PARK AND CEMETERY 
and Landscape Gardening. 
Vol, XII CHICAGO, SEPTEMBER, 1902. No, 7 
Entered at the Postoffice at Chicago as Second Class Matter. 
CONTENTS. 
Editorial — Convention of the A. A. C. S. — The Billboard 
Nuisance — Monumental Art in Large Cities — Sunday 
Funerals— Nursery Catalogues— Cemetery Entrances.359,360 
Parks and Landscape Gardening 361 
*School Gardens, Hartford, Conn 362 
*Convention of Cemetery Superintendents 364 
Notes of the Convention 370 
Address of the Retiring President 371 
^Improvement Associations 373 
*Garden Plants — Their Geography 375 
Seasonable Suggestions 376 
*Park Notes 378 
Cemetery Notes 379 
Reviews of Books, Reports, Etc 380 
*int«straled. 
The annual convention of the 
Association of American Ceme- 
tery Superintendents, held in 
Boston last month, was a pronounced success, which 
was very materially aided by the facilities which Bos- 
ton and its vicinity afford for the study of ceme- 
tery practice in its highest development. The papers 
and discussions were important and valuable, and 
indicated the assertion in the President’s annual 
address that cemetery practice is progressive. It is 
a matter deeply to be regretted that the Boston con- 
vention could not have been made a means of gather- 
ing a large contingent of officials from the smaller 
cemeteries of the country, for there can be no doubt 
but that the vast amount of educational opportunity 
afforded would have been permanently effective in 
promoting modern ideas in cemetery work in our 
smaller burial grounds. Mr. Eurich’s address was 
eminently suggestive and encouraging. While re- 
maining pioneers in reform and advancement, and 
working along the lines of present acceptable meth- 
ods of cemetery management, he said that superin- 
tendents must ever seek to discuss wherein progress 
can be made, and anticipate and plan methods that 
will be equally as acceptable in the future, so far as 
this is possible. He summed up the lawn plan as 
follows : “It aims to form a consistent whole, a gen- 
eral scheme of which the principal features shall be a 
natural or artificial stretch of level or rolling lawn 
surrounded by irregularly arranged planting areas 
for trees and shrubbery, these forming backgrounds 
for burial areas as well as affording shade and seclu- 
sion.” He also discussed the question of monuments, 
an important one in connection with landscape effects, 
and pointed to the necessity of educating patrons to 
the idea of subordinating their memorials to accord 
with the lawn plan. The close of the address touched 
upon cremation as a method of disposing of our dead, 
which a rapidly growing sentiment is steadily favor- 
ing. Perpetual care received considerable attention 
during the meeting, and a more uniform care of the 
cemetery as a whole was advocated. The idea of 
holding a future meeting at the time and place of that 
of the American Park and Out-Door Art Association 
should receive encouragement, for many papers and 
discussions are of mutual interest, and the highest 
thought and practice connected with landscape art 
could be drawn upon at sucb a meeting. 
The flagrant outrages against 
THE BILLBOARD , , 
misANCE. "gh” ?«■;- 
petrated by bill posting and bill- 
board advertising has become more apparent as ef- 
forts have been made to suppress the nuisance under 
laws provided to regulate it. Chicago is beginning to 
realize this, and it is hard to conceive of a condition 
more detrimental to a city’s esthetic welfare than the 
unbridled license that seems to have dominated the 
public advertising business. And this can be said 
in general of all our large cities, and it has even in- 
vaded our country landscapes. It has been suggested 
that artists might, with good to themselves as well as 
the city, undertake to paint some decorative advertis- 
ing signs, and there are many who would encourage 
the idea, but there should be no retreat in the cam- 
paign against the billboard. It has become in very 
truth a public nuisance, detrimental in every way to 
improvement efforts, and with no way of counteract- 
ing its influence except by blinding it with planting 
effects, which has been done in some instances, or by 
demolishing it. It behooves every good citizen to 
lend a hand to redeem our cities from the billboard 
and similar advertising methods ; it is a first neces- 
sary step in the general work of beautifying our cities, 
and should be vigorously prosecuted. 
