Page:Old Towns and New Needs.djvu/69

force, that is, not only of the material weapons of war, but of the more essential spirit of bravery, can be concentrated upon any purpose by the general, in a manner that would be quite impossible if the whole army consisted of individuals each having an infinitesimal direct connection with the general. Our towns in the past have tended too much to resemble this latter unorganised condition, and it is largely to this fact that we owe the squalor, ugliness and haphazard character of their development; for there is no doubt that the town must represent the character of the social life of the people composing it, and that it will express by its form the social organisation upon which it is based. I venture to suggest that the ideal form of town to which we should aim will consist of a central nucleus surrounded by suburbs each grouped around some subsidiary centre representing the common suburban life of the district; and the suburb in turn will consist of groups of dwellings, workshops, and what not, developing some co-operative activity either in connection with the building and owning of the houses, or in connection with the common enjoyment of open spaces, playing fields, and so forth. To emphasise this ideal development of the town, first of all each individual suburb should be provided with its suitable centre around which should be located its local municipal or administrative buildings, its places of worship, its educational, recreational, and social institutions; and not only should this centre or heart of each district give expression to its unity, leading naturally to the grouping of the district around and in relation to this centre, but between