The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1909-07-12
.SAMARITANS FACE
ACONTINUOUS TASK
Woman Given Nights Lodging
When in Distress Refuses to
Leave Next Morning
Helpless Invalid Rejected by
Couple That Undertook to
Provide Accommodations

To be threatened with the condition
OF enforced and perpetual Samaritan
ism seemed yesterday to be the con-
d1tion of j. f. Sinclair and his wife
of 15S Baker street, who on Saturday
night voluntarily gave comfort to the
afflicted and found themselves booked
for more or less continual perform
ance of mercy.
The Sinclairs live in an apartment
house overlooking the park panhandle.
They occupy apartment 5, while in
apartment 4, on the floor below dwell
Mr.. and Mrs. johnson. Recently Mrs.
Johnson, reading the ads in a news
paper, discovered that Mrs. Wendell
l. Weber. a patient at a hospital in
the Richmond district desired to
change her abode to a private family
and would pay fairly well for board
and lodging.
WOMAN LEFT IN HALL
The proposition looked attractive to
the Johnsons and they agreed to take
Mrs. Weber. But there must have
been some misunderstanding about
the case, for when Mrs. Weber was
driven over to the Johnson apartment
about o'clock Saturday night the
Johnsons were not there to receive
her. The hackman did not know what
to do about it. The woman had sew
cred her relations with the hospital,
and anyway she would not go back to
the institution. She would stay right
on the job at los Baker street and
would not take a single retrograde
step.
Then the Sinclairs entered into the
complications. Mrs. Sinclair, with the
true instincts of Samaritan, saw the
pitiful invalid waiting helplessly in
the lower hall, so she made her first
move to aid her. She took chair
down into the lower hall in order that
the woman might be comfortably
seated while waiting the return of
the belated Johnsons.
EXPERT CARE NEEDED
At midnight the Johnsons had not
arrived, and the poor woman was
still seated in the hall. The Sinclairs
took further pity on her. They in
vited her into their apartment. With
great difficulty, she was taken up
stairs and put to bed overnight
After midnight the Johnsons ar
rived. When they saw the helpless
condition of the invalid they recon
morning refused to take her, saying
that they understood the patient was
not bedridden. Then they left for a
day in the country. while Mrs. Web
Der remained on the hands of the Sim
cIairs
The Sinclairs saw that the condition
of the woman was such that she re-
quired expert attention, so they sent
for an ambulance from the park
emergency hospital.
PUBLIC HOSPITAL SPURNED
When the ambulance arrived Mrs.
Weber said, go back" She refused
obstinately to go to the public hos
pital She said that she had money,
that her husband. Wendell t. Weber,
had good position as window
dresser with the Hub clothing COM
pany of 154 North Spring street, Los
Angeles, and that he would contribute
to her support, so she did not have to
go to a public institution.
The perplexed hospital steward in
formed the Sinclairs that he could not
compel the woman to go. You took
her in and nothing can be done until
tomorrow, when the board of health
mi ght act in the case said the
steward.
Then Sinclair went to the Bush
street police station. He explained the
predicament to the sergeant, but was
offered no relief. 1t looked as If the
Sinclairs would have to go through
life with a bedridden invalid on their
hands The woman liked the quarters
and was willing to pay for her keep,
but would not bulge.
But late yesterday afternoon the
situation was relieved. DR.. Long of
Buena Vista avenue agreed to take
the patient to his sanatorium. and the
period of the Sinclair Samaritanism
came to an end.