The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1915-09-18
CIVIC
RIGHTEOUSNESS
Some Plain Facts Told About CoIored
Kansas city-Colored People
Are Beautifully Located.
BY CHAS. A. SHARKS.

ACAO dAC oOO
ideas which are constantly put to
fragrant uses, or are so frequently
used that they lose their native in
spiration. Then again these terms
are misunderstood, misapplied, Or car
ry such high idealism that the vulgar
crowd fails to note the strong but
delicate appeal. Such is the term:
Civic Righteousness. In many cases
and cheap politicians have de-
graded this concrete term owing to
their own lack of understanding. Civic
righteousness is civic beauty, that is
beauty in a city or civil community.
1t means conformity both to the prin-
ciples Of civil law and civic beauty.
Beauty comprises first the law of
cleanliness and order, then grace,
style and appointment and the higher
conceptions which art brings to bear.
Nature furnishes the material, the
background for all beauty. Art rounds
off, polishes, c%ultivates, smoothes and
directs natures course. Then civic
righteousness, so far as beauty is
concerned, is reflected in what good
natural conditions that may exist in a
city or community with the steady
effort on the part of citizens to i'm
prove and beautify.
Often the natural and beautiful en-
vironment of a community is unseen,
un~appreciated and therefore unim-
proved. Is it not because the people
in that particular community have not
awakened to the pleasant call of civic
righteousness? Take, for instance, the
people comprising the population with
in the boundaries of Twelfth street
on the north, Troost avenue, on the
west, Twenty-eighgth street on the
south and Michigan avenue on the
east. Do these people realize the ma
tural and cultured beauty of this
splendid settlement. Why there are
advantages here hat make citizens of
other parts of the city sick with envy.
There is no spot in Kansas City so
rich in beauty as that which embraces
Fifteenth to Seventeenth on Paseo
and Woodland. Now when you con-
slider that in closest proximity around
this beautiful breathing spot lives our
very people to drink of it freely, may
we not feel grateful to the very idea
of civic righteousness that made this
possible? True enough we realize
that this was not created especially
for us or even for us at all, but since
we happened around here in this
neighborhOod we are going to stay
and enjoy it. But what are we do
ing to improve the aim or idea of civic
beauty? Do we realize that there are
other things to enjoy and improve
upon? Civic righteousness, like
charity, starts at home. Unless in oul
business or dwelling places we car
eXemplify the spirit of civic right
e%ousness" we are not likely to appre
ciate the same abroad.
Mrs. HOusekeeper, how is that from
and back yard of yours? What eff
forts are you making towad beautify
ing the pemises? Are those lace cur
tains at your front windows nicely
laundered and neatly arranged? Art
your windows clean or dirty? Do YOU
decorate your front porch of evening"
or mornings gowned mote the word
in a greasy kimona or dc you simpl.
garment? If you can differentiat,
nicely in these things at home, thel
you are actually aiding the spirit o
civic beauty in your community.
C~entering of public institutions
architectural grace and fitness, syn
metry of buildings and connectin
these with a general or specific plan @
roadways or walks seems to embed
a high conception of civic beauty.
We ourselves are economically poo
but we can be rich in ideas, (goo
ideas if you please) as ideas hav
| DuliL llO WOIiu. lhCu We Htcu III
be ashamed in our small business e
adjustments to seek to demonstrat
the good idea of civic Righteousness
remembering always that cleanliness
and order are the first essentials, tW
things which are inexpensive an
therefore, within the reach of all. Sic
walks swept; windows washed; flool
kept clean; fronts painted when pc
sible are steps that the little fello
can take to reach the high pinnacle
civic fitness mentioned above.
In our business places, the volt
of civic righteousness has a doub
4 call for its disciples. it says: "Whel
my order is kept people love to {
and spend their money, thus, Oh, me
I give you profit as well as beauty
Sometimes things happen in prop
and beautiful order without apparel
design, sometimes these things go u
noticed and u%npraised. One has
be elevated temperamentally al
sometimes bodily to see these thing
1t was SO in the writer's case. +
happened to be on top Of a nearl
building when he noted the strikiI
relative positions Of several of Of
public institutions. Starting with Il