Evening star., 1914-12-04
McFarland's Address.

President Mcfarland said, in part:
ut may truthfully be said that to the
average intelligent American, be he
mechanic or business man, doctor or
professor. preacher or politician, the
words city planning at once refer
themselves as part of a vague propa-
ganda for the city beautiful, hav
ing to do with permanent or temporary
courts of honor, extra illuminations,
and other forms of municipal frippery.
1t is serious fact that this complete
misunderstanding exists to such large
extent among the many excellent peo-
pie who call themselves PRACTICAL
and who really try to be good citizens
This fundamental error of concep-
realizing that city planning that is at
all worth while is concerned first with
means of INSTRUMENTATION with
transportation. with markets and
all the other factors of prosperity, ef-
ficiency and convenience. rather than
with appearance or ornament as es-
sentials.
when we shall have established in
the minds of these unknowing citizens
the plain fundamentals of that larger
use of architectural principles which
have to do with the community eff
cient there will be far less trouble in
bringing about the use or common
sense in those municipal operations
concerned in the framework and struc-
tural details of our towns and cities.
Mistakes of Cities.
Another of these bothersome mis-
conceptions is that city planning re-
lates only to the larger communities,
already great and popllous and rros-
porous, and is not needed, or at least
not available, by the smalle- places.
sion that it is best first to make all
the mistakes of ignorance and thought
lessness, and to yield as fully as pos
sible to the greed of special privilege,
in the thought that when the town be-
comes really great it can afford TO
plan for convenience, practicabi1ity and
progress.
Another unfortunate error IN popu-
lar understanding relates to the idea
that every growing town Is to be IN
eventual Chicago or San Francisco.
The average American citizen is a
sure-eneugh patriot ana Il born boom
err of his town.
"Five-sixths of the Americans are yet
out side New York. Chicago. Philadel
phia and the sixteen other large cities,
and 1 believe this f1ve-sixths have
needs, rights and possibilities in bet
ter living well worth attention.
'In all seriousness. is it not fully
time that the congress recognize the
needs of that portion, of our population
soon to be a majority? Would it be
amiss If city man might write to
Washington for gathered data as to
sewage disposal, street lighting, paw
ing methods, and the like, and be half
as well served as is now the country
man who seeks aid for crop-marketing,
for combating potato scab, for grow
ing an increased yield of wheat? Why
not municipal department as well as
an agricultural department?
Until there is a body of planning
ia a a 10
pansion of American cities is likely to
be along the lines of real estate opera
tions and good or bad, according to the
personalities involved.
This new practice of an old science,
this city planning in America and for
America, would create a practice of a
community establishment and extern
sion that would produce examples of
sheer efficiency which could not but be
beautiful. And to this new-old science
the hundreds of American communities
not in the million of classes would
turn their eyes for city salvation, for
would justify US in believing we were
attaining to Aristotle's definition of
city as a place where men live a COM
mon life for noble end"
Col. Harts' Picture Talk.
Col. Harts' talk consisted principally
of a running fire of comment on
series of lantern slides he showed un-
der the title of "The Washington of
Today and Vision of the Washington
of Tomorrow" The pictures were made
from views prepared under the direc-
ton of the fine arts commission, which
are to be exhibited at the Panama ex
position, number of which were re-
produced in The Star Sunday. Novem-
ber 22 The views were based on the
plans of the Mcmillan Park commits
sion, and were greeted with applause.
The future treatment of the Mall was
shown, as we'll as pictures of areas
about the Monument, the Lincoln Me-
mortal, the proposed Arlington Memos
rial bridge. as well as the plan for