Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-03-02
IDLE MEN RAID
WEALTHY Church
Fifth Avenue Congregation Is
Forced to Pay Tribute to
Avoid Trouble.

NEW YORK, March 1.-The unem-
ployed who are seeking under the
leadership of the l. w. w. to turn the
! city's churches into lodging houses
terrain Church, Fifth avenue from
Eleventh to Twelfth streets during
the song service last night, held up
the services, and at the end of a long
parley, in which the leaders of the
group demanded food and shelter as
their right, finally agreed to accept
lodging, coffee and rolls for each
member of the party.
There were eighty-four men in the
group. They were taken over to the
Bowery lodging district by one of the
assistants to the pastor and beds
were obtained for all of them. Ten
cents was given to each man for
breakfast.
The Old First Presbyterian Church
is one of the most dignified Presby-
terrain churches in the city. Located
a few blocks north of Washington
Square, it numbers in It's congrega-
ton many men of standing and
wealth in the community.
The purpose of the unemployed in
picking out this church for their raid
was obvious. 1t was suggested on
Friday night, when they forced them
selves on the Old Baptist Tabernacle,
on Second avenue, that the proper
way to force an issue of the situa-
ton was to descend upon a wealthy
Fifth avenue church with lot of
millionaires.
March Into Church.
The congregation was singing a
hymn at about 1920 when the main
doors of the church were pushed open
and the group of men filed in. They
were quiet enough They marched
down the empty aisle and took the
empty pews. About three hundred
members of the congregation were In
the church at the time.
Rev. DIR. Howard Duffield, pastor,
made some general remarks at the
end of the hymn. During one of his
pauses Frank Tannenbaum, the /.
w. w. leader, stood up and asked If
he might say something. DR.. Duffield
said he would give Tannenbaum the
opportunity later, but ne asked him
not to disturb the services. Tannen-
baum sat down again.
Meantime one of the officers of the
church had telephoned to the Mercer
street station for the reserves. Later
seven policemen reached the church,
but when they arrived Sexton Lewis
asked them to remain in the vestibule
unless they were needed.
DIR. Duff1eld. when Tannenbaum sat
down, said that 1t was too bad he
hadn't known that these men had
planned to come, but that it was i'm
possible to care for so many of them
without notice.
Hungry and Homeless.
Then Tannenbaum got his chance.
He said that he and the men with
him were hungry and wet and Ill
clothed; that they were unable to get
work and had no shelter.
$50 We have come here" he said,
intending to spend the night"
He was followed by Freeman, his
lieutenant, who spoke in the same
vein.
DR.. Duff1eld reiterated that he could
not give them permission TO stay
there all night; the church was not
his, he said and they would have to
go elsewhere. Then one of the men
shouted, We'll take the responsibility
from you; We'll stay without your
permission
There was no disorder during the
discussion. except this one loud re-
mark Some of the members of the
church, including most of the women,
left during the discussion. but the
majority of the men stayed
Then DIR. Duffield, Rev. Harold c.
Jaquith, one of his assistants; Deacon
Harry Best. who is connected with
the University Settlement at Riving-
ton and Eldridge streets, and Tannen-
baum and Freeman assembled in a
group alongside the pulpit to talk the
matter over. The rest of the unem-
ployed sat quietly.
offered Money for Lodging.
Tannenbaum and Freeman said
they weren't asking for anything; they
said that they were demanding
shelter as right DR.. Duffield,
Deacon Best and Mr.. Jaquith in
sisted that the men could not use the
church. Finally Charles L. Thorne,
treasurer of the board of deacons,
whispered to DIR. Duffield that the
church would give each man twenty
five cents for his nights lodging.
DIR. Duff1eld made this offer to Tan
nenbaum and Freeman, who said it
was all right as far as 1t went, but
that they also wanted food, and that
1t was their right to have food.
Tannenbaum and Freeman kept
making demands until Mr.. Best
finally drew Tannenbaum aside and
suggested to him that it would SIM
plify matters greatly if he would re-
quest, and refrain from demanding
anything So the leaders of the mob
changed their tone; they asked for
money for breakfast, and, after a
conference of the officers of the
church, It was agreed that the church
should pay twenty cents for each
mans lodging and ten cents for food
in the morning. The men were taken
to lodging house, where beds were
provided.