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Epitomizes mis- <• \ c i no t think there is a city in the United States that gathers up, as 



it were, into a single focus and epitomizes all the departments of missionary 

 activity so much as our own metropolis. Over sixty of the world's races 

 and nationalities live within our borders. Over fifty per cent of our people 

 are of foreign birth." 



t L ecreation Ubhc This is a population that by heredity is accustomed to recreation fur- 



nished by governments. By tradition, as well as by instinct, pleasant 

 occupation out of working and sleeping hours is necessary for its physical 

 and moral health, for its happiness and for its contentment. 



Fate of many The great bulk of the people, here as elsewhere, do not rise above finan- 



in cities. , . 



cial mediocrity. Many do not attain to that. They are not able, as individ- 

 uals, to provide means of recreation. This is true not only of the emigrant 

 from foreign shores. It also is true of most of the people attracted from 

 American rural life to the glitter and fascination of supposed city opportunity 

 — of the misguided, who are hastening to cities, many to spend their lives, 

 out of working hours, in life-sapping tenements and in the immoral influ- 

 ences of the street corners, saloons and dance houses. 



Cause for alarm. The movement from the country to the city is a cause for alarm. While 



the well-to-do, recognizing the need of pure air and change of scene for their 

 health and contentment, are seeking country life, vastly greater numbers 

 are leaving a natural existence to take up one that is artificial and baneful. 



Causes of insan- It is not surprising that, impelled by the desperation of misery, many 



persons turn for solace to the use of alcohol and to pleasures which open 

 the way to destruction. Liquor and the frequent result of these so-called 

 pleasures are the two great causes of insanity. Is it to be wondered that 

 our Hospital for the Insane at Dunning is greatly overcrowded to-day, and 

 that Cook county's quotas in the State Hospitals are full ? 



Crime and a It is not surprisins:, either, that many city people turn to crime, because 



crowded jail. . . ' . 



of the irritating conditions surrounding them. The Cook County Jail is so 

 overcrowded that our courts are blockaded with business. 



The critical prob- How are we then to occupy and satisfy this restrained, dissatisfied and 



restless population, when it is not at work or sleeping? How are we to 

 ameliorate conditions which are fraught with danger? Here is a critical 

 problem which our Commission can aid in solving. The government must 

 supply the necessity which private individuals can not procure. 



Crowning park The park boards of Chicago are doing much now for the masses, but 



the crowning park work is to be done by our Commission. We are to pro- 

 vide the future Chicago with what will be one of its greatest blessings and 

 one of its most needed safety appliances. 



Material for Outer Reservations. 



Ample material Fortunately this Commission finds the material at hand ample for its 



needs. To the east we have Lake Michigan with its cool winds, its bluffs, 

 and its natural bathing beaches. To the south are flats, lakes and a river. 

 To the west is the hilly height of land between the basin of the great lakes 

 and the valley of the Mississippi river. Beyond the height of land are the 

 wooded valleys of rivers and creeks. To the north are marshlands and 

 forest-topped bluffs. 



