The Washington bee., 1893-10-07
INTERVIEWING TRAMPS,
curious Information Regarding Curious
Glass of Individuals.

Curious Information Regarding a Curious
Glass of individuals.
The Rev. j. j. McCook, OF Wew York
breaches good citizenship by practicine
it. He is always pegging away al
something for the public good. Now
with the help of the mayors and police
officers of fourteen American cities. be
| has been taking tramp census" and
he communicates the results-or some
of them-tO the Forum.
The number of American tramps
| covered by this census is 1910. Thirty.
| two questions were asked in every
case, and Mr.. McCook grieves that he
inadvertently omitted a thirty-third
| though he tells us in the same breath
of one involuntarily catechumen who
found the thirty-two too many. "That's
a devil of lot of questions" exclaim-
ed this indignant victim, Ito ask fel-
low for a nights lodgingn' In the
/ most ambitious previous tramp census
of which MI. McCook has heard-Lon-
don, 1SS9-the number Of weary wan
derers questioned was only 2S6.
Of these 1,349 American tramps, less
than One-half describe themselves as
unskilled labOrers, and only sixteen
say they have no regular calling. Of
the representatives-on the retired list
of skilled labor, 46 per cent. say they
used to be sailors, fremen, brakemen,
shoemakers, curriers', teamsters, hos
tiers, blacksmiths or horseshoers. Mr.
McCOok's drag net caught three cleo
tricians, two brokers, two reporters, a
music teacher, a designer, an artist "a
real German county, Salvation Army
captain, gentleman" but no clergy
man and no professor. 'The sedentary
clerk" he tells us, was just as numer-
Gus as the nomadic peddler."
Nearly all of the 1,349 tramps are in
the prime of life, averaging much
younger than their GecordeO fellow
pilgrims in England and Germany.
Following my results" says Mr.. Nc
Cook, 1--WE may expect to find one
tramp in twenty under twenty years,
three out of five under thirty-fve, sew
enty-five out of every 100 under forty,
and one in twelve fifty or over. Only
one in Ill will be over seventy"
Of the whole number questioned S35
per cent promptly said their health
was 'good;'' s per cent pretty good
or mot very good;' S.5 per cent. bad"
This at a time when the grip was rag
ing among well-fed, well-housed peo-
pie, and the general death rate was
disquietingly high. Neither the tramp's
age nor his health, then," concludes
Mr. McCook, lis a bar to successful
labor.
Only fifty out of the 1,349 owned up
to having been on the road more than
a year. The explanations Of their
presence there given by 92.S per cent.
of the whole number were: "Out of
money" "Out Of work" Looking for
work" Twelve wanted to see the
country" eight wanted to take life
easy" six said they would not work;
twenty-five laid their tramping to drink.
One exceptionally candid wanderer
diagnosed his case in three words,
"Whiskey and lazy"
AS to nativity, 56.1 per cent of the
1,349 were born in this country, 20.3
per cent. in Ireland, 6.6 per cent. in
England, 3.4 per cent. in the Scandi-
navian countries, 2.6 per cent in bonny
Scotland. There are thirteen negroes
in the lot and one Indian. Only one
Southern State is represented and that
by a white man. "The tramp" re-
marks Mr.. McCook, Seems to be
product Of our Northern civilization
and to move along the more temper
ate belt, avoiding extremes Of heat and
cold as being disagreeable and less
favorable to health"
Don't think Of the tramps as Hitter
ate: 1,1S7 of the 1910 can read and
write, 1S of the 162 who can't write
can read, and one Of the favorite pur-
chases is the daily newspaper. Only
7.3 per cent are married; A per cent.
are widowers. Thirty Of the 1,349 say
they are total abstainers, 459 that they
are temperate, 825 that they are In
temperate. Only SIS per cent own up
to having been convicted Of crimes
other than drunkenness. Only 113 say
they have no religion. Only 116 say
they have seen the inside Of the aims
house. By their own admission 149
per cent. of the whole number are, or
have been, specially dangerous to the
public health.