454 THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 



Riverside pioneered the work on this coast, but it was quicldy joined 

 by several enterprising towns which passed ordinances placing street 

 tree planting and care in the hands of a special department, and pro- 

 vided funds in their annual budget for carrying on the work. 



The transformation this general street planting wrought in the towns 

 that went into the matter in good earnest, attracted much attention at 

 home and abroad. It was widely discussed in local papers. Riverside 

 received quite the most publicity abroad in her history, through 

 extended articles on her street tree ornamentation, in such magazines as 

 the Survey, Harper's, AVorld's Work and other standard journals. 



The radical change in general appearance of these cities was neces- 

 sarily slow, as it takes time for trees to grow, but the difference made in 

 a few years was most remarkable. Take Pasadena, for instance : it is 

 difficult to recognize the city of today as the Pasadena when its tree 

 planting campaign commenced eight or ten years ago. It would be 

 difficult to determine the commercial value that has been added to these 

 cities through this street tree planting; that it has been many times 

 greater than the cost is generally conceded. In Riverside its value is 

 placed by our conservative real estate men at more than a million 

 dollars. 



All this seems interesting and commendable, but what I want to say 

 especially is that the good work of beautifying our cities by tree planting 

 has really just commenced, even in the cities that have done the most. 

 Our own city, which possibly has done as much as any, may easily 

 improve by an hundredfold on the work commenced. 



Tree planting readily leads to other important general ornamentation. 

 Uniform lawns on the parking spaces add almost as much to the beauty of 

 a city as trees. Here and there a lawn before a private residence adds 

 to the attractiveness of the individual place. If the lawns are con- 

 tinuous they add immensely to the beauty of the city generally. It is 

 for the beautification of the city as a whole that I am now pleading. 

 Sometimes a town is spoken of as beautiful because of beautiful special 

 parts. City parks which are now receiving much attention, and very 

 properly so, may be beautiful in themselves. They do not add 

 materially to the beauty of a city in its entirety. A very homely city 

 may have beautiful parks. 



Some day we will wonder how so many California cities were allowed 

 to grow up without any attention to their general attractiveness, when 

 by a little special intelligent attention by the city officials, given at an 

 early date, their beauty might have been greatly and permanently 

 increased. 



It is generally conceded that California is already the foremost horti- 

 cultural state in the Union. This goes a long way towards the promise 

 that it will become the most interesting. Successful horticulture means 

 something more than so many carloads of fruit or tons of vegetables. 

 It means an interesting, enjoyable occupation for cultured, appreciative 

 people. I think it a commendable ambition to make our State the most 

 sought for by tourists from the East and from abroad. I fully believe 

 its cities may be made the most beautiful in America. 



