PARK AND CEMETERY 
and Landscape Gardening. 
VOL. XV. CHICAGO, FEBRUARY, 1906 No. 12 
^ark and Cemetery Superintendents, 
It is reported that the new superintendent of the 
Minneapolis parks, Mr. Wirth, late of Hartford, 
Conn., had been influenced to leave that city because 
the park system was about completed and that there 
was no further field for endeavor there. There must 
always be more sides than one to this question. A 
really well considered and adequate park system for 
any large city can never stand still ; it must progress 
and keep up with the times and therefore actually 
needs the oversight of a thorough superintendent. 
As we have long ago foretold, the parks will more 
and more become of an educational as well as a 
recreative nature for the people, so we will believe 
that Mr. Wirth feels that he has a mission that 
appeared impossible of fulfillment at Hartford and so 
in the interests of progressive park development he 
accepted the broader opportunities. We hope Min- 
neapolis will give every facility for the improvement 
of its parks, which may rapidly increase their already 
well merited reputation. The same idea should be 
uppermost with the cemetery superintendent; when a 
man of genius is found by the officials of the cor- 
poration to occupy such a position in their employ, 
he should be given every reasonable latitude ; it will 
be a paying proposition and dividends will be large 
in the public recognition and appreciation. 
^ ^ 
The Setting of Municipal Buildings, 
A matter that offends all educated people when visit- 
ing the average American city is the way so many of 
our public buildings are set in relation to their sur- 
roundings. That is to say, given a block as the amount 
of space to be appropriated to the structure, it is de- 
signed, as a rule, to cover the block entirely, regardless 
of its artistic value or the value it may impart to its 
surroundings. This has been a serious oversight and 
has been a reflection upon all who were concerned in 
such disregard of first principles. Of course this same 
experience is common to most of the civilized coun- 
tries in the centuries past, but it has been observed and 
has been remedied in many situations, and both in 
London and Paris vast sums of money have been ex- 
pended to remedy these recognized defects in municipal 
art. The misfortune is that recent examples in our 
own country compel the assumption that there is still 
considerable lack of appreciation of what is demanded 
in such municipal problems. A band of lawn around 
a public building effects a remarkable change, but this 
has been a piece of wasted real estate in the eyes of 
most of those who have hitherto had control in such 
matters; the “world do move,” however, and broader 
ideas and the growing artistic spirit are factors that will 
not “down” in our further municipal progress. 
'f ^ yf 
The Wide Tire Question, 
Chicago is grappling with the question of vehicle 
tires, an ordinance being before the city council regu- 
lating their widths so as to be proportionate to the 
loads carried. Of course there is the usual opposi- 
tion from many quarters, none of it bearing particu- 
larly upon the main question, that of the saving of 
expense in the maintenance of roadways. All these 
matters are far better governed in the leading Euro- 
pean cities than in ours, the idea of American liberty 
seeming to be the privilege of doing as one pleases 
without regard to anyone or anything else, and con- 
sidering the vast amount of the people’s money that 
has been spent in road repair to permit such freedom 
in the matter of wheel tires, it is strange that prac- 
tical economists have not considered this important 
question before. Such a regulation should be rigidly 
enforced ; it is economical not only as to roadways 
but as to the motive force, whether horseflesh or other 
power. 
The American CMc c/lssociation. 
Progress along the whole line marks the work 
of the American Civic Association for the year 1904-5, 
dating from the merger with the Improvement 
League, effected in 1904 at St. Louis. On September 
I last the membership was 1552, a gain of 471. Its 
receipts between June 10, 1904, and August 31, 1905, 
were $5,573.22. During the year 156 addresses were 
made by members of the Executive Board, besides 
the publication of a number of bulletins and leaflets 
pertinent to the work. A catalogue of civic organi- 
zations of the country shows that in 1904 there were 
1,740 such associations, which increased in 1905 to 
2,426. Each department of the association is secur- 
ing a set of lantern slides that will present the aims 
and accomplishments of workers in that particular 
department. In all lines of endeavor a very gratify- 
ing progress is being made, but it takes work and 
fidelity on the part of the officers of the association 
to secure it. It would be impossible in the space at 
command to do any justice whatever to the good 
accomplished over the large field coming within the 
aims of this organization, and every year finds it 
better equipped for still greater usefulness. But 
there is much to be done, and the more we study 
conditions and realize the needs the greater seems 
to be the necessity for vigorous activity. 
