Perth Amboy evening news., 1911-05-10

social evil, and race over-production,
or big families OF poor parents. Here
again are harder problems than the
problem Of poverty. My contention
Is that we should not permit a mans
lack of self-controi to drive him so
far as poverty. Rather let 1t take
him to jail, but let us shut the door
of poverty In his face. IL he has
more children than he can keep out
of poverty, take some Of his chill
dren away from him. Certain insti-
buttons r doing a good work along
this line all the time. A home OF
poverty is he'll, and no child ought
to be compelled Or allowed to live In
such a libel on home. Thousands of
children never know the sweet
home of our sentiment until they
are taken away from their parents.
"If a man would drink himself
and family into poverty there are
many restraints that, l think, ought
to be enforced upon him; but / am
sure he ought not to be allowed to
reach poverty. Already there are
laws against begging. Vagrancy Is
a crime. The other day a healthy
looking man of forty was sent to jail
for a year for vagrancy. He looked
like a different mar In a few weeks.
Work and help should be provided
whenever they will be accepted. And
there are agencies already that are
prepared to do this. But we should
not let a man live along in poverty.
The park bench beds and bread
lines are sources of evil because by
them a man can continue to live in
poverty; and he ought to be forced
out, either into the door of help and
a full meal and a decent bed and
clothes. or forced to the wall. He
ought to know that society will not
allow him to live below a certain
standard. For below that he Is, In
many ways, a menace.
Friends, relatives, lodges, church
es, unions, should do more preven-
tive work to catch a man before he
goes 'character-rupt.' And there is
q point before poverty where the gov
eminent should come in to stop a
man. The bank inspectors close the
doors of a bank before it has exhaust
ed all It's assets, consequently it pays
ninety or a hundred cents on q dol
lar. But often we let a man use up
all MS dSSSIS DtlOl0 We ue-
clare him insolvent.
"2. Another cause of poverty Is
the economic condition that keeps
many who are below the average Of
strength and ability so nea to pow
erty that a local change or general
panic thrusts them in a few days In
to poverty. A well-informed man
told me the other day that half the
population of a thriving manufactur-
ing city of 10000 inhabitants were
within two weeks of poverty. See
what a panic or shutdown would do
in that city. Here. we are confront
ed with a great labor problem which
is very difficult. But so far as 1t Is
related directly to the poverty ex-
IRENE the problem is being solved
very fast. The brightest hopes of
success are to be found right here.
Economic conditions as a of
inequality would be hard to remedy,
but economic conditions as a cause
of poverty is an easier thing. Quot
ing Alfred Marshall again, The hope
that poverty and ignorance may grad
ually be eXtinguished derives much
support from the steady progress Of
the working classes during the nine
century. The steam engine
has relieved much of the exhausting
and degrading toll, wages have risen
education has improved and there
has been a more general demand for
intelligent workmen, till now the ar
tisan classes outnumber those whose
work is entirely unskilled. A great
part of the artisans have ceased to
to the lower classes In the
sense in which the term was original
ly used that Is, in the sense of pow
arty. backing snfioient food ~alotbins.
or time. The tendency tow
ard cooperation instead of the Sc
we're forms of competition makes the
livelihood more secure and lessons
the likelihood or chance Of poverty.