The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1884-01-04
Wo:kHlsns Dwellings.

Lord Salisbury has written Al article
on..Lsborers' and Artisans Dwellings,"
which appears in the November num-
Der of the kGScna Il rirJc. AS COM
petition becomes closer says Lord
Salisbury. "ihe sufferinga OF the poor
from bad housing becomes very severe.
Thousands Of families have only sim
gle room to dwell in. where they sleep
and eat, multiply and die. For this
miserable Lodging Is speaking. OF
ranging from two shiilings to five shii-
lings week. It is difficult TO eyagger-
ate the misery which such conditions Of
life must ,auSe. or the impulse when
they must give TO vice. The depres-
sion Of body and mind which they ere
ate is an slmost insuperabie obstacle To
the action of any eleSst;ng or refining
influences"
He then proceeds to examine the vari-
Gus ways by which some remedy may
nc effected. lie inquiries whether il
would he better worth while to build
':high'-that is to say many storird
dwellings on the spot. or 10 build ''afar
lin other words, to transfer the work
Ing population to places outside the
town. but communicating with il BY
railway; and this latter question again
leads him into the rates charged aud
the accommodation provided By the
railway companies for the working
classes. The Peabody trustees, Sir
Sidney Wateriow's company, and Mr..
Gstliff's company. are considered, one
,fter the other. and the general con-
;lusion reached is that private enter
prise Gaunot offer cheaper article than
The Peabody trust. and yet that this ar
ticIe is too dear for the bulk OF the
working classes. There Is no reason.
he says. why parliament should not aid
the great work by loans. and he pro-
ceeds to point out that there Is also no
reason why the owners Of property In
towns who employ q number Of hands
should not do 10 towns what owners OF
property in the country do for their
tenants and for rural laborers.
THE government" he concludes.
might titly lead the way. They em-
ploy In the post-ofiice. In the police. In
the custom house and at other govern
ment establishments large number of
people whose wages are considerably
below FL Sc, which Ia the average in
come Of the Peabody tenants; but ! do
not believe they have made any pro-
Vision worth speaking Of for the hoas-
Ing OF those people. 1t has never been
held to be their duty to do so, but in
the present exigency 1t Is . task which
they may we'll be called upon In the
public interest to fulfil. II the example
were set by them 1t would probably be
followed before long BY the large COM
panies who. by virtue Of the great po-
sitioa which parliamentary powers have
given to them. Gil . quasi public char.
scter-dock companies. railway com
panies, aad the ike. There can be lit
tie doubt that II prosisiOo to this extent
were made the stress upon the dwelling
market would be greatly relieved. and
the residus Of the laboring poor would
find It much easier to obtain cheap
lodging than they do BOW" Sachmeas-
ures, q ell events. Lord Salisbury. says
would bs palliatives. though an entire
cure may be very distant. He says
there are indicstions enough that in
one way or another. by public aud pri-
vsts action. q remedy Is possible for
very much Of the misery and Degrade
tion which cast so terrible shadow
over the prosperity Of the country.