ft
i
MlHMtai
1 CDeuittg,
Uti&sn
MHlLtG LfcDGEU COMPANY
WiHm H.t.udlnrtnn,Vlc-rrMldntt John K.Msrtln,
feMftafy AM Trmutri Philip S. Collin. John n.
Wbm. lJlKvtom.
' Mbj-fOMIAI-fiOAftOr
CtftrsH IM'bstis, CtiMttnftn
P H IVltALfeY Biwullte lMltor
JOSW C. JIAKTIK Dnrnl UulnM ilMiAirfr
' l.l I,, - .
I'ubllahM flally lit rtnuo LEWira llulldlng,
InapWtit6 Square, Philadelphia.
Li!ttn rKtt. .Broad and Chestnut Street
ATUwTIC ClTt m&i-l'nlon ItulldlnK
NUtV VbAK 170-A, Metropolitan Tower
rttliftOd 817 llnmo Inurnnc Dulldlnn
Virtues 8 Waterloo Place. Pftll Mall, 3. W.
lyiartfrotON ntJK"o1
N-RWH lltlUt!Al:Hi
. --- --'.A ... ...... ..
...., inn r'oflr minning
NBW TOUK DI'IUMU
.The Ttmrt llullillnir
ninu.tn jiiiBi;.
(10 PrIe"lrlohtrae)
. ...2 Pall Mall Nam, S. W.
. . ,.32 Hue Louis la Orand
itiilf hvaiuti
Piis iluntAB.,.
srnscmrTioNTEnMS
yw.ArriW. pAit.r OntTi air rents, fly malt. nntpal1
niUl.t or Philadelphia, etwpt vihero forelRn pnMAitn
In TKlUlfed, Dllt.T ONI.T, ono month, tnentr-dve rent,
Iii.i OsT.r, ona jear. three dnllara. All mall auh
rcHptlCna Wyalle In advanr
HBLUaooo VALNtrr kevstomi:. MAIS anno
W" Attilnbs oil communication) lo Kvtuino
T.tSatr, tiMtptniencc ffijunrr, rhltadclphta.
axtkikli xt tits riiiUDEtriit roaiorncs as SECONn
CUSft MAIL MATTER.
HllUntU'ltU, u:i).MapA. MAHc.11 .11. mis.
Ott'd soma men a gallon of gasoline and then
wilt pour It in the putter: plvc it to
other men and they will gel an
automobile to tr.tr It In.
"What Shall It Profit a Jinn?"
THE EVUKincj Ludokii publishes today n
comparison of the present housing law
With tllo substitute measure which 1ms lieen
eht to the Governor It roveulH tlic utter
P4y 1 Inferiority of the proposed lnw to the ex
isting law. it snows cicariy now rutne or
remedial effectiveness the "toothless" stat
ute would be, devised as It Is. not in the In
tercut of tenants, but for the Greater profit
of landlords. These landlords, to lie sine,
aro entitled to protection, but not until they
havo protected the people to whom they rent,
tt is an axiom of modern civilization that
no city should permit dwelling to bo tented
Unless they aro decent habitations, and no
citizen hits n light to receive money for any
other hind of habitation.
The Governor Is nn advocate of decent
living nnd nn apostle of cleanliness. lie lias
let It be known repeatedly that he would
tiqt itcqulcsce In any stntule devised to pic
vent rectification of existing conditions. Most
of nil Is he unlikely to join In a consphaey
to uphold City Councils In Its policy of wan
ton nulltllcntlon.
A veto is the only thing that can reason
ably be expected, nnd that veto will lie up
hold unless the Legislature has lost nil seliso
of public duty.
End of Bigclowism
BlUELOWISM has ended, for Ulgclow him
self will hereafter be dissociated from
the public servlc?.
To his conduct of his ofllce, ns much as
to anything else, could bo laid tho defeat of
the proposal to expend $50,000,000 for good
roads in Pennsylvania. The electorate was
not so enchanted with the kind of roads it
EOt And the cost at which It got them ns to
bo enthusiastic about spending millions moro
In a similar way.
Good roads have become a public neces
sity. They are no longer a tail. They must
bo built scientifically and economically and
they must bo maintained. Tho road system
of tho"' State tends more nnd more to he
coma ono of the greatest nssets tr the Com
laOnwealth, requiring as expert enro as tho
conduct of any of our other great Institu
tions. Instead of Bigelow, an expert: Instead of
Inefficiency, efficiency; instead of haphazard
methods, scientific construction.
Blgolon goes and there is nono to weep.
Better Bight Than Impetuous
EXPXiANATION for the delay In demand
ing reparation from Germany for tho
sinking of tho "William P. Fryc Is found In
the announcement from Washington that
the cargo was the property of Englishmen
and not of Americans. It was at first said
that the grain on board belonged to Ameri
cans and was on the way to Knglaud to
await orders. Tho owners of the ship. It
Beems, have made It difficult for the State
Department to learn the facts. Their courso
discredited their good faith and made tho
Government suspicious. It was, therefore,
important that tho exact facts should bo
learned before action was taken.
In all these matters, from the Uacla to tho
Frye, tho Government is In tho position of
tho plaintiff's attorney. If Its client is not
frank with It and conceals, the truth tho re
eultff aro likely to bo exceedingly embarrass
ing. There are men who would llko lo get
the United Stntes mixed up in the war. an
the State Department Is very well aware.
The claim of the owners of tho Fryc will
not be Invalidated by tho delay necessary to
discover Just what tho claim Is. It is much
better to be right than to bo Impetuous.
The Band Wagon Is Filling Up
An ynil know I am in favor of local option
and will be delighted If our bill in enacted.
Senator Oliver to Governor Ilruiiibnugh.
TUH Senator is unable to be present at tho
hearing on the bill next week, but ho sent
the above cheering message to tho Gover
nor Indorsing the measure. Ho has set nn
example to his colleague in the Senate that
deserves to be followed.
There ate men who believe that It Is bet
ter o. be different than to be right and at
tain consplculty by their idiosyncrasies; but
few practical politicians care to be so differ
ent that they are In a lone minority. The
band wagon la about to start, aud whqn It
moves It will be going so Tast that laggards
will fln4 It difficult If not Impossible to whip
on behind. Jt la much better to rido with
the procession than to get covered with dust
at the roadside while It moves by. There Is
mill tftne for Senator Penrose to get a back
bBCUt
,(vCentjal But Limited Control
TTtJlQWING the example of the oxecu-
JPijye officers of other cnrBoratlnnu which j
Jj&vtf been compelled to regulate their bus
uc according to the wlqhes of more than
two eore of different State regulating bodies,
j'teiileiu Carlton, of the Western Union
Teinph Company urgea that more power
h lodged. In the Interstate Commerce Com
m !! u.
Th argBirtiejit, of course, reals on the aa
tnilHpttou tlfat thla control would meajj r9,
lue tram he exactions of State bedits, T
jiai.-B .iI4(9ft statements annually to. IHlftllst
ou!h.trttla Ee a tk of "e magnitude apd.
wi. t w utterly unnecessary
Kte iirtPWi''' etnt omr..iiio dy.
' MFfMMWJUott Rjflv weM de.r? t" be under
lite jurlstlletlort of tho Interstato Commerce
Commission only nnd yet oppose utterly Hie
right of this commission to fix rates, wages
nnd everything else connected with tho
business. There tiro many, for instance, who
nro convinced that tho dilatory luetics em
ployed by the commission In tho railway
rale cases proved absolutely the folly nr
confiding td any body too vast nn authority.
11 " ... .
Wash the Ltiten nt HarrisburR
AUESOIjOTION which begins ns follows
has been Introduced In tho House;
Whereas, tt has been nllcgcd In the public
press and public discussion that large sums
of money were Illegally collected nnd ex
pended by tho liquor Interests In tho polit
ical cninpalgn and the election In rcnnsjl
vnula In 1011, and etc., etc,
During tho pi ogress of tho campaign tho
EvfcNiNO I.r.tmwit published comptcliclialvo
articles, specifying the modes of contribu
tion, nn estimate of the nnioiuitM collected
from the lltiuor Interests, 11 summary of the
presumed agreement between these Interests
nnd the politicians for whoso advantage tho
money uns collected, and presented, like
wise, circumstantial and other evidence of a
slush fund of largo proportions.
It 'Is now hn open secret that there was
such a fund. It Is seldom denied In private.
It is notorious that local option Is held up
at Unrrlsbutg only becauso men who prof
iled, directly or Intllt eclly, from that slush
fund nro ondcnvorlug to fulfil tho letter of
their contract and do for tho lliiuor inter
ests what they promised to do. tt seems to
ho n clear u ensu of baiter and sale ns wttH
ever known In Pennsylvania.
Doctor Urumbaugh would havo nothing to
do with that fund, lie refused lo lei
penny of It bo used In his bolinlf. At all
times during tho campaign ho Iterated and
reiterated his support of local option nnd
flung out bis challenge of opposition to tho
liifamoiiM alliance between the whisky ling
nnd tin1 politicians, llo tofused lo be biandeil
with alcohol nnd ho did what he could lo
keep Its mark off tho hldo of the parly.
Glenn, who introduced tho resolution for
nn Investigation, Is a Democrat, but tho
resolution should puss, nevertheless. It is
tlmo for Pennsylvania to throw off her
lethargy and strike 11 blow for political
morality. We need not wash our dirty linen
In Washington. Wc raunot afford not to
wash It In llarrlshurg. Knr the Legislature
Itunlf stnmls Imiiencliril and besmirched. It
j Is the Legislature Hint was offered for bar
ter, and every man In It who votes against
local option, whether he does so from con
viction or not, stands within the shadow of
suspicion. It behooves the innocent, there
fore, to prove their Innocence by voting for
a thorough Investigation, that the black
sheep may be sorted out ami their de
bauchery or trickery exposed.
Pennsylvania Is mightier than the liquor j
ring, on the methods of which a searchlight
should bo tut nod. The Republican parly.
now that It has a leal Governor at llairls
burg, can purge Itself by boldly ascertain
ing nnd publishing tho truth, oven If In so
doing It has to bcsmltch and 111I11 a formerly
trusted leadership.
An Investment Worth While
NO HUSINIOSS man expects to cam divi
dends on an investment Hint ho does
not make, lie known that he does not get
profit out of nn cnterprlso unless he puts
capitnl in. If ho uses his business sense
when considering an Invitation to Join tho
Chamber of Commerce, he will Know that
the benefit that he anil his business will
I ilerlvo from the creation of a large and
alert commercial organization will be in
proportion to the Investment of his time and
energy In co-operating with other business
men to Increase tho prosperity of this city.
Liquor or Victory?
THR British Chancellor of tho Exchequer
has Joined with Lord Kitchener in urging
the British workmen to show their loyalty to
their country by doing their utmost to equip
me nrmies in ine 11cm wiin mu necessary
munitions and by rushing construction nnd
repair work on battleships to tho full ex
tent of thnlr nbllity. Tho soldiers cannot
fight without guns and ammunition. But
the British workmen nro spending their
money on drink nnd neglecting their duty
in the factories. At the shipyards it is dif
ficult to got ": or 40 hours a wcel nut of
them. L'nless there Is a change for the bet
ter David Moyd-Gcorga announces there
must be compulsory prohibition while the
wnr Insts. The public houses must close
their bars and tho men must be kept sober.
Temperanco Is nn economic and not a moral
question In this crisis.
Anarchy on the Sea
ACCORDING to tho ex parto statement of
XJlUio circumstances attending tho sinking
of tho merchant ships by German subma
rines oft tho coast of Wales ono of tho ves
sels was bunk by a torpedo whllo tho life
boats wcro still on the davits, and as a !
suit u large number of passengers wero
drowned. If this Is a fair statement of tho
facts tho course of tho German commander
has Justification neither In tho laws aud cus
toms of war nor In the necessities of tho
case. It may bo granted that Homo of tho
passengers were British officers and engi
neers on tho way to hervlco In Africa, but
that does not excuso torpedoing a ship car
rying nonenmbatttnts without giving them nn
opportunity to escape, oven though the Ger
mans had announced that they Intended to
do Just this sort af thing.
This incident Is only tho latest in a long
series which proves that there Is anarchy on
the sea at tho present time. AH the old
guarantees have lost their force, and those
who have the power are doing their will
without let or hindrance. Only superior
power can stop them. No amount of hys
terical protest from the neutral nations can
prevent n continuance of tho unprecedented
operations of belligerent ships,
Is not tho flag tho best monument to Betsy
ItossV
Where Js the road builder who ran make
the highways of tjils State famous?
Will Charles Frohmait explain how much
worse Jt Is to sell theatre tickets at cut rates
than to let speculators get them and charge
two prices?
If any one thinks he can fool the Gover
nor about the housing bill he would better
study Doctor Brumbaugh's record on the
housing niisatlanj
UnsJe Sam wakes, up every little wblje and
asks Mexico, in the words of the man who
heard his wife's voie In the middle of the
night. "Are you rioting again or yet?"
Why dpea not Secretary Garrlaon follow
jlm JUysPle at the Seorotary qf State if he
ffite SuIfJapr ' oot big tnqugh to
jajjjjw Hying eacpwswi lo Wablngtpn? The
Chautauqua, societies would Day him to tail
them what Us thinks about war,
fctil.iiiiiVwii
CITIZENS DUTY
TOWARD HOUSING
Why Ihe Grnnsbatik Bill Should Not
Become Law A ftenclionnl'y
McnBUrc Prompt Action by Peo
ple Is Necessary,
By HELEN L. FARRIS1!
Secretary of the Octavla Hill Association.
IT IS with consternation and tllsnliiy that
those who havo been striving for many
cnrs to bring about better sanitary and hous
ing conditions In tho poorer section of Phila
delphia nro confronted with thefnet that tho
ljcglslaturo has passed the Gransback bill,
Jt. II, No. 205. tt docs hot seem credible that
a body of men chosen to legislate for tho
best Interests of their fellows should by one
such net decide to sweep away tho results
of ears of slow but steady progress! to do
this also without an opportunity being given
for 11 hearing or without submitting the bill
for Indorsement to any of those qualified
thiough their official positions or through
their epcclnl knowledge nnd experience to
judge of Its merits.
The bill divides tho icsponslblllty for tho
vltnl questions of housing and sanitation be
tween three bureaus of tho Department of
Public Health nnd Charities. It expressly
repeals tho lodging houso net of 1893, tho
net lor tho licensing and Inspection of tene
ment houses of 1007 nnd tho housing codo of
1013. It exempts from the flrc-cscapc law,
without matting other provisions for flro pro
tection, n largo proportion of tho tenement
houi-cs of the city nnd seilously weakens
nnd exposes to litigation tho original tene
ment houso law of 1S03.
The acts thus ruthlessly handled havo
marked successive and distinct singes In tho
forwnrd progress of Philadelphia, Kach ono
means Incalculable benefit to those who aro
crowded Into our many rear court nnd alley
dwellings, our countless houses built for ono
family and now "con Vetted" Into tenement
houses where many families dwell. Their
repeal would set us hack for SO years. To
thoso who havo fought tho grim light for
better conditions ngnlnst tho greed of land
lords, the hostility or apathy of City Coun
cils, the Indifference r many citizens, tho
changes Hint these lawn havo wrought havo
been full of encouragement.
The Gransb.ick bill offers nothing to tnko
their plnco. it establishes no standards,
makes no rules or regulations. It creates n
"sanitary boaid" consisting of the Director
of Public Health and Charities- and tho bu
reau chiefs, who are empowered to mako
rules and legulntloiis, which Select Council
must approve. It provides for no oversight
or Inspection of dwellings.
Study ll Is the Insistent duty of every
citizen who has tho welfare of our great city
at heart to write to Governor Brumbaugh,
in whose hands the momentous question Is
now placed, urging him lo veto this destruc
tive and reactionary measure.
HOW APRIL GOT ITS NAME
The Custom of April Fooling Some Fa
mous Hoaxes of the Day.
THKItlC Is still dispute concerning tho
origin of the name April. .Most of the other
months of the ancient Itomau calendar wcro
named, either dliectly or ludlirctly, from tho
Itonian gods and heroes. Jacob Grimm,
reeking an application of the general rule
to April, suggested the name of a hypotheti
cal god or hero, Aper or Aprils. Others havo
suggested that A prills camn from tho Greek
nnmu of Venus, Aphrndite. April among tho
Itomnus was sacied to Venus.
Still others find the origin In tho Latin
"aperire," to open, signifying the opening of
tho trees and (lowers. The enrly Anglo
Saxons called tho month "oster-monath" or
"eostur-monnth," after Eoster, goddess of
tho spring, from whose name comes our
word Kaster. But whatever tho etymolo
gists may decide, tomorrow begins tho first
full spring month, which "puts tho spirit of
youth In everything."
On an April day old Wotton wrote (and If
his was 11 different age and place from ours
nn matter):
This 'lay Panic Nature seemed In lov;
Tho lusty i-ap began to move:
Presh Juice did stir th" embracing vines,
Aud birds h.id drawn their valputlncs.
The Jealous trout that low did lie,
Hose at a wcll-dlssembled fly;
Altcady wcro tho eves possessed
With tho swift pilgrim's daubed nest:
Tho groves already did rejoice,
In Philomel's triumphant voice:
Tho showers were short, tho weather mild,
The morning fresh, the evening smiled.
Joan tnkeB her neat-rubbed pall, and now
Kbo trips lo milk tho sand-red cow.
The fields' nnd gardens were beset
With Ullps. crocus, violet:
Thus nil looks gay and full of cheor,
To welcome tho new-Ilverled )ear.
Not Keats, perhaps, not great poetry, but
Wotton nevertheless mentions it goodly num
ber of tho characteristics of April. As a
month of lovo May or Juno Is not far nhead
of April. And for n simile Shakespeare:
O, how this spring of lovn rescmblr-th
Tho uncertain glory of an April day.
As nn old book says, "Tho first of April of
all days In tho year enjoys a character all
Its own. In so far ns it, and It alone. Is con
secrated to practical Joking." Tho origin of
tho April fool custom Is disputed. Ono of
tho ludicrous solutions Is that It Is a farcical
commemoration of Christ's' being sent from
Annas to Calaphas, from Calaphas to Pilate,
from Pllato to Herod nnd from Herod back,
ngaln to Pllato, the crucifixion having taken
place about tho first of April. The custom,
however. Is doubtless a relic of once uni
versal festivities held at tho vernal equinox
and ending on the first of April. The exact
counterpart of April fooling Is found to havo
been an Immemorial custom In India. In
Scotland tho custom Is called "hunting tbn
gowk"; thatJ If, tho cuckoo, the cuckoo b
ing held In contempt. In Trance the person
befooled Is called a "pohsson d'Avrll," April
flsh, In April the sun quits the zodiacal sign
of the fish, but the French term is probably
derived from tho fact that In April fish are
small and easily caught.
One of the most famous April hoaxes was
done In I860, when many people In England
received by mail a card bearing the follow
ing Inscription, with a seat marked by an In
verted sixpence at oge of the angles, thus
giving the Invitation an air of officiality:
"Tower of London- Admit the bearer and
friend to view the Annual Ceremony of Wash
ing the White Lions, on Sunday, April J, I860.
Admitted only at the White Gate. It la
particularly requested that no gratuities be
given to the Wardens or their Assistants,"
The trick was remarkably successful. It U
reported that "oab were rattling abim
Tower Hill all that Sunday morning vainly
endeavarlns to discover tha white Gate7
Americans remember a story published by
the New-York Jlerald one April Focls ay
in the time of the elder James Gordon Bgn-,
"DID
nett. The story described the escape of nil
tho wild animals In the zoo and what hap
pened In city nnd suburbs in consequence,
winding up with the assertion Hint it might
have been true if It bud been true. April
Fool:
OPERA SINGERS ON SALARIES
To tho ndltor of the .'renin; Ledger:
Sir Itefetilng lo your nrtlcle In today's Issue,
"Inflated Salaries Paid to Grand Opera Sing
ers," 1 oncoming the lato Chlcngo-Plillnilelphln
Opera Comnauy, of which I was a member for
four jeais. I beg to say that tho nitlcle In ques
tion Is Incorrect by renon of an omission which
I am constrained to ask you to set right.
In several Instances mention Is made of tho
Increase In the salaries of certain ai lists. For
some unaccountable reason this statement,
which should have been made in connection
with mv name, was omitted. The salary men
tioned In the article was that which I received
the first jcar, which was afterwards raised
twice until It was practically double tho
oilglnal amount.
Also, In each of my contracts there was a
clause allowing 010 to sing In concerts during
the cpoin season and retain the money there
for myself. .Moreover. I frequently fang moro
llriu the requited peiformanccs per week,
meaning extra compensation. At the clove of
the rcgulnr season the company tnnilo a trans
continental tour of about two months; which
also meant additional salary.
I did not, as nearly nil foreign nrtlsts are
obliged to do, pay a commission of from 10 to
23 per cent, of my salary to an agent or repre
sentative abroad.
Tho Chicago Opera Company contained more
than one singer whoso foiclgn reputation neer
rose nbovo mediocrity, nnd who received '"In
flated" salaries while Americans wcro obliged
to accept less.
During my connection with tho Chicago Opera
Company I sang the lending bass roles In
"Faust," "Aldn," "Don Giovanni," "flaiber of
Seville," "I.n Glocondn," "I.ucla," "Girl of tho
Golden West." "Itlgoletto," "Martha." "Jong
leur do Notre Dame," "Dlo Walkuere," "Tristan
and lolde," "Lohengrin," "Cricket on tho
Hearth," "Nntotun," etc., etc.
While not receiving the salary of a Maty
Gulden or a Tltta ltuffn, tho management must
havo had a sufficient appreciation or my merit
to assign to 1110 these roles which cover a a
r'cly of sebools lit addition to being sung in
four different Inugunges. As to tho success
with which my work has met at tho hands
of tho public, that Is a matter of history.
I am ronvlnccd that tho lime has arrived
when nn American artist can stand squarely
upon his own merits and. nil other things be
ing equal, hold Ills own with the foreign singer.
HI2NIU SCOTT,
Loading Basso, Chicago Orand Opera Company,
1!I1-H; Tentro Adrlftno, Home, Italy, lliio-ll;
Manhattan Opeta House, New York, 1900-10.
Philadelphia. March 25.
STEPHEN GIRARD'S BIRTHDAY
To the Editor of tho Evening Ledger:
Sir Stephen G Irani displayed his foresight
when he endowed such a noble Institution as
GIrard Collego for poor 01 plum boys bom of
American patents.
Many of these boys educated by his generos
ity have becomo great and powerful citizens,
not only In the city of Philadelphia and State
of Pennsylvania, but havo becomo nationally
prominent, commercially, lluanclully and po
litically. It would be a mark of esteem for such a
benefactor as Stephen GIrard for tho citizens
of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania to commem
orate his coming birthday by wearing a violet,
which Is the emblem of America,
Honor the memory of a man so thoughtful
for the future welfare of poor American boys.
ALEXANDBIA VICTORIA WILLIAMS.
Philadelphia, March 27.
WHOSE THE LEADERSHIP?
In every age of the world there has been a
leading nation, one of a more generous senti
ment, whose citizens were willing tft stapd for
the Interests of general Justice and humanity at
the risk of being called by the men of the
moment chimerical and fantastic. Which
should be that nation but these States? Emer
son. THE LOST LAUREL
By WILLIAM A, McdAnilY
The Pennsylvania Mountain Bay
Or Laurel, as you will
That twines the trees by rock am rill
In regions wild and bushed and still,
Alaa! Alackaday!
Our noble, stately brow
Shall not adorn but mind ye, now,
'T!s not for us tq query how
The fiow'r was laid away.
But some one went and killed the bill
Because the little Dowers
Put forth officially as ours
Crow on a poisoned vine where towers
The lofty mount and hill: 4
In fact, with firm Intent,
The laurel bud they swiftly sent
To pickle with the. cpmilmant
Some one has christened dill.
Shall heroes In the State of Pent)
Become extinct at last?
The State that In her noble past
To all j grand defiance wjt
No more reward her mnt
Must she now turn awaf 1
Her trtately head and siujly &y
"The Governor has caasvf m liay?"
e must? Well, let her, t2a.
HE FALL OR WAS HE PUSHED?"
BEST THOUGHT
DIGEST OF THE MAGAZINES
(1) Harper's Monthly "Tho Hrand of
tho City."
(2) New Republic "Tho Utilities Bu
reau." (3) Atlantic Monthly "Tho House on
Henry Street."
(4) Survey "The Junior Police of Now
York City."
THE CITY
TtlK country Is known by Its dnyllme.
Work Is accomplished, calls aro made,
meals nro eaten in the daylight hours, nnd
as twilight deepens the birds and the beasts
nnd the people all go to bed, Tho city Is
known by Its night. As darkness fulls, tho
city bursts Into 11 now splendor, blazing with
electric signs and white nro lights, strident
with clanging cars and sirens, crowded with
gaily dressed peoplo lit holiday mood. II Is
after dark that tho cltv rouses itself to Its
remembered activity nntl charm.
Curiously cn&ugh, In spite of tin slums and
sweatshops, its concentrated misery nnd
vice, It is this gay, Irresponsible night life
of whlto lights and lobster palaces and
chorus girls, which for tho out-of-towner
fairly symbolizes tho city. To suburbanites
and visitors, the name New York Instuntly
calls up vision of tho dreat AVhlto Way.
Whether It Is that most of the magazines
nre published there, or becauso It is our
metropolis, most of the articles on city llfo
In tho magazines refer to New York. Of
10 such articles In tho current magazines
flvo aro about cities In general or groups
of cities and flvo refer specifically to Now
York.
A discriminating analysis of what con
stitutes city life, nnd of Its proportion of
Influence In our national life. Is given by
Walter Weyl, writing in Harper'n Monthly
(1):
Tho America of Washington's day was
primitively, racially rural. Tho country out
numbered tho city 30 to 1; It outvoted and
out-Influenced the city. By 1S20, ono in
every 20 Americans lived In cities; by 1900,
almost ono In three. Within HVo years thero
will bo moro peoplo in tho city than in tho
country districts,
Tho city nttracts becnuso it offers much
for little; becauso, heretical though the
statement may seem, living thero Is cheap.
True, city rents nro notoriously high, hut
you get moro for ench dollar spent. Tho
city is the homo of wholesale and thereforo
cheap amusement. Tho moving plcturo
show, tho variety theatre, tho .open trollej',
tho boat ride, tho amusement park aro won
derfully cheap becauso so many share tho
oxpensc. Much Is offered for nothing. The
fr-o lunch, tho public library, tho constant
snectnelo of tho "dressed" windows of flno
stores aro all gratuitous.
To economic attractions social attractions
nro added. Men aro incurably giegurlous.
They love to work, cat, loaf and read poetry
In crowds, nnd tho city provides tho crowds.
It permits an cscnpe from alio rut
of custom. It spells Independence, Individu
ality, solitude.
Tho American city, which arose out of a
precipitate, unordered, ultra-lndlvldualistlo
exploitation of vast natural resources nnd
grew up parentless and without traditions,
is now evolving a new Ideal of democratic
co-operation and Is gradually Impressing
that Ideal upon the whole American nation.
Thero Is an echo In the New Republic (2)
of an exceedingly significant move on tho
part of American cities this winter, when,
for perhaps the first time, they effeptlvely
acted upon a recognition of tho practical
vnuo of concerted action on their part. In
the creation of a Utilities Bureau for the
benefit of all cities In their dealings with
the public service utilities)
Suppose the citizens of Jonesvllle mako
up their minds that tho rates charged by
tho gas company ought to be lower, Jones
vllle has 40,000 inhabitants. Their gas com
pany Is capitalized at $700,000. Tho contest
does not lool; unequal. It would not bo un
equal If tho gas company were really as
isolated and self-dependent as Jonesvllle.
But the gfo company is not dependent
upon Itself alone. It Is controlled by a hold
ing company capitalized at $110,000,000.
Holding companies control nearly five and
a half of the eight billions Invested in Amer
ican gas, electric, Btreet railway and Inter
urban railway companies. The Middle West
Utilities ' as an example, oporates In
12 states and 316 cities. Naturally, these
companies bave their own bureaus for col
lecting the facts they need. The Mayors
of American, cities, at their conference in
Philadelphia, on public policies as to mu
nicipal Utilities, decided that jho tlmo had
come for attempting a like work for cities
on a national fiCale. Tho result is tho Utili
ties Hureau,
The functions of this Utilities Bureau are
to cojlsftt and collate data, s to rates, sr
-
IN AMERICA
terested citizens, to help by study and advice
cities that want help in solving their utility
problems; to encourage the Introduction of
cost-keeping methods, similar to those fol
lowed in tho industries, throughout tho utili
ties whether publicly or privately ownid
to serve ns a national agenty
through which American cities may co-op-crato
by exchanging data as to cost factors,
service standards nnd rates.
Deep in the Heart of tho City
Lillian D. Wald, founder of tho famous
Nurses' Settlemont on tho East Sldo of New
York, and for 21 years Its head, knows the
city of tho other half, not only with tho
familiarity of her years of residence there,
but with tho subtler, closer intimacy of a
woman of Keen sympathies nnd delicate per
ceptions, which have enabled her to enter
into the lives of thoso about her nnd become
a vital fuctor In her adopted community.
Her story of "Tho Houso on Henry Street," .
Which Is nppearlng in tho Atlantic (3), gives
vivid glimpses of child life In the" tenements! v
Happily somo of tho early prejudice ,
against hall playing on Sunday has van
ished. Wo Wero perplexed in those early
days to explain to tho lads why, when they
saw tho ferries and trains convey golfers
suitably attired nnd expensively equipped for
a day's sport, their own games should out
rage respectable citizens and causo them to
be constantly "chased" by tho police. The.
saloons could be entered, as everybody knew.
nnd I remember a father defending his 8-ycar-old
son from an accusation of theft,
instancing ns a proof of tho child's trust
worthiness thnt "all the Christians on Jack
son street sent him for their beer on Sun
days." Tho woeful lack of Imagination displayed
in building a city without recognizing the
need of Its citizens for recreation through
play, music nnd art has been borno In upon
us many tlmfes. Now Yorkers need to be
reminded thnt tho Metropolitan Museum of
Art wan effectually closed to a largo pro
portion of the citizens until. In 1891, It
opened Its doors on Sundays. It is Inter
esting to recall that of tho 80,000 signatures
to tho petition for this privilege, 60,000 were
of residents of tho lower East Side, and were
presented by tho "Working People's Petition
Committee." Tho report of tho museum
trustees following the museum opening
notes, thnt nfter a little confusion lnt tho
start tho experiment proved a success; that
tho attendance was "respectable, law-abiding
and intelligent" nnd thnt 'tho laboring
classes were well represented'." Thoy were
also obliged to report, however, that the
Sunday opening had "offended somo of the
museum's best frlouds nnd supporters," and
that It had "resulted in tho loss of a be
quest of $00,000."
I cannot effnee from my memory the plc
turo of a llttlo 8. year-old girl whom I once
found standing on a chair to reach a wash
tub, trying with her tiny hands to cleanse
somo bed linen which would have been a
task for an older person. Every few min
utes .the child got down from her chair to
peer into tho next room, where her mother
and the new-born baby lay, all her little
mind Intent upon giving relief nnd comfort.
She had been alone with her mother when
tho baby was born, and terror was an her
face. I think tho memory never left her,
but It may be only that her presence called
up, even after the lapse of years, a vlBltin
of the anxious little face Inevitably con
trasted In my mind with the picture of lr
responsible childhood.
"Checsit, tho Cop"
The Survey (4) reports a pew method of
reaching and Influencing the boya of New ;
York's East Side:
"Folks have the Idea we're rearing a bunChj$
of toughs and gunmen down here on iD
East Side. We've got to show them they're
wrong," This Is why Captain John Sweeney.
of the 15th Police Precinct, hos organic
the "Kd Cops' Captain Sweeney know8
East Side ypungsters. For 29 years he has
watched the mimic warfare between boys
who shoot craps on the sly and police trying
to Catch follows shooting craps. 80 ha has
recruited the Junior Police Fqrce. There
are now about 300 on the force, and as these
prove their efficiency, the number will M
gradually Increased from the 200 or more
names on the waiting list. These youthful
"guardians of the peace" help keep streets
clean, fire-escapes cleared, garbage cans in
proper condition," Captain Sweeney points
out: "Since the force was formed we have
bad few complaints about street bonfires,
whereaq we used to have a hundred ft nlgnt
Bometlmes. We expect to save tbo city thou
sands of dollars In asphalt." .
"Cheeslt, the cop" may yet slip from the,.
vocabulary or tne cast oioe-
uumn a
I know where'er the dear wlnts are1
The spacious silences
Have closed around, stillness profound.
Aut im rettm ut
That untorgojUan aro the hllb
Tngy us$a to now q aear.
The first gUtt note from Itpbln
Must tbriU them tber as here.
-Mtiy Uui WowJwwtl, In Uf Kn tnaKilt,'
M - -
OiZSg.