The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, March 25, 1906, Page 14

THE SA N 'FRANCISCO SUNDAY CALL. Provding Plaugrounds for Ch of [dren .the Citu, zation schools is of which ECt hear think the Bast citles as New York the pub- ) came to n that it not getting al due it of less. i Chicag taxes pald go gs where are located cked? tes tor the after school the task of hool yard until half afternoon, playing tennis vs and girls he fact that one or per opp were thrown into Noonan's pupfls went with Gate Park to enjoy the s courts. Gradually the began to enlarge until hole and then the wh sch ted to go. Of course th actical, so Miss Noonan Ee see how she could ar- range t leasure of all who wished She fir: e permission of 5 progressive principal to us. he school hours. In spite old boarded . the most ideal place heless it was all L so M Noonan set work to make the best of it. She of white paint and the boys h r 3 as they would the finest clay or asph court. T she bought her own net and balls e n. Every afternoon d of the Franklin school fille ren enjoying their whole- some games. Besides teanis, er. ket b handball or marbles. The g jump rope and the whole dt- mosphere is one of cordial good fellow- rom care, as children ought N. A. Wood, the principal of the school, is as enthusiastic over re of her children as is Miss When the improvised tennis court became so popular that it could not the children who wished to Mrs. Wood bought goal posts and nets for a new game—basket ball. This new pastime at once became popular with both boys and girls, and now there is never an afternoon when you do not find two keen and interested teams swaying back and forth between thelr goals. Bas- ket ball is = fine clean sport that fur- nishes the best of exercise, both physical and moral, for there are rigid rules of nonor that hold the player up to a high of gaming. Indeed, the boys a foul play that such a thing ppens. se young people, as play, are a splendid and encourag- ample of what results we may hope n are shown the ru- ings. o saj 1 children will answer by ask- Franklin standard S0 res 1y they ing e for when our chiidr of fairness diments in a To the pe: e rough ing him mist w he ool on son streets some g The young full vent in all the never seen a sign of What the child to he ge erc young body, not says it se his curriculum must be so, but because wishes to have a good game Not only the children of Yhe school. childre Miss borhood ink of stealing a schoolyard ball thz e would o fly Most rd a bgll as and s ers keepers, the Every time > more boys 1 blic property case he a confines of the school it is returned by the next morning. When I asked the policeman on the beat what he thought of the plan, he told mre that he never had any trouble with the boys of the Franklin school “Why, that teacher, Miss Noonan, stays after school every night with the youns ~sters and keeps them out of mischief. e a week they let me know they are however, and that is on Fridays are turned out into the street y is that?" 1 asked afternoon Mr. Peixotto's vard for drill and the Fra suppo g into some ion.” lin boys 1 somethin; That something is often mischlef that needs m When the Board of on realized how thoroughly practical ble the idea was it lent its aid to the scheme :x-Superintendent Langdon, who is a hearty supporter of the idea, lent the weight of his influence and three fine handball courts were bullt. This is a very popular game with the boys, especial so now that the courts are built awa from the danger of breaking windows. The problem of breaking windows as a result of their play goon came before the children. The expense was divided among all the children several times. But this was not right, for the parents of some children were t00 Poor to pay even ine necessary penny or two that was required. So the 1dea of screening all the windows into being. That was done, and came N Japan no man is so great or so learned as to treat with indifference the world of flowers. The higher position he holds the more he is observed to give his time and thoughts to flowers and their ways. For it is there men of rank, phil- osophers and priests, learned and literary men, besides ladies of the aristocracy, mcst profoundly study floral arrange- ments and are allowed to practice this art as likely to inspire gentleness, self-de- nial, forgetfulness of care and spirituality. Indeed, a lifetime is none too long for a Japanese to devote to the subtle meanings conveyed by flowers and to store up an appreclation of thelr respective rank in his own and nearby lands, In a most subtle way the Japanese are experts In expressing thelr thoughts with flowers. To those starting on a journey, now therc is nelther expense nor danger of flying glass from any ball game. On one of my visits to the school yard| I was talking with Mrs. Wood, the prin- cipal, and a desperately unhappy looking boy approached and stood walting, as if to speak with Mrs. Wood. She turned about and said: “No, John, no play to- day!” And John walked off, the most wretched and unhappy specimen of youth I have ever seen. John had been naughty and his punishment was “no pl n the yard after school for a week. John's ex- pression told me how great the punish- ment was. Had he not been a boy, I know he would have cried, and perhaps did, when he got out of sight. The four handball courts are awarded, at rccess, to the line of ‘boys who keep the best order as they march out into the yard. So.you can see that the whole scheme is one of pleasure, and incentive for pleasure, to the school children. When we find such a young woman as Mi Noonan in our schoel depart- ment we realize that the training of our young Amerlcans is in safe hands. It not to be expected that teachers are in 3 time and energy for the pure love of the principle. But the good already done by Miss Noonan and Mrs. Wood is sure to be an object lesson to the community and ought to result in the providing of salaries for teachers who will spend the last hours of the after- noon in guiding the play principles of many the school children. Such a teacher must not be a dragon, feared by the children, but such a type as Miss Noo- nan, whom the pupils hate to leave when the last hour for closing the yard come a Jdirect result of the work of the al Council. one other school yard now open after study hours. This is at the Jefferson School, but there Is as yet no equipment, except that little ch has been donated by some few e women's clubs. 1e work goes on slowly but surely, however, and when San Franciscans are fully aroused to a realization of how far behind the times they are, they doubtless will make, a strenuous effort to make up for lost time. If we would have our American youths developed into responsible citi- zens and our girls into worthy wives and mothers we must see to it that the carly education is carefully guided. The duty of the commonwealth is not at an end when 3 o'clock comes. The pareats of these children pay taxes that go toward the support of the pub- lic schools and it is not just that they should be deprived of the use of this same L is t of flowers that blossom twice in the year are given, the thought being that a happy return is desired. Beside the sick, flowers of sturdy (almost rank) growth are placed, that the invalid's thoughts may be turned to health and vigor. Arrangements that accompany supplications for rain are curved from right to left. so that the east ‘wind may be honored, and naturally when clear weather is begged a reverse order is employed to appease the west wind. Sentiment is fairly embodied in the maples of Japan, a land where more than three hundred specles are boasted. In November the coquette sends to her lover position to give their * LI R SIS TR S )2 N2 L a leaf or sprig of maple, and he, noting its many hues of red and purple, thinks “like its color her love has changed.” The pine tree, on the contrary, means to the Japanese stability of character and eternity. The flowers that the Japanese emphat- The Flower Fangicrs of the Mikade’s Realm. ically reject from their hierarchy are the rose and the lily. These they re- gard as crude and unrefined expressions of nature, and indeed this thought is expressed in Japan of many other flow- ers ecstatically loved in Great Britain and this country. The wistaria, mag- nolla, azalea, peach and plum blossom \ SESSSS and the morning glory may be added to those already mentioned as especially holding their attention and favor. During ~ the kiku (chrysanthemum) festival at Aoyama the flowers' petals are placed in the winecups and passed around as an insurance of long life and happiness. When so many beauties are gathered together at this festival, each curve, each leaf, each twig having a distinction and proportion regulated by the most rigorous and immemorial principles, there is also a stringing to- gether of soft woods which tell the stranger their respective IN THE HAND BALL AJUMIPING ROPE CONTEST o R e e WL » b it i : ALAAN TR ANV NS TS SESE S S SIS S S 7002 TR AR T o 29I 8F PITIIR 2 IIT T I I %a%f&v‘zfv; /V/KJ 7 LoURY property two-thirds of the time. There can be no defense in sending the chil- dren of a crogded district out into the streets for th@ir play, to meet all kinds of temptation, while the school yards of this same neighborhood remain locked. The development of this same idea has taken form in the creation of pub- lic playgrounds, where the children of a neighborhood may go for their rec- reatlon and at the same time have in- struction from a well-trained athlete. Here, too, the children may learn the rules of their games and fair play. San Francisco already has such a play- ground down on Seventh street. but she ought to have many more in the near future. From the point of view of usefulness and healthy benefit to the child. the school-yard playgrounds certainly come first. There he remains under the rules of the school, and has for play-fellows, not children from all quarters, but his own schoolmates. The fact that he is deprived of play if he has been bad in school has its moral force. There 1s no reason why the useful- thousand times sprinkled with gold. bor- der of thin mists, shades of the evening sun, waves of the morning sun, moon's halo, companion of the moon, snow on the loaf of the bamboo, starlit night, golden dew, disheveled hair In morning sleep, spray capped wave and dawn sky being a few of the multitude bespeaking poetic imagination. In the arrangement of chrysanthemums the Japanese guard against seven faults. Thelr stems must not be of the same length, a single flower must not turn its back or present its full face, the flowers must not be hidden by leaves, or, should they be arranged in the way of steps, a full blown flower should never be placed at the base of the composition and one 0dd one must not be allowed to fall be- tween two others alike In color. Three flowers should not appear to form & tri- angle. y . SeSavy BASKET BALL red shoul ness of the lit country district greater than that of The most advanced ustern have shown us that it need not be Especially in the crowded districts t mothers go during the evening with thelr sewing, an. there after a day hard work meet the mothers of the other children. And we hear of in- stances where parents leave cold and desolate homes for the well heated and well lighted school building. And why should San Francisco not offer this same advantage? Then we are told of free eveninc leo- tures in the schoolaouse—lectures or taiks that will ajeal to the fathers who are too busy during the day work- ing for the daily bread to find time to read. Why should San Francisco not have lectures of this sort in the school- bouse? There are none 50 unwise, however, as to advocate using the regular class- rooms of the children for these svening meetings. That would never do. Bus in the same bullding rooms could de set aslde for evening use. I have made mention of having branch Public Library in each building. This could be done with little trouble and would save the a great expense. The children, toe, use library books, would save time and doubtless many of those who de not use books might fall into the habit, with the library so near. I know all these things are possible, for they have been tried most swcoess- fully in Boston, Chicago, New York and other cities. Why then should San ¥rancisco not take advantage of her fine climate and make her start in opening all her school school hours? It has been proven that the children here will take advantag®, of the opportunity and enjoy it, se w! then deprive of thelr just rights any longer those children who have not had the good fortune to attend the Franklin School? Parents who send their children of to boarding school often give as & rea- son, “Because they can have so much more out-of-door exercise.” Is it right, though that only those few children of well-to-do parents should have that wholesome out-of-door exercise? Sure- 1y ne! The children of the poor should have just as much consideration. It Is a crime to send our boys and girls into crowded narrow struets for their play, when they easily have the freedom of a clean schovlyard. Awake, then, San Franeisco, and do your duty! When you find footpads of 14 years amoug you, don’t fold your hands and groan with horrer. is your ow fault. You have failed to do your duty by these very same boys. The individ- ual is the child of the state first of a and because the flashly parent cannot or does not do his duty is mo reason that the State should neglect it. Boys and girls are seldom bad In the beginning becauvse they wish to be, but because they are weak and are led to it. Keep, then, your boys and girls under the guidance of well trained and moral athletes in their play hours and they will have less time in which to learn the ways of crime in dark alleys. Fill up the time with wholesome sport and there will be little left for loading and contamination. It has been well said: “The boy without a playground is father to the man without a job.” That is the time when the real mis- chief Legins. olhouse in the much sl can so