Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-05-28
SCIENTIFIC RECREATION.
Statistics Showing Children's Need
of Adequate Play Space.

From the New York Evening Post.
The bureau of economy and efficiency
of Milwaukee has been making an in
vestigation of the facilities of that city
for recreation, and also of what the chill
dren and young people actually 90 IN
that way. Its findings are not cheering.
The first fact that stands out is that
large number of the children in the dis
tricts covered must either play In the
streets and alleys, or go out or their
home neighborhood to play, or not play at
ALL This statement is based upon the
ASSUME ton that three hundred children
can play upon an acre or ground inc
London school board allows thirty square
feet to each child as sufficient for PLAYING
space, but as the Milwaukee bureau
points out that figure gives only about
room enough for one to stand and swing
his arms around. For active games much
more space is required. And as result
OF the experience Of those who have IN
terested themselves in these matters, the
conclusion is reached that 200 per acre
is a high saturation point for play space
It would be bold critic who should ques-
ton the accuracy of law expressed
with such scientific crispness. Assuming,
therefore, that the high saturation point
is reached when the three hundredtn
child Joins his companions upon the acre,
we learn that In Milwaukee from ~ 70
"a per cent of the children In the dis.
tricts examined are without nearby play.
grounds.
What do these children do outside OK
school hours? The ready and omnisci-
emit statistics tell us exactly. Nineteen
per cent of those observed were working,
chiefly at running erranos. saving ~oou'
sweeping the sidewalk and such tasks
Thirty-one per cent were playing, this
term including not only games but such
activities as climbing over wagons ana
running about the streets And no less
than 90 per cent were doing nothing.
Even those who were playing were not
unhampered in their opportunities for rec
reation. I'VE have one drawback.
wrote one boy In response to question
naire regarding what he did with his
spare time: whenever we want to have
a game Of base ball or foot ball there is
always the cop" His testimony was cor
roborated by others. Then q 80 p.mD,
wrote another, Il go out on the street
and meet some boys and stay there till
the police comes along and tells US to
move" And a third: I'VE stand on the
corner and play puzze-puzze corner ana
then when the nipper comes he chases
u.s. The girls are more restricted In
their games, owing in part to the lack
of suitable Fairgrounds. and find their
chief amusements in reading, walking
and visiting. One Of them put a general
truth in the answer: ITO go down town
and rubber at the styles" There are
evidences OF ambition to do something
more than is possible under the narrow
circumstances One boy went over in
the coalyard and carved my initial in the
clubhouse" the clubhouse being
school building in which such activities
could not be encouraged. The gang In
stinct, however. which is looked upon by
experts In play as a great factor In rec
reation, is as manifest as is the naive
mixing Of moods that gives point to an
other reply: II like to play basket ball
in the evening IL we had hail.