The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1911-03-03
HER SUBJECT, "PRESENT DAY
TENDENCIES OF CIVlCS.
There Is a Grand Awakening to the
Making of Cleaner and More
Beautiful America; National AS
sociation Has Been One of the
Great Mediums Through Which
Change Has Come.
From THURSDAYS Daily

From thursdays Daily.
Miss Maud van Buren,, librarian
at the Carnegie library, this city,
read an interesting paper following
luncheon participated in by the
, delegates to the Womens Federated
clubs convention in Minneapolis
, yesterday. Her subject was Present
Day Tendencies of Civics:"
Il presume it was not intended
that | should entirely compass this
toast today in all its magnitude. |
: have been generous enough to sup
pose that it was given me in the
try who came into the house one
J day and told his mother he had
, set the old brindle hen on two dozen
!, eggs. Two dozen!' said she, you
: surely don't expect her to hatch two
dozen do you?' oh, no. said the
see the darned old thing spread her
self
las late even as decade ago it
would not have been such difficult
matter to cover in so brief a time
the tendencies in civic betterment,
, for organized effort for the making
:, of a cleaner and more beautiful
America is of comparatively recent
date. There was a grand awaken
ing along this line worlds fair year,
but it was not until 1904 that the
various state associations. a few in
tional organizations working with the
same general objects in view, be-
came affiliated and formed what is
now known as the American Civic
assOciation-the one great national
agency for the furtherance of q
more beautiful America. BY unceas-
ing efforts it has so extended the
circle of its usefulness as to neces-
, state the grouping of the work
recently under fifteen general depart
ments, each department headed by
an expert in his or her particular
specially.
Aim of the Association.
The association aims to make
American living conditions clean,
healthful, attractive; to extend the
making Of public parks; to promote
the opening of gardens and play
grounds for children and recreation
centers for adults; to abate public
nuisances - including Objectionable
signs, unnecessary poles and wires,
unpleasant and wasteful smoking fac.
tory chimneyS; TO make the build.
ings and the surroundings of railway
stations and factories attractive,
to extend the practical influence of
schools; to protect existing trees and
to encourage intelligent tree plant.
ing; to protect great scenic wonders
from commercial spoilation:' and
suffice il to say that these activities
have been pursued so vigorously as
TO make its influence felt through
out the length and breadth of the
land. 1t would require volumes to
record what has been accomplished
in hundreds and thousands of COM
munities. large and small, through
out the country. Time does not per-
nit me to give detailed account of
these various interests but allow me
to remark that no community is too
small or too poor to warrant an
active interest in it's behalf along
all these lines; but there are two
phases of the work that make a
special appeal to home makers and
it is of these two that | wish es-
pecially to speak this morning"
Work Done BY Children.
"Of the many forces that may
readily be brought into action for
the betterment of your town and
mine, none is more easily impressed,
none is more ready than the chill
dren. Children are natural doors of
things. One child given seeds and
a few simple garden tools may in
spire all the youngsters i'll his block
to action. Much of the desired i'm
prOvement in our towns can be
brought about only by the public
authorities; much by home builders !;
but for cleanliness of back yards and
alleys, attractive lawns and school
grounds, porch and window boxes,
the utilization of vacant lots, a gen.
eral interest in flower aud vegetable
growing, the children may be largely
depended upon. This work on the
part Of the children may mean much
to the physical well being of our
towns, but of far greater significance
is the underlying moral force of Il
work of this nature-the influence
of industry, cleanliness and beauty
of real civic pride-upon the chill
dren who will one day hold exalted
places in the municipality.
"Other real powers that may bring
about better civic conditions are the
mothers of these boys and girls.
With the present day tendency to
centralize all industries, even that of
bread-making, the home has been
robbed of many of its natural rights
and we now have the butcher. the
baker, the buttermaker preparing for
MS after their own fashion the foods