The Portland daily press., 1900-06-19
THE SOCIAL SETTLEMENT.
II is Coming To BE Feature of city
Life.
New York Evening POST

Within the past year in Paris "A number
Of social centers of the settlement type,
apart from sectarian connections, have
been opened with expressions Of public
and social spirit on the part of some OF
the younger French moralists and litera-
teurs, such as wildly recall the letters of
Edward Denison and the speeches Of Ar
mold Toynbee, the two university set
Element pioneers. During the period Of
fifteen years, therefore, since Toynbee
Hall began its work, the settlement
scheme has well sustained the freshness
of its motive. In more substantial form,
II has proved its vitality by the remark
able increase in the number Of settlement
enterprises, particularly on this side of
the water. All of our largest cities now
have these houses, dotted here and there
through their tenement districts. Near
ly every American city of the second
magnitude also has at least one well-es-
tablished settlement. The most satisfae-
tory structures erected definitely for
such use, after the buildings Of the uni
versity Settlement in New York and of
Hall House in Chicago, are to he found
| in Cleveland and Buffalo. Both in New
| York and Chicago, a number of new set
Element buildings are under way. In
deed, architectural journals have begun
| 10 publish discussions upon the aesthetic
and practical demands of philanthropic
work as determining the lines Of new
architectural speciality.
The latest settlement proposal, repre-
senting IA novel but appropriate step on
| the part OF the Catholic Church, suggests
/ that the abiding value Of this particular
method of coming at the needs of neg
lected city quarters is perhaps most con
cusively shown in the nature and varie
| ~ of the sources from which different
| Settlements have taken their start Those
| in London resulted in the main from
movements at the universities, stlmu-
lated by progressive religious Leaders. In
| American cities, on account OF sectarian
divisions definite religious propaganda IN
| Is usually absent from settlement pr
| nrammes even in the cases of establl b.
ments owing their origin to the church,
| like the East side House in New York
or the south End House in Boston.
| Though there are "a number of mission
houses in this city and elsewhere which
have much of the character of settle
ments. vet il is found that under Ameri-
can conditions such work designed to
touch the entirs population OF given
neighborhood, had better find its begin
| ming in sources which will give reason
able guarantee of impartiality in matters
of religious allegiance.
| 1t is Interesting to note how each settle
ment, in its personnel and in It's policy,
reflects it's origin. The University Set
| Element on Eldridge str ct aspires 20 rep
resent the colleges for east side purposes
ms truly as the University Club does in
M town existence. The College Settle
| ment on Rivington street has always cen
/ tered in itself in peculiar way the esprit
de corps of the graduates OF the women :
| colleges, especially because IL served te
open a new and fitting sphere Of public
service to educated women. In both OF
these settlements the results Of academic
training are seen in the higher instruc-
ton of promising boys and girls, in the
Investigation of local conditions, and in
the development of the expert in special
lines of philanthropic endeavor. At thu
Normal College Settlement and the Kin
d srgarten Settlement, the residents are Go
lapproach neighborhood needs through
their training of teachers, and are to so
| lidify their training on such contact
The Nurses Settlement, through its form
of highly skilled service, has secured an
abundant entrance into the home life OF
its neighborhood, accomplishing results
in coming close to the people such al
have hardly been equaled elsewhere. The
Union Seminary Settlement is able t
i minister to the religious needs OF Protes
tant people in its neighborhood, while
remaining in variety OF helpful rela-
tions with adherents of other forms OF
faith. Hartley House, as the outpost O.