Evening star., 1919-11-13
C|TYPLAYGROUND
AND COMMUNITY
WORK ADVOCATED
Messrs. BroWnIoW and Gard
iner Appear Before Re-
classification Commission.
PLEAS FOR MORE PAY
FOR WORKERS UPHELD
Municipal Dance Halls Favored and
Benefits of Recreational
Centers Are Shown.

DeHeuIS OF hecreaIl0nal
Centers Are Shown.
Organization of municipal play
ground and community center work
in the District of Columbia on a per-
manent basis to meet the growing
demands of the National Capital for
| these facilities was advocated by
Commissioners Brownlow and Gardi-
ner before the joint congressional
commission on reclassification Of sal
aries in the District today.
The two Commissioners upheld the
pleas of Mrs. Susie Root Rhodes, su-
| perintendent of municipal play
grounds. and Miss Cecil Norton, secre-
| tary of community centers. for re.,
! classification of the workers under
! their direction and for proper wage
increases. The hearing of the COM
munity and recreation" service con-
stituted the third hearing of services
by the reciassificationists at their
headquarters. at Az street and MIS-
souri, avenue.
Mr.. Brown1ow. Favors Services. =
Il want to express the very great
hope that what is being done by the
recla ssification commission Will put
these two services on a salary basis
where efficient people can be obtained
and their services retained, Commls-
sioner Brownlow told the commission
| Il trust" he continued, that perma-
nent orEaniZa ton can be worked out
to get an organization of trained WORK
ers. | have the profound CONVICTION
that the one thing that is most needed
here is an advance in the community
| recreational facilities. This is the one
thing that will pay the greatest dlVi-
dends in the shortest time.
This is the one thing that will go
farther than anything else in the
practical matter of keeping the boys
and girls. John Jones and Jennie
| Smith out of trouble. If we could
have proper recreational facilities for
the boys and girls of this city from
could remove at once the greatest
danger spots to our people.
Corrective Character Praised.
| In speaking in favor of the sala-
ries of community and recreationai
workers being put on a statutory pasis
| Commissioner Browniow SAID tnat
within the last year the District gov
ernment had learned more about the
| feature of danger spots" through
| the establishment of the woman
| bureau, than ever before
| Intensive study of the cases OF
| 1 900 girls who had started on the
Brownlow brought out. has SHOWN
that a majority of these girls nSo
| turned around and started on lhs
right way" and he was conVinceu
| that the trouble eXlsting was vi.
| the girls had not had proper recrea-
| tfonal facilities.
Wants Municipal Dance Halls.
Conuiss;oner Brownlow declared
| that he would like to see municIpei
dance halls established in such num-
| bers under proper SUPERVISOR 50 .na.
! dance halls where admittance cnaIses
were made would have to go out Oh
"I would like to see the Fairgrounds
On increased" he said, that the play
! ing of children in alleys ana straeIs
! of Washington could be eiiminaseo.
| Plav is as much a part of the active
/ life of children as the rudimenes Ok
| education proper
The community Fairgrounds ana tne
community centers nave not got 'no
richly deserve" Commissioner Brown
low told the reclassification commits
sioners. Commissioner Gardiner. ol.
rectly in charge OF the playgrouno
| that he was in accord with all Mrs:
Rhodes would tell the commission ana
sunported her in what she said.
Salary Discrepancies Shown.
MANY workers in the Fairgrounds
are paid "as skilled labor. Mrs.
Rhodes told the reclassification COM
mission, in the brief which she pre-
sented on their behalf.
Mrs. Rhodes pointed out that the
nosition of superintendent Of recrea-
! tion" here pays $4,000, while similar
positions in other cities pay the Ioa-
lowing salaries: Philadelphia, $1,000;
Pittsburgh, $4,000: soo Chicago '''ooe'
owing to the fact that there is
no statutory salary for the position
of director of athletics for the local
municipal Fairgrounds, Mrs. Rhodes
said that he is paid "as skilled labor.
s3.52 per day" whereas in Los Angeles
such a worker gets $40 per month;
in Rochester, 5000 per month. and
in Detroit, 5000 per month.
Director of special events and hand
icraft and other positions are paid
here as skilled labor" Mrs. Rhodes
pointed out to the commission. where
as in other cities the pay for these
workers is much higher. Play lead
ers here get but $50 a month, whereas
other cities pay from SIS a month to
$500 a year. she said.
Workers Resign; Grounds Close.
Mrs. Rhodes presented to the COM
mission a list showing the names of
seventy-six trained workers who had
left the local Fairgrounds department
of the District government owing to
their securing better paying posi-
tions elsewhere. The list contained
the salaries paid here and the sala-
ries of the positions to which the
workers went.
Mrs. Rhodes pointed out, for the
first time. she said. that Fairgrounds
had been forced to close down here
because of the resignation of work
ers.
p. ]. Ward of the bureau of educa-
tion. a community center expert,
backed up the brief presented by Miss
Norton on behalf of the community
center workers.
Mrs. Rhodes Presents Brief.
Mrs. Rhodes presented the following
brief to the reclassifcation commits
sion:
"There are twenty-three play
grounds in the District of Columbia.
In 1906 the Playground and Recreation
Association of America was formed
here in Washington and a playground
plan for the city was drawn up. The
plan contemplated playground IN
every school district in the city and
an athletic field in each section OF
the city. 1t was also proposed that
there should be building on each
playground in Washington operated
In n