Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-02-23

the University of the City of New York.
The federal government spent 81 100000 on
a new custom house and Mr.. Carnegie
gave S5.OOO.OOO for a new library which
is now approaching completion.
1t would take more space than / am
allowed to tell of the improvements in
business and residential architecture that
have been made during the last ten years.
1t represents many hundreds of millions
of dollars and the dimensions have in
creased with the designs. Ten years ago
fifteen stories was the limit of the height
of buildings; today 1t is TO -ty-six stories.
The increase in the number of people
crossing the Brooklyn bridge is good
standard of measurement for estimating
the activity of the population. Ten yea S
ago the average was $4,000 persons daily.
Until the subway to Brooklyn was opened
the latter part of January the daily
the relief furnished by the underground
system the congestion is still complained
of. and nearly million and half peo-
pie pass to and fro over that thorough
fare every day.
Education and Benevolence.
The increase of expenditures ror educa-
ton in the city of New York during the
last ten years has been 2O2 per cent. The
appropriation in 1898 was $6.S62.145 for
the maintenance Of the public schools: in
1908 the sum of 21.O3s,o75 was approp-i-
ated for the same purpose. New York
spends more money for education than
any other city in the world; half as much
more as London. twice as much as Paris.
three times as much as Berlin. and more
than any national Cove ~nment in Europe.
The number of children in the public
schools of New York increased 60 par
cent during the ten years since !S?S.
when the greater city was organic ID.
In 1898 the average attendance was $685.
oil during month of January.
1oOS. 1t was 62O,3S0, showing gain of
o:32 AZ
The cost of maintaining the cha titles of
the city has been advanced in similar
alto. In 1898 the appropriations for the
five boroughs combined was S1,3646)S.
For the current year the sum of S3.214-
146 has been appropriated for the public
hospitals. asylums and other institutions
furnishing indoor and outdoor relief for
tn destitute and distressed
And the amount Of private relief fur
nished by the various benevolent societies
and religious organizations has increased
in an even more rapid manner 1t would
take too long to make the calculations
necessary to show the comparison. for
there are more than 800 associations of
various sorts engaged In rescuing the
fallen. sheltering the homeless, healing
the sick, feeding the hungry. clothing the
naked. caring for the aged and relieving
the distress of humanity. They represent
every race and religion and every form
of betterment that can be imagined-from
the salvation of the soul to the protection
of the nimble fingers that are exposed to
injury in the factories and machine shops.
There is book published every year that
contains the names Of these institutions
and organizations. the names OF their
officers and their receipts and expendi-
lures.
No such monument to human benevo-
lence can be found in any other land. If
the socialists would study its pages in
stead of forming their opinions about the
greed and cruelty of wealth and the hab-
its of the rich from the sensational arti-
cles that appear in the Sunday supple
ments they would do greater justice to
the generous population of that great
community