2 PARKS 



has been shut out. People are deprived of an abundance of the direct rays 

 of the sun by the smoke and dust in the atmosphere, by the shadows of 

 structures and by the fact that the major part of the work done in the 

 modern city is conducted indoors. 



City planners are seeking to offset this by letting in more sunlight 

 through the laying out of broad streets, the limiting of the height of build- 

 ings, the installation of devices for the burning of materials which create 

 a great deal of smoke and soot, and through the use of dust-laying mate- 

 rials on our surfacing. The most basic of all planning measures, however, 

 is the reservation of open spaces in such numbers and with such areas, 

 both within and without the city limits, that the majority of people can 

 easily frequent them, thereby getting away from congested living and 

 working places into spaces where the air has unrestricted movement and 

 is reasonably clean and pure. The planting of trees along city streets, of 

 trees and shrubs in all open spaces where they may be grown with a rea- 

 sonable degree of success, not only adds much to the beauty of city envi- 

 ronment but is a great aid in keeping the air freshened. 



The nervous system of man, with its delicate and intricate organi- 

 zation, requires repose, rest and relaxation. City life, with its noise and 

 constant movement, gives little opportunity for a let down of the high 

 tension to which the nervous system is subjected. The monotony of the 

 highly specialized processes of modern industry not only leads to extreme 

 irritation of the nerves but thwarts every impulse to initiative, imagina- 

 tion and creation in itself a source of great irritation to a being who for 

 untold centuries was to a greater or less degree a builder and creator. 



The effect on children is equally harmful. Reared in an atmosphere 

 of noise and kaleidoscopic-like motion, their natural impulses to activity 

 restricted on every hand by physical limitations, their nervous systems 

 are under a constant strain and they grow into highly strung adults lacking 

 in power of repose. 



Nothing is more in harmony with the previous experience of mankind 

 than the quietness and beauty of large reservations. Small landscaped 

 areas scattered thickly by the cities both in business and residential sec- 

 tions are also highly desirable. But the larger areas are fundamental as 

 an antidote to the rush, hurry and strain of ordinary living and working 

 conditions in modern cities. 



City dwellers need above all things to renew frequently contact with 

 soil and growing things; to engage in activities that are different from 

 the daily routine of living and work. Hence the necessity for outdoor 

 and indoor facilities and opportunities which can be provided on children's 

 playgrounds, at playfields, swimming centers and trails for hiking and 



