Morning journal and courier., 1894-04-17
oHARrrAnLRAID.

Tho Small Army of People In New | Haven That Has Been Receiving More or Less Help-A Paper Head By Superintendent Preston at the Mtnisters' Meeting. | From . very interesting paper read by Preston of the Organized Charities association yesterday st the United Ninisters' meeting in Center church ,hapel the following is taken. His paper was entitled "How New Haven's Other Half Has Got Through the Winter"
 But, now ss to the poor, good, bad, pau per, criminal, etc, in our city. An sp- proximate estinats is ell that we will at- tempt to give. Since 1878 record has been kept of all cases coming to our office. The figures are e follows: Nonresidents, 15, 725; residents, 7,077; Total, 23, ,sos. The residents are what Ws are to consider prin- oipally, but bear Q word as to the others.
 But to return to the 7,O77 recorded residents. These gre either individuals or heads of families. Covering as the record does, so many years, many people have either died or removed sinoe tho entry WAS made, but taking into consideration the re- maining members of the families, and the people not known to us, 1t is probable that | there are 10, 900 people in our city who gre occasionally, or regularly. recipients of charity. This estimate will probably in- elude church bensfcisrieP, who we are not likely to meet, unless, as Is not infrequent- ly the case, they are also on the Asrett | fund or town list, in which event we are apt to know them.
 Now as to the location of these people. l A few years ago the poor districts were fairly we'll defined, but since the large inn portation of Italians and Russian Jews the | old dependent class has been scattered, the new corners proving to be better paying tenants. Take the lower end of Oak street fer instance. If we were to judge by the names of the residents ten years ago that location might properly have been called Little Ireland. To-day the Hebrew race predominates there greatly.
 Thrift and resultant condition of com- parative comfort has accompanied active religious life, while thriftlessness has wrought out Its inevitable result in suffer- ing for the irreligtous poor.
 The faithful, whether Jew, Protestant or Catholic, has been seldom in deep distress. It may not be generally known, however, that the neighborhood- giving of the very poor to still poorer class is considerable,
 
 of pinching need. This form of help is particularly noticeable in colored people they divide to the last loaf. We know their reputation for asking ''cold vittels," etc., but they, like the Italians, get more discredit than they deserve. In total of 5,S51 cases under observation in 1898 there were but 15S colored persons, Al Russian Jews and 29 Italians, while United States white and Irish combined aggregated 4, ,4s3. The low figures for Jews may be explained by the fact that they are we'll cared for by their own people.
 What can be expected from children naturally loving light and air, but that they will run the streeta- when home is dirty, dark and reeking with the stale odor of beer and tobacco2
 Now, what is the province of the Organ ized Charities in these caees, and what are 1 it's relations to the church, or other agency seeking to benefit the unfortunate7 First, to get the facts. In no other way can there be intelligent and helpful action. There ia no use prescribing if you don't know the disease.
 The past winter has seen church com mittees, Kings Daughters, etc., with many ! individuals, all actuated by the purest mo | tives, going from door to door seeking the distressed, and much of labor and material aid has been bestowed. Has 1t yet come to you that paupsrism has been thus stim- ulateds
 After several weeks of independent ef- forts on these lines, representatives of some of these bands came to us with their lists. Our records covered nearly every case,
 many had been known for years ss impost- ers, their statements proved untrue re-
 peatedly, and the help rendered by these
 bands had materially aided the saloons,
 which are constantly recruiting the ranks
 of this class. People who had been for
 merly forced to maintain themselves
 through the efforts of this office have
 waxed fat on the bounty of the benevolent
 and are thereby encouraged in imposture.
 In the Fifth and Sixth wards MT. Pres.
 ton adds the Italians abound. They live
 in cellars, in garrets, in unoccupied stores,
 in old shops and barns, sometimes dog. ! en families, or separate roomers in @ tene-
 ment, sometimes next door to the wealthy
 and sometimes as isolated as they are in ! the country. We have in contemplation 6
 directory of the poor by streets, and only
 need time to compile 1t, which will at once
 show the most densely populated sections
 and be an interesting study.
 How do they ive7 Really, 1t is difficult
 to tell in many instances. From our stand
 point of living, it does not seem possible that anyone can exist on the little that |
 four said: "We have got along all winte, , on $4 a week" There are scores who have , 1 subsisted wholly upon what the wife could , earn in the rubber shop, or at the wash l tub. All that some have earned is the lit tie we could give for work in the wood , yard or laundry, and that would not aver age g week, ss the applicants wers
 many and the patronage insufficient to pre- .. vent overproductiop. We have carried 1T the neighborhood of $500 worth of cut , wood nearly all winter, in spite of urgsn
 and oft repeated appeals for customers.
 The churches have done much, the chsri table agencies also, and the town has in creased its psuper list, but withal, it seeml
 almost incredible that there has been st little suffering. In this connection, ther, ] is feature worthy of special comment 1 namely! That in a total of ,059 cases ap plying for help, or reported as needing aid from November l, 1893, to March 8, 1894 inclusive, there were by actual count, but ) five persons who were what might be con stdered active members of evsngelica churches.
 Thrift and 8 resulting condition of com , parative comfort, has accompanied active
 religions life, while thriftlessness hal wrought out it's inevitable result in suffer
 ing for the irrelieious poor.
 Our method has been, so far as possi
 ble, to look up the religious af6lfation of !. the person under consideration, and bring him into contact with his own people whether Protestant, Catholic or Hebrew
 Where there is no pronounced predisposi
 tion, the missions are referred to, but
 there is almost invariably @ choice wher the subject is in earnest and desires some
 thing besides "the loaves and fskes." |. Yet the real hope is in making new en vironment for the children. We know
 families who have been under the care oi
 missions and churches, visited and labored
 with for many years, and the improvement
 Is not apparent.
 Mir. Preston heartily commends such ar agency as the Bosrdman Manual Training
 school will be for the improvement oi "the other half," in It's encouragement tc boys to learn trades. 'Labor Ia honora ble." He also looks for most happy re-
 suits from the kindergarten system now
 being developed here. He particularly
 emphasized that one great avenue for i'm
 provement is through the proper care and
 education of the children.
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