The Portland daily press., 1896-02-08
IN THE sLUMs.
A Day Spent With the Salvation Army
Workers,

w VI AOlDt
How the Organization Does Its Work In
Home for Babies,
With the coming Of the news that Com
Inander and Mrs. Ballington Booth were
to be relieved Of their command OF the
American branch of the Salvation Army
there has arisen once more a discussion
more or less public, in regard to the WORK
done by that large organization.
With the merits or dement's of the sal
walton Army it is not the purpose ol
this article to deal. The matter mas
been argued and discussed pro ana con
for the past nine years. 1t is rather 'he
purpose to set forth simply and in an I'M
biased way what is done inNew YORK ny
the members of the Salvation Army eve-
ry one of the 865 days in the year.
Recently a reporter for the New YORK
Mail and Express spent twenty-four
hours in the Salvation Army. Under
certain restrictions he was permitted by
Commander Booth to visit every depart
mont OF the Army in New York, and to
make public what he saw. Ine restric-
tions were net hard to obey. Command
or Booth did not wish the location of the
headquarters of the slum workers or the
rescue workers to become known to the
public, nor would he allow the names OF
any of the army's converts or beneficial
ries to be known. The writer also
pledged himself to use fictitious names
when referring to the workers them.
selves With these exceptions. however,
perfect Ii berty was given.
The day
BEGAN IN THE SLUMS.
1t ended there, too; but the night was
longer than the day and fuller OF misery
and sin and shame The day began for
the slum workers while the gas lights
were still fickering and faring In the
cold, raw breeze that came rushing In
over the city from the East River. The
slum house, situated in Cherry street,
has six workers who live there constant
ly. Their uniform is not that of the Ar
my for the simple Army garb was lar too
gag and fine for these women who go
way down into The very depths of human
sin and suffering to find those whom
they would succor.
simple breakfast Of tea, oatmeal and hash
with plenty of bread and butter. The
workers chatted happily over their
63eakfast. Laughter was free and fire.
quent. These women who devote their
lives to this work are happy. Indeed,
joyousness.
1t was hardly six when the SISTER
(they are all brother and sister in the
army unless they happen to be adjutant
or major or colonel or captain) who kind
ly allowed the writer to accompany her
street she went past that little white
house where that old bag Shakespeare
was SO foully murdered some years ago
through an alley way which would be
dark on a sunshiny day but which at
six in the morning was inky in its black
ness. Into still darker hall and thence
up four flights of stairs.
The reporter used as he is to such places
instinctively took firmer hold on his
heavy cane. but the girl-she could not
have been 20-who led the way climbed
steadily Upward with never a pause or
tremor.
On the third landing the woman
stumbled and fell. A man was lying
asleep on the floor.
"Have you a match?" asked the slum
worker calmly as she rose; "Please light
it, this man may be in need of help.''
The Pickering fame from the match
showed a huge filthy brute lying directly
across the stairs.
Then this young woman stopped in the
darkness and putting her arms about the
shoulders of the sodden brute lying
there half dragged and half carried him
out of the way.
''Poor fellow !" she sighed to herself
as she continued on her way up stairs
In small eight-by-ten room on the
top floor of this rear tenement was found
the oject of the
SUM WORKERS VISIT.
The room itself was as dark as the hall.
A candle was soon lit however which
to slight extent dispelled the gloom.
This room was bare. In lieu of carpet
the floor was covered with filth; not