A Demonstration of Leisure-time Activities in Recreation

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA 3SE Vol. 33-41 JANUARY, 1930 No. 3 A Demonstration of Leisure-time Activities in Russia ' * DR' ™^ HARRIS BriQham Young University ESTERDAY I had an op- Czar, and during his ownership the Y portunity of witnessing the greatest demonstration in leisure- time activity that has yet come to my attention. I wish that every Mutual Improvement Asso- ciation worker could have been present with our group of a half dozen who spent the afternoon and evening at a great park which has been set aside by the Soviet Gov- ernment for the good of the peo- ple. It is called "The Park of Culture and Recreation" and it certainly lives up to its name. A person can hardly realize the extent of this great park with- out being on the ground. It is all comparatively new. A large part of it was the private estate of the former Governor General of Moscow, an uncle of the late public was never admitted to the grounds. It was in reality a forest overlooking the Moscow river in the southeast suburb of the city. The park extends for five or six miles along the river front and back for some distance. AS we crossed the river bridge toward the park and saw the yj-3gEfTTO"u -(lU^fi&maiiaHggmaiL^^ Top: Dr. Franklin S. Harris. Center : View of Moscow Park of Recreation and Rest. Bottom : On the Moscow River.

184 The Improvement Era for January, 1930 thousands of people inside and the hundreds of boats on the river I instinctively began taking pictures and then as I looked back toward the city and saw the great dome of the Cathedral of the Redeemer reflected in the river in that direc- tion, I had to take pictures of it also. But what a difference in the attention given by the people to the two activities! We had pre- viously attended mass in this great cathedral at an hour when attend- ance should have been favorable Whereas the building, erected at a cost of seven million dollars, is capable of accommodating ten thousand persons at once, there were a scant three hundred present, while in this park of culture and recreation it was estimated that there were present yesterday during the day about four hundred thou- sand people. The attendance yes- terday was probably larger than usual since it was Constitution Day, but we were told that every day sees the park pretty well filled, since the workers are at liberty after four o'clock and they go to this great center by the thousands to spend their leisure time. [T was a considerable shock to ■■ note the lack of attention to formal worship at the cathedral in view of the attendance at the center of culture and recreation, but after attending the mass which was chanted in a language un- known to the worshipers and ev- erything pertaining to the services so remote from daily life and ex- periences, it was not difficult to see why people were being at- tracted so much more by activities which had so much more in com- mon with life. I am glad to report that during the afternoon and evening of mingling with these thousands of people we did not see a single case of intoxication, nor was there any boisterousness or conduct that would call for condemnation even by the most Puritanical individual. There was no evidence of any of- ficers who might restrain the group; people simply went their way having a good time and con- ducting themselves as if this were the most natural thing in the world to do. THIRST we visited some of the -- pavilions which are devoted largely to culture and to rest. In the first one, for example, we went through a reading room where we found available books, newspapers, and magazines in large numbers. There were also rooms where free advice on various topics was given to any who might ask for the in- formation. The first was a room where free legal advice was offered. Then there was a set of rooms where any who had psychological problems might get free service. There were rooms where one could obtain advice on photography, and laboratories where there were dem- onstrations in taking and develop- ing pictures and where anyone might bring his own films and de- velop them free. There were also a large number of chess and checker tables where hundreds of people were playing these games. Children at Play in Sand Pile, Moscow, Russia Upstairs we found reading plac- es for languages other than Rus- sian. Here we saw that there were books and other reading materials in all of the forty different lan- guages of the Soviet republics. We also found a section devoted to reading materials in languages of other countries including English, German, and French. There were newspapers from Paris, Berlin, and London and magazines from America. Among the books in English I noted Byron's poetical works, Mark Twain, and Shakes- peare. In German I noticed Schil- ler, Goethe, and Heine. All of these rooms are open every day and anyone may come and read to his heart's content, and hun- dreds of people were doing it. The Russians seem to be racing with all their speed toward culture. They have a long way to go yet, but they seem to be headed in the right direction. HP HERE were in this pavilion ■*■ numerous places for lounging and resting and while people did this there were radio ear phones so that they could slip these over their heads as they reclined in easy chairs and send themselves to sleep with whatever might be available on the radio. In order to make more vivid the news of the day there was a map of the world, with small elec- tric lights at prominent points, and on the table, on which there were many electric buttons, were the news items taken from the daily press. For example, we read on one of these news items on the table that there was some impor- tant happening in Shanghai; we pressed the button and on the big map on the wall the small electric globe at Shanghai was illuminated. This is merely one of the devices to aid those who are not up on their geography regarding the place where the event transpired. On a veranda outside there were numerous reclining chairs and cots where a number of people were taking sun baths. Some of them were dressed rather unconvention- ally to expose as much of the skin as possible to the sun's rays. The other people seemed not to object, and certainly I am not going to prescribe the amount of clothing they shall wear while taking these sun baths.

The Improvement Era for January, 1930 185 /~\NE of the very interesting di- V visions was that where infor- mation regarding health was given. There were numerous charts on the composition of foods and many anatomical specimens giving important information and includ- ing some examples which I have never seen at home outside the laboratory or in medical museums. A physician is in attendance ex- plaining the effects of certain prac- tices on the anatomy. Specimens which might seem a little indeli- cate at home were examined by mixed groups and the physician made explanations without any- one seeming to be embarrassed. All over the grounds were little stands where there were conversa- tion groups in action. These were headed by a leader and there was a sign at each one telling the sub- ject. Among these places our in- terpreter translated topics as "The Value of Clean Living," "The Advantages of Co-operation," "The Effects of Alcohol and To- bacco," and "Improved Methods of Agriculture." These are but a few of the many topics that were being discussed. I suppose we saw at least a half dozen stands where the evil effects of alcohol and tobacco were being explained by specialists. HPHE division of the park devoted -- to games and athletic contests would cover many acres. There were great series of tennis courts, ping pong tables, and croquet courts, Running tracks were to be seen where hundreds of people were running by relays and other combinations. In most of these activities men and women were practicing together without any self-consciousness. In fact through- out Russia the matter of sex seems to be minimized and everything done to reduce sex consciousness. I suppose two or three thousand people were engaging in these vari- ous games at one time and with leaders for every activity. We were told that there were about two thousand directors of play, lectur- ers and leaders of various kinds of functions in this center of recrea- tion and culture. That would not be a very large number for four hundred thousand partici- pants. 'T'HE children's section was prob- ■■ ably the most interesting of all. Parents could bring their chil- CORNER OF A REST BALCONY, MOSCOW, RUSSIA dren from four to eight years of age and check them just as they would check a suit case, and the children were placed in the hands of expert leaders. Each child had a sort of smock placed on him so that he would not get his clothing dirty, and he was placed in a group for playing in sand, on slides, or playing at housekeeping in minia- ture houses. There were scores of cots where the children could rest and places where they could be fed. The activities were so arranged that the groups went from one extreme to the other. Vigorous play, for example, was alternated with a story hour and then came a lunch period so that each child that stayed over a certain period was given milk and some other food at well arranged tables. The lady who conducted us through this section took consider- able delight in pointing out the large amount of American equip- ment used in this work. They seem to have brought in all kinder- D, 'R. FRANKLIN S. HARRIS, president of the Btigham Young University and member of the Gen- eral Board of Y. M. M. I. A., re- entty returned from Russia where he was chairman of an important fact- finding committee of scientists. Ref- erence was made to his appointment in the September, 1929, Era. This article was written in Russia. Dr. Harris was born in Utah County, moved with his parents to Mexico; was graduated from the Juarez Stake Academy in 1903, from the B. Y. U. in 1907, and took his doctor's degree from Cornell in 1911. He has been around the world and is an author of note. garten methods and all devices known to American schools as well as those of other countries. 'T'HE cost of leaving a child all ■■ day was about twelve cents including the meals. Throughout this great group of leisure time enterprises all costs are reduced to a minimum. For example, the cost of entering the park is only five cents and the very excellent dinner which we had, cost only about one-fourth the price charged for the same meal at the Grand Hotel where we are staying. This is a place where all may obtain culture and recreation at the mini- mum cost. The people own it, and all connected with it are in the employ of the public and there is no overcharging, no tipping, and none of the petty gambling and questionable amusements such as we find so conspicuous at our own state fairs. It is really a stupen- dous undertaking to see that four hundred thousand people may be provided with rest, education, and recreation at one time in one estab- lishment, but this is exactly what is being done here in Moscow. I must not close without having you participate with us in a boat ride on the river. At eight o'clock the water carnival started and six of us in the party secured a boat and went out among the hundreds of other boats, and as we went up and down the river until almost the hour when the next day be- gins, I had ample time to dream of some of the possibilities that are before us in our Mutual Im- provement Program of caring for the leisure-time activities of the Church.

Arrows point to cliff houses in the caves under the rim rock in Canyon de Chelly. Sight of these ruins led Colonel and Mrs. Lindbergh to land on the cliff above, to take trail down to the camp of Earl Morris, and, the next morning, to visit the caves. As the ruins cannot be seen or reached from below it is probable that they have never before been visited by white people. The great caves of the region contain rich deposits of the products of human workmanship. Because of the dryness of the atmosphere, these have been beautifully preserved. Through their study, scientists are learning about pre- Pueblo cultures. The story has already been carried back to a time well before the Christian era. Part I — The Aerial Survey of the Pueblo Region (All photographs were taken by Colonel and Mrs. Lindbergh, except where otherwise noted) IN the endeavor to develop new opportunities for the employment of the aero- plane and to demonstrate the extent of its usefulness in sci- entific work, Colonel and Mrs. Lindbergh recently turned for a time to the field of archaeological research. So far they have made expeditions to two regions in which are to be found cultural remains of American aborigines — the region of the Pueblos in Ari- zona and New Mexico and that of the Maya in the Peninsula of Yuca- tan. The expeditions have not only yielded a series of splendid photographs which will greatly aid [We are indebted to the Carnegie Insti- tution of Washington for the following highly interesting description. Another article, by Dr. A. V. Kidder, describing Colonel Lindbergh's aerial survey of the Maya region, will appear in our next issue. Editors. ] archaeologists, but they have also indicated many new lines of approach to study of the very complex problems of aboriginal American history. Interest in Archaeology Aroused Map showing the area covered by Colonel and Mrs. Lindbergh in their recent aerial survey of the region of the prehistoric Pueblo peoples. The Phillips Academy (Andover, Massachusetts) camp at Pecos, set up by Dr A. V. Kidder, was used as a base. Each morning before beginning the day's flight, Colonel Lindbergh flew over to the landing field of the Trans- continental Air Transport Company at Albuquerque for fuel. HTHE immediate at- ■*■ tention of Colonel Lindbergh was drawn to archaeological matters last year during a trail- blazing flight to Central America for the Pan American Airways, In- corporated. It was upon the return trip that, in speeding northward, he turned from his course and flew inland along the coast of Yucatan. As the jungle panorama

The Improvement Era for January, 1930 187 win The region of the Pueblos is one of high plateaus, little rainfall, hardly any game, and scanty vegetation. In this rough, broken area are to be found literally thousands of ruins. It was on such mesas as these that Colonel and Mrs. Lind- bergh found ruins hitherto unknown. unrolled he saw, half hidden amid viceable in photographing districts tropical foliage, the ruins of a great which were thought to be archae- temple. Upon reaching Washing- ologically important. He also ton he telephoned to Dr. Abbot, spoke of plans which would take Secretary of Smithsonian Institu- him over the route of the Trans- tion, asking him to suggest books continental Air Transport Com- to reach camp at a time when his which would tell him about the pany which traverses the heart of gasoline tanks were almost empty. Colonel to photograph as he was flying westward. In August last Colonel and Mrs. Lindbergh made a rapid flight across the region, photographing as they went the ruins and topographical features suggested by Dr. Kidder. Dr. Merriam, in San Francisco at the time, was so pleased with the re- sults, that Colonel Lindbergh de- cided to make a careful exploration of the region, upon his return flight, and to use Dr. Kidder's camp at Pecos as a base, if a suitable landing place nearby could be found. The Arrival at Camp A FEW days later Colonel Lind- •**■ bergh arrived over Pecos, cir- cled the valley, and "set down" his Curtis Falcon in a small, grassy clearing among the cedars and pin- yon on the ranch of Tex Austin. The place was none too large. In order to rise from it, Colonel Lind- bergh was compelled to keep the weight of his plane to the very minimum. He contrived, therefore, in his daily flights over the region, the Pueblo region of the United States and inti- mated that he might find time for side trips to de- termine what could be seen and photographed from the air. Dr. Merriam told him of two camps in the re- gion then open, one at Pecos, New Mexico, and the other in Canyon del Muerto, which is in the northeastern corner of Arizona. The first be- ruins he had seen. Dr. Abbot, in turn, presented, the request to Pres- ident Merriam of Carnegie Insti- tution of Washington. It chanced at the time that Car- negie Institution had recently com- pleted the excavation and repair of the Temple of the Warriors at Chichen Itza, Yucatan, one of the finest examples of Maya architec- ture extant. The archaeological staff had assembled at the Institu- tion's Administration Building a rich collection of reproductions in color of the paintings which gave brilliant finish to the Temple walls longed to Dr. A. V. Kid- in the ancient days. Upon Dr. der, now heading the Merriam's invitation Colonel archaeological staff of Lindbergh spent an evening with Carnegie Institution but him in examination of these ex- who for fifteen years has amples of Maya art and in dis- been carrying on investi- cussion of the efforts which various gations in the Southwest institutions and organizations had under the auspices of put forth in the attempt to pene- Phillips Academy, And- trate the mystery which envelops over, Massachusetts. The the early American peoples in both other was set up by Earl Central America and Southwestern Morris, of the Carnegie United States. staff, who in past years has done much work in Use of Aeroplane Suggested the region for the Amer- ican Museum of Natural T T was at this interview that History, New York City. 1 Colonel Lindbergh, ever alert In response to sugges- for fresh occasion to prove the prac- tion from Dr. Merriam, ticability of aviation, suggested Dr. Kidder drew up a list that aircraft might be found ser- of desirable areas for the An unexcavated Pueblo site in the Chaco Canyon district which was abandoned probably about 1000 A. D. The structure, as it stood originally, was doubtless typical of the large communal dwellings of the "Great Period" of Pueblo development. These great buildings, containing a hundred or more ground-floor rooms, normally surrounded three sides of a court. They were terraced back from an initial height of one story at the court to three or more stories at the rear which is always a high blank wall. It was in the Chaco Canyon district that Pueblo culture reached its highest development. In this lo- cality ten or twelve major sites and many smaller ruins are known.

188 The Improvement Era for January, 1930 Each morning, before setting out on the day's program, he flew seventy-five miles to the field of the Transcontinental Air Trans- port Company at Albuquerque, where he took on a full load of fuel. For several days Pecos was used as a base. During the period, flights were made in many directions and typical areas throughout north- western New Mexico and north- eastern Arizona were covered. More than a hundred excellent photographs testify to the thor- oughness with which the survey was conducted. Discovery of Ruins QN the eaestward flight from California, while passing over Canyon de Chelly, several hundred miles west of the Pecos camp, Colonel and Mrs. Lindbergh saw a number of small ruins perched high up among the cliffs under the rim rocks and so situated that ap- parently they could not be seen from the canyon bottom. They were also able to* locate the camp of Earl Morris in Canyon del Muerto, a branch of de Chelly. Wishing to inform Morris of the discovery, they returned a few days later, prepared to drop a mes- sage concerning it to him. How- night at camp. Next day they climbed the cliffs and examined the ruins which, so far as is known, have never before been visited by white people. ology. The aeroplane enables the observer to cover in a few hours regions which would require months to explore on horseback with pack animals. Moreover, the Air view (upper) and ground view (lower) of Mummy Cave in Canyon del Muerto. This cave contains a typical cliff dwelling of 80 rooms. At one point it rises to a height of three stories. In 1923, Earl Morris (lower picture), now on the staff of Carnegie In- stitution of Washington, made a careful study of the ruins for the American Museum of Na- tural History of New York City. So large was the collection of interesting objects which his party obtained from the cave that two four-horse teams were required to freight it over the 100-mile stretch to Gallup, New Mexico, the nearest railroad point. Note the ancient pictographs on the wall back of the figure of Earl Morris in the lower picture. Lower photograph by Dr. J. C. Merriam ever, while circling the ruins they Value of Aircraft saw what they thought might be a practicable trail leading down the rT"THIS air survey of the Southwest cliff to Morris' tents. Picking out * has demonstrated beyond ques- a flat place on the mesa near the tion that aviation is able to ren- ruins they landed and spent the der an invaluable service to archae- Southwest admits of profitable ex- ploration by air because, as a result of Colonel Lindbergh's observa- tions, checked in certain instances from the ground, practically all ruins are found to be clearly visible from above and, in some cases at least, they can be better observed from the air than from the ground. Again, from the air one can ob- serve, much better than in any other way, topographical features in proximity to the ruins which must have affected in a vital way the life of the inhabitants. For example, some of the photographs taken by Colonel and Mrs. Lind- bergh show clearly the relation that existed in ancient times between water supply, land available for farming, and easily defensible house sites, matters which are of great importance to scientists as they try to picture the conditions under which prehistoric peoples lived. The photographs also contain unmistakable lessons for the agron- omist and the ecologist, for they show what happens when, for any reason, such an overgrazing, a re- gion is robbed of its natural cover of plants. Tremendous floods pour down from the mesas without retardation, cutting the surface into gulleys or arroyos, washing away the surface soil, lowering the water table, and rendering arid and un- inhabitable regions which form- erly were only gently irrigated with periodical rains.

The Improvement Era for January 3 1930 189 Civilization Based on Cereals '"THE Southwest (meaning the area covered by the modern states of Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, parts of Southern California, Sonora, and Chihua- the Maya region of Central Amer- ica it grew into an extremely vivid and important civilization. In our own Southwest it was taken up and developed, by the people who lived there, into what is known as the Pueblo civilization. hua) is archaeologically an impor- tant field because it is one of the very few region's in the whole world where the effect of the use of a cereal on the rise of a people can be traced in detail. And this effect is of outstanding historical interest because all civilization is founded upon agriculture, upon cereals: in Egypt, wheat; in China and the East, rice; in America, corn. In a nomadic, hunting life, it requires a very large area to support a single family group, and constant movement is necessary. Under such conditions the person of genius has little chance of influencing other minds and of passing on his ideas. But when existence is as- sured through the growing and tending of crops, group life and group development are possible. Just where and when corn was brought under cultivation is un- known, but a wild, heavy-seeded grass found in the highlands of Central America is thought to be its ancestor. The first culture based on corn was crude, but ap- parently it laid the foundation for all subsequent native development in America. The budding civilization evi- dently developed slowly in small areas, then suddenly spread. In literally thousands of ruins. For the most part these lie in rough, broken country of which Canyons del Muerto and de Chelly, among the most extraordinary of desert gorges, are typical. It is amid such surroundings that the great pueblos and cliff- houses are found. They were built during the first thousand years of the Christian era, but until very recently little was known as to the origin of the civilization that led to their construction. Investiga- tors, however, have now discovered that in the great wind-hollowed caves, characteristic of the region, there lie, under the foundations of the cliff-houses, remains of still more ancient people, remains so excellently preserved that they per- mit full reconstruction of the man- ner of life of the ancestors of the Cliff-dwellers. Through work already done by various institutions the most im- portant stages through wfrch these peoples passed on their way from nomadism to a settled life are Upper — Air view showing the lo- cation of the "White House" ruins in Canyon de Chelly. The circle en- closes the structures. Lower — Ground view showing a cliff dwelling in the cave and a Pueblo at the foot of the cliff. These structures date back about 900 years to the "Great Pe- riod" of Pueblo culture, a period during which the inhabitants of the Southwest drew together into large aggregations. During this period the arts of the potter, the weaver, and the builder flourished. The site pre- viously sheltered earlier peoples, traces of which carry the story back a thousand years further. These ruins were first seen in 1849 by members of an expedition to the Navajo country under Colonel Wash- ington. In 1926 the site was exca- vated and scientifically studied by Earl Morris whose services were ioaned to the American Museum of Natural History, New York City, by Carnegie Institution of Washington. Morris located a number of graves which contained mortuary offerings of great archaeological value. He also built a wing dam in the canyon to divert the stream which threat- ened to destroy the Pueblo. Lower photograph by Dr. J. C. Merriam Conditions in Southwest HTHE Southwest is essen- tially arid. It is a country of high plateaus, little rainfall, not much game, and scanty forests. The most im- portant part of the region, archae- ologically speaking, is just where the four states, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado come together. In this area are found ■ ■ . --■^:':-:'::-:. known. The Southwest, there- fore, is extremely important archaeologically. Although much has been accomplished, neverthe- less, as Colonel Lindbergh's pic- tures indicate, the region contains. riches yet untouched.