The Chattanooga news. [volume] (Chattanooga, Tenn.) 1891-1939, 1919-07-21
THE DREAM OF A CITY
by FREDERIC J. HAsklN

plan commission is sthe permanent
a 6s-year- millionaire, who has de-
voted a good part of his time to the
plan commission for some ten years.
and who possesses a quiet determine
tion in going ahead. which Is valuable
to the city. But the chief evangelst
Moody. managing director of the plan
commission. He Is a young looking,
but gray-headed man. He has linguis-
tic capacities which for endurance and
fiuency have never been equaled IN,
ancient or modern times. And nearly
city planning He firmly believes that
city planning is the salvation Of the
modern world. He believes II will
cure everything from ricketts, to boil
shevism, and he makes stout argu-
ment to that effect. He has facts by
the ton. He has studied almost every
city on the face Of the earth with an
eye single to enlarging his knowledge
of city planning. He knows not only
all the cities that are. but all the cities
that ever were. In his recent volum-
inous book. What of the City," he
how Belshazzar wrestled with the
sewage problem In ancient Babylon.
Follow Her Example.
AS a city planner, Moody has be-
come something OF a national figure
One hundred and thirty-six American
cities haye applied to Chicago for aid
means that they applied for and re-
ceived the aid and advice of Walter
ID. Moody. People come from all over
the world to see Moody about city
plans. One of his recent visitors was
A. Kimena. commissioner of prefec-
ture, Toxic. Japan. A commissioner
nf nrafantnra in he
about what we would call a city en-
glneer. After listining to Mr.. Moody
from dinner until 2 o'clock In the morn
ing, Mr. Kimena requested permits
sion to translate his book into Japanese
and went back home to straighten out
Toxic.
Moody has fired another gun that is
being heard around the world. And
you get the impression that he never
ceases firing except for meals and
sleep. Moody himself insists that he
is not a city planner. He says that he
is simply a promoter of city plans.
which are made by architects and en-
gineers. Promotion, he says, is what
most city plans lack. Some 200 Ameri-
can cities have city plans. and not
half a dozen of them, according to
MoGdy hold forth any promise fst Of COM 1
most of them Is that they are only
plans for a part of city, not for
city as n whole.
He says the first thing to do is to
get plan for the whole city which
will benefit all parts of it equally and
direct its growth as a whole. The next
thing is to sell that plan to the people.
That is where the promoter comes in.
He must convince all the people of the
necessity for that plan. and of its
equitable and democratic intent. Then
II is time enough to pass a law and ask
e. Ia 49,.
ing at the wrong end of the process.
Problem Of Reconstruction.
Moody says that city planning is the
real problem of reconstruction. and eS-
pecially for the reason that war
checked and confused the orderly de-
velopment Of cities, More than half
| of the American people live in cities.
and less than half of those live in
health and comfort. The great mod
ern cities exercise irresistible magne-
tisn. Like giant squids. they suck
into themselves life nor all sides.
They are constantly drawing in clean
| blood and strong muscle from the
they give success and comfort only to
few. Disease, undernourishment,
congestion and death are the lot OF the
| many. The cities consume human life.
The draft law made the cities vomit
| up much of what they had taken in,
lings, starvelings and tuberculars. 1t
revealed the undeniable fact that
American cities are consuming Ameri-
| can manpower.
Moody thinks there is no excuse for
| this. American industry and science
| are capable of housing all these people
| well. and feeding them well. II is pos
sible to provide them with Fairgrounds
| and amusement and education. And
most of these people are willing to
work for these things, and they do their
share in creating these things for
others. Say what you will about the
survival of the fittest, the majority
| fit to survive is getting smaller all the
| time. II could be made much larger
| IL the conditions of the struggle were a
little less hard. The world owes a man
a chance to develop himself in return
| for his labor. II owes him a good
place to live in. and clean air and rec
reation. The cities owe these things
| to the people for IL is the people who
! have piled up the wealth OF the cities.
And this is not socialism or radicalism
of any kind. It's equity and COM
| mon sense.
(subject OF tomorrow's letter. For
! ests of Chicago"D.
Roll all your rugs and carpets on q
| uoodeu rod and tie them so they will