Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1918-04-24
CLEAN up PAINT up
drive HAS STARTED
Broom and Brush Warriors Mob
ilized to Defeat Dirt, Disease
and Death.
ARMY OF $4,000, 600 IN Line
Ready for Attack to Rid Towns
and Cities of Germ Breeding
Crannies and to Beauty
4 Property.

The big Clean Up and Paint Up
than 1000 town and cities found, last
year, that their efforts I'm local Clean
Up and Paint Up campaign work made
their communities safe for the babies,
besides protecting grown-ups from
disease.
They learned that the removal of
rubbish from attics and cellars, sheds
and barns, back yards and vacant lots,
materially reduced fire danger, vastly
improved the looks of private proper
~ and public thoroughfares, increased
house and land values. stirred up the
pride of the property owner in his
holdings and the pride of everybody
in the looks of the town.
They learned that small repairs to
buildings of all kinds, to fences, ETC.,
saved big repair bills and much more
work and trouble later on. And they
learned that a bucket of paint and a
tub of white wash will do more to
prevent rot, rust, yermin and dirt ac-
cumulatiOn than anything else-not to
mention the pleasing change in APP
pearance that paint and whitewash
give.
Exit Old Man Dirt.
That's why they're mobilizing now
to hand Old Man Dirt the rusty tin
can that serves for hat and speed
his departure with broom and brush,
rake and shovel; to make the "Old
town" shine and glow In spotlessness
as though emerging from bath and
rundown.
An Indianapolis newspaper esti-
mates that more than 30,000,000 people
in America are engaged I'm these cam
paigns for the Improvement of their
communities. That is approximately
the number of men left under arms in
the European war; counting off the
millions killed and MANNED and cap
tured. What magnificent army, and
with what magnificent purpose it
fights If we have begun to despair
events, let us just survey our own
volunteer army of 30,000000 engaged
in making thousands of communities
cleaner and brighter and more health
full and happy, and take heart of cour-
age.
Ii is not to be disputed that the ma
terial environment influences for good
or evil the spiritual inner man. House
hold sanitation and personal SANTA
ton are twins. The toothbrush is
merely the smaller brother of the
paintbrush in this family of spiritual
uplift. Conversely, the scrub-bucket
is the little sister of the bathtub.
Laundered linen and vanished wood
work are kin-fOiks. The new spring
suit or millinery outfit dovetails with
and the swept street
Solution of Sanitary Problems.
AS q matter of fact, from the stand
point Of economy, 1t is cheaper to keep
things in repair and looking well than
40 allow them to go to waste. Also, it
is cheaper to keep well than to sub
1nit to conditions which spell sickness.
at;leaning up and keeping clean is the
practical solution of community SAM
tary problems. 1t can be done.
This is the age Of the apotheosis Of
order. The Clean Up and Paint Up cru
SADIE is in large measure responsible
for it in this country. Every one Of
those thousands Of communities which
have been refurbishing themselves for
the past four or five years and which
are continuing the process this year
* superior in great many respects to
such communities as still inhabit the
domain of dirt. The city or town that
has not modified its forces In this
movement lags behind in the grand
procession of progress, the certain
goal of which is prosperity. 1t be-
hooves them to get busy, fall In, for
.paPd-march