THE FRESH-AIR FUND.

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2756, 27 April 1916, Page 6

THE FRESH-AIR FUND.

Sir,—The kindly interest which th* ' readers of The Dominion have display< ed in the Fresh-air Fund in, the past ' embolden 6mo to ask you to allow nW ■ to remind them once again of the need "' of the children of the slumß of the United, ' Kingdom. Many of L us in this country, —and very willingly—will have w dis< pcnso witli holidays this year; but tha children with whom the Fresh-air Fund - deals are a class of the community for whom holidays are moro'thau ever urgent. No one would wish to inflict any, avoidable suffering upon these little ones, but altogether apart from any, ■ sentimental reasons we must rememben that they represent a great part of tlw future manhood and womanhood of till nation, and therefore call for our e& pecial care at this critical .and iuipres< sjonablo stage of their lives. Tha Fresh-air Fund kas, in the twenty-four years of its existence, been the ineans of sending over three and a half million children for a day's outing, and nearly thirty-five thousand for a fort-' night's holiday by the sea, or in the country. Last year 111,255 •childrenwore given a day's holiday, and 3320 were provided with a fortnight's respite from their usual drab surroundings. So far. from relaxing our efforts during the present upheaval ■of national life wa must redouble them. Those who know, anything of life in the slums will easily realise the wonderful influence for good on the receptive mind of a child who sees for the first time the beauty of the hedgerows and the green fields, after years spent in the impure air and ternole surroundings of some back alley of our great cities. The F.A.F. is a great commonwealth of happiness whose boundaries extend from an English slum to practically the last outpost of Empire, for the friends of the I'.A.F. are to bo found wherever the British flag is flying. Manv who were the guests of .the Fresh-air Fund in ita early days are now fighting our battles on land and sea, and I think I may say that wherever our soldiers and sailors are found, the Fresh-air Fund is known and honoured. Subscriptions in past years have come from the remotest parts of the Empire and from the Fleet at sea. The, little ones wore not forgotten last year, oven in the dug-outs of Flanders and Northern France, for many subscriptions reached us from the gallant men serving at the front. The Kiu| is patron of the Fresh-air. Fund and a generous annual subscriber. All subscriptions received are spent upon the children, the cost of organisai tion being borne hy the promoters. The children are drawn without distinction of creed from the slums of the forty-three great cities of the United 1 Kingdom. Poverty is the only passport ■ to a Fresh-air Fund holiday. Owing to ■ the rise in prices and difficulties in regard to transit, we.have been reluctantly compelled to raise the cost of a day's holiday to Is-., and of a fortnight's ■ holiday to 12s. 6d., instead of 9d. and 10s. as heretofore—£lo 10s. paying for a complete party of two hundred children to have a day in tne country with' the necessary adult attendants. This 1 means that we must obtain more money. ; than ever before if we are to benefit ; as many little ones as we have in the i past. I am confident that your readers, , while they are thinking of the brave sol- ; diers fighting our battles in various f parts of the world, and straining every • effort on their behalf, will not overlook ■ the _ claims of the white-faced little > denizens of the slums who will bo longi ing and hoping daily for a- holiday this • summer with the inexhaustible hopeful- ; ness of .childhood. Subscriptions i should be sent to the hon. secretary, i The Fresh-air Fund, 226 Great Port- , land Street, London, W.—l am, etc., : O. ARTHUR PEARSON.