Far be it from the loyal women of the Civic League to interpose a barrier to the tide of our city’s prosperity. Rather let our carpets lose their patterns and our draperies forget their color—if there’s “money in the smoke,” our lords can buy us more. Though the clothes we wear are ruined, though the air we breathe is foul, though we cannot see the sun, we will wipe our smut-begrimed faces, Oh my sisters, and be joyful if there’s “money in the smoke.” But is there? Is it not true that 99 per cent. of the smoke which pollutes the atmosphere we breathe is belched forth, not from the chimneys of factories, not from the smokestacks of producers in any capacity, but is the direct result of the carelessness, selfishness and indifference of the owners of office buildings, apartment houses and—more shame to us—the public buildings of the city. If citizens are to be required to put up patiently and peaceably with the smoke, it behooves the men of the city who profess to like it so much to make their boast good. Let them develop manufactures; let them found new industries; let them turn the energy and creative force of our people to making things which the world wants to buy—let them put “money in the smoke.” Then at least will there be some compensation for the inconvenience, the filth and the waste which the people are called upon to endure.[13] The women of Baltimore have been educating their city to see the folly of smoking chimneys, with considerable success. From every section of the country come reports of antismoke committees in women’s organizations and it all points to the fact that women are just housecleaning as usual. FLIES, MOSQUITOES, RATS Flies, mosquitoes, and rats as spreaders of disease have been attacked with avidity by women. “The anti-fly campaigning is a movement of more far-reaching importance and more promising of prolonged life and freedom from disease than perhaps any other single activity going forward in the community,” said Mayor Baker of Cleveland recently in a letter to the city council. The leader in the effort for a “flyless city of Cleveland” has been Jean Dawson, professor of civic biology at the Normal School. In her work emphasis was as usual these days laid on prevention, and breeding places were attacked. As it had been estimated that a single pair of flies is capable of reproducing two million young flies, the necessity of such a movement was evident. Owners of stables throughout Cleveland were compelled to clean-up, and keep clean, their premises. The schools were utilized in an educational campaign and various civic bodies together with the health officials eagerly coöperated.