The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1893-12-21
FEEDING $500 EVERY DAY.
TBTs rs oNE-TWEIFTH OF TEE PoPU-
LATIoN OF YoNKRRA


The city OF Yonkers has population Of
$1,000. 1t was stated yesterday by officers Of
the Citizens Relief Committee that $500 per-
sons. or nearly one.twelfth Of the total popula-
ton, are In distress and are wholly dependent
| upon charity. Out OF 300 OF the destitute
| families they estimated that $50 had not been
| possessed Of a single cent In money for more
| than a month. Not only are so many destl-
| tute now. but the number is increasing
| week by week as the little reserve funds
| that the wage earners had when they were
| thrown out OF work are depleted. The principal
industries OF the town are paralyzed The
| chief OF all. the carpet industry. is dead and
has been dead for months The Ionkers
Garnet Manufacturing Company. which has
| been kept running, is now running merely to
| use up the carpet stock II has on hand. and 1t
| is said that when that is used up the manu-.
| factory will be shut down indefinitely Tho
citizens OF tho town say that threatened tariff
changes and the agitation OF the tariff question
are irresponsible for the distress
Statements OF the restitution that exists In
Yonkers have come to New York almost daily
for a month. and yesterday Sun reporter WIS.,
tied the city to make personal investigation
OF them. He found that tho stories had not been
exaggerated. In house after house 10 Nepper-
han avenue. where the major number OF the
unskilled laburers In the closed-down carpet
| mills live half dozen families we're found de-
void OF all means OF support and living only on
the food provided them by the Relief Com
mittee. In family after family the food sup
ply consisted o. u quart OF soup and O loaf
OF bread day. In High street there
was the same condition Of affairs, and In Clin-
ton street also. There we're sullen- i ing
men idling about the street corners, ragged
children. and m others with pinched faces. The
tour was necessarily hasty. and after finishing
It the reporter went to the office OF the Com
missioner OF Charities. who Is the city poor
master. lie sat there for an hour and watched
the line OF people as they came In and asked
for aid. The greater number were women.
Many ofthem had children with them. Some
carried babies. There was a most distress
ing similarity in the stories that they
told 1t was. oh. IL the carpet mills would
you! or. My husband worked DIN In so.snd. SOS
hat shop and he was laid of month ago." or
The machine shops are all but shut down. sir
and we hayenta cent In the house and moth
Many in the crowd had received aid before
but there were many who said they had never
orders from the Relief Com mittee for, food.
Others wanted both food and coal Charity
say much about his work. What little he said
was to the effect that the number needing aid
The oiiIce Of Secretary George Rayner. Jr..
Of the Relief Committee. was visited next.
ton there. and Mr. Rayner said that he had
been busy al day. In response to questions
been deprived OF their means Of support
within few months, he said: I" 1t 10 hard to
give exact figures, but the best informetion
fslnSroSEp Mil. fais
osnsr 100 tamss
Not all these families. you understand are
These families niles are are ali n" Without "w WORK e to
support them. and they ars In addition to the
at this time Of the year. The Relief Commit.
tee have on its books ut the present time ;t25
sSns Of them SGhtqn ten and tw
morJ than ave persons each. We supply nearly
al! OF 'nes e, families With groceries to the
get along on this a month; The larger ones
get orders every ten or twelve days The cit,
half ton every two months The Charity
commissioning supplies about 80 families with
for the 325. The various charity organizations
are taking care Of as more families. and the
all these families at five apiece. the num-
5ern OF destitute persons Is more than
the destituton was not so great. The
carpet mills had been shut down then some
good Wages and tSeg o
Very many OF them had bank accounts. 1t
wasn't long before the men with small &C.
counts began cutting expenses. They drew
sparingly and more sparingly. but finally all
Then they began coming to us for relief
Very many OF the men who are now getting
aid are OF this class. The people who had the
dition. and their reserve Is being drawn on
sparinRly. but 1t is only question Of time un-
forced to us. The greatest distress you will
md exists among the foreign population. The
81 a Week each, They. most TOT OF Them had large
families to support. and from their pay they
eSuld save ave, LITTLE Or Pothing When they we're
on OF course their condition has been getting
worse and worse ever since. The Relief Com
bread. The women Of the Women's Christian
lief bureau at Temperance Hall. They make
soup. and bread is given out there every day:
the family; The largest families. where there |
are more than dozen to feed, get three quarts
hundred Ioayes OF bread and more V than 200
quarts Of soup are given out every day. The
families that get this ala receive no other
sufficient TO keep the wolf outside the door. |
even Il he he, does get close enough to knock oc-
The several clergymen and the business |
men IN the city who were seen bore out the
seriousness OF the destituton. The following
extract, from a circular issued by the Relief
Committee only a month ago. compared with |
the figures yesterday, will show how the des-
titution is Increasing:
Alan expenss Of about 5000 week, the COMMITTEES
Is furnishing 800 destitute persons with the simplest
articles OF food. Tue IhaTy organization Society IL
hidg o AMI the conan sstOner OF Charities aid
ing IdO-nAkIng total OF $50 IN this city who at
present are in need OF temporary assistance. /
Mr. George Iayner, Sr.. the Secretary OF tho |
Board OF Trade Of the city. speaking Of the |
restitution, said:
" Il is all due to the stoppage OF the Alsxan-
der smith garnet mills and tho reduction in |
the mum Der OF employees in nearly all the other
Industries OF the city fully 80 per cent For in.
stance SaundeTss machine shops employed |
I'D men. Now MY arc employed. War |
ings hat, factory employed 900. II now |
EMPLOYS about half that number. The Smith |
carpet mill has been closed since August am |
told by the head OF the lonkers Carpet Com
pany that that concern Is now running lust To /
use up the stock and that as soon as thrirs stock |
Is used up the mill will shut down Indefinitely. |
lie tells me II will no longer be possible 10 mako
Ingram carpet In America II the Wilson Tariff |
bill Is passed. Mr. Waring the President Of the
MaIing Hat Manufacturing Com pany. says that
the Tarln bill will affect the hat industry in a
double measure, Under II hat trimming will |
have 70 pay duty Of 80 Der cent. ad yalorem.
trimming will tie admitted or the payment 81
a duty of only 30 per cent lie says ii the Viii
a IL. cd In, Afg