The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1921-05-02
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
Information Bureau
FREDERIC j. HAsKIN. Director,
Washington, D. G.
ORGANIZED PLAY.
Washington, D. G.


sanized playtime for city and village
is rapidly becoming nationwide fact.
The community service which concen-
trated on soldiers and sailors for the
past few years, has now revised its
program to fit the civilian, and is busy
showing the business man and his
wife how to play.
Perhaps YOU think we know we'll
enough how to play. We spend more
on amusements than any other coun-
try in the world. We are companions
of the world at being entertained. But
amusement is a secondhand sort of
sport. When it comes to amusing our
selves by taking part in games,
dramatics and impromptu concerts,
we have not distinguished ourselves.
This is unfortunate, because the
value of doing sometimes, instead of
watching all the time. is obvious.
After sitting on the edge of a seat at
a ball game you limp out with a back
stiff from crampiug. After playing
ball an hour or two yourself, you are
stiff from using muscles that need the
exercise.
That people are acquiring the fixed
habit of wanting to enjoy all their
amusements vfcariously is attributed
TO two facts. One is that a wonderful
organization of commercia amuse-
ments has been evolved, and the other
Is that people have not been encour-
aged to get together to make sport for
themselves Now they are being. en-
couraGed and by legislatures, town
counclIs and local organizations that
work for city betterment
Community play is being pro,notad
py local governments because it has
peen demonstrated to be a practical
business proposition. City officials ac-
cept as an axiom the statement that
tne leisure hours of the city must be
either an asset or a liability. The
people of this country have about a
billion hours a day to spend outside
OF work and sleep. In this leisure time
most of the crime. vice and deIin-
quency occur, according to James E.
Rogers of the Community Service
headquarters, Who has carefully
studied the leisure time problem.
Value of Children.
Mr.. Rogers tells us that if a child
is rated by the Children's Bureau as
an investment of from $500 to $4,000
a young boy represents easily $4,000.
IT he fails to become good citizen,
the city that sent him to school and
provided him with other benefits not
only loses that investment, but it has
TO pay for the results of his failure.
Thus, if a boy spends his spare
time with rough gang on the streets
and gets juvenile court record for
committing various depredations, he
goes to a reform school and the people
pay for his maintenance there. If he
steals to get money to take his girl to
amusements, as boy in Denver did,
he goes to Jail, and the community
pays for that. If he is hurt in a fight
in the street, the community pays for
the ambulance and his hospital bill.
The leisure time of a city is an ex-
pensive proposition. "a
Because hospitals. jaiIs and police
organizations, paid for by taxation, are
to a considerable extent employed as
a result of misused leisure time, city
officials are becoming convinced of
the dollars and cents value of preven-
tive measures. 1t has also been shown
them that advantageous use of leisure
time is of definite benefit to a com
munity. Recreation that really rests
and re-creates means greater effici-
ency in business. And what is true
of the cities is equally true in the
small town or rural community.
The realization of these facts has
led to the development of a commun-
ity service organization, growing out
of the war camp community service.
It works by sending out organizers to
places that want to establish some
form of community recreation. Song
leaders. athletic directors or other ex-
perts are also sent from the COM
munity service headquarters at New
York il they are needed. The aim.
however, is to help the community de-
velop its own workers. and as soon as
community center activities are rum
ming smoothly the imported helpers go
on to other work.
a different plan has to be worked
out for each city or town. No two
cities have exactly the same interests,
| or the same amount of money to put
mr. he f1O inc
In Chicago, the local community
| service is particularly concerned with
promoting organized play among the
stockyard workers. Play where adults
are concerned means, of course. base
| ball, dancing, athletics, singing and
contests of various kinds.
Flint, Mich, is interested in pag-
eantry. Richmond, Va, is working
especially with roped-off street play,
! and Fairgrounds for children In
! Connorsville. Ind, community sports
| have developed from the use of a va
cant lot. where the men pitched
horseshoes in the evening, into three
we'll established community centers
| Lowell, Mass, specializes in girls ath-
iecttc clubs, and Wilmington, Del, is
! trying community recreation TO pro-
mote good citizenship among foreign
ers.
| Altogether 2S0 communities are or
ganized under the community service
one hundred thirty of them are oper-
ating without assistance from the New
York headquarters. They have bud
gets, are working on definite pro-
grams. and have some one in charge
or the community recreation all the
| year round.
Trained Workers Needed.
A large part of the success of com.
munity play depends on the workers
| in charge. The community secretary
or the specialist in some phase OF
recreation is a new and rather COM
pesite type He or she is somewhat
like the settlement worker. Settle
ment work is community work, in a
limited field. whereas the community
secretary is a municipal employee who
serves everybody. The conlmunfty
secretary needs perhaps greater
amount of pep and sociability thar
the more serious social welfare
worker. He must also have an album
| dance of initiative, executive ability
and versatility. Unless the local com