The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-05-05
ROOSEVELTFAVORS
SCHOOL LUNCHEON
Active Worker for School
Hygiene
STUDIES CONDITIONS
Thinks States Should Give Boards
Power to Serve Meals to
Children at Nominal
Cost

parents, educators and public health COM
mittees interested in promoting the cause
of the public school luncheon. prob
lem to be considered at the Fourth In
ternationa Congress on School Hygiene,
to be held at Buffalo August $3.50 are
enthusiastic over the addition of another
active worker in their ranks. none other
than Colonel Roosevelt, who is even go
ing so far as to recommend a school
luncheon plank in the progressive party's
municipal platform this fall
The colonels decision in behalf of
school luncheons was made after a re-
cent tour of the lower Eastside In New
York city. He made this trip with an
idea of inquiring into the conditions of
child welfare. His visit among other
places included a stop at the public school
No 95, where he found more than 800
children engaged in eating their noon
luncheon. Al first the children were
rather terror stricken by the presence
of so noted a guest, and came to an
abrupt pause in their eating.
by George, you little ones. don't do
that" said the ex-President, advancing
to the counter to take luncheon. Il
have just come down to eat with you"
Two Cent Luncheon
The colonel spent 2 cents on his lunch
con, which consisted of one cup of bean
soup and one egg sandwich
On his return to the Outlook office
the colonel expressed himself to reporters
as being heartily In favor of the school
luncheon, saying that he was going to
work as hard as he knew how to have
legislation passed which would per-
nit the department of education to sup
ply such cost price luncheons. Il wish
you could have seen it," he said to the
reporters. Il was Immensely impressed.
/ ate one of the luncheons myself. The
regular lunch costs cents so you see
I ate only two-thirds of a lunch
Now l got what l would have regard
ed a first class luncheon or dinner
on a roundup or out with my regiment
or on picnic or hunting trip. I feel
very, very strongly that we ought by
law in every state to give the school
boards powers to serve meals to the chill
dren at not more than the cost price
of the raw material. l hope it will be
a plank in the progressive party's mu-
nicipal platform this fall
The children must be physically fit
or YOU can't get the best results out
of our schools" he continued There
were other things which impressed me-
At. one of the schools a dozen of the
boys were serving the others and for
that they got their ) cent meal free. The
whole thing was FIRST class Then there
were two older boys who volunteered
their services and their job was to keep
things straight. They were Vincent and
Joseph; I've forgotten their last names,
but they were both very good friends
of mine before the luncheon was over.
The little boys and and girls went in
and picked out what they wanted Some
had cent luncheon; otherss spent
cents There was one amateur Wander
bilt, who had : cent luncheon You
could get two chocolates for ! cent. salad
for ] cent and cookie for I cent The
Vanderbilt took three plates of salad with
his meal
II noticed about the schools at least
a dozen mothers. who got luncheon for
themselves and for little ones, who will
soon be going to school It was very
excellent education for mothers to learn
how to get good cheap meals It's a
thing that's immensely important.
talked with many of the children; some
of them told me that they didn't go
home for their meals because their moth
ers were out at work The luncheon
was a fine thing for them.
Adverse Conditions
I'VE passed other schools on our ride
where they don't serve luncheons," Col
onel Roosevelt went on. THE children
have to eat what they can get off push
carts, and it speaks volumes for their
digestive powers that they don't die at
once We watched one of these children.
He bought one large green pickle and a
stick of lcorice, and that Is not very
good meal even for an unreformed child
of reactionary tendencies"
Accompanying Colonel Roosevelt on his
trip was Mrs. Ernest Poole, who has long
been an active worker in behalf of school
luncheons in New York as a member of
the New York school lunch committee.
This committee is now endeavoring. to
have the board OF education assume the
work which it started, and also to make
it more general
At the Buffalo congress the problem of
school feeding" will he given special
symposium which is now being arranged
by the committee on school feeding Of
the American Home Economics society.
There will be papers, discussions and
scientific exhibits showing the bad re-
suits of school children eating lunches
sold by street vendors, and also exhibits
on school luncheon work as being car
ried on by the American Home Eco