Sentence:  Nothing was too small to receive attention, if a supervising eye could suggest <WSD>improvements</WSD> likely to conduce to the common welfare. Mr. Gordon Burnage, for instance, personally visited dust-bins and back premises, accompanied by a sort of village bailiff, going his round like a commanding officer doing billets. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  The act of improving; advancement or growth; a bettering