Fig. 2634. A Beautiful Street in Dayton, Ohio. 



COMMERCIAL BODIES AND CIVIC IMPROVEMENT. 



E. L. SHUEY, 



IN "the how of improvement work." 



THE day is past when improvement of 

 home surroundings is wholly a mat- 

 ter of private choice ; when only an 

 occasional " sweet will " decides whether 

 weeds or flowers shall grow over the pre- 

 mises and sidewalks, and whether the prin- 

 cipal ornaments of the rear yard shall be tin 

 cans. 



Neatly kept yards, well trimmed side- 

 walks and clean streets are now regarded as 

 high evidence of the city's prosperity as 

 much as large factories, and are one of its 

 best means of attracting desirable citizens. 

 The city must advertise as well as the busi- 

 ness man to-day if it would attract capital, 

 good men and women and law-abiding citi- 

 nens. 



Efforts are made by many cities to draw 

 factories and business enterprises to settle 

 within their limits. The advantages of rail- 

 road and steamboat communication, the 

 nearness of markets or of raw material, the 

 excellence of labor — all are arguments fre- 

 quently used with manufacturers and in- 

 vestors to prove a city's opportunities. But 

 in recent days it has been recognized that 

 another element must be named ; attractive- 

 ness of the home life, the beauty and health- 

 fulness of the city, the excellence of its 

 schools. All these are now seen to be es- 

 sential to the growing town. In view of 

 this, the improvement and beautifying of 

 the city streets, parks, boulevards, and even 

 of its yards and houses, become matters not 



