Omaha daily bee., 1902-11-25
SEEKS AID OF TIE WOMEN
county Commissioner Wants Womsu'I Club
to Help in Charity WORK.
EAKEs SPEECH ALONG PRACTICAL LINES
roints out some Cases where Peculiar
Circumstances seem TO call
Especially for work
by the o.

County Commissioners James ?. Connolly
was before the political and social science
department Of the Woman's club yester-
day with q new suit Of clothes, a flower
in his buttonhole. an emergency stock Of
Addisonian English and q report Of some
Of the work done by the county for the
poor. II was the hrst address Mr.. Con-
molly has made since his campaign closed
o year age and was along a line other than
political 1t bristled with statistics, for
he is chairman OF the commissioners char
fly committee and he wants the valuable
aid he believes the Wcman's club can give
in relieving the inevitable winter distress
among the very poor.
Those women. / long ago discovered,
have very practical ideas and methods. ="
said the commissioner. as he busted himself
with the compilation OF tabled reports yes
teTdRy, and their cooperation would
materially assist this board IN q great
many cases. / shall recommend in my talk
this afternoon that they send q representa-
tion 10 the conference Of charities here
after, for they are entitled to consldera-
tion among the agencies working along
that lire.
And then there is another recommends
ton that ] hope to make and to explain as
dslicately as the facts will permit. II is
AaaL ANty C0uCtIu themselves Win some
cases where the destituticn OF the families
is encouraging the dissolution Of the young
girls who are members Of them. ] don't
know that such work is among the stated
objects OF the WomRn's club. but ii GER
tRinly is q womRn's field. for we Of the
board have discovered that any Inquiries
or suggestions that We men attempt to
make are either resented as insulting or
else are emharrasgingly misunderstood.
Young Girls in Danger.
I'VE have encountered one case where q
drunken father and a mother. made in
different by long abuse, are living in a
barn and permitting their 1S-year-old
daughter TO contribute TO the family main
tenaDoe by carrying beer and running other
errands for a Chinese laundry, the ex-
PLANTATION for failing to secure her en-
ployment elsewhere being that she has
never had any schooling and now has no
clothing at for wear in a store or shop.
We cannot reach that fathers sensibilities
except, perhaps, with a club, which the
law forbids-but the mother might be made
to realize something Of her responsibility
II another mother talked TO her.
IAN even worse case we encountered in
a dissolute part OF town when the county
storskeeper went to q dilHpidated fat 10 in
vestighte the circumstances Of q woman
who had appealed for aid. He found that
the woman is living a life Of shame and
keeping with her, in their one apartment,
a girl Z years old and q boy ?. Some wo-
manly assistance in a case of this nature
would help the board members TO solve
a rather knotty question, for undoubtedly
the children are without even the plainest
comforts OF life. Rightly started, all eoule
be self~-supporting."
Statistics on County Work.
OF the charity work Of the year Com.
missioner Connolly submitted a repor
that included tables showing the eK
by the county. A feature Of this state,
ment was the record that or April 2
last there were LOSS families requiring
either total maintenance OF some assistance
by the county. That number was tn.
high mark. as, strangely enough, the mum
Der Of needy had been increasing eve,
since March /, when there were only
few more than 900. With the opening o
May avenues Of employment the numbe
rapidly decreased again.
AS an example OF what is required &
the maintenance of the poor, COMMISSIONS
Connolly showed the report Of disburse
mentE by the county storekeeper for tn
single day OF March 8 last. when thirty
eight families were supplied with 80
pounds Of -four. l5s pounds Of sugar, 4
pounds of coffee. Is pounds OF tea, 16
pounds Of beans, 40 pounds Of rice, :
pounds Of oatmeal, 1g5 pounds Of corn
meal. ls4 pounds OF salt pork, so bars c
anan IL nuunde Of salt and 10 tons NJ coa'