The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1914-07-28

in the United States have a total popu-
lation Of 18,459,655 including about g.
1921 children.
Accordingly q 1000, 900 Of our coun-
try's 10000, 900 children live in com
munities where Fairgrounds or other
organized recreatiOnal activities are
not available throughout the ear. For
over 81, 900 900 of these children there
are not ever summer Fairgrounds.
Twenty cities, 2,023,07 people. are
now in the midst of campaigns in
which the field secretaries Of the Play
ground and Recreation association OF
America nave been helping toward the
development of year-round recreation
systems which are likely soon to be
realized.
T~hirty-hve additional cities with L.
951, 599 people have definitely decided to
develop, with help from the national
association, year-rOund recreation sys-
TENS side by side with their school
systems.
Altogether 6,322.4OS people. including
about 2,107.467 children, are concerned
in the recently completed, now pro-
crossing. or promised campaigns in the
seventy-three cities reviewed in the
annual report just Issued by the Play
ground and Recreation association Of
America for its fiscal year ending April
80, 1914.
The association has had its main Of
fees this last year in New YORK. dis
trict offices in Boston, Chicago, San
- 4 AASASSNp = - NAN@ANB O%OHb Np
Ala, and New Britain, Conn.
Jacob Riis who helped found the as
ISOLATION in 1905 was, just before his
death, preparing a series of articles for
able development of municipal play
centers. Recently Henry P. Dawson of
the j. P. Morgan company has become
vice president Of the association and
his help has enabled the association to
carry on more work. Joseph Lee of
Boston, who Is sometimes spoken of as
the father Of the playground movement
in America, gives much Of his time to
the association undertake the work
pressing upon it. he offered to give
5000 a rear to the work II four 9TH
er6 would do the same. He Is now try
ing to secure the establishment of an
endowment to care for the support Of
h national association.
lane Adams and DR.. Charles w.
Eliot in a letter regarding the associa-
ton have said:
There are few opportunities for con-
~tributing more effectively to the less
ening of juvenile disease and crime,
producing social and industrial eff
cheney and increasing the JOY of life"
The field secretaries of the associa-
ton are men and women of the type of
college presidents. The members of the
staff have worked for more than $1,000
less than they have been offered in
other positions in social work because
of their interest in the movement. One
field secretary who came to the asso-
citation after twenty years of active
public service, states that he has &C
complished more in the last year with
the association han he did in all the
twenty years in his other work.
Thirty years 6 Fairgrounds were
almost unthought Of, today it has been
proved that almost any city, with the
help of the associations experienced
field men, can secure not one play
ground, but a municipal recreation sys-
tenn side by side with the school sys-
tenn. And these systems once estab-
lished are likely to go on generation
after generation.