453 
PAR.K AND CEMETERY 
the state has expended large sums annually in certain 
localities to preserve its beautiful trees. Large num- 
bers of trees have been destroyed and others seriously 
injured by the ravages of these pests, and many re- 
sources have been exploited in the persistent work of 
destroying the baneful insects. Now is a very oppor- 
tune time for energetic work in this direction, the in- 
sects being in a dormant state, and to take advantage 
of the time and opportunity the Massachusetts society, 
above mentioned, has arranged for the delivery of fifty 
lectures, illustrated by stereopticon, the services of a 
lecturer and lantern operator having been secured for 
the purpose. Any town or city of the state can have 
the free services of the lecturer and outfit upon pay- 
ment of traveling and hotel expenses, and in each place 
the insects peculiarly injurious in the locality will be 
described and illustrated, and the means and methods 
of extermination explained. The olifer is open during 
the months of January, February and March, and the 
association is to be congratulated for offering such an 
opportunity of practical education, and for the sugges- 
tions it conveys to all organized effort in the country. 
AN EX- The months pass so comparatively 
HORTATION rapidly, that it is quite essential, im- 
mediately after the dawn of the New Year, to study 
the situation for the spring. Especially is this required 
of the cemetery superintendent who is, in the majority 
of cases, held responsible for the care and beauty of 
the grounds under his charge. In the highly devel- 
oped cemeteries of our large communities, where 
everything is conducted on more or less strict busi- 
ness lines, the year’s duties arrange themselves in or- 
der and the superintendent takes up his work in a cer- 
tain sense, successively as the seasons progress, and all 
is ready as occasion demands. In the country ceme- 
teries, widely different conditions exist, and the ceme- 
tery is either well cared for, or attended to in such a 
])erfunctory manner as to clearly indicate the character 
of the contributing community. It is such varying 
conditions that always make the country cemetery a 
firuitful subject of discussion and comparison, and 
compel the advocate of outdoor improvement to seize 
every opportunity to encourage a different order of 
things. It is well within the power of every com- 
munity, great or small, as it is its duty, to maintain its 
burial place in a becoming and decorous condition, 
and the time of good resolutions offers just the op- 
portunity to make another appeal for the better care of 
such public grounds. It would only require one en- 
thusiast in each locality to assure results. The influ- 
ence of one lover of nature persistently exerted would 
create marvelous changes in the little country ceme- 
tery, and we would like to move that a committee of 
one, at least, appoint himself, if necessary, to the duty 
of exhorting and assisting his fellow citizens in the 
work of promoting the welfare and beauty of the local 
burial ground. Spring will soon be here, the time for 
active work ; but now is the time to enlist support and 
arrange the campaign. 
^EGIN WITH In the course of some remarks, 
THE CHILDREN made at the last convention of the 
American League for Civic Improvement, by Prof. 
VVeitbrecht, he said: “What we want to do is to teach 
the children taste ; get taste into the child ; get taste 
into the household and then finally taste into the com- 
munity, and when we have done this we need not fear 
the results.” The professor struck a keynote in this 
suggestion. The lack of taste in the community gen- 
erally is an unfortunate fact, notwithstanding our grand 
school system, and may be attributed, in large degree, 
to the failure to appreciate its necessity by our educa- 
tors. Reform in many branches of public improve- 
ment would be far easier of accomplishment now had 
the children of the previous generation been trained in 
the fundamental principles of taste, the power of per- 
ceiving, appreciating and discovering beauty and ex- 
cellence. The arts and crafts movement which is now 
exercising considerable influence in our larger cities, 
in the matter of educating the young, promises to de- 
velop taste in the pupil through its methods of im- 
parting practical knowledge. The more we consider 
the curriculum of our public schools, the more we 
perceive how it could be improved to meet the chang- 
ing conditions of our American life. Our children 
need far more than the three R’s to fit them for citi- 
zenship as it is dawning upon us. They need to be 
grounded in the principles of a higher life and while 
struggling with the rudiments, the atmosphere and 
appurtenances of the school room should tend to impart 
culture and taste, which in turn is transferred to the 
home, and thus it ministers to the general upbuilding. 
PHOTOGRAPHY The authorities of the forthcoming 
AT ST. LOUIS exposition at St. Louis have come 
to the wise decision of permitting the use of the cam- 
era to the trade press, without the annoying and sense- 
less restrictions imposed by the directors of the 
World’s Fair of 1893. Of course certain limits must 
be maintained, otherwise the rights of exhibitors and 
others might be infringed upon ; but for all legitimate 
uses of the press the camera may be employed. This 
will permit a broader and better scheme of illustra- 
tion for representative journals, of which undoubtedly 
ample use will be made to the better enlightenment of 
the public. The site of this great exposition, while 
ungraced by the magnificent and turbulent Lake Mich- 
igan, possesses magnificent opportunities for landscape 
work, which in comparison with the model city and 
the model farm will form an array of the possibilities 
of public beauty never before attempted. 
