Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1913-06-13
Children and tho Streets.


Children and tho Streets.
From the Manitoba Free Press.
With the letter of u. D.. s. addressed
to the Winnipeg city clerk and printed
in this issue of the Free Press, we have
little sympathy. 1t is a letter which
challenges reply to the following ques-
ton: Is it in the greater interests OF
the community that automobile owners
should be able to move rapidly from
point to point or that children should
be allowed to play upon the streets?
The suggestion that adequate facili-
ties for children's play already exist in
the city recreation grounds is one
ton. 1t betrays little study of the
problem. While the work of the Play
ground commission is admirable and
beyond all praise. it is only necessary
to consider the position of the play
grounds with respect to the homes Of
dren, h availability of the play
grounds with respect to the children's
dlteerent play-hours, and the capacity
of the Fairgrounds with respect to the
umbe of children who Iced play
room, to come to this conclusion that
the present playground accommodation
is wholly and utterly Inadequate.
In a really well-ordered community
probably every third or fourth lot
Woulf be left permanently vacant and
equipped as a playground. But whether
the youthful ardor of children should
even then, be forced to spend itself in
restricted areas of this kind may be
debated. For in Canada it has been a
S~radition-and on the whole a wise one
that children should be given the
greatest possible freedom and elbow
room. The old fashioned and discred-
tied maxim that children should be
seen and not heard has never found
favor on this side of the water. The
suggestion that children should be kept
off the streets shifts, however. strong
~ of this obsolete doctrine.
what would the proposals mean, if
carried out? In the residential Sec
tlons OF h south and west it would
mean restricting either to the house
or to the garden. back or front. in the
urens play times. Restriction to the
house Is self condemned. But restric-
ton TO front n back gardens means
interference with domestic operations
ana with gardening proclivities. Also
1t means that one or two householders
must consent to their gardens being
the rendezvous of the children of the
neighborhood. This is the position with
regard to h better class residential.
districts. What would be the position
OF Inc children If kept off the streets
CITY? as
Children do not play upon the streets
out OF pure cussedness or contrariness.
!ney play there ia pursuance Of per.
teetty natural inatincts, instincts which
are healthy, and which, If exercised. ara
e0iate 90 make strong, resourceful
adaptable men and women, such az
Canada needs. " these instincts are
tn~arted and nature f1outed by rsstric-
ton OF the chiidren's playing room the
result can only % less virility in the
children. 80
On the other hand, what ia to be
gained by the exclusion Of children
Q the city streets? Is there any
gain commensurate with the
reJu9ic to the children? We fail to
see y. We fail to zee that legitimate
q or tie rights of automobilists
VIII be unuuly interfered with by re-
quir!hg careful and cautious driving on
residential streets.
be calied-would be En- Increase of sat.
isfaction to the automobile owner IN
permitting speedier travel. While this
CASA small class relative to the rest
OF the populatiOn-has undoubtedly fta
rights. while the automobile ia = mod
ern ana useful institution, it would ha
: TO forget that the rights OF child-
1000 are primary and fundamental. Al
z community we should be passinr
foolish to Increase the privilege of au-
owners at the expense Of the
cnlidren. Nor can we believe, that any
considerable portion OF the automobile
n OF Winnipeg share the desire az
- y. =" to Danish children from the
streets IN order that the pleasure OF the
mOtoflst may be perfect.
-ENt- tNfa