
Perhaps so, but very clean and at
tractfve streets are the coroIlary.
If any group of women wants to do a
little civic betterment work do not
think they can do anything more to the
point than to stir up the authorities in
their community to provide plenty IF
~eceptacIes for the deposit of litter and
refuse and then pledge themselves tic
1nfailing1y make use Of these recep-
4acles, and influence all whom they can
% do likewise.