The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-04-29
GOVERNMENT RELIEF.
Army Officers Testimony as to Its De-
moraIiziDg Effect.
Washington Correspondence New Yor
Evanfn0 Dnct

Washington Correspondence New York
Evening Post.
Reading the accounts of recent river
floods" remarked an army officer to-day
to you correspondent. makes me think of
the Mississippi o~verfiow-four years ago,
was it?-when / had something TO do with
the distribution of the relief voted by Con-
gress. That experience convinced me tina.
when the government goes into an under
taking of that sort it dispenses more de-
moralization than beneficence. There are
two classes of people TO whom il offers
rations; one is a worthy but temporarily
helpless class of white persons who, as a
rule. won't accept them because IL would
hurt their pride to be classed I'm the same
category with negroes and paupers: aid
the other is the class of negroes and poor
whites who will eat the bread of idleness
as long as you will dole it out to them. to-
gether with a sprinkling of avaricious and
unprlncipled men, who take the bounty on
The theory that anything which comes out
of the government is fair plumber.
You know how the thing is done. of
course? Word is sent out in all directions
calling for the enrolment of families need
ing relief. Each family is represented oy
- ANtN viz oicho AiO WI VIZ ais NtAo NiiS
questions as to how many mouths he has 10
feed. A man who told us that his family
consisted of fifteen souls. we discovered aft
erward, was one of the most thrifty and
well-to-do inhabitants OF the neighbOrhood,
he owned. among other things, six farms,
and was by no means in condition to be
begging for aid. In ore place, where relief
was asked for 1000 persons. we made 4
cursory examination. and cut the rations
down to 300, and even then L have reason to
suspect that there was a pretty large sur
plus. L know that We did not use one-hau OF
the money voted by Congress, but we had
the chance to spend a great deal more than
the appropriation had we been willing TO
shut our eyes and give Unfortunately.
THE negroes from the overlooked planta-
lions would flock to the relief camps. often,
though offered work at good wages in re-
pairing or strengthening levees, so as TO
check the ravages of the river; Others
would come In from plantations which were
not endangered and where their employers
needed every hand; and ii became neces-
sary almost to drive them back TO work
at the point of the bayonet. After the dan
ger had subsidized. indeed, they insisted
upon lying about in droves, and filling their
stomachs without lifting a finger. though
their own employers were willing To re-
lease them. and other planters had work
for them TO do and were suffering for lack
of help. A period of free provender made
many of them useless for a long time to
come, and the only consideration which
would appeal to them was the pang OF
starvation, after the government purveyors
Il SHUT uONu III tit o0PPtstes
II was struck, also, with the way distress
seemed to accentuate some OF the natural
traits of the shiftless ones. A steam barge
loaded with passengers was sent up the
river on one occasion, towing behind II a
raft on which was gathered a large col
lection of live stock The negroes on the
raft fell to playing craps, and threw tnem-
selves into the game with such abandon
hat they neglected utterly to water and
animals. Here was a swollen river, all
about them, the water to be had for mere
ly dipping a bucket into II: yet the below
ing of the thirsty beasts, which at last be-
came agoniZing beyond endurance 10 the
people on the eamboat passed unnoticed
by the negroes. till the boat hands inter
rupted their gambling and fairly drove
them by force into doing their duty.
But there were pathetic scenes, too. L
remember when one little boat with a re-
lief party sailed back into the country TO
look for and rescue any persons who might
have gathered on the knobs and been cut
off from all sources of supply. In an out
of-the-way place the party came dpon a
ruined cabin completely isolated, in which
the water had risen almost TO the ceiling or
the lower story. The family had taken
refuge i'm the attic. The mother was in bed.
covered with a mountain of rags, and going
through a siege of chills and fever; the
children were crying with hunger, for a
couple of days had gone by since the last
morsel OF food had disappeared; but the
father was sitting by the open window.
two strings remained, saving out such REM
nants of jig tunes as could be played on the
crippled Instrument and making the best
Of his effort to keep a cheerful face turned
toward the melancholy prospect.
81 concluded. after all | saw that year,
that il would be wiser In such cases TO iet
the local relief committees take care OF
the stomachs of the people. If Uncle Sam
lends a hand, il should be In the form OF
furnishing tents or other shelter for the
homeless: but the Chambers OF Commerce
and Boards of Trade i'm the Southern cities
are always generous. and. what is quite as
important. they understand the people OF
their own neighborhoods and know how to
feed them without wasting the substance OF
the contributors or pauDerizing and spoil
ir,g the benenciaries. The worthy persons
who need help and who are too proud 20
cat the bread OF mendacancy from the hand
OF tho federal authorities will accept relief
from their %neighbors and be grateful for
II feel quite sure that the best senti-
ment In the South would be with me I'm this
p~ositiOn. In fact, | recall one man. him
self a very heavy sufferer from n Missis-
sippi outbreak. who told me that If a sim
liar crisis should occur again. he would
gladly drop all and hurry TO Washington.
III bv his entreaties he could divert the ILL
Judged benevolence of the government"