Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1922-02-04
FOR GREATER
ALEXANDRIA
Edgar A. Feldtkeller tells OF
Fairgrounds Import
ance
Saws That Places of Recreation Are
Important in The Life of Flu
ture Citizens

Edgar A. Feldtkeller, General Sup
erintendent of the Alexandria County
Lighting Company, in a statement for
the Gazette says that in his opinion
More Fairgrounds should be the pro
| iect to occupy the foremost place in
! the minds of all the citizens. His
statement in detail is as follows:
Replying to your request for per-
mission to quote an interview with
me on any subject which | might sell
ect from the slogans which the Ga
zette carries at its editorial masthead,
/ | can see no worthier or deserving a
subject than the matter Of childrens
Fairgrounds.
~ do not know of any Worthier
cause deserving the constant attention
and the wholehearted and unstinted
support of any community than chill
drens Fairgrounds. The children of to-
day are the citizens of tomorrow.
AS citizens they will be no better and
no worse than the product which we
| can expect from the environment with
which we surround them in their child
hood and adolescent years. We may
build beautiful roads and beautiful
! buildings as monuments to poSterlty,
! but the real standard upon which flu
ture generations will Judge the pres
ent generation will be that one breath
! ing living monument of our efforts,
the greatest monument Of all, the cltI-
zens which we have reared and cared
for from infancy and endowed with
the very best qualities and accomplish
ments that we could boast Of and pass
on to future generations.
"The growing child is very impress
sionable and the stamp placed upon
his character by present environment
will crystalize into his habitual per-
onality as the child grows from
adolescence into manhood or woman
hood.
A growing community generally fails
to appreciate the necessity for provid-
ing adequate and properly supervised
Fairgrounds for the child of the pres
ent generation because they do not re-
collect of having been offered such so
called refnements in their childhood
failing entirely to appreciate that
since the days when they were chill
lren the community has grown, has
become more saturated and has furth-
er and further removed from the child
the opportunity to live in and enjoy
natures wonderful surroundings.
Owe cannot expect to produce good
citizens out of children who are forced
to use streets and alleys for play
grounds where they are daily violat-
ing some City ordinance or police re-
gulation and are given the very vivid
impression that their play activities
are Objectionable to the community
and public nuisance.
'How can you expect to imbue any
child, given no other alternative, with
high standards Of morality and civic
nridc?
Neither do believe that the pro-
viding of Fairgrounds and playground
supervisors should be dependent upon
certain charitable donations. ! believe
that every progressive Club, fraternal
organization and municipal govern
ment should set aside from it's funds
yearly definitely stated amount for
the purpose of providing and maintain
ing adequately equipped and properly
supervised playground facilities for
the children of the present genera
ton in order that they may be sur
rounded with wholesome environ
r,ent. that they may be imbued with
the Importance of living clean moral
lives and that they may feel the OBJ
legation Of growing up into upright
clean thinking moral young women
and young men as the only adequate
compensation for efforts and sacri-
fees of their parents teachers and the
community in which they live for their
efforts to give them not only an educa-
ton in book learning but in clean play,
clean living and civic pride.
Give the growing child place in
the community that he can consider
his very own, where he can indulge in
games, athletics and play in general
with the assurance that he is not en-
crcaching on someone else'S prop
elty, that he is not violating some City
ordinance or police regulation, that he
need not fear some adults reprimand
or police officers interference. Give
the child facilities for expanding his
body, the structure which supports
and limits the activity of his brain.
Don't simply pump knowledge and
book learning into his brain without
any thought of the body that nourish-
eS and feeds the brain. Physical edu-
cation and expansion is certainly
equally as important as mental edu-
cation.
Provide adequate playground faci-
lities supervised by competent play
ground and physical instructors and
provide them in sufficient size to ac-
commodate the Juvenile population of
the community and you will raise
generation of superb physical giants.
Augment this program with adequate
school facilities and the result will
be far beyond the most fondly hoped
for expectations.
There exists no better plan for the
prevention and elimination of epidemic
Juvenile sickness, juvenile vagrancy
and juvenile delinquency.