club's purposes. Those of us who have learned to know the uplifting of spirit, the renewal of bodily strength and activity of mind which accompanies every visit to these wonderful alpine regions, feel that we owe it, not only to the present, but to future generations, to do our utmost to preserve in its natural beauty some portions of the Sierra wonderland for the enjoyment and benefit of the public. We believe that the interest in mountaineering and the recognition of the value of national parks as public recreation grounds is so far only in its infancy in America, and that before many years shall have passed our American mountaineering clubs will number their members by the hundred thousands as they now do in France and Germany. Our membership is now over 1,200, and is growing each year.

The highest uses of our national parks will ultimately be not to the traveler, but to the workers of the state. Many years ago Josiah Royce pointed out one danger of our California climate, "In that the comparative evenness of the successive seasons prompts active people to work too steadily, to skip their holidays, and by reason of their very enjoyment of life, to wear out their constitutions with overwork." It is a danger that the years have by no means lessened, but rather increased. Experience is teaching us the absolute necessity for recreation, above all out-of-door recreation, as a health-giving factor in our civilized life.

The claim has been put forward in a recent controversy over the inviolability of national parks that these regions are the rich man's playground, and that the wage earner will never receive any benefit from them. In no sense is this true. The rich man, with the whole world as his playground, has no especial need for the national park. While in this stage of our development the average unenlightened man who works with his hands may derive no immediate benefit from it, we have another type of wage earner to consider the thousands of men and women who work with their brains, in offices, in schoolrooms, in colleges, in hospitals, in business houses, many of them people of liberal education and refined. tastes with a craving for beautiful things as strong as the craving among baser natures for cheap excitement. The worker with his hands has his amusement parks and his picnic grounds, more of them every year; but for the higher type of workman no form of rest and recreation can compare with the untrammeled life in the

open air that our national parks offer him for his much-needed holiday.

The national parks, then, stand not as a luxury for the few, but as a growing need for thousands in this complex life of ours; and if the Sierra Club has helped, be it ever so little, toward bringing about the recognition of their value and urging the people to their support, its organization has not been in vain.

This paper would hardly be complete without mention of the other two mountaineering clubs of the Pacific Coast, the "Mazamas," of Oregon, and the "Mountaineers," of Washington. The Mazama Club was organized on the summit of Mt. Hood, July 19, 1894, and it was the first club to institute annual outings. "The purposes of the club are to explore mountains, to disseminate authoritative and scientific information concerning them, and to encourage the preservation of forests and other features of mountain scenery in their natural beauty." It is more distinctively a mountaineering club than either of the others as the requirements for membership are as follows: "Any person who has climbed to the summit of a snow-peak, on which there is at least one living glacier, and the top of which cannot be reached by any other means save on foot, is eligible to membership." The Mazama Club has done some notable scientific work in connection with its outings and through the efforts of individual members, and these are recorded in their publication, "The Mazama." One of its chief accomplishments was the creation of the Crater Lake National Park.

More recently, in July, 1906, the "Mountaineers," a club with headquarters at Seattle, was organized. Its first outing was to the Olympic Mountains where the first ascent of Mt. Olympus was made. As a direct result of the work of this club President Roosevelt declared the Olympic region a national monument, and its 1,500,000 acres of peaks, ice fields and glaciers, and its alpine parks, the refuge and habitat of some three thousand of the Roosevelt elk, altogether make up a national playground that is destined to become celebrated throughout the world. The "Mountaineers" record their investigations and transactions in a magazine called the "Mountaineer," which they have developed into a splendid annual. The purposes of the "Mountaineers" are: "To explore the mountains, forests and water courses of the Pacific Northwest, and to gather into permanent form the history and traditions of this region; to

preserve, by protective legislation or otherwise, the natural beauty of the northwest coast of America; to make frequent or periodical expeditions into those regions in fulfilment of the above purposes. Finally, and above all, to encourage and promote the spirit of good fellowship and comradery among the lovers of out-door life in the West."

RECREATIVE CENTERS OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

BY BESSIE D. STODDART,

Secretary Los Angeles Playground Commission.

The "playgrounds" of Los Angeles, although officially bearing that title, are more than the name implies. In reality, they combine the usual playground features with forms of social activity most often found at the settlement house. Hence, "recreative centers" will be found the more fitting term.

In September, 1904, a city playground commission was created by ordinance, which directed "That a commission to be known as the Board of Playground Commissioners, composed of five persons, of whom two shall be women and three shall be men, shall be appointed by the Mayor, to have charge of the public playgrounds of the city of Los Angeles. Said commissioners shall serve without compensation." They have authority to appoint a superintendent and other employees.

It was thought best to make a special department in which time and attention could be given wholly to studying and developing this new and important function of government, rather than to force the work on some old department as a side issue, where it might be neglected. The rapid growth of the work in spite of small funds (only about $137,000 has been expended up to January, 1910), has shown the wisdom of specializing. With the Los Angeles charter revision, the commission will undoubtedly become a charter commission.

The Violet Street Playground, or Playground No. 1, as it was called, was opened in June, 1905. It was about two acres in size and cost in the neighborhood of $11,000 for land and $6000 for improvements. This center is open every day in the year, and is made attractive to persons of all ages. For the young children there are sandboxes, large kindergarten blocks and baby swings. For the girls there are swings, seesaws, maypoles, basketball, volleyball, croquet, tennis, etc. For the boys there are facilities for field sports, baseball, handball, basket-ball, also play apparatus and a large openair gymnasium with roof to shelter from sun and rain and a floor

of soft tanbark to fall on. A small building contains hot and cold showers. For the mothers a summerhouse is provided, where they may sit and read or watch the children at play.

There are forty-five small gardens, for both boys and girls, where young gardeners grow flowers, also vegetables for home consumption. Under volunteer assistance a very successful "Park Department" was formed of children interested in this work. Care of the playground trees and plants was undertaken, as well. A system of marking for regularity in watering, weeding, caring for tools, etc., was inaugurated, and appropriate prizes awarded to those who received the highest number of points. Divided into two groups, the little gardeners also competed for their respective sides.

A very important part of the equipment is the clubhouse, a quaint bungalow in one corner of the grounds. This contains a large main room with stage, clubroom, storeroom and kitchen supplied with dishes and utensils for use in giving entertainments. In the afternoon children meet for sewing or other manual work, for games, drills and folk dancing, or musical organizations. In the evening those over 15 years of age form clubs in dramatic, musical and gymnastic work. On Saturday evenings except during summer months in this center, as in all the others, an excellent course of lectures, concerts and plays is given, for which many of the most talented people of the city generously give their services. The last Saturday evening of the month is reserved for home talent, when the children and young people give the entertainment. Certain evenings in the month, the clubhouse is reserved for parties given by groups connected with the center, the nearby public school, or any set of neighbors who may speak in advance.

The equipment of the center is completed by a pretty bungalow, the home of the director. Too much cannot be said for the benefits of this residence feature. The man and his family become an integral part of the neighborhood, and the influence of a wellordered, hospitable home permeates the atmosphere of the center. Here, again, the settlement idea is exemplified.

The second Los Angeles playground was opened in May, 1907, and was a five-acre extension of Echo Park, bounded by four streets. Originally it was but a miserable hole in the ground, a detriment to the neighborhood. The Park Department kindly filled the tract and presented it to the Playground Department. Later they