Los Angeles herald., 1905-05-02
SIMPLE LIFE IN
FOREIGN QUARTER
CENSUS REPORT SHOWS A
LARGE INCREASE
FAMILIES HOUSE TOGETHER
Cosmopolitan Los Angeles, With Its
Many Traditions, Old and New,
Has Mysteries for the
Census Man
FAMILIES HOUSE TOGETHER

Down in the Eighth ward, where as
Kiping would say. '1ts always double
drill and no canteen," save, of course,
for the politician and his lieutenants,
cosmopolitan Los Angeles is a never
ending mystery to the school census
officials.
The census marshal will tell you n
few things about this particular sec
tion of modern paradise and its rela-
tion to the municipality as a whole. He
has been there Investigating since April
Is, and the thing which struck him
most peculiarly was the discovery Of
nine-room house where fourteen diff
ferent families-mostly Syrians-a-e
sharing their lot together, and not be-
ing able to make any of them under
stand him, Notwithstanding that he
carried seven languages of his own in
a side pocket.
One has to cast his net in the vicinity
of Amelia street in order to get just
appreciation of the true cosmopolitan
conditions prevailing.
Bathe School Children
In the Amelia Street school house
there is another side of the cosmopoli-
tan life shown. The teachers say it
ought not to be published, but here
goes Just the same. The children must
bathe, and so the authorities have pre-
pared the necessary appliances. A
small house in the rear of the school
building equipped with bath tub, heater
and plenty of real wet water is the
unique part of the grammar school
curriculum.
OF the 10000 school children In Los
Angeles only those who attend the
Amelia street institution can boast of
getting free baths with their studies.
This feature is, of course, as important
as an English, geography or arithmetic
lesson, and the pupils know it too. A
trained nurse sees to it that the rules
are enforced, and Johnny and Maggie
either have to keep themselves clean
or someone else will do it for them
Recently there has been a large influx
of Russian peasants to Los Angeles,
and most of them have, settled in the
Eighth ward There are also number
of Syrians and other nationalities
eking out an existence in that section
of the city
Report Almost Ready
The report of the census bureau,
which is to be submitted May 10, will
show many newcomers in the COM
munity. According to Bert Farmer,
who has charge of the work, there Is
no quarter that has furnished the GEN.
sus takers more genuine pleasure-and
hard work-than that inhabited by the
foreign element. In many houses it is
common to find five or six families
dividing rental, while in several in
stances eight and ten families are to be
seen. The record. however, is held by
the Amelia street place, where tie
fourteen families are housed under one
roof in nine rooms.
"They are all happy and kind hearted
people," said Miss May Henderson,
principal of the Amelia Street school,
who has lived among them them and
studied their customs for a number Of
years past. II find much pleasure in
my work with these people. Because
they are poor does not signify that they
are not acquainted with the right mode
of living. Their hearts are certainly
in the right places. They are peaceful
and obliging, and as whole 1 md
them a good class of citizens"