New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-03-11
HELPING THE POOR.
r,ycI7sAEDS OF DOLLARS SPENT EVERY
WEEK

NonI, OF VARIOUS ORGANIZATIONS IN CARING
For TIE DIsTREssED-NoT AN EN-
CoUEAGING OUTLOOK
IN. million dollars! The writer was informed
nv the superintendent of the Charity Organization
society one day. last week that. from estimates
which have been made from time TO time Of the
work of organized public and private charities and
of the many gifts by rich which few but
themselves are ever of. this is expended
every month in relieving the sufferlngs of the poor
NJ this city. lie wen: further. and said he be-
ueved that at the present time this estimate
under rather than the mark. The manager
of the United Hebrew Charities, when asked con-
corning the matter seemed reluctant to name any
specifc sum, as there such an enormous
amount of money given in charity in a private way
which nobody heard of. but he said he felt
confident that the estimate already mentioned,
while IL might not be wholly trustworthy struct-
tire on which to base detailed conclusions, yet
not inaccurate to any great extent on either side
of the count.
UNPARALLELED DISTRESS.
At no other time in the memory at least Of those
who are now living has the distress in this city
been so general and acute. and at no other time
have the purse-strngs of the rich been freely
loosed in the effort to meet this uneXampled con-
o,ton Of affairs. True. the earthquake in South
Carolina called. forth many liberal offerings from
the rich. and so cid the disaster in the Conemaugh
Valley: but it was the rich mainly who took part
In these great and charitable undertakings. In the
present crisis however. everybody has lent hand,
and Is doing so still, from the humbest dweller in
n tenement house to the wealthest of
mansion in Fffth-ave Riverside Drive. 1t has
neen suggested ont of the multiplicity Of construc
tons that have been put upon the phrase. that
when Shakespeare spoke about one touch Of nature
making the whole world kin, Death is what he
meant But IT is not unreasonable to take COM
rnoner though less profound view and believe that
,,1f hiatt he Sich of he
gets human sympathy. 1t is complained that while
the price of flour is low the price of bread is
lower than when the times good Yet you
may go into a bakery any of the far East Side
far West Side avenues and see able bodied men in
want OF food getting oaves for nothing. And the
'poorer the owner of a shop is the more generous
he seems to be as rule 1t is touching to see how
this good work is DONE The writer saw a case of
this kind the other day which is typical.
A well-dressed came into a store In Third
ave and stood for time while his eyes were
fixed on the floor. The woman behind the counter
vrrapped I'D in a piece OF brown paper large loaf
of rye-bread and handed ii to him. He took IT.
inclined his head little by way of acknowedg-
ment and then went away. Not a word was spoken
on either side. To a person who looks below the
surface and likes TO take note Of trfes this incl
dent appeared impressive The cable cars were
Changing in the avenue, the elevated railroad was
numbering overhead, men employed by the Depart
rnent of Street Cleaning were giving leisureiy eX-
amples of how not do IT, and the drivers Of trucks
and grocery wagons yelling as they have been
forever known to YELL in good times as we'll as In
times of famine. The man who got the loaf began
eating IL ravenously when he reached the sidewalk.
Ordinarily of a sensitive nature. all this feeiing
had now disappeared in face of the overmastering
desire for food. And to think that there are at
the present moment in this city perhaps one hum
dred thousand persons badly off as that man.
some of whom cannot buy loaf some OF whom
will not beg for one and some Of whom, having H.
must share il with number of hungry little ones
worse off even than themselves.
THE CHARITY ORGANIZATION SOCIETY
Charles D. Kellogg the secretary Of the Charity
Organization Society. when asked for some inior-
nation as TO the extent of the work which MS
society had done and was doing 10 meet the
greatly Increased pressure on its resources was
busy attending to a large pile Of applications "hich
were on file before him.
1--WE are doing all that 1t is possible 10 40 ne
said land even then it seems scarcely possible 10
meet every worthy case with adequate rellef. In
noint of fact we have had TO turn away something
like thousand persons. not because OF any I'M
willingness to extend aid to them but simply pe
cause there not enough OF ATTENDANTS 10
investigate the cases; and to give without that
necessary precaution would be worse than not 10
give at ALL" ,,.
"Calcuating by the month how do the apphca-
tions during the new year compare with those OF
the wear that has closed?" he was asked
81 cannot give you the figures for this month";
nor vet for February" he answered, but can
Iii rou that the number Of applications at the
central office for January 4.7s5 which was as
large as all the applications at all the onlceS ol
the society during the year 1882 In the month vi
February I5sG applications were received at the
night Office and OF this number l''oZ receiver anu
directly from the society. and OF the remaining O
. great MANY we're referred 10 other organizations
whose duty IL was &c after them, while others
who were found unfit were simply sent aoou' '''0''
business One OF the most success'ul Ied'"e' III
connection with our MANIFESTED WORK IS tie way
farers Lodge and woodward at NO. oio We.
Tventy-eighth-st. where men do certain amount
r ,vorl and get their supper, bed and breakfast
ar1 hath IN addition 10 having their ciotnes iuhi-
gated Men who married get a doHar e@ch io'
their work. which they are allowed 70 'ahe "oi'0
20 their families. Such persons do not sieeP Oh TIC
premises The week before last so' persons VIZ
provided for at the Lodge exclusive or AV5 matred
n,cn who worked in the yard for pay but no 1000.
The number OF applicants is still Increasing ana WILL
7 think continue 20 increase for at least ano'hes
month or so. and then 1t will begin 10 IAN OIL
slightly"
Because OF better times?
NEW APPLICANTS WILL CONE.
rNot lust exactly that" Mr.. Kellogg answered.
"rhere are a great many persons in the city VINO
~ , semi-dependent condition all the time, and
No. calculate each year on getting little CHARITY
T., tho winter season. When the good weather
comes they manage to exc out an existence without
this. Thea. rich people will go away into ~, ,ne
eon,,rv Again, many are certain 10 appear III tic
Soid ister who have not yet applied Tor Ie!iel,
namely that class OF persons who nave been v.ns
,rhst they have saved and whose little nest-eSB II
oia ,. nxbaIIsed think there must be from zen u
Tp.oan thousand foaters in this city at the present
!.n nho are receiving relief and who are not en-
i,noa 70 f. These people have been attracted hther
from outlying districts by reading OF me c1S b s
sress But il is difficult 70 t3at st Ieas
bi,,e' yItb more discrimination and less extrava,
Sance is the distribution Of soup tickets, b b
S,l, froe lunch tickets and the like. which nam
ers 70 a considerable extent the regular organza-
ti9 r "a Society Of ST Vincent de Paul is among the
o,dest and best known OF the charitable organiZa-