El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-06-28

the country during the past few years
that even the UItra-1nteHectuaI wom-
ans club has been forced to take up
some Swork In this line, while in many
places clubs that were organized pri-
marily for literary culture have become
completely civic societies Mrs. Sarah
Platt Decker, of Colorado, formerly
president of the general federation Of
w omens clubs. said recently:
Dante and Browning now have to
take back seat to make room for
Being and Doing. Personal culture is
no longer put before a great purpose.
The subject in which the best women
of America are most interested is How
can We best serve our town, our state
and our nation The answer to this
question almost without exception is
found in some form of civic work"
Would Fine Club Women.
Mrs Decker is a firm believer in the
responsibility CT club women for the
conditions of their community. She
taVors fixing fine upon every club
woman who does not work for the civ
, &c improvement of her section of the
city. L would make the fine big
enough, she said, to make every club
woman IN the country awaken to the
Importance OF cleanup day for every
city. I want ArbOr day made a cleanup
day when the club women shall 90 af-
ter the accumulation of rubbish upon
vacant lots. Since we have a law now
IN Denver emitting the city to clean
up debris and charge it to the owner
Of the lot, We can do something here
If the club women only enforce the new
ruling and in this way we can set an
example for other cities"
The term "civics" may be made to
include every matter pertaining to the
general good of a community. Pure
food and water, proper school accom-
mOdat1OnS, sanitary public buildings,
the improved conditions of towns. as
we'll as clean streets and numberless
other subjects, can all be listed under
civic work, so that the woman desiring
to enter this field has wide range for
her activities The great wave of civic
consciousness which has swept over
the country during the past three years
has sent innumerable requests into the
civic department of the general fedora
ton for information as to how to start
the work. To meet this demand a cir
cular has been sent out to each club
suggesting that it should study the
most urgent needs OF its own commu-
nifty and then determine what to do
first. In the larger cities, Of course,
there are clubs devoted exclusively to
clYics- which support separate de-
partment for each branch of work
Is War Against Evil.
The interest of club women in civic
work is only a recognition of the fact
that all work pertaining to the welfare
of the community is an enlarged form
of housekeeping and therefore of nat
ural interest to women While the eS-
adjustment of Fairgrounds, free baths
pure water supplies, the abatement OF
the smoke nuisance and kindred other
matters are fine and feminine works,
there is yet a deeper significance in
civics than any Of these. 1t includes
constant and relentless warfare against
any form of evil wherever it be found.
The study of ciyics includes the study
Of how to apply the right principles of
government to society, to those persons,
collectively, who are united by the
common bonds of neighbOrhOod inter
ests and who recognize each other as
associates, friends or acquaintance
with common interests.
In many towns the interest in civic
work has brought about cooperation
between men and women in the I'M
proYement OF public conditions which
has produced excellent results to the
conditions Of the town. The WOmans
club of Concord, New Hampshire, began
series of civic conferences last year
which were open to both men and WOm-
en- and attended freely. The leading
women and men of the state made ad-
dresses. After this, led by Mrs. Caro-
line Bartlett Crane, of Kalamazoo,
Michigan, the city of Concord opened a
vigorous campaign under the auspices
OF the women's clubs Public meetings
were held at which numerous Stereopti-
can views showed what might be ac-
eomplished in the way Of civic reform
Great public interest was excited and
following this the civics committee OF
the club made its appeal to the city
government for cleaner streets. The
fight was won in only a few days time
The clubs then felt that they must
inform themselves upon other existing
conditions, so a meeting was held at
which the mayor and other city Off
Gals were asked to outline their special
departments Of work and the needs Of
each. At this meeting there were pre-
scented the department of health, edu-
cation, the street commission and the
public library, and for each of these
the club arranged that there should be
d practical committee to give aid. Since
then the club women have worked
along practical lines With many good !
results, They have secured cleaner
market service, purer milk, series OF
lectures upon health in all of the public
schools, the employment of a school
nurse by the board of education. an
appropriation for public Fairgrounds. |
record breaking attendance upon the I
tuberculosis exhibit carried on under |
the auspices of the club, and as last |
victory the resuscitatiOn of long de-
Iunct city improvement association, or |
ganized years ago by the men Of the |
town, which is now giving energetic |
aid to the various civic activities car
ried on by the club women.
The Work in Oklahoma.
In Oklahoma, the civic departments !
represent the strongest efforts Of the /
women's clubs. One club has given /
TO it's town a well equipped garbage |
Incinerator, thus providing for the san. /
Itary disposal of the refuse Of the /
community. Several others have pro- ]
vided rest rooms with free coffee and !
good literature for the farmers wives |
who come into the towns. The clubs in I
all the towns throughout the terrific /
ries have worked for sanitation. the /
artistic improvement of the streets, al |
Ieys and public Fairgrounds and many l
similar objects Trees have been plant I
ed, public drinking fountains Tor hu- /
man beings and horses placed where /
most needed, trash cans supplied and |
an insistent warfare has been Waged /
against both mosquitoes and flies. The /
club women of the city of Oklahoma |
are credited with having been instru-
mental in placing around the city &c /
mile boulevard, connecting with three /
large farms containing respectively /
100. $40 and 744 acres of land. These
farms are to be used for public parks |
and will be improved in various ways. /
This early activity upon the part of the /
club women has provided abundant l
space for the children of
the future. no matter how great the
growth of the city.
In the southern states also there is
great activity among club women along /
civic lines In Shreveport, Louisiana,
the Woman's club has established an
annual municipal cleaning, in which