The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-06-27
WHAT CAN BE DONE,
Newark Gives a Free Fresh Air Treat to
I,4OO Women and Children.

Newark Gives "a Free Fresh Air Treat 70
I,4O0 Women and Children.
From the Neaoark Evening Ne'cs of Tuesday.
Fourteen hundred women and children,
to whom had been given tickets for the
excursion Of the poor, stood on the decks
of the steamer Blackblrd and the barge
Sumner this morning at nine O'Clock,
waving h~andkerchiefs and crazy MILL
merry in the air in adieu to their friends on
the docks, as they fioated on the ebb tide
slowly down the Passaic. An invigorat.
ing breeze arose off the meadows and the
bent ribbon Of water ahead carrying back
the babble of hundreds of happy young
sters and the music from the barge.
1t was a big excursion, and one of all ma
tions. The place of embarkatlon was at
Ripley's dock, at the foot OF Prospect street.
Two hours before the Blackbird drew
her numbering consort down the stream
the barge lay tied up again t the wharf,
and streamers flying over her. The mem
bers of the citizens committee that raised
the money and took charge of the excur-
sion were the first to arrive. They We're
Charles w. Clayton, John ". Diefen-
thaler, Overseer of the Poor McLorinan,
AluerI1an ElldS c1dHClS dAu
Superintendent Yatman, of the Society
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.
COMING TO THE BOAT.
The dusty roadway down to the dock
became soon the pathway for hundreds OF
feet. Sixteen hundred tickets had been
given out and only few were wasted.
Most of them had found their way into
the tenement houses on River street n
along the river front and intothe beehives
of humanity on the hill. The excursion
was for children under the age of twelve
years and for women with babies. There
was no question but that the poor Went.
Women in calico dresses with infants,
some tat and some sickly, in their arms,
and whole broods toddling after them,
colored matrons with bow-legged pick
anninies, italian women with their black
eyed, oliye-skinned offspring, half-grown
girls and boys out of the factories, crowded
down and formed a great group around
the gangplank. Some Of the women with
the babies sank YEARLY on the lumber
piles and awaited the invitation to crowd
aboard.
At eight O'Clock Mr.. D~iefenthaler
walked down the gang plank with a big
blue badge on his breast.
Come aboard" he shouted, bracing
himself against the railing.
Like sheep bound for a field of clover
the crowd rushed into the passage way,
giving their tickets to Mr.. Diefenthaler
as they passed him. On the boat stood a
young man with a pasteboard box full OF
yellow checks with milk printed upon
them. As the band began to play Alder
man Dusenberry waved the people up to
the upper deck of the barge, where there
were long benches arranged for them to
sit upon. Each person big enough to
take it was given a milk ticket. For a
solid hour the stream poured up the gang
plank until Mr.. D~iefenthaler had his
pockets full OF redeemed pasteboards. A
few of the friends of the committee also
arrived and wen upon the upper deck Of
the steamer.
DR.. George w. Harmon. carrying a lit
tie medicine chest, scrambled over the
rail and reached the steamer. He gave
his time for the day to the committee in
place of DIR. Hugh p. Roden, who is lying
in a critical condition at his home. Mayor
Haynes soon followed, but walked up the
plank instead of climbing over the rail
after the agile doctor.
SOME PEoPLE Hut OUT.
1t took three police officers and the
whole committee to keep some big boys
and a lot of women without children from
the decks. Among those who persistently
tried to crowd aboard were some well
dressed half grown girls, sixteen or sew
enteen years old, who looked anything but
DOOE. MdISllbll ~ De SCAO oAOh6 q
Punch and Judy show and a man to ex-
hibit it, and the amateur photographer
was there with his machine. At nine
o'clock the lines were cast off and the
boats moved away, leaving d crowd on
the docks.
1--WE might "a got Liz a baby and gone
too,'' said one big colored woman to an
other who had been refused admission to
the boat.
~ let them have six of my youngsters,
and then they wouldn't take me-" muir
INJURED a big German mournfully to the
reporter. as he wiped his eyes with his
handkerchief.
1--WE should have had our old toys on"
one pert, well dressed miss said consol-
ingly to another. I'VE was too tony for
that crowd"
The Blackbird after a two hours pleas
ant run drew the barge to the wharf at
Sylvan Grove, on the New Jersey coast,
opposite Staten Island. There the eXcur-
sionists were landed, and at noon a lunch
was served. Upon presentation of the
milk checks each child and woman was
given a drink of milk and a paper bag full
OF edibIes. Each bag contained TWO buns,
a ginger cake, a sugar cake, a banana and
two boiled eggs. The start for home will
be made at four O'Clock, and if nothing
happens in the meantime the two boats
will arrive at Ripley's dock again be-
tween six and seven O'Clock.