The herald., 1898-04-11
DR.. Bliss on DR.. Jordan


At Illinois hall last Sunday afternoon
President Jordan was the guest of the
Union Reform league and gave his opinion
of "Collectivism." He made one statement
which has aroused a great deal of indigna-
ton among some, and from which, while
according to him the most perfect liberty
Of opinion, We want most distinctly to dis
sent. He said that the large majority of
people out of work were out of work be-
cause they were either Incorporate, licen-
tious or worthless.
From that view we utterly dissent, and
believe that the facts prove the contrary.
That some of the unemployed are intem-
perate, licentious and worthless no one de-
MES, but so are many of the employed and
of the wealthy classes. To make such
vague general statements about the unem-
ployed as a class seem to us uncharitable
and to serve merely to increase the bitter
ness of feeling between classes, which is
one of the dangers of this country, and a
danger which the Union Reform league is
largely formed to overthrow.
Do the facts justify President Jordan's
view? In book on american Charities"
by Prof. A. G. Warner of President Jor-
dams own university, it is shown that, out
of thousands of cases of poverty in Amer
lean, English and German cities, actually
studied by associated charity workers. who
probably are the best-trained body of So
cial students we have, only 21.3 per cent of
the cases are put down as having been
caused by misconduct, while 74.4 per cent
are put down as caused by misfortune (25.5
per cent being due to lack of employment.
A still more recent table published by the
American Statistical association, and also
based on the records of charity societies,
finds the following percentage of the
causes of poverty: New York city-Lack
of employment, 48 per cent; intemperance
and shiftlessness, IS per cent; Baltimore
Lack of employment 43 per cent; intemper-
ance and shiftlessness, 13 per cent, six
smaller cities-Lack of employment, 35 per
cent; intemperance and shiftlessness, 27
per cent.
The committee on Statistics of the New
York Charity Organization society, COM
posed Of such men as Prof r. Mayo-Smith
and F. II. Giddings of Columbia university,
in the last annual report of the society
publishes the following result as to causes
of 500 cases of poverty, carefully followed
through period of six years: Lack of en-
ployment, 22.1 per cent; sickness or acci-
dent, 1877 per cent; intemperance, 1919 per
cent; shiftlessness, 1922 per cent.
Mr.. Charles Booth of London (not Gen.
BOOTH probably the most careful student
of poverty in the world, and who COM
menced his Investigations to disprove the
need of Socialstic legislation, was con-
verted by his studies to the need of very
much Socialistic legislation. He finds that
of London poverty ("Labor and Life of the
People" vol I, p. 14O, per cent is due
to loafing, IA to drink q to illness, and 5o
to questions of employment"
Before Los Angeles audience not long
ago Mr.. Booth Tucker declared that of the
poor whom the Salvation army is trying
to colonize only s per cent were unwilling
to work. Such is unquestionably the con-
sensus of opinion of those who have made
the subject special study, as President
Jordan does not claim to have DONE
No one claims that the unemployed are,
as a class, the best men. This cannot be.
When times are hard and the employer is
compelled to discharge men, he naturally
discharges the least efficient, but 1t does
not follow that they are mainly intemper-
ate, licentious or shiftless.
This strikes at the root of DR.. Jordan's
VIEW, tHdt tHc Oiliy cure LUZ tuc weak Is 10
make them stronger than the strong. If
this were done, the weak might replace the
strong, but then, IL there were not work
for all, the present strong would be out of
job This is what we think men like Dr.
Jordan forget.
Machinery is so improved today; COM
binations are so large, that small holders
of capital and small storekeepers cannot
compete with them and are being crowded
to the wall all over the civilized world,
while the few strong survive and produce
all which the poor can buy, and SO the poor
have less and less chance at steady, re-
munerative employment.
What shall we do? For President Jor-
dams answer is not the answer. He says,
make them skilled, individually strong. But
when skilled carpenters, skilled printers,
college-educated men walk our streets,
would it help to have more carpenters, more
printers, more lawyers, more DOCTORS more
ministers, unless there is more work?
Easter Sunday, at p. m. we have been
invited by the Labor Council of Los An
geles to speak at Illinois hall on "a Living
Wage" Those who would follow our view
more carefully, we invite there. Let Easter
Sunday stand for revival of social peace
and brotherhood between classes. No
class should attack or denounce the other.
w. D. P. BLISS.