The gazette-times. [volume] (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925, 1914-07-23
HoME gardening directed by the

SN"SosAoht do solutlOH IOI oUlHe VI
the most pressing educational and
economic problems in city and suburban
life. DR.. Claxton would have every
vacant town lot transformed into a
garden, where boys and girls would raise
vegetables, berries and fruit for pleas
ure and profit. He would have one
teacher in the community employed IL
months in the year to teach elemen-
tary science in school and direct he
home garden work after school, on Sat
urdays and during the summer vaca,
tion.
Many Back Yard Gardens.
"Of the 13,o00,O 900 children between
the ages of 6 and 20 in the cities, towns,
manufacturing villages and suburban
communities of the United States, :"
says DR.. Claxton, "not more than Is
per cent are away from home during
the summer vacation or engaged in reg
ular employment. The remaining IS per
cent remain at home without any useful,
healthful, productive occupation requir-
ing any large part of their time. On the
other hand, there is much valuable land
in back yards and vacant lots that is
serving no useful purpose. The prob
lem is to bring this land and these chill
dren together.
SIN every school and community
there should be at least one teacher
who knows gardening, both theoretical
ly and practically. This teacher should
teach the elementary sciences in the
schools during the school hours and
shssld, out of school hours, direct the
home gardening Of tho children be-
tween tho ages Of or and IA or Is.
If possible, the teacher should have the
assistance of an expert gardener, SO
that the work may be done in the most
practical and profitable way. The
teacher and tho gardener should help
the children find the plots of ground in
back yards, front yards and vacant lots
aear their homes best suited for gar
dening work, aid them by some CO.
operative method to have the lots prop
eriy plowed and prepared for cultiva
ton, help them select seeds, show them
how to plant, cultivate and harvest SO
as to obtain the best results.
Products For Homo Use.
"Vegetables, berries and fruits grown
should be used first as food for the chill
dren and their families; then the sur
plus should be marketed to the best ad-
vantage. Through the help of the
teacher this can be done in co-opera-
tive way. Ten or Is cents worth of
vegetables each day from the gardens of
each of 200 children would amount 70
$40 or $50. In the summer and fall when
the surplus is large and cannot be mar
keted to advantage, the teacher should
direct and help the children in canning
and preserving for winter use or for
sale. The canning and tomato clubs of
the southern states have already shown
what can be done in this way.
"It is difficult to estimate the re-
suits of this plan when it~shall be in
full operation throughout the country.
For the children it will mean health,
strength, joy in work, habits of indus
try, an understanding Of tie value of
money as measured in terms of labor,
and such knowledge of the phenomena
and forces Of nature as must be had
for an understanding of most of their
school lessons. Thsy will also learn
something at least Of the fundamental
principle of morality; that each indi-
vidual must mako his ar her own living;
must, by some kind Of labor of head,
hand or heart, contribute to the COM
mon wealth rs much as he takes from
it; must pay for what he gets in some
kind Of coin.
Prevents Factory Work.
"This, plan in full operation would
probably do more toward keeping young
children out of the factories and mills
than all of the child-labor laws on the
statute books. A boy 10 or IL years Of
age, with quarter Of an acre of land,
working under careful direction, can pro-
duce more for the supporl of the family
than could be purchased with the child s
wages from the mill. Children should
not be ground in the mills nor sweated
il the factories; their strength should
mt h sanuAd and their Lfryes rached