Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1906-05-18

permitted to fatten upon the lifeblood
OF his neighbors.
But there was still another fact
which wonderfully impressed me amid
those ruins. Though there were some
mean and contemplate people living
In San francisco. rs there are mean
and contemplate people living In all
cities, yet the vast majority were no.
BILE in heart and deed and were ready
to so forth and help those who could
not help themselves. No man could
appreciate this self sacrifice so much
as the outsiders who came to San
francisco during the first few days
after the city had been burned out.
went from feeding station to feeding
station There found men and wom-
en- standing In line awaiting their turn
They were there by the scores, by the
hundreds and the thousands. Some Of
these men and women were dressed In
the garmentstof wealth. Some had on
Persian lamb coats. Some wore seal
skin sacks. Behind them We're those
who were dressed In the clothes of the
humble laborer. They all were equals
now. Their money was gone I'm many
cases. They had lost their all and
could lose no more. But who are
these people who are distributing the
food and the clothing?" 1 asked again
and again. who are these men who
are running the automobiles and car
rying the sick to the hospitals and
looking after the city?' They are the
men who, like ourselves, have lost all"
when they want food. they take their
places In line to get It, but as soon as
they are fed they go on the relief CON-
mittees. II they have houses still
standing they open them to take in the
homeless. 1t was the grandest sight
ever saw. Having lost their all. there
Were thousands upon thousands who
not only suffered In silence, but at the
same time gave their substance and
energy to care for others. This helm
was not given by people of only one
social station, but OF all stations. The
aristocrat was there working side by
side with the plebeian, the college grad
uate with the iliiterate man. There
they Were all working side by side to
help each other.
But l cannot close without one other
word of congratulation as well as of
warning. No sooner did the cry of help
come from the burning city than at
once clothing and breadstuffs came
pouring in. Within few hours Sacra-
mento sent her donations. Then came
Los Angeles with her carloads. Then
the Portland and the Denver trains
filed with food supplies came rolling
In, while of in the distance we could
coming from cities of the far east.
San Francisco would have starved to
death had not this help come. And SO
plentifully did 1t come that L believe
there was. not hungry man. woman
or child In all the city when L was
there. By the beneficent contributions
OF her sister cities San Francisco was
not only fed, but well fed. So impress
ed was I with this fact that though /
had In my pocket some money given to
me to distribute to the sufferers. I
found no one hungry and no one ma
ked-
Now. what did do? said to my
self: San Francisco Is having hard
time now, but the hardest time will be
those days that are ahead. In n few
weeks this free distribution of food
and clothing will stop. Then the labor
ers will go to work. and there Will be
plenty OF work for every ableboSlsd
man who can work In the streets or at
other manual labor Then the hard
pinch Is TO come. 1t will come to the
widow and the old folks who cannot
work with their hands. 1t will come to
the boarding house keeper and to the
young girls and the invalids." Then I
took some of that money and gave It to
the San Francisco pastors and said:
You distribute this money to the suf-
fering poor OF the household of faith.
Do not distribute IL now, but within
few weeks. Then It will be sorely
needed. Within FIVE weeks there will
be hundred sufferers In San Fran
cisco where there are only ten now"
Thus beg and implore the big hearted
people OF these United States not to
halt In their contributions for the San
Francisco sufferers. Do not feel be-
cause you have tIded them over the
first few days that this Is all the help
that will be needed.
AS was riding home In the train q
gentleman said to me: There have
been more fortunes lost In this fire
than have ever existed. I know OF a
dozen men who claim they had lost
thousands, yet who know never had
dollar In the bank" Thus when a fire
starts like this there are scores Of men
who come around begging for bread,
claiming that they are refugees from
San Francisco and have been thrown
out of work and lost their all. The
simple fact ig they Were tramps before
the fire. they always have been tramps
ana always Will be tramps. But be-
Cause we are now and again imposed
upon by bad, men let us not refuse to
help the thousands and the hundreds
OF thousands who are needy and who
always have done right and who will
try to do right In the future IL we only
put them on their feet at the present
time.
But the earthquake has disclosed a
bright side IN still another sense. Sad
was 1t to hear the awful news of the
suffering. But no sooner did the news
come than all over the land our
churches and our people went to work.
Our children gave. Fathers and moth
ers and sisters and brothers all gave.
The churches We're turned into receiy-
Ing stations. And some men and wo-
men who never knew what IL was to
help another turned In and went to
work. Then, strange to say, not only
Old our work bring happiness to 9TH
ers, but our sacrifices have brought
happiness 10 ourselves. AZ we worked
and laborcd for others we found the
Christ Joy, the heavenly Joy. coming
to ourselves. In giving our lives for
others we felt the rewards In our own
hearts a hundredfosd Nav wa con-