32 
PARK AND CEMETERY. 
v 
the deposits during the period was ap- 
proximately $1,800,000. It is wasteful 
to carry such large deposits in bank 
at comparatively low interest rates, 
while the Board is paying much high- 
er interest rates on money borrowed. 
Savings could have been effected by 
delaying the sale of bonds until near- 
er the time that the money was 
needed. 
The South Park Board insisted up- 
on building a new steam-driven elec- 
tric plant of its own at the very time 
that the West Chicago and Lincoln 
Park Boards were entering into con- 
tracts with the Sanitary District for 
the supply of electric current. The 
new plant was put into operation 
January 31, 1908. The cost of cur- 
rent per kilowatt-hour for the year 
ending November 30, 1910, was 1.559 
cents. In April, 1911, a five-year con- 
tract was made with the Sanitary 
District for the delivery of electric 
current at a price of three-quarters 
of a cent a kilowatt-hour. The fail- 
PARK MEN TO 
The executive committee of the 
American Association of Park Super- 
intendents met March 9 in the Hotel 
Astor at New York City and made pre- 
liminary arrangements for the annual 
meeting of that organization to be held 
at Boston, August 12, 13, and 14. There 
were present at the meeting President 
W. H. Dunn, Kansas City, Mo. ; vice- 
presidents, Chas. E. Keith, Bridgeport, 
Conn., James B. Shea, Boston, Mass., 
and Secretary-Treasurer F. L. Mulford, 
Washington, D. C. Members, Wm. J. 
Zartman, Borough of Brooklyn, John 
H. Beatty, Borough of Manhattan, and 
G. H. Burgevin, Borough of Bronx, 
New York City, were also in attend- 
ance and acted as proxies for vice- 
presidents, Fred. C. Green, G. Cham- 
pion and J. W. Thompson; Wm. J. 
Stewart and Wm. H. Coldwell were 
present during part of the meeting and 
Geo. A. Parker was on hand awhile 
before the meeting was called but had 
to attend another meeting, so could 
not remain. Mr. Green was prevented 
from attending on account of illness 
and Mr. Champion, of Winnipeg, found 
at the last minute he could not get away. 
The financial report of the secretary- 
treasurer showed that $295.00 had been 
collected since the report at the Kansas 
City meeting and $125.00 expended. The 
excess of collection over expenditures, 
together with the balance of $204.32 at 
the Kansas City meeting, leaves a bal- 
ance on hand of $375.32. 
The time of holding the next annual 
ure of the South Park Board to co- 
operate earlier with the Sanitary 
District resulted in a needless ex- 
penditure for this steam-driven elec- 
tric plant of approximately $319,000. 
Accounts of the Park Board gave this 
sum as the investment that would not 
have had to be made if the Board 
had decided earlier to purchase from 
the Sanitary District electric current 
used in all the parks of the South 
Park system. 
The site of Marquette Park was 
purchased in 1903 and 1904 at a cost 
of $267,733. It has been since im- 
proved at a cost of $305,943. The 
area around this park is sparsely 
settled. The park is little used. It 
is not yet needed in the neighbor- 
hood. Its improvement long in ad- 
vance of the need was unwise. The 
interest on the bonds issued for this 
improvement, amounting to over 
$12,000 a year, must therefore be 
characterized as a wasteful expendi- 
ture. Moreover, the improved por- 
meeting was discussed, and August 12, 
13 and 14 decided upon, with Copley 
Square Hotel as headquarters. The pre- 
liminary program follows : 
BOSTON, MASS., AUGUST 12, 13 
AND 14. 
FIRST DAY. 
9 :00 a. m. — Meeting of Executive Com- 
mittee. 
9 :30 a. m. — Annual business meeting. 
Address of welcome. 
Response. 
Business meeting. 
1:30 p. m. — Trip through Boston Park 
System. 
7 :30 p. m. — Evening meeting. 
Stereopticon lecture and 
papers, with discussion. 
SECOND DAY. 
9 :30 a. m.— Meeting. 
tion of the park causes a current ex- 
pense for maintenance. 
Another expenditure deserving criti- 
cism was that for the new adminis- 
tration building, erected in Washing- 
ton Park at a cost of $173,417. The 
old building could have been enlarged 
and made serviceable at a cost of less 
than $30,000, thus making possible a 
saving of about $145,000. The wis- 
dom of locating in a public park such 
a costly and conspicuous structure 
for administrative purposes is ques- 
tionable in any event. But in view 
of the likelihood of park consolida- 
tion, after which the main adminis- 
trative functions would be centered 
in the City Hall, the expenditure of 
so large a sum on an administrative 
building must be regarded as clearly 
unwise. The public should be on the 
alert to prevent any similar expendi- 
tures that are inconsistent with the 
program of merging all Park Boards 
with the city. 
(To be continued.) 
1:30 a. m. — Trip to Arnold Arboretum 
and country estates in 
Brookline, Newton and 
Wellesley. 
8 :00 p. m.. — Lecture and papers. 
THIRD DAY. 
9 :30 a.m. — Final business meeting. 
1:00 p. m. — Trip through Middlesex 
Fells, Revere Beach 
Boulevard, North 
Shore drive to Beverly. 
If there has not been sufficient time 
for reading of papers another even- 
ing meeting will be held. 
As Committee of Arrangements for 
the convention, James B. Shea of Bos- 
ton was named to co-operate with the 
president and secretary-treasurer. 
As a Committee to Arrange for 
Transportation from their points and 
work up interest were named J. W. 
Thompson, Seattle; Theo. Wirth, Min- 
neapolis; G. Champion, Winnipeg; W. 
H. Dunn, Kansas City; Mr. Richard- 
son, Chicago; W. J. Zartman, New 
York. 
Among the topics for discussion at 
the meeting will be Park Accounts ; The 
influence of Parkway Construction on 
Property Values ; Chinese and Siberian 
Plants ; Botanical Nomenclature ; Street 
Trees, Roads, Organization of Park 
Boards. 
Among the speakers it is hoped to 
have Geo. A. Parker, Hartford, Conn. ; 
Prof. Wilson, Bussey Institute, Ja- 
maica Plains, Mass.; J. K. M. L. Far- 
Continued on page X 
MEET AT BOSTON, AUGUST 12 
