12 
PARK AND CEMETERY 
Wild Flowers and Ferns. 
What a beautiful combination wild plants will often 
form! Look at the present illustration, and what 
planting could have been made prettier than the little 
natural growth ? There are but three plants in the 
group, and, in fact, but two plainly appear, the third 
being mostly in the shade. There are two ferns, Os- 
munda Claytoniana and Aspidium acrostichoides, and 
the common wild geranium. Geranium maculatum. 
The Osmunda is on the left, the Aspidium on the 
right, and the geranium in the center. The wild 
geranium is an exceedingly pretty plant when seen at 
its best. As met with in the woods it is often too 
much crowded, or not in a suitable position. This one 
is growing where, while cool at the root, it is an open 
place, partly shaded from the sun of afternoons. 
Notice its profusion of flowers. As those familiar with 
the plant know, in color it is a light pink. One was 
such an uncommonly fine plant that it was photo- 
graphed— the ferns “happened in” the picture. 
The Osmunda Claytoniana is one of three species 
wild in our woods. This one is called the “Interrupted 
Flowering Fern,” because that its sterile fronds are in- 
terrupted in their progress half way or so of their 
height and become fertile, and then the sterile part 
again appears, crowning all. This feature of the plant 
appears in the illustration. It is a beautiful fern, its 
WILD FLOWERS AND FERNS. 
broad fronds and full habit of growth rendering it 
available for so many situations. j 0SEPH Meehan 
Municipal Playgrounds in Chicago. 
A Paper Read by Dwight H. Perkins Before the St. Paul Convention of The American League for Civic Improvement. 
The Mayor of Chicago appointed under authority 
given by the Common Council in 1899 a Special Park- 
Commission composed of nine aldermen and six citi- 
zens, with a possible increase of six more citizens. 
This commission has established and is now maintain- 
ing seven playgrounds in crowded districts. An eighth 
is ready to be opened as soon as certain bridges are 
completed. 
The areas may be from one to five acres. Each 
ground is divided into two portions, one for large and 
one for small children. Each is equipped with ap- 
paratus, such as lawn swings, rope swings, grant 
strides, teeters, teeter ladders, climbing ropes and 
poles, high jumps, travelling rings, turning poles and 
parallel bars. There is a shelter building in each 
ground which includes a covered sand-court for the 
babies, a director’s office, a platform with seats, toi- 
lets for boys and girls, a sink and a large store-room 
for apparatus and supplies. 
In each ground an athletic director is in attendance 
from 9 a. m. to 10 p. m. A policeman is generally 
on hand to assist. His services as a leader in exercise 
are more frequently used than as a policeman. The 
problem of preserving order was only difficult at first. 
It now is only necessary on occasional evenings. The 
children are beginning to realize the benefits of the 
grounds and do assist in government and maintenance. 
The hoodlum is not tolerated by the other boys any 
more than by the officials. During the summer trained 
kindergartners are in attendance six hours each day, 
and lead the small children in games and occupations 
An experienced athletic trainer and coach is employed 
to- supervise the work of the directors in all of the 
grounds. There are numerous teams to do all things 
popular with athletes. Several of the teams are com- 
posed of girls. 
The Webster ground has a running track, five laps 
to the mile, and a field for base-ball or foot-ball, in 
addition to the space for apparatus and small children. 
This field and the services of the trainer are free to 
all, and many organizations and educational institu- 
tions are making use of them. Each ground is con- 
verted into a skating rink in winter. 
Up to the present time over one hundred thousand 
dollars’ worth of land owned by the city has been 
turned over to the commission for playground pur- 
poses, and as much more has been obtained rent free. 
About $40,000 of money has been expended in equip- 
ment and maintenance. 
Much that has been planned has not yet been car- 
ried out, particularly in the matter of making the 
grounds beautiful. So far nothing inartistic has been 
done, but vines, trees and flowers have not been 
planted. Money will be spent in this way next year, 
