The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1897-01-06

dinner and receive a penny trumpet
(Which he probably has not wind
enough to sound) or a stocking full OF
popcorn which will fill his or her little
stomach for the time being, and later
give him gripes, have a mother and
father. and perhaps older sisters or
brothers whose age prevent them from
eating turkey and boiled potatoes with
their younger relatives, and to whom
bit of Christmas in their rooms would
be indeed a revelation. Our Organ
lied Charities" does indeed good work,
but they do not commence at the spot
where the need is greatest. The chill
dren, the poor children and the poorest
children, is the field for the workers.
/ trust that the ladies of the Organized
Charities will not pass this over; they
sit, perhaps in blissful ignorance of
their many short comings, and it, per-
chance, they read this they will lift up
their eyes to East or West Rock, from
whence cometh no help, and say:
Poor man; what can he know of all
We have done for the amelioration OF
the poor of the City of Elms?" and
then sink comfortably back in their
chairs and smile pityingly. But ] say,
and it was so when Dickens wrote his
! christmas Carol'-far better to- my
mind as "a novel for the people as he
termed his "Copperfield," that to GER
tain classes of the poor, strange as it
may seem, there yet remains a trifie OF
that article called pride" and it was
not pleasing to. have charity (save the
word) flung to them like bone to
starving cat. We read that charity
covereth multitude of sins, but to my
mind it cannot by any means cover ar
rogance. Perhaps this fin de steele
creation the new woman, may find in
her composition an atom or a corpuscle
of that milk of human kindness which
saturated Charles Dickens when he
wrote the tale of the Ghost Haunted
Scrooge, and use it if she is fortunate
enough to have private means, or else
to draw an election to some of our
charitable committees. If Dickens
christmas CAROL could be introduced
into our public schools for the month of
December, to take the place Of the
usual Readers" I think it might do
something to propagate the true feel
| ing of a Christmas tide wherein we
think of those who are always with
u.s." and especially the least of these"
the children who would read with in
terest the sad little story of Tiny
Tim" To return to what / said of
those who rested content with their
contributions to the poor at this sea-
son. let me quote what I once said con-
corning these contributions" and no
| personal support" with the Harvard
| football team four years ago. At that
time was in Cambridge and had occa-
sion to speak with a collector" of
moneys for the eleven. He said in sub
stance (and in despair) that though the
fellows threw down gold enough, they
would not encourage their team with
going personally to see the practice,
would not help to brace the men with
their presence, and seemed to look on
the eleven as a race horse; we pay for
the training; how much will they do
for us, and because we have colored
man on the team they nearly all seem
| to think the crowd will not represent
Harvard university at Springfield, but
| a sort of crowd of muckers" And
| later he said, II saw your fellows at
! practice, and from the number of chaps
who were lockers on, one could imagine
where the sand came FROM" and Re,
as the English fellows say If the
Yankee speech-'I calculate he was
bout right" 1t is the personal pres
ence of those interested in charity
whereby it prospers. Was ever
young man converted by means of a
ten-dollar bill anonymously sent?" Not
much. And can say, without fear of
contradiction, he never will be. I con-
fess I am not much of a friend to ''gos-
pei meetings." for when / was a little
chap I went to one of Mr.. Moody and
Sankey's meetings In the hastily con-
structed building on Whalley avenue
and happened to sit among some car
penters whose remarks on the commit
tee of building, who had not paid them,
was anything but edifying to the in
FAINT mind They SAVIOR too much of
the circus style in religion, which to
many is disgusting, Once when was
on the Hawkshury river in New South
Wales I heard a prodigious humping
of what I supposed to be tom-toms, a
clashing of cymbals and confused
shouting, which came nearer to the lit
tie steamer landing. "Whew" said |,
'the aborgines are out in full force
and l was preparing to dodge boomer
angs and knob-kerries, when around
the corner came a detachment of the
Salvation Army expending much vital
force and muscular Christianity on the
bass drum. Yes, then they were in red
sweaters and the familiar scoop bon
nets. Behind the army came the usual
rag, tag and bobtail, hooting and ieer-
ing, advising them to "niver come back
to this here settlement or they'd know
wot was Wot!" A pale faced recruit
selected me as last 'un, as he called
me, presumably because 1 was drink
ing whiskey and soda; opened fire by
asking me if I was saved and intima-
ting that the only chance for me was
in throwing overheard my fluid re-
freshment and joining the ranks
When I asked him a few questions he
grew very distant in his manner and
shouting GLORY, glory; I am saved"
and when told him he made too much
noise, he grew quite excited, held a
conference with the band and for near
| ly nine miles I was exhorted, footed at
and prayed for as | was the only pas
senger, and to escape l had to take re-
fuge in the engine room. A wave of
conversion inundated Sydney for about