The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-11-07
ONE OF THE MOST EFFECTIVE
AGENCIES OF helpful AID TO
THEM.
ITS BENEFITS CONSIDERED.
IN A NUMBER OF PAPERS READ
AT A PARLOR CONFER
EKCE
AT THE ABERDEEN LAST NIGHT.
Mrs. Condo HamIfn. Mrs. Geo. BONN
and Others Speak Upon the
Interesting Topic

In point of attendance and interest
the twentieth parlor conference of the
Associated Charities held at the Aber-
deen last evening was the most sue
cesS1ul IN the entire series. The par
Tors OF the Aberdeen were well filled,
many OF the more prominent ladies IN
the city being present. The subject
under discussion was Friendly Visit
ing, one of the most important If
the newest branches of 1.-The work in
stltuted by the association. The
friendly visitor is a person whose pc
rlodica! calls to the home Of the poor,
destitute or lonely has become the one
bright spot in the lives of hundreds.
The NOV ement started in the East
in Boston, from whence all the best
things of earth are supposed to start.
The system has spread into all of the
larger cities of the country, but that
maintained in the Sanity City is saiG
to be among the best
"A number of very interesting and
profitable addresses were delivered at
the meeting last evening.
Mrs. Condo Hamlin addressed the
meeting upon the theme of Friendly
A0AIAAiSo. lie speaker SAID the IGllc-
uon or friendly visitor was to go
into the home ofthe needy, to teach
the members of the family how to
COOK, how to make over old clothes,
how to make the sebest of a little; to
instruct them as to the cheapest and
most nutritious foods, but at all times
TO malrtain the attitude of an inter
ested friend, and not a giver of aims.
me visitors never give money to poor
1amllles. In cases where material aid
is given. the visitor reports the fact to
the proper agencies, and the family as
sisted never knew the visitor had fur
nlShed the assistance. The relations
between the visitor and the visited is
not allowed to descend to a plane of
charity. That such a high and purely
neighborly relation between the Wis
1tor and the poor could be maintained
haS been the source of much surprise
to those who have not made the mat
ter study.
Much tact is required to make the
FAMILY so visited feel at ease, and to
prevent the expectation of gifts and
material aid. In answer to a query,
Mrs. Hamlin stated that in case she
was appealed to for assistance in the
way OF clothes or food. she would send
the family to the Bethel, and give them
to understand that by doing a certain.
amount of work they could procure
aid. This allows the family to retain
It's seH-respect. The giving of money,
old clothes, ETC., unfortunately pro-
Quces paupers, humbugs and chronic
beggers.
Mrs. George Bohn followed in a paper
upon THE Obligation of Personal
Service,' The study of suffering hui
mainly, if carried on from a. mere. scien-
the standpoint; often prevents the stu
dent from coming into close touch
with the needy. There are, however
filaments in every heart which bind the
needy and the wealthy together, if the
sympathies are genuinely aroused
For instance" she said, suppose in
a destitute home there is sudden
death, and the remaining members of
the household stand about in helpless
sorrow. We perhaps shrink when we
hear the sad story, but we conquer our
feelings and try to lift the cloud The
faces of the children are washed. the
house set in order and we reap our re-
ward in seeing the gladness in the eyes
OF the stricken mother. If we look
merely to our own happiness in the re
suits, the moral effect degenerates. 1t
is necessary to become thoroughly ac-
quainted with each case, and to know
as much as possible of each family
The visitor soon learns that it is not
only money, impulSive sympathy and
influence that is to be given, but a
conscientious, honest personal interest
In families where's the chief difficulty
has been lack of employment, it will
be found that constant idleness lessons
the capacity for continued effort, and
the visitor must I arouse ambition"
Mrs. Bohn delivered a parting shot at
her hearers, saying: eff we spend our
morning hours studying up ancient
questions, if we give up whole morn
ingS looking into Revolutionary history
to discover a stray ancestor; if we can
give days to the very edifying occu-
patton Of mastering duplicate whist, it
seems to me that we might give a lit
tie more time to becoming personally
acquainted with the poor and needy
all about us, and in giving our SYM
pathy and comfort"
Miss Clara Sommers spoke upon a
Friendly Visitors Opportunity" Miss
Sommers' paper was very practical
and its thoughts were culled from
actual experience in the important
work. A visitor, said she, goes into
house which cannot be called a home,
and where friends are more scarce even
than the bare necessities of life. The
first steps are the hardest The poor
people seem at first to look upon the
fine lady visitor as a mere giver of
gifts. This illusion must first be dis
PEELED. One of the greatest influences
in the first results, is to get the chill
dren into the schools where their train
ing is always of the BEST Once es-
tabliShed in the confidence, the good
will of the family, the visitor becomes
| a power. By slow and sure steps, re-
forms are brought about Cleanliness
is instituted, and the work goes ON
with many discouragements but sure
progress. The visitor is a comfort in
the every day life, a boon during en-
| ergencleS or adversely. They can get
to the soul and to the heart. The re-
suit cannot be overestimated The
| speaker narrated an incident in which
friendly visitor stretched out a hand
to help an erring girl At first the
offers were repulsed, but in the time
to the visitor as her one friend Miss
Sommers said the 1yisitors needed tact,
patience, alertness and knowledge of
human character q The wiser the visi-