The sun., 1905-12-31

ask only for some macaroni, little cheese
and some canned tomatoes; whereas the
Irish woman and her family crave meat
and potatoes. She needs meat too SO
do the Italians, IL they would keep well
in this climate and bring up their children
to be sturdy American citizens.
AS for the Germans, helped on their
feet they stay there longer than almost
any other foreigners who come here.
Although 50 far this winter has been
mild, our regular contributions have come
In az generously az ever and we hope to
get through the season without being
obliged t. appeal to the public through
the newspapers for contributions"
The Salvation Army, which gives aid to
the homeless, to the outcast, TO the poor
OF every class and condition, which picks
up and setS on their feet men and women
who would stand small chance Of getting
help if they applied at the doors Of some
other charities, spends many thousands
every year in relieving poverty in every
part Of the city Just how many thousands
not even the financial secretary is able to
state offhand.
"A big item" said he, is our Christmas
dinners, which this year cost $4,000. Our
night shelters are run at a deficit of IS 600.
The free coal we distribute amounts to
about S5 900.
Rescue work in the slums means prob
ably-l am not giving exact figures $4,000
more. Under the head of ordinary relief
might be put 10000
our fresh air camps, where moral and
physical wrecks sometimes regain their
health, cost about $4,000 to operate; but
perhaps they don't come strictly under the
head of city work. The free clothing,
furniture and household supplies we dis
tribute are not included in the sums / have
named, because they are sent to us to be
given away.
we draw the line al no class Of poverty
our benefciares ranging from newsboys
up to college graduates, physicians, law
yers, clergymen.
New York Is generous\to its poor"
"Why do not the conditions improve
when so much is done to alleviate poverty
and help the very poor to be self-support-
ing?" the secretary was asked.
Because of the tremendous influx of i'm
migrants every year, which keeps the crop
Of the very poor up to high average"
A man well acquainted with the benev-
olences conducted by New York churches,
as well as many strictly private charitable
enterprises involving the laying out Of
large sums of money every winter, said
that in his opinion 81 ,OO0, 600 represented
not one half of the amount spent yearly
on the poor OF the city
For instance" he saiu, take St Bar
thoomew's St Thomas's and Grace Church
parishes and Trinity parish, which includes
half dozen chapels and think of the big
Iopa l,y than, ba tn
nothing of the big churches of other denom-
nations, which each support mission
house and work the year around TO help
the poor who come to them
At St Bartholomew's mission plant, in
East Forty-second street, probably the
most remarkable of its kind in the United
States, which is visited every day by
1000 persons seeking help of some sort or
another, it was learned from one of the
clergymen in charge that the annual cost
of operating the mission is $SS 600. The
clinic, where the sick young and old. are
treated free of charge, is maintained at
yearly outlay of $4,000,
At this mission there are a free employ
ment bureau, a clothing bureau, kinder
garten, loan office, that the temporarily
embarrassed may be spared the necessity
OF ASKING LOT CnaTlty, SOCIAL CIuD5 loi hlth
and women and at all times committee OF
ways and means which distributes in aims
sometimes as much as s25,OOO a year
The same story on a slightly smaller scale
was repeated at the Grace Church mission
in East Fourteenth street. clergyman
there gave as a rough estimate $4,000 as
the sum spent in benevolences every year
for the poor of the district.
At the special collections taken up in st.
Thomass Church last year for the poor of
the parish $4,000 was put on the plates
and this sum, il was learned, is more than
doubled by private subscriptions given
regularly for the maintenance of the church
mission in East Fifty-ninth street and to
aid the poor who apply there for aid.
These three churches alone are cited to
illustrate the scale of giving practised by
the majority of the churches whose con-
gregations represent the weathier part of
New York's population. OF such churches
there are dozens in this city.
According to the layman referred to- to
measure the generosity of New Workers
bv 81. 900 a year standard would be
putting it low.