Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1893-1895, 1894-07-31
ARTISANS HOMES.
HOW GLASGOW HAS IMPROVED SOME
OF ITS POOR DISTRICTS.

Comfortable Dwellings Furnished to the
Poor at Reasonable Rentals.
Municipalities are not necessarily
wiser than ether corporate bodies. Glas-
gov has by no means solved the human
problem. But she has made some notable
Experiments in the direction of bright
ening human life. But, with less than
half a dozen blocks of municipal tene-
ments, she is still far from pointing tho
sway to beatific condition. She is also
far from having become a socialistic city
She had the opportunity to make expert
1ncnts in the most wretched of her dis
tricts. The experiments have succeeded,
nnd private enterprise here, as elsewhere,
has made similar experiments and with
Similar success
The municipal tenements or artisans
dwellings, us they are variously called,
consist Of blocks of flats ON either side
of the Saltmarl1et The buildings are
four stories in height The ground floors
are occupied by shops The houses are
usually arranged so that on two floors
there are three tenements, tenement of
two rooms being on each side of the
staircase and tenement of one room be-
Tween them There are also several flats
Of three rooms each. The tenemont of
ene room is ii by 13 feet 1t is fitted
with Il bed closet, which is expected to
answer the purpose of a second room, a
scullery, a large press or cupboard,
commodious dresser and kitchen range.
Such an apartment rents for $40 year.
The two rOomed fiat has small lobby
fitted with n press, or closet On one
Side of the lobby is the living room,
which is completely furnished as a
Kitchen. A scullery adjoins. There is
also bed alcOve in the room. On the
other side Of the lobby and on the front
of the house is the sitting room, to which
is also attached a bed closet Such a fiat
rents for G&49. 80 per annum. The three
roomed fS5s rent for $50 year. Gas is
Supplied by the city at the usual rate of
go cents per l., 600 feet. There is laun-
dry at the top Of the house for the use
Of the tenants. These artisans dwellings
are constructed in the most substantial
manner. The stairs are stone, and the
atairway walls are tiles or glazed brick,
which is easily kept clean.
1t has long been objected that these
dwellings do not meet the necessities of
the poorest class of laborers. The rents
were too high for men who work in the
streets or on the docks and at other kinds
of unsllilled labor. Glasgow had to con-
slider whether it were possible for the
municipality to reach these men in any
way. If it had been question of letting
rooms to single men, the arrangement
could have been made easily enough.
But the difficulty was to devise homes
for large families, and it usually hap
pens that in this part of the world the
poorer the man the larger is his family.
Houses could be built Of course, but
could the poorest class of laborers afford
to pay rent which would return to the
municipality an interest of 2, 3 or
per cent on its investment? Could the
municipality compete in that respect
with the owners of rookeries, where
families live in single apartments?
Much deliberation was given to the sub
ject. 1t was found that the municipality
could put up a block Of substantial
buildings to meet the wants of the class
hitherto left untouched, but that it
would not be practicable to provide any
thing more than what are called Zone
roomed houses"-that is to say, one
room to q family. To be sure, the rooms
could be divided by partition reaching
within two or three feet Of the ceiling
the sleeping quarter being thus separated
from the cooking quarter.
1t was finally decided that block of
single room tenements should be con-
structed. A place was cleared at the
rear of block of artisans dwellings,
and plain building of three stories was
erected, with four single room tenements
on each floor, two in the front and two
behind These were let at rents we'll
within the means of unslnilled laborers
The building was opened, and it has
been filed ever since. The experiment
is financially successful, but in other re-
spects there is little to be said for it. OF
course the apartments are larger, lighter
healthier, better built than any single
room tenements in the old rool1eries.
Nevertheless the objections to the herd
ing of family in one room are not there
by removed. They are merely minimized
and in a very slight degree 1t is not by
any means demonstrated that a munich
pality is justified in doing anything to
perpetuate the single room tenement sys-
tenn for families.
The construction Of Glasgow's munic-
ipal tenement houses, whether Of the
better class or Of the poorer, is admira-
ble The stairways, being built entirely
of masonry, are consequently freproof
The stairs themselves and the hall floors
are Of stone, and the walls Of the halls
are faced with glazed tiles or glazed
bricks, as the case may be, and, as have
said, are easily kept clean.
A very large amount Of work yet re.
mains TO be done on the municipal estate
which comes under the administration
OF the improvement fund. Old houses are
still being torn down, and crowded areas
are being cleared away. OF course all