The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1912-10-28
CHILDREN DODGE
/ POLICE TO PLAY
One Boy Throws Rocks at Mig
GERS Some Take Recrea-
ton on Railroad Track.
TESTIMONY OF YOUNG FOLK
Give Evidence in Own Behalf
About Troubles in Having
Place to Play.

Richmond children have their own
IDEAS an to Fairgrounds and the need
Of them In this city. In connection
with the recfeation survey report.
summary Of which appeared in The
rimes-Dispatch last Monday. the COM
mittee in charge Is studying the re-
plies OF one or two thousand Richmond
children to the inquiry. What do you
do with your spare timer"
At the time Of the survey the chill.
dren In certain grades in all the
schools Of the city were asked to
write on this topic In connection with
their regular grammar and penman-
ship work. Their replies furnish IL
Illuminating reading.
The policeman. in performing hts
regular duties in protecting the pass
ersby. is necessarily a bugaboo to the
children. The following was writ
tea by boy in the first year In high
! school:
when come home from school. 1
| eat my dinner and then study my les
I sons. which. at the most. takes me one
hour. Then. having nothing to amuse
j q
/, my lessons again. When there is not
I a policeman in sight. I and my broth
/ or often play bail We did this con-
!. tinually until we were chased nearly
L ten times and then quit A. deld or
/ any other large grounds In which to
/ play ID too far from whore live. !
1 have to stay In tho house. dcfng moth
ing"
1 Another boy. who seemed to have tine
making Of an orator, wrote as fol.
lows:
after school hours 1 go home. and
Il usually 70 out to q moving picture
i show. would much rather play Sail
i or some other such game. but there
i 10 nowhere except the street where !
can play. II play In the street. It Is
4 a broken window, or hit somebody on
the head, and consequently there Is
Il not much fun. think II would make
the life of boys and girls much healthi-
er and pleasanter II large play
ground were established Every year
the city laws about playing in the
street grow stricter. and Yet they say
that the physical powers Of q man
! are greatly degenerat1ng. Ha! Ha!
} It Is great joke! They say take
outdoor exercise where?"
These without CAildreD GRABBED.
A fourteen-year-o girl wrote:
j In the evenings when / go out to
: play. or the children around my way
we don't have anywhere to play. be.
:. cause the people that haven't any chill
: dren fuss II we go in front OF thei'
house. There are not any playground:
around for US - play In. There arr
q not but two or three parks in the
4 city Of Richmond for the children to
play In. and they are SO far away that
some children can't go to them to play.
> I know how II 10. because I am a
: child myself. and I don't have any
;; where hardly to play"
d A boy Of thirteen told his troubles
as follows:
i I'VE started playing In the street
but q mounted policeman said that we
would have to stop playing In the
. street. Then I said. Let's go out "a
the new bali parry This we did. and,
having gotten inside. we started to
;! catching; but no sooner had we started
>. than a player told US to stop, and we
; had to obey. The result u we have
nowhere to play, 50 went home and
: read the paper"
:; high school boy wrote:
Il went TO the moving pictures and
: stayed until late. would have kicked
football, but the people wouldn't al
low 1t because Of the dust threw a
} few rocks at some negroes. For. fun
I get the football and kick 1t until I'm
told to go away. and then I go 20 the
alley-it cuts the ball to have 1t hit
on the cobblestones. I, with several
other boys, play on the railroad
bridge, jumping. resting from the heat
Of the sun and learning to run fast and
do tricks on the ties; IL we are care
fui we don't often akin 0ur aniuR''
A g;rl OF fourteen was very explicit
as TO where she thought the play
ground should be:
when go home in the evening
after school. go walking with q crowd
Of girls. The children in the
West End are more fortunate than
others that live in the middle par; Of
the city. There Gin the West End, are