The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-02-05
MISERY and POVERTY.
How Some of the Wretchedly Poor
Exist in New York.
WITHOUT FOOD, FIRE, HOME Oh HOPE.
Thrilling Details Of Terrible Suffering in
the Fourth and Sixth Wards.

1nrIlllng DetAllS OF Terrible Suffering In
the Fourth and Sixth Wards.
Facts are more eloquent than any eloouence
and consequently the following facts In reference
to the condi ton Of the poor and wretched In the
city OF New York, at and during the period Of the
present snow storm, which has given to rich and
happy New York its best opportunity yet for skat
ing and sleighing Will be more suggestive In their
terrible details than any sermon. These facts were
obtained by representative or the HERALD from
personal observation and rom the statements OF
experienced police captains and ward detectives,
who OF all men in the city the most practically
cognizant of the misery, as well as the crime,
within it.
WHERE THE BOARD OF HEALTH HAS MADE MIS-
In the first place it Is claimed and earnestly In
sisted upon by the police authorities that the raid
made by the Board OF Health upon the downtown
lodging cellars though We'll intended, was prac
tical mistake, so far as any benefit to the poor
is concerned. The police hold that the poor
are more wretched than before this closing
up OF their basement homes" while they are not
a whit more clean or more moral Since the GEL
lars have been shut up the scum Of the town have
sought refuge in the attics Of old roOkeres, the
top stories Of tenement houses where they are just
as vile and as filthy. only more cold and even wet
than belore; for most Of these attics have broken
windows, through which the wind bowls terribly,
and they have leaky roofs, through which the snow
and the hail and the rain penetrate fearfully. Men
and women are hpdded together just as closely az
they were In the cellars, and they pay the same
ten fifteen cents night, so that in reality, while
q change has been made, no Improvement has been
gained. Dan Casey who kept the miserable lodg-
ing cellar in $3.50 Water street. where he sold straw
beds to human creatures for fifteen cents night,
now sells to the same persons the same straw Tor
the same tariff in the top floor Of q den in Baxter
street.
'Old Mother Hurley" who used to keep the far
famed Infamous "Black Hole OF Cherry street,"
having been driven from this locality by the Board
OF Health, has transferred her business and her
boarders and keeps an equally foul establishment
at No. $40 Water street; and any number OF simi-
lar instances could be cited, showing that the
''closing up' movement OF the Board OF Health has
resulted merely in change Of localities, but not
in any Improvement in the condition OF the poor.
And what the condition OF the wretched poor in
the city OF New York really is let the following
additional facts show
MAC THE DUTCHMAN'S-FIGHTING FOR PLACES ROUND
THE ONLY STOVE
At No. 1894 Water street is huge lodging house
kept by man called, In the parlance OF the neigh
borhOod, 'Mac the Dutchman." The house is, lit.
orally, a big barn-cheerless outside, utterly desti
tute OF furniture, carpets or beds within. Some
thirty or forty men, women and children "bunk"
on the straw IN this barn nightly, and pass the
greater portion OF their existence in fighting win
each other for places around the only stove in the
building, a broken down affair, on the first moor,
whose heating properties, imperfect as they are,
SO highly priced that list encounters In
Vulnerable have taken place for chance at their
temporary enjoyment by wretched dodgers" In
this 'den." The saddest yet most natural feature
In the case is that. being the weakest OF course,
the children are compelled to 90 to the wall, and
thus the poor little ones, who really need the fire
the most, are compelled to cry ana SILVER in the
quarrel nearer the wished-IOr stove. This nightly
fight for seat near tue fire at Mac
the DatcaMans As really curious though
human misery. In this establishment" there
are at the present moment five or SIX women
VINO nave no bOnnets; number or children VINO
are compelled to beg In the snow barefoot. TWO
or three OF the 'families" nave lived for some time
past wholly on garbage and the refuse they have
picked up in the streets, while last week wo-
man who had not been six days mother was
forced TO arise, take her baby IN ner arms and beg
barefoot in the streets.
mo sHoEs-No CoAT-No FIRE-NO FoODp'
No. 10 Cherry street is a wretched tenement,
near an alley. 1t Is full OF poor families IN the
front, and 1uller of very, very poor families in the
There are six or seven families in the 'front.'
and twelve families in the rear-hty- two people, it
is estimated, in all. Tue families IN the front live
from hand to mouth. The families in the rear
seldom get anything IN their hands to put into
their mouths. one man, the father OF several
children, described his condition and that Of hts
words-"No shoes, no coat, no fire, no ioodl" Tue
family possess an old bI0ken-dOwn stove, which
they bought when they were flush" for 81, and
for q while they managed to pick up by hook or
by crook enough wood and coal to keep
IN it a scant fire, but there have been
coal and wood, and the children were SO tender
looted. being barefoot, that this resource ulti-
'eaten square meal" az the father phrased It,
this year.
ONLY BOWL OF COFFEE IN TWO DAYS.
In No. 344 Water street, on the top floor, In A.
dark bleak room, whose furniture consisted OF O.
broken chair and bundle OF rags and straw,
a1ln1 hlk nhn vvt VI no 80
q bed, In corner, Of1cer Musgraye, OF the Fourth
precinct police, found q woman lying On the floor
in the utter exhaustion OF the last stages OF
hunger. The windows were most of them broken,
the roof leaked badly, and the poor creature was
| found by the officer the woman was too weak
to speak word, and she was taken at once to the
Park Hospital. 1t was afterwards ascertained that
for two days prior to having been found by the
policeman she had tasted no other nOurishment
than one bowl OF coffee, which had been kindly
sent up to her by poor woman down stairs, who
had nothing else TO give her. and who had finally
gone to police station herself and informed the
officer OF the womans condi ION.
In this particular case the poor woman recov-
cred; but 1t sometimes happens that the victims Of
hunger are not so Fortunate,
STARVED TO DEATH.
In the basement Of No. 56New Chambers street. on
the last and lowest step OF the closed basement,
without friends, without home without money,
was found last week freezing and starving to
station house. and was rom thence borne on the
ambulance TO the Park Hospital but he ded the
next day-"Died OF want OF food," said the doctor.
And ever and anon there are poor wretched
Migrants who find it but a step
FROM THE STATION HOUSE TO THE HOSPITAL,
just as they find 1t but another step from the
hospital to paupers grave. On three separate
occasions this winter the ambulance connected
with the Park Hospital I'm the City Hall Park, for
merly used as an engine house, then as q hospital
1Or sunstruck patients, now as q temporary hos
pitaD, has been teegraphed to come at once to the
police station OF the Fourth precinct TO bear from
the station house to the hospital some poor devil
OF vagrant-some station house ledger
sickness amid the rest Of the dirty. greasy,
wretched pummers, mortal sickness aris-
ing from sheer want OF the cOmmOnest
necessaries of humanity. And in each Of the three
cases referred to tue victim OF starvation has died,
though these deaths are seldom recorded la the
papers. It is calculated by police captain
cOgnlzant Of the general facts of the subject in