The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1897-11-13

front, set we'll back from the street Of
crowded shops, suggests all the
strangely touching history through
which the old house passed, until
finally it became a tenement house
and iunkshop, and with its neighbor-
hood took on an air of discourage
ment and decay and sordidness.
In September, 1889, niece of Mr..
Hull let the house to Miss Addams,
rent free, and other buildings have
been added by friends.
1t would require volume to fully
describe all the activities of Hull
House, and, in fact, volume, with
maps and papers, has been written
on the subject and may be found in
the public library and, besides this.
numerous articles have been pub
lished in papers and magazines. Suf-
flee it to say, in this article, that
with its gymnasium and billiard hall,
its clubs and classes, its lectures on
biology, sociology and other sciences,
its entertainments and exhibitions of
art, its day nursery and kindergarten,
its studio, where painting, drawing
and embroidery are taught, its wo.
mems unions, the Jane Club-a CO.
operative lodging house, named in
honor of Miss Addams-its relief
work, its summer school at Rockford
with all these and other activities
Hull House is greater power for
| good than perhaps any other institu-
ton in Chicago, or it may be, in the
country.
The Chicago Commons.
The Chicago Commons is the next
largest social settlement in Chicago,
and was quite as interesting and in
spring to me as Hull House. This
settlement is located in the seven
teenth ward, West Side, at 40 Union
street. The house is large, having
forty eight rooms, and rents fer $160
month, about 800 of this sum being
paid by the residents. The balance
is raised by private subscriptions.
There are twenty seven nationalities
in the seventeenth ward, the chief
being Italians, Irish, Germans, Nor
wegians. etc. AS | walked with one
of the residents through the alleys
and streets of the district | observed
substantially the same phenomena
as those which meet the eye around
Hull House.
This settlement was founded by
DR.. Graham Taylor He is Con-
gregational clergyman and was Cnce
a pastor of the Fourth church
of Hartford, Conn. That was rich,
fashionable and therefore dead
church when he took charge of it..
But he soon brought it out of it's
lethargy by his earnest, inspiring and
practical preaching. He was finally
called to the Congregational Theolo
gical Seminary of Chicago as Pro-
lessor of Christian sociology" and
this is the place he holds today.
In the springof 1898 or '94 Il forget
which, Dr. Taylor sent three students
from the seminary to the seventeenth
ward, and they spent some time in
studying the sociological conditions
of that district.
They finally determined to make
asettlement on the present site. The
house was built, as Hull House was,
in an early day, some thirty years
ago, by wealthy German, and was
a fine residence then. But as the
city grew and business houses were
built the wealthy German found the
place uncongenial and sold out and
moved away to more fashionable
part of the city. 1t finally became a
sailors lodging house, and when DIR.
Taylor found it there were eight Ital.
ian families living in the rear with
their horses stabbed in the basement.
The three students lived with these
people and their horses for some
time, but finally secured complete
possession of the house by paying
the moving expenses of the Italians
and getting them better residences.
The building is now fitted up very
nicely. There are some twenty five
residents, several of whom devote
their whole time to the work. These,
of course, receive salaries, but the
others, consisting of school teachers,
clerks, business men, etc, simply live
in the house and pay their room rent
and board as they would at any
other place, and give what time they
can to the work.
One great service rendered the
community by the Commons was the
closing of the concert saloons in the
neighborhood. These centers of cor