The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-09-21

In one corner OF the dining room are the
steam tables from which food Is served
The next room is the pantry; next that Is
the kitchen, and connected with the kitch-
en- are storerooms and refrigerators which
are cooled by the machines run on the
premises. The remainder OF the basement
s. devoted TO engine rooms and aundry'
where the linen for the house 1t put
through a thorough cleaning every day.
These arc not pleasant places to work or
ever 10 visit on a hot day. On the day l
went through the Mills Hotel the thermom-
eter in the engine room stood a. 100 de-
grees.
Feeding the hungry poor is a common
expression OF humanitarianism Sir
Thomas Upton has established a big instl-
tuition for this purpose In London and there
are other smaller Institutions in other
great cities OF the world. But housing the
poor Is still an experiment confined TO a
few cities. Mr.. Mills seems TO have solved
this problem for New York II the results in
five years experiments can be considered
conclusive. In Mills Hotel No. / Mr.. Mills
gives each Of his dodgers for 20 cents anight
a separate room with carpeted floor and
bed equipped with clean sheets and a
woven wire mattress. Each ledger has the
use OF a fast elevator to take him TO MS
floor. The toilet accommodations on each
loor are as ample and as clean as will be
found in any house or hotel in New York.
AL this sounds like an e~xaggeration and
perhaps your Imagination has exaggerated
my description of it. A separate room Is
about the size Of a cell; that is, ii Is just
the length OF the single bed and twice its
width. 1t has a door with a spring lock.
On the floor is a small piece Of carpet. On
the wall above the bed IS a cabinet. One
chair comprises the furnishing of the room.
Each room has a window opening on the
court for the cutter air. Partitions be-
tween the room and the hall reach only
part of the way to the ceiling, leaving plen-
~ of space for circulation.
Porcelain lavatories are in the hall and
OF course are public. but each ledger has
perfect privacy in his room. In fact, 1t Is
q rule of the house that only one person Is
permitted in each Of these rooms at a time.
1t is also a rule that they must be vacant
at Q o'clock in the morning and must not be
used again before 5 o'clock in the after
noon. There is ample provision in the
common recreation rooms below for all
the dodgers who desire to remain within
the walls OF the hotel between these hours.
No Iodger is encouraged to keep in his
room any more Of his belongings than will
fill the cabinet above his bed. He is ex-
pected to pack all his clothing in the morn
ing in his travelling bag and take 1t to the
check room in the basement, where 1t is
kept without charge. This provision in
sures the maids an opportunity for giving
each room a thorough cleaning.
UNIFORM RATES.
For each OF these rooms a charge of 20
cents a night is made. On each floor are
sixteen corner rooms" which contain
about 20 per cent. more space for which
the charge is 30 cents. Only the corner
rooms are lighted at night. The dodgers
in the other rooms are expected to do
their reading in the common rooms on the
lower floors, and these are closed at L
O'Clock.
No discount is made In the rates for any
period OF time. In this respect the New
York enterprise differs from a similar in
stitution in Hamburg. In this lodging
house. which has 425 beds distributed in
go rooms, a charge for a doubl bedroom
is II cents a night and any one who pays
for five consecutive nights can remain fol
the other two nights Of the week without
charge. Any one who remains for three
weeks pays nothing for the fourth, and
after two consecutive months a ticket fol
an additional month is given free. This
makes the cost Of the lodging in the Ham
burg establishment less than in the Mills
Hotel. 1t amounts to $50 for three
months. or 5000 a year, whereas lodgings
in the Mills Hotel cost Sz3 a year. But, OF
course, the standard of living and the cost
of labor in Germany are much lower thar
in the United States.
Every lodger at the Mills Hotel registers
at one OF the two offices which flank the
doorway. His name Is recorded on the
stub OF a check which is given to him
This check is a voucher for the room fol
which he has paid, and he Is required tc
produce it at any time as an evidence that
ne is entitled to the accommodations Of
the hotel. If he does not register before
z the following evening his room is let tC
the next conner, and If he has left any
thing in it he takes the chance of having
II appropriated.
When Mr.. Mills instituted his experiment
statistics had been prepared to show the
condition of the single man seeking lodg
ings in New York. They showed that il
this city there are liz lodging houses, o.
which ffty-one had baths Of some kline
or other. The total number of dodgers
for which these houses had licenses wer,
15.255. and of these $500 were in house.
which had nc bathing facilities. The pric,
paid for lodgings ranged from 10 to 3
cents a night, the average being Is cents
In houses which furnished beds in sep
arate apartments the least charge was 2
cents. The apartments in these lodgin.
houses were separated by wooden parti
lions. The arrangements for ventilation
were Of the most primitive character. TIL
rules for cleanliness were very little OBJ
served In most Of the buildings. In fact
IL was actually a hardship for a self-re
specting man to be compelled to sleep TO
a night In one OF these places. Mr.. Mill
has supplied a perfectly clean, well ven
tilated. comfortable. decent and orderl,
home for more than 1000 men in New Yorl
city 1T a rate no higher than the Bower,
lodging house charges, and. strange to say
has actually mad this humanitarian in
stitute a source OF profit; the Mills hotel
paid q fair return on his investment.
GEORGE GRANTHAM Balm.