The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1906-08-29
THE TRIALS OF THE POOR
RESULTS OF SOCIOLOGICAL STU
DIES IN WASHINGTON.

Peculiar Conditions of Living at the
National Capital-Investigation Con-
Quoted by s. {. Forman for the
Bureau of Lahor-Details of Domes-
tic Economy in Typical Cases-First
Care to Be Well Fed-Rent, Cloth
ing and Miscellaneous Expenses.
The Washington Cd. c. correspond
ent of the New York Evening Post
writes as follows: S. e. Forman has
made for the federal bureau of labor
an inquiry into the conditions of liv-
ing which prevail among the poor of
the District of Columbia" Various
economists, from j. d. Rockefeller
backward, have arrived, before this
governmental maker of decimal points,
at the conclusion that household ex-
penditures increase and decrease with
the income. When the wage-earner
is regularly employed at a remunera-
tive rate, his family has better food
and more of it than when he Is idle
and not earning anything. Mr.. For.
man establishes the truth anew in the
case of 10 families who submitted to
the inquisition and furnished budgets.
Households in which there was sufi-
Gent intelligence to keep a correct ac-
count of daily financial transactions,
and which were honest enough not to
falsify the items, were secured. Their
willingness to cooperate, the investi-
gator thinks, implies a certain good
will toward the world" To the I'M
BIASED this would appear to put the
case mildly.
This investigation, however, has val
ue as showing living conditions in the
capital of the richest country in the
world, where, except for the minor
chores of government, retail shop
keeping, and a restricted field for arti-
sans, there is practically no opportun-
ity for a man without education to
earn a livelihood. The families in
cluded in the present study were lead
ing a hand-to-mouth existence. Their
expenditures in every case equalled or
slightly exceeded their income, and
IL "oulu hoI DaNC DVCh DoooipiS "
even the shrewdest management, ac-
cording to our common standards, TO
have saved any money. Every fam
lily was visibly, palpably, actually poor.
The loss of a days wages would have
caused keen embarrassment. The
loss Of a weeks wages would have
meant serious discomfort If not suf-
fering, while the loss of a months
would have resulted in an enforced ap-
peal to charity" Here are three spec
linens typical of them all. 1t will be
noted that all of the families main
tanned separate dwellings and were
not herded in tenements:
Seven in family: widow and six chill
dren of the following ages; 16, IA, IL,
nine, seven and two. The mother is
a charwoman in the service of the gov
eminent. Her regular wages are 500
a month, but her hours of labor per-
nit her to earn some extra money in
private families. Boy also works and
brings in several dollars a week, but
amount Is very irregular. Food II
suming power, 5.2j adult males. De-
cupy small two.story frame building
with four rooms of medium size, To-
Gated on the outskirts. The house is
not kept in repair and Is insanitary.
Rent, So a month.
Six in family-husband, wife and
four children of the following ages:
IL, eight, six, and a baby. The hus-
band, a young man, is the only wage
earner and is a timer. His wages
are $3.50 a day, but he finds it impos-
sible to get regular work. Food con
Stunning power, Al adu., males. DC
cupy two-story brick dwelling, well To-
Gated. House has four small rooms
and no conveniences and is unsanitary
in every particular. Water is brought
from a distance. Rent, $3.50 a month.
Six in family-husband, wife and
four children of the following ages:
10, eight, six and three. The husband
of middle age, is the only ~wage-earner
and is employed as a clerk. His wages
are s12 a week. Food consuming pow
er, 5.95 adult males. Occupy two-story
brick building fairly We'll located. The
house has five rooms, water in the
kitchen, and is sanitary. Rent, s14
a month.
These details show that the report
is concerned with a normal segment
Of society. The families who have
permitted the intimate facts of their
domestic economy to be set down are
representative of a good part of the
population of the district. The bud
gets cited below in most instances
cover the expenditures of five weeks
three weeks in summer, and two
weeks in winter.
The most important item in the tx
pense account of the families was
found to be food. Whatever their 9th
er expenses were, 1t was ascertained
that they bought and consumed a
great variety of food products. The
percent of expenditure for food out
of the total expenditures was found to
range from SO to G9.3. Apparently
none of these families consciously di-
rected their purchases with a view of
securing the largest amount of nutri-