Northern Ohio journal. [volume] (Painesville, Ohio) 1872-1896, 1873-12-13

conflict; let our motto she--EXceislor
our hope-there Is il better day dawn
ing : and our -prayer-'God speed the !
right
HARD TIMES FOR THE POOR. |
Those who live in the country, with a
roof over their heads, something to eat,
and a fire to keep them warm, are very
fortunate in these times The panic and
the consequent hard times have made it
disastrous enough to everybody, but it
is far worse i'm the large cities than il
can possibly be anywhere else. |
In the country person may be poor,
but he has acquaintanceS and friends
who will not see him suffer for the actu-
al necessities of life. People do not
starve to death or freeze to death, be-
cause of poverty in the country. The
neighbers of the poor know all about
them, and give them aid. In the city
all is different. There are lots of char
itabiy inclined people, but there are so
mary sufferers that the little does not
go round Nearly hundred thousand
men have been thrown out of employ
ment in the past two months, and al
left without any means whatever of pro-
viding for their families. These men
and their families are scattered over the
city in tenement houses and out-of-the-
way places. where no one ever goes to
see them, and few people living in the
same block ever know anything of them. 4
If man gets out of work he knows not
which way to turn. Everything in
large city is conducted On hard business
basis, and when you want any thing you
must render an immediate equivalent.
for it.
A poor mans family may be starving,
but nobody knows it; and if he goes out
tolbeg he is rebuffed as an imposter, be-
cause there are so many professional beg
gars in the city who are unworthy of
charity, who do not need help, and who
nave imposed upon the public SO long
that people have become suspicious of
every one who seeks assistance. For this
reason an honest man hesitates to ask
for aid, and in nine cases in ten when
he does he is unsuccessful.
Thousands of deserving and honest
men who are capable and faithful work
men are now, with their families re-
duceds to the starvation point in New
York, ard winter has not really begun.
| What the long and desolate winter has
in store for these poor human beings
| God alone knows. Unless there is some
organized system of relief many of them
must die of cold and starvation, and
many more will suffer from disease
| brought on by destitutiOn and want.
| The nightly scenes at some of the
station-houses are heart-rending to a
1 sensitive nature. In all these places
1 there are lodger's rooms, and these are
| beginning to be crowded with people
who never thought of going to them be-
| fore. In times when work can be had
these lodgers' quarters are occupied on
| ly by shiftless lot who won't work :;
| X I,n lo1
turn these professionals adrift to make
| room for the hundreds of honest persons
| who can't get work to do, who, there
| fore, have no money, and are turned
| into the street by landlords who exact
prompt payment of their taxes. A visit
| to one of these station-hOuses at night is
enough to touch the stoniest heart; it
will give the most terrible picture of the
hard times of those thrown out of en-
ployment. The dodgers have all tried
to get work, and failed. One of them
said to a reporter: > f'Ea-lz
serhere amt man in this room but is
willing to work and has tried haro to
get it. Do you think they'd come here
If they had any other place; no sir, they
would not. A poor workingman is
sometimes proud man and this is the
last place he would think of to come for
a nights lodging. But you see we have
got down to it, and most of us have
| wives and families. [ walked the streets
for four nights before l could bring my
self down to come in here; but the cold
and the want of clothing drove me to it
at last. Then l hadn't sold all my
things, but they went one after another
to keep the children together. and had
to send my shame and self-respect after
them. We can't sleep at home, you see,
because we have no homes. Two OF
three of us married men club together
what we squeeze out during the day, to
pay for room for the women and chill
dren to sleep in at night. They have
the same fare there as we have here.
only perhaps not so much fire; hard
boards and empty stomachs. Where il
his going to end, heaven only knows, but
| something must be done and dole soon
! for the numbers are increasing every
day."
A strong. rather well-clad young man
about 25 years old, entering the room al
that moment, was asked why he went
there to Sleep rss. 80
: 81 have no other place." he answered,
81 have been all over this town looking
for work and I can't find anya Lam a
; paper box maker by trade, and a$good
worker, but there's nothing to do. I'm
willing to take job at anything, but !
can't find one. There what my last EN-
ployers in Broome street think of me, y
he said, pulling two recommendation ou
of his pocket. They gave him a charac
ter for honesty, sobriety and industry
AS they were handed back to him he
/, again remarked: "Now, with these III
my hand 1 can't get employment, al
though L have offered to work. for my
! board-$4 a week-or anything they
like to give me. No use, no use. Thf
is the third time have slept here, and
have not eaten bite since yesterday al
: four O'clock"
"Now." said man, jumping up from
the middle of the party stretched on th'
! boards, 'swhat chance have l to feed my
five children, my mother and my wifi
against that young man. He's twenty
|. years younger than me- and better abl'
: to work. Young, quick and strong, ant
can't get work to do at four dollars
? week. What am to do ? lie down AM
starve, and see my children do the sam
l thing? Great God and in America!"
t These are cases that come to light. II
: the tenements all over the city there ar
thousands upon thousands of other
/; without food, without beds and withotl
t clothing, whose sufferings are unknown
e in the great careless world that marche
G ceaselessly by on the streets. The peo
I pie of the country may suffer from har
times, but there is no such suffering a
d the poor mortals of the city undergo