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About St. Johns review. (Saint Johns, Or.) 1904-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 8, 1913)
H'lfc Sochi, St. Johns is Calling You It second tn number of Industries. It seventh in population. Can to Portland every 16 min. Ha navigable water on 3 tidet. Hot finest gat and electricity Hat two ttrong bankt. Hat five large tchool liouiet. Hat abundance of purett water. Hat hard turface ttreett. Hat extentive sewerage tyttem. Hat fine, modern brick city hall. Hat payroll of f 95,000 monthly. Shlpt monthly 2,000 can freight. All railroadt have access to it. It gateway to Portland harbor. Climate Ideal and healthful. St. Johns Is Calling You Has ttrcn church. Hat a most promising future. Distinctively a manufacturing city Adjoint the city of Portland. Hat nearly 6,000 population. Hat a public library. Taxable property, $4,500,000. Ha large dry docks, taw milli Woolen mills, Iron works, Stove works, asbestos factory, Ship building plant, Veneer and excelsior plant, Flour mill, planing mill, Box factory, and other. More industries coming. St. Johns Is the place for YOU, ST. JOHNS REVIEW Devoted to (he Interest! of the Peninsula, (he Manufacturing Center of the Northwest VOI,. 9 ST. JOHNS, ORKOON, FRIDAY, AUGUST 8. 1913. NO. 39 CITY BEAUTIFUL Purchase of Parks and Play Grounds Urged The following instructive pn nor was read by Miss Lulu Ma gone on "What Can We Do to Make St. Johns Beautiful" at the Mothers' meeting in the city hal Monday afternoon: it is wortli while to plan and work for a beautiful city. It should interest us almost as much as wo are interested in makingour own homes beoutiful. Wo can be very glud James John planned our streets for us, for if they had been laid out like many of our large cities, with no at tention paid to the lay of the ground and no special place for a business district with wider streets than the residence sec tion, our efforts to beautify St. Johns would be almost useless. for like a dress or a house, if a city is planned wrong no amount of trimmings can make it beau tiftil. Our principal aim must bo to keep our city from degon- eratingasit becomes more thick ly settled. If we should simply fold our hands and admire our beautiful view of the Willam ette and the hills beyond and think continually of how people from the Eastern stales "rai over it and how those who come from sunny California enjoy the grcon things we have the year around that grow wild without being planted or irrigated, our city would grow crowded, dirty and unhenltliful. like many other manufacturing cities, for it takes more than nn ideal situa tion to make a beautiful city. Our city probably always will bo a manufacturing city and the population working people. Many of them would liko to get out on a farm, but they cannot always do as they would liko, and tho best thing wo can do is to combine tho advantages of city and country as far as possi ble. It would be nice to have tho curbing tho whole length of the streets planted with shade trees of ono kind nnd size with rose bushes between tho trees. A smooth lawn with Mowers about tho houso and along tho curb is admired by every ono, but not all are willing to do tho neces sary work to hnvo a place liko this. Wo can insist, though, that every ono keep their houses and back yards clean enough so they will not spread diseases, with no tin cans partly filled with rain water where mosqul tos can breed and no uncovered garbage palls with decaying food to feed Hies and disease germs. Files nro ono of our greatest one mles, and if wo fight them all over our city It will not bo so hard to keep thorn out of our homes. I like the plan that has been tried in some cities of giv ing prizes to the children who kill tho most flies during tho fly season. We cannot have a clean, healthy city and flies at tho same time. I'll never forget what tho Ladles' Home Journal said last summer about files: "A fly walks with equal interest over a dead body, a manure pile or a nicely Iced cake." Itseemstome that it is even more important that we should have an inspec tor of door yards than it is to have factory inspectors, for more people dlo of preventable diseases than are killed by acci dents. One thing is certain that the first step toward having a beau tiful city is to make and keep it clean. We have already made a start in the right direction by getting an ordinance passed that all property owners must cut down weeds or pay the city for cutting them. Now that we women are be ginning to realize what we can do, it will not be long till the dirtiest places of all, the saloons, are a thing of the past. Physicians tell us that the time is coming when the plans of all buildings will be inspected and approved by some one com petent to judge if the building would be a healthful place to live in or not before building permits are granted. I wiU be -glad if St. Johns will hasten this time by employing a health officer to do this work. We cannot do much to improve jold buildings, but we can see that new ones are built right. There is no rea son why every one at home and in the various places of employ ment should not have plenty of light and air. Even factories arc healthful, pleasant places to work when b'.ult -right, as the woolen mill has proven to its employes. We must not forget that child ren need play grounds as well as good houses to live in. We older people, too, often wish for a nice picnic ground within walking distance of our homes. This is a matter we must attend to very soon, or tho woods in the north ern and eastern parts of the Pen insula, which are the only places left for parks, will be cut down for fuel. I hate to sec the trees cut down, for I know if the city does not buy tho land we not only can never have a park, but there will be no nice places to even take a walk. The price of the land, too, is certain to keep rising, especially so after the Panuma canal is finished. It would not bo nocessurv to nut many improvements on the lnnd nt first, but we should buy the park site as soon as possible. Mr. Nolan, the principal land scape gurdener and town plan nor in America says: "if you write an article on city planning don't forget to nut on every page an exhortation to American cit ies to buy land buy land when they aro young and buy land ev ery chance they get. They CANT go wrong. Tell them to buy land." We cannot ulTord to let Seattlo get ahead of us in anything but size. They have provided every portion of tho fu ture residence section of the city as it expands with a forest park, a play ground nnd a drive along the water. Wo need these things now and will need them more every year as the population in creases. Children as well as tur keys need plenty of "ramro" in order to grow up largo und strong. It has beoir proven by statistics that in tho big cities tho smaller tho homes tho small er the children. In one of the garden cities of Englnnd the av erage fourteen year old children wcro seven inches taller than tho average height of the child ren living in the slums nearbv. Of courae they-had-botter food, but good food alone cannot mako icalthy children. At tho foot of Oswego street isxa nice pasture for cattle, and :m sure children would enjoy it f they could have It for n play ground. The under brush is all cut down and many beautiful rees havo been left standing. Wo can trust tho men to tnko good caro of tho farm nnimnls, but wo can't expect them to rive much thought to play grounds for tho children, for they naturally expect tho moth ers to look after tho children. They havo made laws for the )rotection of cattlo and hogs for years, uncio bam sends out mil- etms to help them, nnd now that we women -are voting citizens wo can do as much for tho chil dren. We have been waiting or years for St. Johns to provide us with a pnrK, mil i believe now that it is our placo to do what wo can toward getting one. A recent editorial in the Even- ng Telegram tells of n mother's appeal for some arrangement by which children could play safely in somo of the streets, as the citizens have not provided ade quate play grounds for them. She made this request for tho jenefitof other people's child ren, as her own little one was killed while playing in tho street. t seems that in some of our most crowded cities certain blocks are closed at specified times to give the children a safo place to play. This plan is better than no play ground at all, but we want to make sure while St. Johns is young that the children will al ways have a pleasant place to play. When I was a child and my mother would take mo to the city I felt so sorry for the child- 1 1 t if ren wno nuu aucn units liny yards to play in, and feel the same way yet. We must agitate the matter of a public park until we have an opportunity to vote bonds for one. We have no place for a very large park, but do you not think we would be very proud of St. Johns if we had two or three parks connected by a boulevard? Representatives of the U. S. Bureau of Plant Industry and fruit growers of the Northwest will soon hold a series of meet ings to discuss in a general way the subject of apple storage and refrigeration and to report some thing of the Government's prog ress in investigations as to the behavior of fruit in cold storage. This is a timely topic and one that will interest the live fruit growers who appreciate the value of the work that is being done to develop the subject. WHAT IS NEW In the World of Fashion able Dress You can't find anything smart er for the summer outing than this Balkan middy blouse, in white linen frill or sateen, with front closing skirt of white serge, linen or ratine. No. 7015 shows a clever model, easy to make, and in the popular drop shoulder style. It; slips on over the head and laces in front, un der the tie that gives a cunning touch of color. Even these out ing things are made with tho Rol bespierro collar, which is so comfortable, rolling down to show a glimpse of white throat, and you can use a bit of contrast ing color or fabric in this, Blue, umber or rosoepongoor blue nnd white or black and white striped ratine would combine wejl with white nnd black moiro or satin tie. Of courso with this you want a front closing skirt, be cause in tub skirts the exigen cies of laundering mnst bo con sidered, and a skirt that buttons all the way down the front Is tho easiest thing in the world to iron, for it can be opened nnd spread out , flat on tho ironing board. Thero are plaits nt tho back, but if you feel they mako tho skirt too wide- though mind you, a tub skirt needs a little ex tra width you may stitch tho plaits all tho way down to the lower edge. Thero aro six sizes to tho blouse. 32 to 42. and size 3G requires 2J yards 36 inch ma terial, lo cents, tho sKirt Yova is in three sizes, lb, 17. 18 years and size 18 requires 3i yards 42 inch material. Pattern 15 cents. The Heights Boulevard City Commissioner Brewster is investigating tho project, pro posed by property owners along the heights between Portland and Linnton, of grading for a scenic boulevard to follow tho hills high above tho present Linnton drive. Iheir plan is to turn the graded roadway over to the city, with the proviso that it shall be paved and maintained at the city's expense. Tho projected boulevard would be about 12 miles long and would follow tho contour of the hills, instead of going In a straight line. It is the plan of the people in Linnton to apply for annexation to the city soon, Mr. Brewster said, which would remove any obstacles in the way of having the city take -over the entire boulevard. Oregonian. As a result of the recent visit of Chief Forester Graves to the Siuslaw Forest Reserve, the ag ricultural lands included in that tract will be opened to entry by homesteaders. A large part of the land best suited to agricul ture and dairying has already been surveyed and segregated and the balance will receive at tention as soon as possible after applications by prospective set tlers have been received.. Get an electric head treatment or massage at Gilraore'a Barber Shop. Free School Books? St. Johns now has the most enterprising nnd progressive School Board that it has over possessed. New and valuable features aro frequently being added to the school work. Man ual training, sewing und music have been inaugurated, and more pluy ground has been secured for the children. The newest thing thai is being arranged for is cooking. Not only will the art of cooking in its sovcrn phases be taught, but tho pupils will bo given instruction as to tho food value contniucd in the different articles of diet. This is a most important feature, and should provo of incalculable val uo to the coming generation. Another innovation that the Board is favoring, and which means much to the parents, is tho proposition of placing before the voters of tho school district tho issue as to whether or not the district shall purchase all school books, instead of tho par ents, as has been the case. The buying of school books by parents heretofore has been most bur uensome. Almost every year there has been now books to buy, and parents of largo families have u difficult time in providing muds lor payment of same. If the vote is favorable, they will bo relieved of this burden be ginning with the September term, und the whole school dis trict will bear tho expense. In these modern times school books change qui to often, for what reuson many havo never been nblo to clearly understand. But if tho books aro provided bv the district, tho parents will not bo burdened nearly so bad y when n chunge of books is eifected. It is understood that tho micst on will bo placed uri to the voters in about twenty days, and It will then be up to tWnurcnta to vote and work in fnvpr of free school books. In Pennsylvania school books aro furnished .free to tho pupils, and it seems to boa most excellent system. Tho enter prise of tho school board in pine ing this question boforo tho peo ple is to bo highly commended. It is n most difficult matter for the school board in St. Johns to got tho sentiment of tho nubile on any proposition. So very few attend tho public school meetings as to mako tho meotings of but utile use. Therefore, the mem bers of tho board aro compelled to rely wholly unon their own judgment on all matters relating to school worK, without nn ex pression from the people. And they hnvo been doing exceeding ly well- In fact, could not do bet ter. TJio non-attendanco at tho meetings is conclusive evidence that tho people havo no obiec- tion to raise against tho admin istration of school affairs, and nro entirely pleased with tho management. Tho books aro open at nil times for public "In spection, und a statement of re ceipts and disbursements will bo published in December. Profoundest Truth The following extract is taken from an address by W. J. Bryan in 1910: "My friends, tho build ing of theso great battleships, these preparations by Christian nations to fight ono another, is a challenge to tho Christian civili zation of tho world; It is infidel ity to the doctrine taught by tho Founder of the Christian relig ion. Christ taught no such doc- trine; ho taught us the power of love, not the power of tho sword: and those who havo tried to put into practice this doctrine aro the ones who have suffered least from the use of force. I believe that this nation could stand bo- fore the world today and tell the world that it did not believo in war, that it did not believo that it was the right way to settle disputes, that it had no disputes that it was not wining to submit to the judgment of the world. If this nation did that, it not only would not be attacked by any other nation on the earth, but it would become the supreme power in the world." To many these doubtless seem like the words of a dreamer. Perhaps they are. To us, nevertheless, they are words of profoundest truth. Ex. There will be a slight inclina tion to claim that reports of pros perity are exaggerated when various bloated gentlemen aro called upon for their" income tax figures, TOWN PLANS Suggestions for Making City More Beautiful Tho following excellent paper on Town Planning was read by Mrs. A. T. Serrurier at tho Mo thers' Meeting in the city hall Aiondny atternoon: As 1 looked over our Mothers' meeting program and read the title of the subject I was to take part in. "My Idea of a Beautiful Town," my memory ran back over the years of my life to the beautiful little village of New Lisbon, where I was born. It Is situated in the Lomomvnro Volley on the banks of the Lom omvnro river In Junean county, Wisconsin. No longer is the buzz of tho saw and shrill whistle of tho busy mills heard in its borders Tho woodman's axo has long since finished cutting the timber available for lumber. It is now surrounded by rich farms of grain and fruit, with tho slick kino roaming in the pastures of sweet red clover, and lowing at the pasture bars at the close of day for the husbandman to draw tho rich streams of milk for commercial use in the cheese factory and creamery. The beau tiful little village of 1200 popula tion, with its broad, well paved streets, bordered with tall elms that shades tho walk completely; the comfortable homes in the large, well kept lawns; a lovely mrk near tho center of the vil ago with a fine monument erect ed to the memory of the sailors and soldiers of the Civil War; a arge pavilion for nny public speaking; good graded schools with n tine High school building; four comfortable churches where tho sweet chimes of tho bells ring on n nuict Sunday morning. calling tho villngers1and nearby farmers to their devotions in the Houso of God, and to the God of lovo- such are the pictures that hang In the hall of memory, and it is nil thero still, for I visited there three years ago this month. It is not grandeur, but simplic ity, that draws us nearer to God and brings out what little good there is in us. Wisconsin has several beautiful towns, and I might mention Waukesha, l uni ons for her healthful water that is bottled and shipped all over tho United States. She has many beautiful homes and surround ings, but tho same can bo said of thousands of other villages and towns all over the United States, and world, too, for that matter. Town planning, towns nnd vil ages, aro planned and started from conditions surrounding them. It is tho several indus tries carried on that makes or mars a town. Men for ages have been building und beautifying towns nnd villages for homes, nnd made a success of it. I might almost say that it has been carried too far. Man has done this for the pleasure of wo man. Now let woman use her infiuonco to keep theso clean. Vice and drunkenness can not thrive without patronage. Let us use our muuence to Keep our children from patronizing vice, and it will naturally move out or die. I think we need to begin m the home, and when the child is small and teach the child not to mark or mar and destroy proper ty. Just as soon as a family moves out of a house thero is a bevy of boys ready to ransack tho house, carry off everything movable, break windows und sidewalks and leave things In a deplorable condition. Another thing that mars the beauty of any place is to see names and in- tints and hideous pictures cut n every available place, even on tho bark of trees. I was walk ing yesterday in one place where a beautiful laurel is just shed ding its bark in the beautiful pale green of the new bark. It was all cut and marred. It just made mo shiver; it was almost ike cutting into the flesh of a uiman being. We need to learn children not to do such things. Learn them that their name is something to bo kept pure and clean and a part of their charac ter, and not to be scratched around everywhere. The Elec tric Power Co. cannot place a seat along its track for the tired passenger to sit upon without it being all cut-and marred up. 1 seo by the bt. Johns Review that Mr. Lewis, a gentleman up- pointed by tho Commercial Club 'COUNCIL MEETS Matters of Importance Receive Attention With the exception of Alder man wucox, all members were present at the regular meeting of the city council Tuesday even ing. The fire department asked that tho citV Insure thn flntinrlmnnr against accident and illness, as i was proposed some time ago. One .member of the department. J. F. Mitchell, is now suffering from n broken leg contracted ' while on duty. Matter referred to a committee consisting of Al dermen Wilcox and Vincent and Attorney Gatzmyor to draft ah uruuiiwicu pruviumg lor sucn 'n novation, which power is dele gated to council by tho charter. u. u. Lewis, as spokesman nnd chnirmnn of tho park com mittee of tho Commercial club, told of the club's rccommenda tion that the city hold n special election lor the purpose of secur ing land for park purposes, und that the club had recommended lour pieces of land lor the pur pose, which aggregated about eleven acres of lnnd at a total price of $30,000. Mr. Lewis en larged on tho desirability of parks and play grounds, claiming that they had n tendency to re duce crlmo and Immorality. Up on his recommendation the may or and city attorney were ap pointed to work in conjunction with the Commercial club in looking the sites over, und se cure options on same if tho loca tions were deemed most nractl- cal for the uso intended. Alder man Vincent earnestly advocat ed parks as crlmo reducers nnd their value from n health stand point. As the present council b some what uncertain us to tho citv's situation in regard to tho city rock crusher and equipment lease, the city attorney was di rected to investigate tho status of samo und report us soon as' possible. Attorney Gatzmyor iravo us his opinion that the reconsidera tion of the proposed mnrove- mcnt of Richmond street, which had been voted down several weeks ago owing to excess cost, was Impossible under tho rules of order embodied in Ordinanco No. '1. Since tho former voto took placo it has been found that tho excess cost could bo greatly reduced, and several of tho conn- oilmen wcro desirous of recon sidering the vote. Tho only thing possible, according to the attorney, In order to hnvo tho improvement tako placo would be to begin at tho beginning of proceedings, which council ex pressed no disposition to do at this time. I ho city recorder was directed to udviso the Homo Tolonhono Co, to Install efficient service in St. Johns in accordance with tho provisions of its franchise. Tho company has held a franchise for tho past five yeurs, and It is un derstood that so far thero are only two phones in tho city. Ono citizen stated that ho had applied for a Home phone mo'ro tlinn a year ago. but had been unable to secure one. 'lhe proposed mnrovement of East Polk street, which Improve ment Is being vigorously fought by Miss Elizabeth Cuplcs et. al was held over once more for an other week, In order that tho city attorney might delvo more deeply into several technicalities that have ar sen as to tho nower of signing remonstrances. Miss Caples stated that she would bo willing to grade the street be tween Lynn avenue and Jersey street, provided tho improve ment of tho street did not tako place, after the issue had been raised by Alderman Martin, who also believed sidewalks should be laid on both sides of the street for that distance. The hard surfacing of Fessen- to look after tho uvailable loca tions for park purposes hero in St. Johns, has selected four different places and says they can be secured for thirty thou sand dollars. I think all four are fine, and that we ladies of the W. C. T. U. should uso our infience to help them all we can, for if there is any one thing that makes a city beautiful and restful it iB these small parks right in tho city where they aro wanted not so much for tho present generations as thoso to como after, den street between Smith ave nue and Oswego street was ac cepted by the council, upon ac ceptance by the engineer and street committee. Tho report of Chief of Police Allen for tho month of July was read and accepted. A quarterly report of the city recorder showed a balance in the general fund of $10,391. As the city exchequer is being depleted in a rather rapid man ner, it was decided to reduce the street working force ns much as possible. Tho First National Bank was awarded $5,296.90 improvement bonds at par nnd accrued inter est. It was the only bid offered. An ordinanco providing tho time nnd manner of Improving Fox street between Charleston und Oswego was passed. An ordinnnco establishing the Erado of Willamette boulevard etween Richmond and Burling ton streets was also passed. A resolution providing for tho improvement of Burlington street between Jersey and Cen tral avenue by grade and cement sidewalk was adopted. Directory resolutions for the improvement of Crawford street between Burlinuton and Pitts burg with standard concrete paving, and Central avenue be tween Buchanan and John street by grade and sidewalk were adopted. A petition for tho improve ment of Willamette boulevard between Richmond nnd John street wns ordered returned -to tho petitioners with the request that tho Improvement bo contin ued to Burlington street, and more property owners sign same. u. L. I'crrino usked that tho open sower" near tho woolon mills bo mndo less odoriferous. Tho gentle western zephyrs were so laden und permeated nt times, ho said, with tho "perfume" cminnting therefrom that the nhnbitants in that neighborhood were almost overpowered. Mr. Perrino ulso recommended that tho crematory bo placed in good working order, and that it bo ooked after in n more efficient manner than has lately been tho case. The mayor promised that theso matters would receive duo attention. Iho following b us were ul- owed: Chns. Secrist $7.50, W. A. flynn. $15. II. II. Rnsier $5. N. Shoemaker $12.50, C. F. Brooks $15, Paul Nelson $15. B. Wanless $15, E. Jones $15. A. 15. Strait $15, Fred Zolgler $15, Fay Rob- nson $15. II. Williams $15, L. VanDuzen $15, Fred Brown $3.75. Jess Walker $3.75, Portland tnllway, Light and Power Co. $1421.31, J. T. Harbin $2, T. L. mcrson $20. John Kline $15, St. Johns Hardware Co. $30.83. Geo. Skarr $15, E. C. Robinson $15, Bert Olin $10, St. Johns Planing Mill 70c. Portland Glaz ed Cement Pipo Co. $71.70, St. Johns Review $85.70, Edmondson Co. $2.70, St. Johns Express and Transfer Co. $24.25, B. Simmons $15, Bates Sand and Gravel Co. 40c, making a total in all of $1, 920.14. Spend Your Money Here What makes a town? People and business. What you buy helps mako the business. Thu more you buy the better tho bus iness; the more business the better the town. You want tho town to grow and improve, don't you? Then you should help it to grow by increasing its business as much as you can. Every time you send elsewhero for goods you givo your town a blow. Enough of these blows will ultimately kill tho town. Tho mail order houses do nothing for your town except to try to kill it. Aro you helping them? You are if you send your money to them for goods that you could buy at home. If you aro more interested in the growth of Portland, Chicago or New York than you aro in the Erosperity of your own neigh ors, then continue to send to those places for goods, If you want your own town to thrive, spend your money here. A party from Raymond, Wash., was boasting about the number of industries that town contain ed, claiming the number was much greater than in St. Johns. When a citizen asked the num ber, the reply was "fifteen." Tho local man then began to enu merate tho industries of St. Johns, but when ho had reached nineteen, the Raymond booster collapsed. As a matter of fact thero aro fow cities of its size that contain more industries than St. Johns.