ARBORICULTURE. 



305 



Improving the Appearance of Factory Surroundings. 



The vicinity of a railway is seldom a 

 place of beauty. On the contrary, it is 

 usually the most forlorn part of any 

 community. So, as a rule, beauty is sel- 

 dom soug'ht in the vicinity of great fac- 

 tories. 



It is refreshing to know that there are 

 exceptions to the general conditions, and 

 we are pleased to- give two^ views O'f the 

 Atlas Engine Works oi Indianapolis, 

 which show how handsomely the walls 

 are adorned with vines and creepers, 

 and the admirable landscape gardening 

 which is practiced on the company's 

 groundis. 



Workmen who come to- these shops 

 for their day's labor are greeted with a 

 view of nature improved by art. Their 

 thoughts are elevated, and work is a 

 pleasure amid such surroundings. When 

 they leave in the evening they carry 

 away pleasant memories, and are thus 

 induced tO' make their own homes more 

 attractive by surrounding them with 

 plants and flowers. 



The Indianapolis News recently said : 



Civic improvement societies here, as well as 

 elsewhere, have been urging upon manufac- 

 turers and the owners of factory buildings the 

 value — the practical vakie — of a "building beau- 

 tiful." They have had little to say on the sub- 

 ject of architecture, for that, in recent years, 

 seems to have displayed a disposition to take 

 excellent care of itself, but they have argued 

 the advantages to be obtained by planting vines, 

 shrubs, trees and flowers wherever there is 

 ground enough to supply root food. Whether 

 the building be old or new, they have disclosed 

 the possibilities it presents for such treatment, 

 and they have contended, rightly enough, that, 

 while it is well to look after the physical com- 

 fort of employes by providing lunch rooms, rec- 

 reation halls, gymnasiums and baths, it is also 

 of importance to provide something green and 



growing and blossoming for the development 

 of other and better instincts in the hearts of the 

 workmen. 



These same societies have said, also, that 

 were factories more frequently so beautified 

 there would be fewer untidy lawns in front of 

 workmen's cottages and fewer dirty backyards. 

 There would be cleanliness and health, even a 

 better moral atmosphere. These things would 

 be brought about by the example the factory 

 itself sets before its men, for gardening on 

 large or small scale is contagious. 



The Atlas engine works, in this city, is a 

 splendid illustration of what can be done by 

 vines and shrubs and trees. To those who look 

 only upon the surface of things, this planting 

 may all seem a waste of time, or at best only 

 ornamental. But it has a deeper value, and one 

 which the officers of the company have come to 

 appreciate. "It has never been our purpose," 

 said one, "to undertake welfare work or any- 

 thing that has in it an element of paternalism. 

 Many laudable results have been accomplished 

 by that sort of effort in plants employing 

 women and boys, but in building heavy ma- 

 chinery our employes are grown men, amply 

 able to take care of themselves in matters- of 

 recreation, social intercourse and moral growth. 

 We have, however, considered it a matter of 

 good business policy, as well as of pleasure, to 

 make our workshops, inside and outside, as 

 agreeable as it is possible to make them. To 

 this end we look after a thorough system of 

 sanitation and cleanliness. The shops are kept 

 just as clean as possible at all timse. The 

 wash rooms, closets, lockers and other con- 

 veniences are up-to-date and are always kept 

 clean and in good repair. The next consider- 

 ation is light, and lots of it. The shops are so 

 built in the first place as to let in all the day- 

 light possible, and we have been able to in- 

 crease this light by using aluminum paint and 

 white paint on our machine tools, beams, crane 

 runways, walls and woodwork. This flood of 

 light not only makes the shops more agreeable 

 to work in, but is a great help in the matter of 

 accuracy, and where measuring is done to the 

 thousandth of an inch, accuracy is a most im- 

 portant consideration. On the exterior of our 



