Bryan daily eagle and pilot. [volume] (Bryan, Tex.) 1909-1918, 1914-12-05
THE MOST HELPFUL WAY.

given those who are in need OF aid, |
Is TO help them to help themselves.
Give them employment, or help item
10 secure employment that will e.
able them to make their own 'iyiag. !
or course there are cases that must /
depend entirely upon charity, and in
many others temporary relief must
be provided until the benefeiaries be-
gin TO draw pay from the employment
provided. Bryan is working now
along these very lines. A fund Ia be.
ing raised to relieve all temporary
needs, and in the proposed road Inn
provement, for which large bond
election is pending, the commission
ers' court has already passed a reso-
luton that all labor employed in road
work must be given to Brazos County
people. Both these enterprises are
along the right line and are calculated
TO be OF Unreasonable benefit to the
needy OF Bryan and to the unemployed
of the whole county The Houston
Post discusses this same subject in
an editorial that is so timely and so
applicable to Bryan that It is herewith
reproduced as follows:
In Houston, as elsewhere, there is
a formidable movement to aid those
in distress, and every community re-
ports the same condition, viz, there
are more calls for help this winter
than has even been known. This is
true as regards strictly domestic APP
peals for help without considering the
vast operations under way to assist
the noncombatant victims Of the great
war in Europe.
"Of course, always at this season
OF the year there are appeals to chart
~ in every American city. Poverty,
sickness and misfortune are condi-
lions from which the most prosperous
communities never escape This year
however. we have added to the usual
calls for help a mighty appeal that
comes up from unemployed labor, and
this appeal must be met in the proper
spirit.
I'VE do not doubt that each case OF
temporary distress in Houston will be
relieved. but il seems TO us there is
a way to aid unemployed labor more
substantially than by giving aims.
"These men and women need work
and giving them food for a few days
offers no permanent relief. They pre-
fer to work and II citizens of Houston
would abandon their fright and &c
down to business there might be plen
~ of work for all. and what we say
with respect to Houston would appl!
with equal force to all other cities
where benevolent societies are tryinl
TO solve the winter distress problem
"Only the other day the bank state
ments showed that there Is plenty o
money in Houston. This means tina
there are thousands of men AM
women who might aid laboring mel
and women II they would by giyinl
them employment. If every house i
Houston that needs repairs at thi
time we're given proper attention
there would not only be work for cal
penters, but there would he increase
business for the supply men. II ever
house in Houston that needs paintin
were given attention our painter
would be steadily employed for a yea
and the paint dealers would thrive.
"These are but two instances. Jus
think how many rooms need new pi
per, how many sidewalks need to b
repaired or renewed, how many yard
need TO be beautified or cleaned. Sc
how many vehicles need to be repai
ed or painted, how many trees nee
to be trimmed, how much garment r
pairing that is desirable.
I'VE need a winter cleaning of th
city Just as we needed one in summe
There are endless tasks that migl
be done and the people have abundai
means to pay the cost. And here
the labor waiting for the opportunit
"The time to do all these things
when unemployed men and wome
are needing work, and they need Il
work now. The employing class /
tend to have all these necessal
things done, but why walt until the
Is a boom and scarcity of labor
Why let the city's energy go to was
now when its employment would ser