Evening capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1888-1893, 1890-12-05
Terrible pestiistisN Of the Poor In
Large Cities.

| Sss 4C SNtVes
Boston Journal, Nov. %.
At st. Johns Methodist Episco
pal church on Broadway, South
Boston, Sunday morning, Rw.
Louis Albert Banks discussed G.n
b"''h's new book, "In Darkest
England and the Way Out" with
some South Boston applications.
MI. Banks chose for his text: "a
land Of darkness, rs darkness itself
"nd OF the shadow of death, without
any order. and where the light ~
darkness" "rhe text of Gen.
Booths sermon given to Us In this
helpful book" said the speaker. "is
the great Congo forest In the heart
OF Africa, where Stanley lef. M
masy Of his disheartened followers.
In the unique sermon of the Saliva.
ZIONIST general the dark forest stands
for the slum region of the great
cities. The indomitable Stanley
represents the moral leaders, the
christian workers, who dare TO 20
down IN the darkness to rescue the
lost. Emin, doubtful, vacillating,
not Knowing whether he wants to
oe rescued or not, stands for the
poor victims of this dark wilder
ness. Gen. Booth, not only
plans and pleads for help for
the semi-respectable, who are
largely able TO take care of them
selves, but bravely says: No
one will make even n visible dint Oh
the morass Of squalor who does no,
deal with the ilnprovident, the lazy,
the vicious aud the criminal" The
terrible fact needs to be emphasized,
that we In Boston, in several sec.
iions of the city, are deliberately
breeding II vicious class that bids
fair to be equal in degradation to
anything London can show to-day.
During the past week, within five
minutes walk of the pulpit where
l now stand, have visited more
than one "chanber of horrors"
Block after block, on certaiu streets,
is given up to vileness of every de
Many of these old rook.
cries are not fit for any one to live In.
They are nestholes of vermin aud
disease. Children are growing up
in these places who have not bee.i
bOru Into the world 30 much AS
damned into the world" went
into miserable holes, miscalled
homes, where on the coldest day Of
last week the windows were broken,
no fire, no coal, nothing to eat,
little children shivering in rags, and
he mother drunk. In these places
he beds are often only a pile OF
worn straw and rags on the floor,
'overed with a ragged, filthy, YER
nin.inhabited cOnifnrter. Que
If 1t Is possible that the
'Oard of health ever visits tn sc
'laces. Since an improper play was
|riven from the stage of a
3ostOn theater because of the
'ersonal investigation of the Of
lcers granting the license.
have had some hope that
+ the city officials could te stirred
Ip to personally investigating these
Dul regions something might be
one toward cleansing them. Yet
n the midst of this horrible section
here Is a cluster of four saloons that
manage to filch enough out of these
eop!e to pay annually 5000 in Ii.
eEse money. One large family,
rowded into three little rooms, I
,here there are three of the family
,ho work, the mother admitted to
he officer that they spent Sl2 "A
ieek for ale aud beer which is
early ten times as much as they !
ay for rent. The children growing
p in these places do not so to
choOl. There are young men and
who have grown up there
tho are unable to read or write.
hey are accustomed. from their in.
,ncy, to every form Of vice aud
rinie. They talk about "gOing
own to the Island" as nonchal.
lily as decent people do about going
, the post office.
These slums are disgrace to Bos. I
on. They are not necessary. They i
ught To be cleans out Of existence.
he children Ia every one Of these {
antilles accustomed to figure In the !
Olice court ought to he taken at
nee out Of these haunts Of dark ness.
hall we not have, with all our or :
auizations, Il a ne v. one, or rather u
Drt of federation Of all the others,
hat shall have for Its one object the ,
tier annihilatiOn of the sums?
- .
II will pay you to call aud see the .
ew firm for groceries, nations.
H. q :