Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 4.djvu/173

 MUNICIPAL PLA YGROUNDS IN CHIC A GO 155

of the municipal appropriation, owing to the irregularity of its dis- bursements. Serious problems would be solved if these play- grounds were made permanent and put under the control of the school board or the park commissioners.

2. Success. — The need, which had been seen and met in other cities and which all students recognized, of systematic play was manifest from the beginning and has been met in the case of hundreds of children through these six playgrounds and the playroom. Not all the attendants were skilled gym- nasts, and the kindergartners were not specialists in play; yet a new world of pleasure and profit must have been opened to most of these children by the cooperative activities of the playground. No visitor could doubt that instruction in play is quite as essen- tial to the child's welfare as the other instruction he receives. Even in the most difficult cases — the older boys without initia- tive — there was diversion for a time and at least a momentary interruption to cigaret smoking — itself probably a contributory cause to lack of initiative.

The amount of juvenile criminality prevented it would be difficult to state even approximately, the proportion of the popu- lation reached being so small, but it is generally thought to be considerable. In spite of the occasional accidents in the play- ground, none of them serious, there was unquestionably a con- tribution made to the health of the community by these oases in the midst of arid streets. While the playgrounds seemed not to be so much used by mothers with babies as is reported from other cities, a great relief came to the mothers by the occupa- tion of so many children during the much-dreaded vacation time.

The greatest success was perhaps in the demonstration of how much can be done for little money. A thousand dollars from the Chicago city council provided for the equipment of the grounds and the salaries of the men custodians. Considerably less than that amount from the vacation-school board furnished remuneration for the janitors and kindergartners. It is not invidious to mention here that the success of the playgrounds is largely due to the initiation of the movement by Miss Sadie American, the sympathy of Mayor Harrison, and the invaluable