, 1875-02-14
CHICAGO POOR.
The Sections Where They
Chiefly Congregate.
Comparatively Slight Amount Of
Absolute Destitution.
The Work Of the Rslief and Aid
Society for Two Months.
What Was Done. and What
What Was Done, and What
It Cost.
The County Agent.

The County Agent.
"Misery,n observed that erudite and Justly
celebrated philosopher, Josh Billings, "luvs
konpany but kant bare kompetshun." By
which ha may have meaut, il indeed he ever
meant anything, that people never admit any
body else's troubles to bo equal to their own.
and in that sense there is spice Of truth In the
remark. Chicago. for instance would be nh
speakably Jealous II any other city should hasa
FRS greater than the one by which she WAS
visited in 1871. And in common A1e
how many people thers arc who teel
atfronted II their condition is f&Vofaoly
compared with that OF their neighbors hfrs.
O'Braay, Of hog Alley. who is continually be-
moaning her wretched lot, would doubtless e1-
nerenca the Sans resentmont-on being told Of
other and greater sufferers than hersslf-that
von.d arise in the rnird OF Harvey D. il in
formed that other Mayors have been more
stused than he has been. Frank Agnew thinks
that no Sheriff has over been no persecuted ~
the present incumbent. Mike McDonald's gti:
would lsare him entirely II he thought that any
other gambler was about to eclipse him in
notoriety. And 80 on. I'd inanitum-
But Chicago, however reluctant to yield the
palm to Ally other city, must acknowledge that
N ONE PARTICULAR,
at 1east, she Is behind the world It must be
aopareut to one who re4ds the newspapers, and
xbo il couvetsant with the various poorer local.
tiles Of tbs city, that there il lack Of that utter
destitut!on md wrctchedness which form q
marked feature of all great cities. There are.
Of course, poor people, aud many Of them; but,
with Few exceptions, all manage to get enough
to eat and to wear.
It is difficult to define the districts that are
distinotivey occupied By the poorer classes, IS
those people arc scattered, or rather squatted,
nj oyer tho c,ty IN all kinds OF nooks and quar-
ters. On the North Side there ia district
bounded BY Larrabee street and the North
Branch which has recently earned considerable
notoriety by = horrible murder committed within
tts precincts. It il called BY the poiics
tsIIrTLE HE'LL"
.n.ne bv tho vay. borrowed from neiahbor-
hood in Cow Cross, London. 's Little He'll" is
without doubt Ioor. Its inhabitants are not
onlv poor but vicious including some OF the
most turbulent characters in the city It's Popu-
Iatiou il mixed consisting OF Irish. swedes, Ger
mans Dutch, Polaa aud Italians, with avary light
epr1nkling OF Ama1acans. SAloon-sows and stab-
bine af.sys are not infrequent. And Jet, care
ful investigation shows that there IL very nttle
Of real sauslor and destitution IN this neighbor-
hood. The houses, though rudeiy constructed
one-story Affairs are comfortable, and from
nearly avory chimney cloud OF smoke ascend
ing shows that the inmA.ex are BY no means re-
srcad to the drent ext txeme Of poverty The
men ara mostly employed in the gss-houae or
other laxge establishments in that part sf the
city.
"cuEyENEE
ia another district that has become noted in
po1ice annals. It lies south Of Harrison street,
bstweeu Clark and the river. This ia gwen
Cd almost entirely to the lowest class OF prostl-
tutes and professional thieveh- Though dirty
snd y1la in III its aspects, "Cheyenne" is BY no
means 10 = starving condition. We're it not for
ths whisky which is constantly consumed thele IN
ENORMOUS Quantities, "CheSenne might Ase
wall md eave money. AZ it is, that district 10
chronically poor and shiftless unhlngea
doors and hat-stut1ed windows contribute not 4
little to the general forlornness OF the dlngy hab-
itasons The people themselves, rs rule, are
even less attractive than their dwellings. AZ
distinctions Of color have long since been aool-
ished in IS Cheyenne" white and black living 70
gether on equal terms. Many Of the "hite
women we're once occupants Of splendld1y. fur
piahed mansions on the other sids OF Clark
strest, only block or two from shelf present
degraded quarter, to which tneJ nave 6uuA Ii
ths regular courns Of VICE and dissipation.
BRIDGEPORT
Is the very Insignificant name applied to Z large
district in the southwestern part OF the CITY.
bridgeport 10 .nyThe1s iu the town It il also
the hauut OF the toughest characters lr1sh is
the preyaiIiu4 uRtioL a1lty. Yet. notH1tbsfAnd-
Ing the rude and desperate disposition OF tue
men, most Of them are good workmen and find
ble.dJ employment in the many manufacturing
establishments that abound in that nelshbot-
hood,
There ere, of course, many other places about
town where poverty maJ be found. There a1e
lev by-xars on the West Side given up to tene-
raent houses, and isolated shanties are frequent
in tho thinly.inhabited outskirts; but the above-
named Districts comprise the greater portion Of
tho poorer population. And when the size and
relative Importance Of Chicago are taken into
consideration, it is indeed astonishing that 80
iittle If real destitntion exsta within its limits.
In oxder 20 ascertain