New-York tribune., 1903-05-03

t- line stretch aIIeyS and courts lined with
bl.ioUu negro hoKeis- Nan-st-, just east
. ar6-a-falf-sr-. Is a good example of this
,bves1 district. Here il d long lane OF one
.-- huts rickety evil smelling. oVercroWoied
rf,b .eg4a.-S without running water-in fact.
gi,bour any water supply nearer than TWO
il,,ks This - the heart of the darkest
Washington and there Il nothing on the East
side Of New York Ju compare with the wretch
.jD-ss here. for IL j. q Wretchedness from N hich
N sslf-respecJ has vanished. Sixty-one persons
~ bBdded into tins short line of one story
novels. and furnish eloquent evidence Of the
conditions here
4uevs are not without their redeemins
raanoes. Their is one dirty alley about which
-he fortunes Of q Polish count still east spell
Tha best Of this story Is that ii is true. Some
tine ago q charities agent discovered a family of
s.K living in q condition Of absolute destitution
IN one Of 1he worst alleys il Washington. In-
yestgztion revealed The fact that the
the Oldest son OF q noble family Of Poland. He
had drifted over 10 this country and steadily de
elned ii the social scale untii ~ had reached
d condition where his four children
trely destitute. The man was well educated.
rather notable scholar in his own country, but
in d foreign lard n Mas without resource The
charity orSarizalio took the family in hand.
pu- the man II work street sweeping and cared
for the children A. street sweeper the Polish
nobiemlu worked faithfully. and to-day he holds
well paid place as "a government Interpreter
such Is brief survey Of the Washington
social problem The poor population there Is
amost exclusively eoloreG. particularly that poT-
ii0n which resides iu alleys. and IN the opinion
o social WORKERS cd. The city Offers d far Jess
hopeful field for uplifting than the East Side
population iu rhis city To compare the slums
q the TWO cities Is difficult Broad streets,
many parks-il fact. q city almost a park in
i,sef-is uoJ easily compared with Il city
cTamEed as is Nev-York. So broad ar the
streets lined with pleasant shade trees. that il
is hard 10 realize that slums exist: hut let the
visitor m1stet up ms -ourare and enter one of
The narrow entrances IF a side alley and he
vii suddenlv com. out IN u maze Of passages
through which th- same filth. the same odors
and The same hoI.e-ss air that greet him in
back tenement in A-jeu-st- in New-York viii
perineate. Not obvious, but no less bad no less
threatening 10 the community's moral and
physical health are these hidecus places.
After all The striking thing about them is
That they exist in world Of such bright
shTne, such beautiful parks. On the East Side
lhe narrow, tenement walled streets suggest
unhealthful conditions. In Washington the con
traTy is susg.sted- StIIi, the ugly fact remains
mat IN three minutes il Il possible to leave all
ne beauty and charm Of the beautiful Capitol
grounds behind and plunge into Willow Tree
Alley, where decay and disease abound II is
possible to leave the splendid Congressional
Library and IN q minute penetrate the unholy
mysteries oI 0riole Circle or Rassetts Alley.
>er Is Il d matter OF great satisfaction that II
remained for an English sociologist who has
'isiiec the Sums Of the world TO pause under
The shadow q the dome at the Capitol and
award 10 this centre of nat atiOnaI legislation the
Palm 10y evil eonditions after having duly
weighed the claims Of the far off Orient as well
aS q the White hapel district of London.