July 12, 1924.
My dear Miss Addams:
Our opportunities for summer work never were so inviting as now. I have taken great pleasure in seeing the good start it is getting in town and at camp.
The neighborhood fellowship rallied by our street [games], especially on May Street, stirred me to share my impressions with the readers of my column in today's Daily News, a clipping of which is enclosed.
The orderly happy way in which mothers and children, many scores of them at a time, leave the Commons ↑for their day's↓ outing, [reflects] great credit upon the residents' management of these complex arrangements. The new volunteers in charge of our little children's playground have it well in hand.
Chicago Commons Farm Camp opens with bright prospects of greater usefulness this summer than could be achieved during its first season. The building and screening [of] two porches add much comfort. Two tent houses given by the [Warren Co.?] to shelter one fourth ↑more↓ campers than could be received last summer. This week 25 girls are enjoying their [farm] house quarters [and] 30 boys their tents. The kitchen is entirely inadequate to provide for so many. New and sanitary toilet provisions should at once be installed.
The staff is some what short handed [in?] the house, but the city work-door service, family visitation, court [cases?], children's clinics, men's club and classes in English and citizenship, and many city wide cooperative efforts carry on effectively. It is a great record that for thirty years our threshold has never been closed by day or night to those seeking emergency help and those going forth in response to [those] calls.
Unfortunately financial obligations [increased] for very necessary building repairs not only curtail our income [page 2] usually available for summer work, but also leave us with an unavoidable deficit.
The pointing of all the brick walls for the first time in more than twenty years cost $1100.
The annual housecleaning and interior renovating will entail an expense of not less than $1000.
The installation of new fire escapes to conform to the changed city ordinances will involve the expenditure of not less than $1600.
The porches and new equipment for the additional children at camp will cost about $1000.
I am writing to the advisory committee in Michigan to enlist their interest in this additional equipment ↑at camp.↓
We are making special efforts this month to enlist old friends and new in providing additional income to meet these regular and special [demands?]. No less than 2000 letters of appeal, enclosing the summer folder, a copy of which goes to ↑you↓ herewith, were [mailed] this week. Many of them in type writing [were] dictated and signed by me personally. If the responses cover operating expenses, they will meet my expectation. The deficit, I fear, will have to be carried by a loan at bank at least until autumn, unless some new larger gifts are elicited by our appeals.
The Union League Club generously replaces by a new steel staff, the wooden flag staff erected over twenty years ago, which had split very dangerously. This gift registers their new vote of confidence in the public value of our Chicago Commons work, which was referred to as furthering the patriotic [purposes] of the club.
My treasurer's statement needs to further comment, but is submitted in hope of your careful inspection after reading the above items of special and important interest.
Truly yours,
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