The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-04-26

the test of the park is the test of SER
vice The gardens are not meant
merely to be ridden past in a carriage
or IN an automobile
Roses Gods LoEeletters.
The talk led from the visiting auto
mobiles to the garden itself and to it's
remarkable park superintendent, who
has flung his whole life unreserved1y
into the work Of building sociaIized
parks. just as Thomas Mott Osborn
has Hung his life into the work OF
prison betternent-
Mr. Parker. I found. was the son
of an English father and French
mother. the mother having been a.
weaver of delicate fabrics, while the
father was New England farmer.
8 you know he said, 81 have al
ways had suspicion that no person
was ever normally developed who was
not reared in touch with nature and
the beautiful flowers nature provides
for our JOY Roses I have always
thought of as love letters from the
Lord, written to us humans to WOO us
unto Him. So I like to have the park
roses where all the people can. come
near to them
In Hartford are many thousands of
munitions workers who live in mean
appearing tenefnents. had often
heard that tenement jewellers in New
Z
flowers planted within their reach, so
no such access to the flowers should be
permitted.
Flowers Never Harmed
.sDo the people tear your roses up
or modest the other flowers ?s' L asked
Mr.. Parker. He smiled a broad toll
GRAFTON OF what he clearly regarded
as foolish question.
They do not he answered. ssThey
never have done SO. What little van
Valism there has been has been very
easy to check and to repair This
is something for folks Interested in
New York parks to take serious ac-
count of, for nothing holds back park
progress so much as the deep seated
feeling that the folks most in need of
flowers and open spaces would be ruth
less with them
Back in New York after the day in
Hartford's parks L met at the COM
munity Center Conference men from
the Chicago parks who were urging
that Chicago had the best parks in
the world.
How did You chicago folks get
them 2'' I asked.
'tIn 1900 a man with a great vision
came to Chicgao and talked to us about
it, the Chicago park boosters answer
ed, .tand we made his vision come true
down to the smallest detail 1t is our
park system of to-day
Chicago System Parker's
This man who had started Chicago
on it's way to it's socia1ized parks of
to-day T. found was George A Parker,
, of the Hartford parks. Parker, [ also
found, was an intimate friend of Fred
erfck Law Olmstead, designer and
builder of our own Central Park, and
knew it's history much more intimate
1y than the average New Yorker does.
From those who helped to make his
park ideals the park practice in Chi
cago obtained this description of
what Parker most liked an ideal park
to be. It became the working motto
Of the Chicago park department:
I would have Fairgrounds for the
children, lots of shade, and, if possible
grass where the workingman's wife
and children could sit during summer
afternoons. would have lots of seats
and tables and a superabundance of
light, so that the man after a hard
days work would find a pleasant place
during the evening hours, one in which
if he SO desires, he could take his
evening meal I would have bright
flowers, as circumstances would per-
NIT, but none or few shrubs. would
have stadium where contests could
take place and an outdoor and indoor