The Portland daily press., 1900-12-26
THEY AXE IMPROvIDENT.
IL Is ths Car Riding and Summer Ont.
ings which Bring Many Families
TO want and Suffering.

Last night there were about forty home.
less wanderers entertained at the Saliva
ton Army shelter on Pearl street. The
here to lind work on the steamships or to
ship as cattlemen. This shelter has rs
rooms and lodging Is given for ten
cents, and this includes two rolls and
two cups of coffee in the morning"
Captain Smith gave PRESS repre-
sentative some interesting facts about his
work here In Portland yesterday, and
told about the operations In this shelter.
"If man comes here two nights In sue
cession without money we give him bed
and care for him. Then we try and find
out somsthing about him. III he is honest
ly seeking work, and comes to the shelter
again we do what we can for him, but II
we tin1 he Is a loafer and drunkard, he
gets but cold welcome on the third
night. When we get our salvage work
we'll underway, we can give these men
something to do to earn their nights
lodging and breakfast in the way OF pick
ing over the rubhiah, sorting the paper
and rags ana other things. and we shall
also have sort OF wood yard, where
others can be given work. This Shelter is
not sslf-suttaining yet. altogether, but it
will be In little while, we hope.
81 have lived and worked In many
cities, but believe there is more real
suff sring In Port and, and some Of the
worst cases of destitutlon that have
ever seen anywhere. In comparison with
OF 1er cities of it3 size think Portland is
the worst in this rag ard Of any place L
know OF. / attdbuts this to several
things. In the first place many OF these
people are attracted here by the stsam.
ships, hoping to get work, which they
cannot or will not do aftsr they get here.
Many OF the men who come here to us
say that they have been sent here because
the cattIsmen pay bettar wages out OF
Portland than they do out or any other
port, and when they reach Portland they
find that there is five men for every job.
"But 1t is the resident poor OF whom 1
am speaking when refer ID the ext RENE
restitution among them. Some kinds of
charity are worse than none, and lands to
degrade these people. The people of Port
land are charit able, but both the city and
the charitable organizations help many
people who do not deserve help.
'These poor people are iinproyident,
and this Is what makes helping them SO
Encouraging. Families whom we have
helped and given coal and necessities to
uring the winter, IN the summer time
get on their feet. The men and women
get work, buy good clothes, and clothe
the children well. have seen these pso-
pie going down to the island steamers on
Sunday, dressed IN as though they were
Independently wealthy. have seen them
riding out to the resorts about the city
on the electric cars, whole families OF
them, and these very people have been to
me this winter for help and for clothing
and food. 1t is not rum which causes all
of this suffering 1t is the insidious ous-
tom OF spending i've and ten cents for car
rides and steamboat sails which causes
much OF the trouble among the imp row.
dent people aud brings them to want. i
know OF no way to prevent this nnles5 it
be by education, and that Ia hard thing
to do, and will require many years. 1t is
easy for thess psople who have large
families to spend dollar on an outing
in the summer time, aud then when the
cold weather comes they have nothing to
care for themselves with"