Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-06-21

w fact that 1t has 1nha blted alleys.
=" Some one said alley to Mrs. Wood
row Wilson. Mrs. Wilson manifested inter-
est, society took its cue from her, and
now the alley problem has displaced
even Damaged Goods as the keynote
of polite conversation. Conscientious.
philanthropic people have been at work
for years studying the alley problem,
gathering statistics, lobbying for RENEE
dial legislation. But at last society has
discovered the alley and society is a
force.
What one does not know doesn't worry
one; and one knows only what one sees.
SO long as we thought of the alley only
as a convenient medium for the de-
livery Of packages, groceries and coal it
did not weigh on our condolences. SO
long as our clothes came back from
intact the residence Of our washerwoam-
an failed to interest US.
We We're annoyed sometimes to have
our darling child elude our watchful
care and turn up playing with little
black Sallie in our alley: We forgot
have been known to fly over the fence
We forgot our foe, the fly We did not
just picture the connection between the
the health officers placard on this tene-
ment home and the little grave in our
own family lot.
There is one alley northwest with a
school at the other, where the daily
scheduled fights In the alley between
the schools were brought to an end only
by the colored boys being enlisted in a
civic club by their principal and put on
their honor by form of self govern
ment.
On the top story of one alley tenement
lives woman who is cook in a good
home in the fashionable part of the city
She tries to be good woman. She will
not allow her four children to play in
the alley while she Is away all day, SO
she locks them in. There is a back porch
weight Of three grown people. Here the
oldest boy airs and suns his little
charges. He feeds himself and them. Do
you wonder il he sometimes feeds them
with food pilfered from the house where
his mother works. Is this your cook?
Leading off from Madison alley near
the Capitol is a narrow passage three
feet wide. totally dark. On this passage
are two six-room tenaments, housing six
families each. each paying a dollar a
week per room. The stairway is as black
smelling. saturated with tuberculosis and
is absolutely alive with death. In ono
room q young mulatto sleeps on a bed
with her two children and q two-mont1l-
old baby. The husband sleeps on pal
let. Across the hall Ave people live: one
Of them does fine laundry work at
home" and returns fine cluny lace
crimped and uniform but death dealing to
the wearer. Is this your lsundress?
A charity worker HAS often visited q
certain court in the city. Last week
all was so changed she thought she must
have lost her way. A row OF houses
which had been in dreadful dilapidation
for years were all painted, patched,
cleaned up and repaired. The owner ev-
identity had read Of the alley tours Of
Mrs Wilson. In the last house lives an
old nanny about sixty-hve years OF age
and her paralytic. bed-ridden husband.
whom she has supported for years.
They have a married son who used t.
support himself but who lad an attack
of neurit!s. and about two months ago
came with his wife and two children to
live with the old woman. So grandma is
trying to support the whole family taking
in washing. This would be bad enough II
she had two good arms. but thereby
hangs q tale.
Auntie. with all this new paint!" asked
the charity worker.
Yer, miss. de landlord sure put us in
good shape He done fixed my stairs
up to de roof O. de shed. where, dries
my clos so they's safe 'nuf now. do
wisht he'd fixed dem when I Kept
askin' him to two years an more ago.
II wouldn't q ben In do hospital year
ago las winter with nobody to pay dc
rent, an I wouldn't have this bad right |
arm now that I KANT hardly use no
how washin'.'