Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-08-25
MRS. WESLEY L. BllTHE
in the Children's Country Week


ONE of the principal objects of the Chill
" dren's Country Week Association is to
incucatc into the children higher standard
Of living and TO develop them mentally us
far as can be done, and it Is surprising TO
what an extent this is possible in the short
time that the little ones are under the behe-
fetal influences of the organization, says
Mrs. Wesley l.. B,ithe, president of the
association.
The actual beginnings of what is now
the Children's Country Week Association
said Mrs. Blthp, ''wcrc III 1870. AZ that
time Mrs. Eliza Turner. aftcrward prrSi-
dent of the New Century Club. conceived the
idea Of taking for n visit OF week ne
Lor summer home Mt Chadds Ford twelve
children who would not otherwise De ao'e
TO have any vacation away from the CITY:
owe have become so accustomed to having
children taken away during the summer
for neriods of rest in the country without
,be,r nnrcnts. that it seems hard to under,
stond at this time that Mrs. Turner had
some difficulty in finding children to ENJOY
her hospitality. The idea was then entirrIE
new and it was not kindly received by the
mothers of the children.
Getting the Children
"Mrs. Turner got into communicntion
with Miss NJ Fannie Evans llater Mrs:
Fannie Evans Weitze ana nae long H preS4H"". Ion.
nison and asked each of them TO md SIX
nhIldrcn. After considerable trouble owing,
osI have said to the reluctance Of the
mothers to entrust their children on a ms
sion so strange and incomprehensible TO
.bnr, ooch Of the young women succeeded
in finding six children, and the whole party
met for the first time on the train whlch
was TO convey them to ChaddS Ford:
"The following yenr, 1876 was mat OF OF
the Centennial. and owing TO the comE's'eu
condition of the city and the general ex'
cite,ncnt attendant upon the great fair,
rottiny was done by Mrs. Turner However,
in 1877 it was resumed, TINS time WIN
twenty children. and the work mas been car
r!ed on ever since. ..a
for several years after the summer OF 1877
nroyed that the idea was SOUND one ana
that much good. both physicai ana mehth''
could be accomplished even In so snort a
time upon children VINO wrpe rhev 'u,n wnr. a. t,kon
most impresSonable age. Ihey were taken
for one week at that time.
Increase and Growth
"The work increased rapidly in extent:
and ns it increased the methods changed
somewhat, although the fundamental idea OF
ciyiuy children n much needed rest and rec
rroti0n has remained the same from the hrst
Ioys Of the organization. Miss JenniSon,
Who took so active a part in finding half
~ the first twelve children to 90 out, was
ono NJ the first presidents. and Miss Evans
"ns treasurer Later as Mrs. Wcitzel, the
latter became president and held that posi-
lion until her death In October of 102O,
when | succeeded her.
"In the early days Of the association we
were dependent entirely upon invitations
from pprsons who had homes in the country
md who were willing to take children for
VARYING periods rs their guests. Later we
changed from the invitation system to that
Of boarding. that Is, we paid the board Of
such children az we were able to from funds
raised by the association, the children being
boarded chiefly by farmers families who
we're willing to do this.
I'VE carefully supervised the visits Of the
children and watched to see that they did
NOT come into contact with any bad inhu-
ences although, of course. all farms were
carefully investigated first, and that they
we're receiving the greatest amount Of good
from their visits. At that time we paid
e. 10 a week for the board Of each child,
and the stay of each child in the country was
one week, as under previous conditions.
Length Of Visit Doubled
"About three years ago 1t was decided
TINT the stay Of ench child should be two
weeks instead Of one, as IL was felt that one
wcek was too short a time for q child TO
get the required amount of benefit. OF
rnurse. we cannot send into the country all
tho children who need II. nor all whom we
would like to send. and therefore it becomes
10 n certain extent a matter of selection of
those who need II the most. But even with
these conditions we decided that it was for
The better to send one child for two weeks
rother thnn two children for one week each.
The results which have been attained in the