Page:America's National Game (1911).djvu/390

 "This 'boys' movement' has taken such a firm hold in Trenton that last week 6,000 citizens attended an athletic meet near that city, given for the benefit of the movement, and $1,000 was netted with which to promote and maintain the Base Ball fields and other playgrounds next year. And the beauty of it is, that there has been clean, harmless Base Ball under reliable auspices, the boys have been kept out of danger, mischief and immoral associations, and the police records show a very marked decrease in the number of juvenile arrests. Not a single arrest for disorder was made during the entire summer at the ball grounds, though many hotly disputed points had to be settled.

"Trenton boys are exactly like the boys of other cities. They love Base Ball. If they can't play themselves they will dig holes in the board fences, climb trees, sit astride chimneys and take all manner of risks to see others play. If they can't play in the parks they will play in the streets, and if there's no place at home they will run away to play. Trenton seems to have successfully solved the problem of what to do for the boys, and is now trying to find out what to do for the girls. It all goes to show that children must play. It is their privilege by nature, by right and by necessity."