Grand Rapids herald. [volume] (Grand Rapids, Mich.) 1892-1959, 1892-03-14
in AID OF POVERTY
The Rev. w. 4. Frye's Third
Sermon on Local Charities.
HE SUGGESTS A NOVEL REMEDY


IN 0rand Rapids' wae delivered before
. very large audience last evening --an
audience which filled every scat IN tbs
house, and all the chars thst could b
borrowed from the neighbors. After
reading the scripture iessons found In
the SIXTH and tenth chapters Of Pro-
verbs, which deal largely with the
Sausss Of poverty, Mr.. Frye said:
"A man who tries nowadays to solve
any secial problem 10 looked upon ~
IN anarchist or some other kind Of =
dangerous person, therefore what
shall say tonight say after thought
full consideration upon thu subject.
That there 10 abundance Of poverty in
Grand Rapids ia true, and that there :s
sutiicisnt charity bestowed upon the
city's poor 10 equally true. Let us
then consider the questions: What -
tho cause Of 90 many poors and /,
What 10 the cure for this poyerty7
The pauper and the poor man stand
1T opposite poles The whole diameter
Of manhood Lies between them.
Pauporism 10 the state OF voluntary
want, Of willful bcggarism. 1t is found
not only IN novels, hut in palaces. 1t
10 not only covered with rags, but with
velvet. There are paupers in sealed
houses, In government Offices and in
the pulpits. Everyone is . pauper who
expects to get something for which he
does not give an equivalent. 1t 10 pau
perism, not poverty, that ell men
should wish to exterminats. Poverty
cannot be argued down, or leg
islatsd out Of existence. Every
msn is born poor, and every
man dies poor. So long ~ tins
law remains IN force there will be pow
erty, shsolnte and relative. The blind.
crippled, imbecile. insane, orphaned.
aged without friends and deserted
children should be cared for. Retreats
should be provided for tho crippled
street beggar and the blind organ
grinder, who are menace TO tiviliza-
ton.
The 0rsat Army Of negGars.
Travellers in the old world are b.
seiged by begGars. The new world
should not follow its example in this
respect. Indigence - not the burden
under which charity groans. The
drunkard, the tramp. the basket beg
gars. the imposters, the street musici-
ans, the woman beggars with borrowed
babies. these form the great army
which 10 the burden of charity in al
great cities. The deserving are robbed
Of What belongs TO them b! the un-
worthy psuper. Poverty is honorabls,
.but peuperism must bo hit With The hot
holtD 0f determinations. Pauperisul
6heuld receive the oemo kind of vio-
'lenoe - any 0tber criIne.r Kinety-6ye
pc. cent Of otzost beGgipg ID undesefy-
ing. Food given at the door
goes largely to the support Of idlefs.
There il pauperism, mean, impudent
pAupensn in Grand Rapids. Lest
come worthy person goes hungry. i've
unworthy ones nauet be fed. Idleness
and impudcnco may be given - the
purely personal reasons for poverty.
Ia the order of their influence, be-
lieve the causes Of poverty in Grand
Grand Rapids to be ---."
At this point Mr.. Frye asked il there
Was any man in hls audience who would
stand up and tell in ~ few words ~
possible. what. in his opinion, was the
chief cause of poverty 40 he had eecn
it. In response = man arose and eaid,
"Idlen ess. bad women and rum"
Resuming. Mr.. Frye eaid: "Tho in
flucnce of the saloon is the principal
cause, the general causc, of all the
poverty in our land. In New York
city there 10 one saloon for every 124
people, and ono church for every 400
people. In Grand Rapids there Is one
saloon or drinking place for every 225
people. and one regularly constituted
church for every 1000 people. There
10 about one real temperance church
in Grand Rapids 70 about every
10000 people. What . power this
monster traffic has on our cc:rmon.
wealth. The aImshouses Of New York
revealed the fact that IS per cent. of
the men were incorporate, and ~ per
cent. Of the women.
lsausacs Of the salsen.
The saloon units the banker, the
lawyer, the merchant, the editor, the
artisan, for has branch OF his business;
90 per cent. Of the children in the Cold.
water school 70 there - the result Of
intemperance. Illiteracy 10 another
cause OF poverty. There y less poverty
aud less cause for charity in those
states where usuch attention 10 paid 20
education, and whore the intelligence
10 shove the average. Ssatist.ca show
that thera 10 les poverty in Iowa and
Kansas, where prohibition obtains. and
where only per cent. OF tho populA-
ton are illiterate, than in any 0ther
states Of the union. Where iIlitsSacy
and the saloon 60 hand in hand thsfe
are poverty, and pauperisrn. and crime.
Next in Importance 70 intemperAnco -
= cause Of poverty. 10 lack OF employ
nlent and lew wages. Il would be
eas1er 10 start out and raioe thousand
dollars for charity than 10 lind ten jobs
for len men. A reason Tor thls - over
production. Another reason 10 that
the people OF the small towns about
think they can lind morc employment
in city in the winter than ia small
town, % many Of them come
here when the snow begins 10 ny.
You may not agree with me. but be-
lieve that every man who owua farm
ought to live on that farm and OF of IT..
Give me farm, and Ill do it--if some
other felloW will do the work, and II he
won't, will. and I'll make the coil
give me my living.
People owning farm worth thou
sanda Of dollars will come into thls city
and occupy Z place at the bench that
belonea 20 some poor man who doenn't {
own enough land 60 he buried on.
/ liud that common Artisans work
about thirty weeks . year. Al an
average ct IS = week that would be $40.
Allowing 81 . week for the necesziaes
Of lie. the artisan will spend e2i0 dur
ine thooe thirty weeks. When The first
a. l.