The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1903-01-09


In you you cannot be unmOved by the
suffering babies and little children l
beg of you, Mr.. Marsh, come with me
and see with your own eyes. You lost
a little child once, Mr.. Marsh. re-
member Luella telling me, your first
born son. In the name of that sacred
memory will you take an interest in
the dying innocent children in your
own tenements?'
In his sudden appeal to this long dis
tant but never forgotten experience
John Gordon made the one plea that
perhaps could have moved Philo Marsh
sufficiently to overcome his repugnance
| to every form of human suffering. He
| remained silent moment; then, lifting
his eyes to Gordon, he said gravely:
"yery well, I'll go with you. When
shall we go?'
II will suit my time to your conven-
fence / would like to have you note
the conditions by day and night. l can
| go with you any time"
"Say tomorrow afternoon and night,
then"
"Will you take dinner with Miss An
drews at Hope Housew John Gordon
ventured to say.
Mr. Marsh hesitated. "Why, yes, I
will if it is customary"
81 know Miss Andrews will welcome
you. Tomorrow at 2, if that will suit
you, l will meet you here, and we can
inspect the tenements, take dinner at 6
and go out again for a look at night.
| Thank you"
John Gordon spoke with quiet but
deep satisfaction. He had scored an
| important point. How important he
did not know, but it was vital be-
| ginning to any influence he might hope
to exert over the property owners. !.
AS he started to go out, Mr.. Marsh
spoke slowly:
about Lueila? There is no prospect
Of an agreement between your
"Not any that / can see."
"I'm sorry" The words were genu-
the. and John Gordon was touched by
them.
'"Thank you, Mr.. Marshw He shook
hands firmly and went out with a tear
In his eye, but it was not the same as
that which the interview with his own
father had provoked.
THANK God! He seems to have a
heart, at leastv' John Gordon ex-
claimed as he went down into his Ge-
henna again.
Between and o'clock the next day
Mr.. Marsh and John Gordon were in
Bowen street and standing in front of
the building on lot 81, known as the
'dumbbell tenement" which, accord
ing to one famous tenement house COM
mission, sis the one hopeless form of
tenement construction. 1t cannot be
ed; it is not safe in case of fire; direct
light is only possible for the rooms at
front and rear. The middle rooms
must borrow what light they can from
dark Railways, the shallow shafts and
the rear rooms. Their air must pass
through other rooms or tiny shafts, and
cannot but be contaminated before it
reaches them" (New York tenement
commission. 1S94.)
John Gordon could not help noticing
the shrinking manner of Mr.. Marsh.
pine man seemed to be under an infiu-
ence that could not be fear or even
compassion. 1t was rather mingling
OF disgust and physical dread.
"Shall we go in" John Gordon said.
looking at his companion curiously. ]
swat moment" cried Marsh. s II
want to look at the street" 4
The two men stood still, and the older
for the first time in his life saw sight
that he had never dreamed couldsex.
bst In a civilized city that was at least
nomina1ly Christian.
It would be impossible to picture
Bowen street by means of a photo
graph. No skill of the photographer
or artist could reproduce the scene, and
human language is as weak as the
brush or camera to tell the story.
The street swarmed with children.
It was midsummer and the day itself
was hot, but not one of the hottest of
the season. There was not tree or
shrub or flower, not a bit of grass, not
even weed to relieve the dull, sicken-
ing look of sun smitten brick and wood
and stone.
In front of every other house stood a
garbage box, aor what had once been
one. The majority of these boxes were
rotting heaps of boards without covers.
overfowing with wet stuff composed of
decaying vegetables, the sweepings
from the tables of the people and the
litter of paper, tin cans and refuse that
had not been disturbed by inspectorSor
garbage wagons for several weeks.
There was not whole piece of side
walk on either side of the street. Pieces
OF rotting plank stood on end or lay
partly over the alleys, In some cases
thrust down between the decaying TIM
bers, sticking above the regular level, |
q hideous menace, a miserable object
lesson. out Of hundreds more, Of the
mournful fact of municipal incompe-
tency and debauchery Of machine poll
tics. Mr.. Marsh learned afterward that |
more than 1900 suits were pending |
against the city for serious injuries
due to the defective sidewalks and that |
the sum total of damages claimed was |
more than $22,5O0.0O0. (See proceed
1ngs Of regular meeting of Chicago city
council Jan. 8, 1900 The children in
the street were playing. quarreling.
digging in the garbage boxes, in many
instances picking bits of decayed lem
ons, bananas and oranges out Of the
gutter.
One group OF boys was tormenting a
miserable cat. Another group was yell
ing at a police officer who had just or
dered them out of the street, where