PARK AND CEMETERY. 
35i 
sections of the different parks were 
selected for playground use and equipped 
with the most modern and improved 
playground and athletic apparatus. 
The playgrounds are open from May 
1st until November 1st. During the 
school season the hours are from 3 :00 
portions being utilized for playgrounds 
do not reduce the usable size of the park 
and consequently there is no expense 
for land, and the maintenance is prac- 
tically reduced to the expense incurred 
for the necessary supplies and the em- 
ployment of competent instructors. 
lie parks than we have. There is pro- 
visions made for such things as base- 
ball, tennis and golf in the parks, but 
it does not go very much farther than 
that. We have tried to develop some 
sentiment in favor of the public play- 
grounds which at the same time will 
("HII.DREN'S SAND COURT. BRANCH BROOK PARK,. ESSEX COUNTY (N. J.) PARK SYSTEM. 
p. m. until 6 :00 p. m., and during the 
summer vacation from 10 :00 a. m. until 
1) :00 p. m. 
Competent teachers were placed in 
charge of each playground to teach the 
children the proper use of the apparatus 
and to guard against too vigorous ex- 
ercise. Kindergartens are maintained 
and the children taught to sew, weave 
baskets and perform correctly the usual 
household duties, and at the same time 
given suitable lessons as to cleanliness 
and proper conduct. 
If it were more generally^ realized 
that those using the park playgrounds 
may enjoy practically all the outdoor 
sports amidst delightful surroundings, 
the park playground idea would be gen- 
erally endorsed over that of playgrounds 
separately located which cannot possess 
the attractive environment of the park 
playground. 
Another most important advantage the 
park playgrounds have over those es- 
tablished strictly as playgrounds, is the 
cost of construction and maintenance. 
It is well known that all parks have 
portions which are not in actual use ex- 
cept to beautify the landscape ; these 
DISCUSSION FOLLOWING : 
The President : I read a paper some 
time ago on the subject of incorporating 
the public park system with the sys- 
tem of public education ; that is to say, 
many subjects taught by object lessons 
in the public schools could be supple- 
mented very advantageously by personal 
observation of the scholar and teacher 
in these parks— botany, for instance. I 
find this is the first development of that 
by the Essex Park Commission. After 
that paper was read I received many 
communications from the western states, 
which seemed to have taken up with 
the idea, and I would like to know of 
you gentlemen whether that idea has 
been carried out by any of your munici- 
palities, — the working of the park sys- 
tem in conjunction with the public school 
system. 
Mr. Brown : That is a question that 
some of us have been considering a good 
deal in the city of Indianapolis. So far 
we have not received very much en- 
couragement from the Park Commis- 
sioners. We feel that we need play 
grounds, and that we need a good deal 
more work for the children in the pub- 
be parks within the city; but at the 
present time our park commissioners 
are developing the boulevard sys- 
t&m and are improving the large parks 
which we have, so that they do not feel 
able at the same time to go into the pre- 
paration of these smaller parks and play- 
grounds within the city. 
The President : Mr. Reynolds does 
not advocate special playgrounds, but 
playgrounds as part of the park. In 
their parks they have the park proper 
and the playground is in the park, and 
as he says, it is a great saving of money. 
Mr. Weatherford: In Memphis we 
have a playground association which 
has charge of the playgrounds, and that 
association is developing a portion of 
each of the parks for a playground for 
the children. They have at present taken 
over a portion of a park in the north- 
ern part of the city and have equipped 
it pretty thoroughly, and they had very 
great success with that. 
Mr. Blair: There is no question but 
that provision for playgrounds is too 
much circumscribed in every city. I 
never have seen a city where there was 
enough playground. The only children 
that have enough ground on which to 
