The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-02-14
l OF Charity Experts Go
They Cannot Profit By.

Mr. O. L. Brace, ''who has had an expo
rience of over twenty years with the poor OF
this CITY," and who in that time has collected
about million and half dollars from the
public in the name of charity, objects just
now to the system of soup kitchens for feeding
the needy "They demoralize and pauperize
the poor" Perhaps the fear OF thus injuring
the poor is good reason for consuming in
salaries what the public give to help the
wretched but we do not believe it. From
the Published reports we learn that the Chill
dren's Aid Society paid in the last year sew
enty-fve thousand dollars for salaries and
other expenses. That society has been in
operation twenty years. and in that time has
collected one and half million dollars Now,
seventy-fve thousand dollars for twenty years
makes just the sum of one million and a half
How much, then, has gone to the poor2 In
the earlier years, perhaps, this society did not
pay so many salaries and the poor have re-
ceived the little accounted for by that differ
ence Not much there to "demoralize" any
body. Some very little soup kitchens might
do more ''harm" than that
"What every one familiar with the poor
most dreads,' says the same gentleman, sis
the growth of the habit of dependence and
begging" No; there is something univer-
sally more dreaded than that-something far
more repulsive to every one familiar or unfa-
miliar-and that is the habit of collecting
money for the poor of which the poor receive
from five to ten cents on the dollar, and on
the remainder of which professional philan-
thropists get fat. All the world, we believe
every one animated by generous or charita-
BILE impulse-loathes that sort of character !;
and from time immemorial it has been recog-
nized as creature to be guarded against. In
all countries it appears. In charitable Eng
land pastor of the Established Church was
lately sent to prison because he had been for
several years making regular collections for a
home for poor children. which home was
found upon inquiry to have no existence. 1t
is not the same, Of course, with the Children S
Aid Society," for it does exist and does send
children out West. That is known, for the
public have heard how the poor little crea-
lures were dropped as paupers in the streets
of Western cities like ST. Louis, and how
some of them tramped all the way back to
this city.
Another "expert" in the pursuit Of charity
Mr.. Barnard, Of the Five Points House of In
dustry-believes that there is more danger
this season of bringing upon us as commu-
nifty the curse of mendicancy than that there
will be cases Of starvation" They have no
fear that any one will starve, though many
have already been days without food Their
only dread is that ''the curse of mendicancy'
will come upon us through money given to
the poor which does not pass through their
hands. There's the rub. II do not hesitate
to AFFIRM" says this latest expert 'that there
are now in the city all the organizations neces-
sary for the care of all the worthy poor, and
the only requisite is the necessary fund
from which to draw supplies" That is plain
enough. 1t means, simply, Don't throw
away your money on wretched starvelings.
Send it all to us. We will put it where it will
do most good, and you may be sure it will not
encourage people to be mendicants.
There is one good thing likely to result
from the present distress. It will turn the at
tention Of the people to the administration Of
some public charities, and will probably ex-
pose and explode some dreadfully rotten ones.
Our opinion is that the Children's Aid Society
will prove the worst of these. That society
receives from the city and county seventy
thousand dollars for educating nine thousand
children, and shows itself that it only has
three thousand; and for the education OF
that three thousand it appeals to public
charity. It has newsboys lodging house,
supplied and kept by the contributions Of
charitable people, and not newsboy can
sleep in it without paying six cents; so that
people give money to furnish beds for poor
little wretches, and wolves in Sleeps clothing
take the money and shut the boys out in the
street. And this society that shuts into the
street on winters night any newsboy who
has not six cents-this creature Of we'll devel-
oped benevolence-has one hundred and sixty
four thousand dollars invested in the shares
of Western railway.