The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-06-19
Topeka Children Will Be Given
joyful Summer.
Fairgrounds Season Opens All
Over City Today.
ALL KINDS OF AMUSEMENT
instruction VIII Be Combined
With Pleasure.
Several New Features Are Add
ed This Year.

Plans for a summer of joy on the
nine Topeka Fairgrounds have been
completed.
1t is expected that 1000 children
will be present at the opening of the
nine Fairgrounds and the directors
will be there ready for them with
many devices for amusement and in
struction-
The croquet grounds, volleyball
courts. tennis courts, horseshoe pitch
ing grounds, wrestling and boxing
rings, archery courses have all been
groomed up ready for the invasion of
the children. Archery is a new sport
to be added to the playground list and
later in the summer an archery tour
ney will be held. Fairgrounds and city
tournaments will be held from time
to time in all sports.
Special emphasis is to be given this
year to nature study. Before the
summer is through the playground
director, w. P. Mclean, said, I'VE ex-
pect every Topeka child to have
thorough knowledge of the trees,
plants. flowers and birds of the city.
One of the devices used in the study
will he the collecting of leaves from all
of the different varieties of trees in
the city and making blue print repro
auctions of them for leaf albums for
the children
Each one of the 5000 or more chill
be given thorough instruction in first
aid to the injured" Later in the sum
mer teams will be picked from the diff
ferent Fairgrounds who will compete
for the city championship in emer-
gency treatment
Wading Pools.
The wading pools in Chesney and
Ripley parks will not be completed uh-
til Thursday when they will be for
mally dedicated. The Rotary club
will dedicate the pool in Ripley park
which was their gift and reliable
authority states that Governor Capper
will remove his shoes and socks and
take the first wade in the Chesney
park pool, given by him
All available points in interest in
the vicinity of Topeka will be covered
by hikes Many of the summer days
will be entirely given over to all day
jaunts to Burnett mound, Calhoun
Bluffs and other accessible scenic
points.
The Doll Parade" and the Ian
tern Parade" which were among the
most popular events of last year. VIII
be given again this summer. Prizes
will be offered for all the different
kinds and varieties of dolls. Various
prizes will also be offered in the Lam
tern Parade.
Most of the directors are planning
to continue the manual training work
in some form during the summer.
Basket making. lantern making and
various simple form of manual work
will be used.
a New Feature.
4 new feature of the summers rec
reatiOn will be "pushmobile races"
An impromptu census has revealed the
fact that there are several hundred
''pGshmobiles" in Topeka ranging
from plank on four wheels to elab-
crate representations of racing ma
chimes.
There will be nine cities located
within the limits of Topeka within a
week or so. AS soon as the play
grounds are running smoothly, the
children will organize into self govern
ing municipalities. Elections to various
playground offices will take place in
real polling places and by printed bal
lots. A complete series of city Of
ficials will be chosen from a play
ground mayor down to a dog catcher.
Constitutions will be drawn up and
ordinances passed and their enforce
ment will be rigidly prosecuted by
set of playground police. Laws will
be enforced against cigarette smok-
ing, leaving trash near the drinking
fountains, cheating in games and
many other points of playground well
fare.
The first big event of the season
is the city track meet which will take