Many young people were leaving their families in the provinces to seek employment in the city. Employment was scarce. Parents contacted William Booth, because the organization was known for its willingness to help any in need. An Inquiry department was set up to receive requests from anxious parents. When the department is asked to conduct investigations, a relative may have been out of touch for 6 months, or 60 years.
Absolute confidence is observed.
The address of a relative who has been found is never disclosed without his or her prior consent. The Salvation Army's Missing Person Service is international in scope. We will continue a search until we are certain we have found the right person, or until we have exhausted all our resources on a person's whereabouts. All inquiries must begin in the Missing Persons Bureau in the Salvation Army Territory where the seeker resides rather than where the missing person was last known to be.