The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1877-09-29

nished $4,000 lodgings and nearly 10000
meals. At six lodging houses belonging to
tho Chldren's Aid Society, 1880 differ
ent boys and girls were cared for,
10000 lodgings and 100000 meals sup
piled. At the thirty-onc industrial schools
maintained by the same association, not
less than 4sl 900 meals were furnished
during the past year. Passing to those or
CARNATIONS which connne their services to
the least considerable elements of our
foreign population, we find that not less
than 23jl INDECENT English people were re-
licved by the st. Georges Society, while up
ward of thousand poor natives OF scot
land wcro succored by tho st. Andrews
Society So, too, G7s families were wholly
or partially supported by tho French Be-
nevolcnt Society, while I, $40 natives of Switz-
erland received aid from the Swiss Bcnevo-
lent Association Of New York. These sam
pies, cullcd from tho multitude OF similar
facts set forth in the report before us, may
afford n faint idea Of the privations UNDER
gone in the essentials of food and shclterby
great numbers of the relatively well and
strong. To measure the suffering cntailcd
when poverty is aggravated by sickness and
the inlirmtics OF age, we must turn to the
accounts Of tho FREQ dispcnsarics and hospi-
tails. OF these there are about fifty, and the
scope Of their work may be inferred from
two or three instances. At the Eastern Dis
pensary, In Essex street, $4,000 adult pa
ticnts and 1900 children were treated; Mt
the German Dispcnsary, St Marks place,
10000 patients were prescribed for; while
the Dcmilt Dspensary, In the Second avenue,
returns more than $4,000 patients and nearly
5000 prescriptions. And these are only
three out Of fifty institutions whose resources
are constantly overtaXcd in extending medi-
cal aid, often inadequate, 10 the tens OF
thousands Of the sick poor.
Although with the materials accessible II
Is impossible to estimate the volume OF our
INDECENT population, we can at least approx
mate to tho aggregate outlay on their be-
half. We do not, Of course, refer to the
disbursements on account Of those public
institutions, most OF which are controlled
by the Department Of Charities and Correc-
tion. The sums appropriated for those es-
Establishments are well known; but it is less
easy TO discover the total amount collected
and expended by private associations. BY
Analysing and adding the figures supplied
by the Board of United Charities, we learn
| lllbJ lWtHly ebtltNltN, BlbuI'h i'tttH'i
under the head of general relief" paid out
during the past year upward of 100000.
Eighteen associations, whose special object
is the relief OF women and girls, disbursed
about quarter of that sum- viz, $4,000.
A million and a quarter OF dollars was ex-
pended by another class OF institutions
devoted TO the relief OF children. A nearly
equal amount is credited to forty-four dis
pensarics and hospitals uncontrolled by the
municipal authorities. The combined ex-
penditure last year Of seventeen homes and
nflrmaries foots up nearly 100000, and that
| Of protectories and reformatories about
S6jO,0o0. To these sums should be added
$4,000 for the national benevolent societies,
eleven in number, and $4,000 for some
thirty special institutions. Altogether. we
have a total of not far from four and IA half
millions disbursed in 1876 by private char
table associations. When we bear in mind
that church organizations, unless OF some
what comprehensive character, do not figure
In this report, it is probably safe to conclude
that the whole amount expended in the city
u New York for benevolent purposes, ex-
somewhat exceed five million dollars. As a
matter Of fact, therefore, our record does
not compare favoraby with that Of London
The ratio of population being as to 81, We
might expect the thirty-iivc million dollars
expended by the former in private charities
to be represented by ten millions in New
York. However our apparent shortcomings
may be explained or justified, it will hardly
be claimed that indigence and suffering ar,
just now relatively less rife on Manhattan
Island than upon the banks Of the Thames.