The Washington herald., 1914-03-15
HERE RIPE FOR HOUSING LOAN LAW
Good Of People Living Them, and Welfare Of Community
at Large, Demand Abolition Of Capitals
Inhabited Alleys

ing Company. But to provide for auft the
people TO be turned out of the alleys
many hundreds OF thousands would have
to be raised yearly for ten years. Is
there any one SO sanguine as to believe
this possible?
Neither business initiative nor private
philanthropy has ever solved the housing
problem. II has been solved only through
the assumption OF community RESPONSE
biiity- The community Is responsible for
the social and economic system which
leaves a portion of the population unable
to>control its environment. The house a
man lives in Is fundamental Its material
character conditions the health and to
some degree the morals OF his family.
We have been accustomed TO acknowl-
edge a negative responsibility for housing
conditions in all our building and health
and tenement regulations We must now.
as all other progressive nations of the
world already have done, accept a posi-
tive responsibility.
We have long made our. own the linz
of thought which argues: A democracy
cannot be successful without a high
standard OF intelligence throughout the
whole body Of its citizens Intelligence
requires education. Not every one can
pay foe education. Hence our public
school system Isn't it equally logical to
say. a democracy cannot be successful
without a body Of citizens physically and
morally sound? Health and morals suf-
fer in an overcrowded or unsanitary en-
vironment Not every one can nay a
commercially profitable price for sani-
tary home. Hence IL is the duty of the
State BY elimination Of the element Of
profit to provide sanitary homes at cost
for this submerged section of the popula-
ton until the happy time comes when no
section OF the population is submerged.
Not Pauperixing scheme.
Note that say at cost It is not a
pacperizing scheme. 1t is not charity. but
a legitimate public service. Another
beauty of il Is that it lays no burden on
the taxpayer 1t taxes not / cent out OF
the public treasury. II is use of the
community credit for the communitys
welfare quart of a century's trial
on a large scale has shown how prac-
tical it is. What Great Britain and Ger
many, what Ontario and Argentina can
d" for their working people, who shall
say that we are unable to accomplish?
And il it did require a money outlay
(which II does nOD would il not be bet
ter, would II not show a truer sense Of
values. would il not be fundamentally
decenter il We went without parks and
monuments and even without libraries
and churches. until il -Ould be- truthfully
said that no family in our community is
forced to live in a home where its chill
dren cannot grow up to be good and use
ful citizens?
The alleys must 60 They have been
a byword and a reproach to Washington
for more than a generation But We
must not forget the second part of the
job. ! wish i had the elOauence to pic
ture to your eyes as Il is pictured to
my memory the form of an old cOlorad
woman standing in the doorway of her
alley home. She had been showing me
through her two poor rooms with their
falling plaster and rOttinS woodwork.
patiently answering the many questions
I put to her-questions that would have
been objectionable impertinence il had
not explained that j was studying hOus-
ing conditions and collecting data in the
hope that Congress would do something
to improve matters She wasn't very
hopeful about IL. but answered my ques-
tions with patient courtesy until sud-
den fear struck her as I was leaving. In
a voice trembling with earnestness. she
laid wrinkled old hand on my arm.
What Is IL you-aIl is figurin' to do?
For Cords sake don't let 'em turn Us
out Of our homes here les'n they gives
us somethin' better-and We cayn't pay no
more rent n'what ives PAWN now