The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1894-11-30
TURKEY TO GO ROUND.
Plenty of Tt For the Families Of
the Poor.
SOME PATHETIC STORIES TOLD

BY Those Who Carried the Baskets
Around-VFhas the Associated Char
1tIes Did
There are a great many poor people in
Topeka who bless the Associated CHAR
ties and the charitable people Of Topeka
today more perhaps than they ever have
before.
One hundred and fourteen families an
aggregate Of OPS persons were provided
with Thanksg giving dinners at their homes
yesterday by the plan proposed by the
association and carried out under its d.
rection.
For once the donations for charity
greatly exceeded the demand. and the
association feels sure that it could easily
have cared for twice the mum Der Of peo-
pie that really did receive donations.
The dinners consisted for the most part
Of plain, healthy food and not a few OF
the donations contained mum bers Of the
deIcacies that 90 with turkey and chick
en- aud Thanksgiving.
Little children that have been living
on food hardly good enough for animals,
clapped their hands with delight as the
donors undid the tidy packages and
greeted their eyes with food that would
well do for any table And the food was
IN abundance, too.
sweet charity ruled the day and little
stOm4chs that have been comparatively
empty for weeks caused little heads to
ache with the contentment of fullness to-
day. And let Us hope there is enough
left for turkey hash for many days.
Donations came from everywhere,
schools and societies and churches and
individuals The Oakland school sent IN
a wagon load of vegetables and clothing;
Clover Hill and Linn Creek schools were
not behind and sent in large donations Of
vegetables and clothing and fowls There
were SO many personal donations that
they can't be mentioned.
There was one particularly happy
family over IN SeabrOOk. It consists Of
a fathers ID other and six children. Early
last summer the father broke a leg. and
the mother has since been doing the best
she could 70 suppart the family by wash
ing The father was able to get out on
clutches the other day, and almost the
the leg over again A. p. Wilder took
care of that family, and declares he never
saw a more thankful one in his life. The
children we're wild with rapture and the
old folks were little better
You wouldn't think a family almost
starving would be so proud as to refuse
food. In the vest part of the city the
association knows Of man and his wife
and three children who absolutely re-
fused to accept Thanksgiving dinner.
They would not even disclose their wants
and q neighbor says that the man gets
very little work and that as they have re-
ceIved nothing but,a little milk from her
for a long time. she does not see how
they live. But no matter about that, they
viii not accept charity. Inc spirit may
be cOmmendable in the parents. but it is
q question if they do not owe it to the
children to accept.
Over in Martin & Dennis addition ia a
family that the Thanksgiving dinner
raised to the greatest heights Of happi-
ness. The husband went off to look for
work some months ago and they have
not heard from him. The mother and
four young girls live in a little twO-rOom
house for which they pay So d month
rent. The mother does washing and her
earnings average about $l.25 a week.
They had not yet had charity and were ia
a bad way. Fuel is procured from the
adjacent banks of the Shunganuuga, but
clothing and food are not so easy to get
cut of the little balance that Is loft after
the rent Is paid. w hen the dinner went
to them yesterday. three of the children
were barefooted. All Of them had on all
the clothes they had, and the oldest girl,
VINO is thirteen, sat one Of the two
chairs and covered her. almost naked
breast with her folded arms. The were
almost speeches at the dinner, and the
association will try to see that they are
better cared for hereafter.
There are lots Of cases like this or as
pitiful, but they forgot their misery yes
terday as thay sat about their cracked
and shaky 4ables and devoured what to
them was a feast fit for-an emperor.
The lndianOla school, near Shorey,
gave u nice donation POtwin school had
a big wagon load of provisions for the
Topeka poor, but there was mistake
about delivering it, aud they will have
to be distri buted later.
The Associated Charities needs great
deal Of clothing for school children 1t
NAV DO left AT the office of Secretary
Russ, at the corner of Third and Jack
son streets