6 
PARK AND CEMETERY 
THE ABUSES OF PUBLIC ADVERTISING. 
Charles Mulford Robinson, Secretary of the Ameri- 
can Park and Outdoor Art Association, contributes an 
interesting and forcible article on “The Abuses of 
Public Advertising” to the March number of the 
Atlantic Monthly. 
It is a thorough, well-considered, logical argument 
against the billboard nuisance, reinforced by the ex- 
periences and methods of other countries in combating 
the evil, and tells of the results accomplished in this 
country by means of legislation and the efforts of the 
various improvement organizations. 
Concerning desecration of natural scenery, Mr. Rob- 
inson says : 
“This was one of the earliest and most flagrant of 
the abuses. It is still so rampant on lines of heavy 
travel that its correction seems a futile dream, and 
yet in response to a public opinion that is proceeding 
cautiously and reasonably in its demands reforms are 
now in progress. The Associated Billposters of the 
United States and Canada now officially condemn the 
practice of painting signs upon rocks and other natu- 
ral objects in picturesque landscapes, although they 
seem to offer no objection to putting a hoarding for 
posters and paintings in front of the natural object. 
The distinction is a fine one, but it means some gain. 
Several railroads have prohibited the erection of bill- 
boards on their own property, and although this scarce- 
ly disturbs the advertiser, who can still use the pri- 
vate property on' either side of the right of way, it 
shuts out one possible extension of the abuse that has 
tremendous possibilities. In at least one case, also, 
a great railroad company has taken to planting quickly 
growing trees at such places as to hide the hoardings 
erected on adjacent land. The Boston & Albany road 
has gained a like end in the suburbs of Boston by 
planting screens of shrubs or a hedge at the top of 
the cut ; and it has become no unusual thing for a rail- 
road company, conscious of the popular feeling, to 
exert its influence as far as it can, upon the adjacent 
property owners to induce them to refuse to lease ad- 
vertising rights. But a public opinion that very unan- 
imously considers the extension of hospitality to adver- 
tisements by a barn or other outbuilding, or even by a 
field, as a badge of the farmer’s poverty, is perhaps 
doing more than is anything else to remedy this 
abuse.” 
All phases of the abuse are considered in turn, and 
a union of the forces of the various organizations work- 
ing ‘for a more beautiful America suggested. 
With great fairness to the advertiser, he sums up the 
case as follows : 
“Finally, there is this to be said : the advertisers can 
gain their ends in other and unobjectionable ways. 
In the bare recital of abuses it may have seemed as if 
there were so many that, should they all be checked 
successfully, there would be left to the advertiser small 
chance to proclaim his wares. But this is not true. 
He would still have opportunities, substituting — with 
much gain to the community and probably with some 
to himself — for mere bigness and multiplicity of an- 
nouncements a quality of attractiveness. There would 
lie the new competition. He has already learned that 
emphasis is gained not only by screaming a word, but 
by pausing before and after its utterance. He is find- 
ing it more profitable to put his colors together har- 
moniously than to shock the eye. He has discovered 
that if he can entertain and amuse the public with 
jingles or clever names or well-drawn pictures, he 
makes more impression than by shouting. Thus, ad- 
vertisements now render many a long ride less 
tedious than it used to be, and even win for the bill- 
boards some friends where before, because of the 
abuses, all must have been their enemies.” 
^ ^ ^ 
The city of Quincy, 111., one of the pioneers in the 
fight against the billboard nuisance, has an ordinance 
forbidding the disfiguring of the city with placards on 
poles, fences, and tree boxes. The Quincy Herald tells 
the story of how a company of bill-posters with nearly 
a carload of printed matter came to that city and pre- 
pared to plaster up the fences and trees before learn- 
ing of the ordinance. The foreman of the gang, when 
told of the law, expressed the hope that other cities 
and towns would pass such laws and abolish this obso- 
lete form of advertising. 
