University of Virginia Library

The Grounds

We are extremely happy to see that the
Department of Building and Grounds has
taken solid action against those brutal
murderers of young and innocent blades of
grass, the notorious lawn strollers. For a while
we feared that a dusty path of clay might be
forever etched on the lower patch of lawn
before Old Cabell Hall.

Imposing barriers of wood and steel have
been erected along the sidewalks to keep the
lazy and the rebellious from stamping out the
life and beauty of the green carpet. With the
arrival of balmy spring weather we are the
first to understand that the lawn is one of the
most pleasant spots on the Grounds to
partake of a little fresh air and sunshine, but
we cannot condone the practice of using the
lawn as a highway for students and faculty
using the academic buildings.

We are beginning to wonder just what
action would be necessary to curb the flow
across the lawn. It soon became apparent that
pleading editorials and exposing pictures were
not working. Even ferocious looking canines
and towering dinosaurs failed to have much
affect on the traffic across the lawn. Now
finally with the erection of obstacles for the
world be stroller the grass will have a chance
to flourish.

After many past attacks on the
Department of Building and Grounds, we
believe that there can be no doubt that they
are now due for some praise. We shudder to
recall the appearance of the Grounds in the
early fall when gaping holes and brown
blotches of dead grass scarred the natural
beauty of the Grounds, but it appears that all
of that is long past.

It seems a vast army of men from the
Department of Buildings and Grounds has
almost totally removed the severest eyesores
so that students, faculty and tourists alike can
enjoy the verdant scene. We congratulate the
leaders of the Department for their vast
improvement and "all the men that made it
possible."

Our only suggestion is that some study
should be undertaken to decide what future
action may be needed to dissuade thoughtless
individuals from tramping across the grass of
the lawn. Brick crosswalks may be just a bit
too much, but permanent iron bars at each of
the corners of the quadrangle at the Cabell
Hall end of the lawn are certainly not out of
the question.