URBAN COMMUNITY PROBLEMS 783 



" Virgil and Horace would congratulate us on the successful inter- 

 pretation of their verses : 



O fortunatos nimium . . . agricolas ! 



Pauca ruris jugera 



In culpa est animus qui se non effugat unquam. 



" Now every one of us may aspire to the pleasures of country life. 

 Numerous building-societies, through their credit and agency, have 

 helped those persons wishing to leave the town and settle in these 

 rural districts. 



" As you stroll out of them, you may have noticed many small 

 inclosures on the roadside, where plants of different sorts, intended 

 to please the eye or to serve in the kitchen, are grown. Here and 

 there a green arbor or a little shed peeps out. These inclosures are 

 small gardens let at a very low rent to those of our fellow townsmen 

 who might fancy them. Philanthropic land-owners having large 

 estates or vacant lots contribute their share for this needed work. 

 These gardens are the resort of numerous citizens of small means. 

 You may see them coming in the evenings or on Sundays; their rosy 

 children and themselves enjoy there the country air and develop 

 a love for nature. Such feasts are due to the commoner as well as 

 to the nobleman, and we are very happy to see other people following 

 our experiment on this point. 



" Other special reforms have been accomplished. Thus, for in- 

 stance, we have found out an excellent system for the removal of 

 street-sweepings. We turn them into a fuel out of which we produce 

 electricity, while the heat so obtained is used for preparing the water 

 of our public baths. Further, we wage war against the street dust; 

 for the present we sprinkle the road with tar or petroleum, but we 

 hope to be able to improve upon this treatment. We wage war 

 against town smoke; we have prevailed on those who burn coal to 

 use smoke-consumers. In all things we consult the most experi- 

 enced specialist, we invite competition, and we institute inquiries to 

 be made where practical processes are fully tested. 



" Lastly, we plant along our public highways, as well as along the 

 roads radiating in the interior of the country districts, trees known 

 for their hygienic properties, strictly avoiding those that spread 

 unpleasant odor or irritating particles. 



" (c) Public Safety. Beside our vigilance in behalf of sanitation, 

 we had to insure public safety, especially as regards buildings. 



" Limiting the height of buildings is, in an indirect way, a precau- 

 tion against fires, for the deep air-shafts of enormous houses produce 

 strong drafts, thus sending the flames rapidly through the numer- 

 ous stories and the neighborhood. Skyscrapers, being very rare 

 and at the same time absolutely fireproof, are no longer a danger. 

 We insist on easy exits for all kinds of houses, and on abundant 



