The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1920-06-05
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
information Bureau
FREDERIC j. HASKIN. Director.
Washington, d. G.
THE REVOLT OF THE CONSUMER.

belongs to the capitalistic class and
about 6 per cent to the union labor
class, but that these two classes be-
cause of their strong organization are,
even as upper and neither mill stones,
grinding between them the huge, in
articulate and unorganized 80 per cent
known as the middle class, and
squeezing every cent from its shabby
pockets in a most inconsiderate man
ner.
This depIorable situation, according
to Mr.. J. R. Patterson, president of
the Rogers Park Tenants Protective
society, is largely due to the passivity
of the prosecuted.
1.-The people of the middle class"
says Mr.. Patterson, have had less
spirit than those OF any other class.
AS long as life was fairly easy for
them they preferred to be self-cen
tered and detached. Even when
profiteering and labor unrest COM
bined to make life far from easy, they
were slow to realize that they. had
any power within their ranks to COM
bat these forces. For one thing their
very bulk and diversity of occupations
made it hard for them even to see
the practicability of organizing. 1t re-
manned for the rent profiteer to give
them one urgent grievance in COM
mon. And for this at least. we owe
the grasping landlord our thanks"
How 1t Started.
The Rogers Park Tenants Pro-
tective society did not know that it
was going to so powerful when it
started. Two months ago the owner
Of the Skobelin apartments in Rogers
Park informed the inmates thereof
that their rent was going to be raised
from so to 100 per cent. The tenants
knew that this was an unreasonable
10.
could not all find other homes in the
short time they were allowed. They
were exasperated to the point of ac-
ton at last, after years of patience.
And so this handful of tenants got to-
gether at first more to try to placate
their landlord than to defy him.
But the time had long been ripe for
a larger organization evidently, and
this first move was all that was need
ed to start it going. People in the
neighborhood got wind of the temerity
of these Skobelin tenants who were
daring to talk back to their landlord,
and came flocking to join their ranks.
A small red card suddenly appeared
in public places bearing a message of
hope to the desperate renter.
RENT RAISED? BOOSTED sky
HIGH?" it inquired in sympathetic
capitals, DON'T BE A JELLY FISH"
it admonished, Come to the meeting
tive society in the assembly room of
the Eugene Field school :"
The hall was crowded at the first
meeting and has been crowded every
Tuesday evening since. The society
has an active membership of two
thousand and many sympathizers and
is growing rapidly. 1t has local Of
flee with an arbitration board of
three, one representative for the So
ciety, one for the Cook County Real
Estate board, and one neutral mem
Der. All members of the society can
come here to receive free legal advice
from the society's attorneys and to
arbitrate with unreasonable landlords.
When the landlords refuse to be rea-
soned with, the society takes the case
into court for the tenant. 1t has al
ready won the first three of the many
cases which are now in court.
When the IimeIight Hurts.
"Our strongest weapon is publicity"
says Mr.. Patterson. YOU see, even a
landlord has friends. and altho he is
willing to profiteer comfortably in pri-
Vate he shrinks from the pitiless glare
of publicity. His wife. who usually
lives in the neighborhood, shrinks
from it even more than he. Needless
to say the wife of profiteer is not
very popular socially. We do not hes
itate to mention names in our cam
paign or to ostracize offenders. The
women of our organization are espec-
tally useful in this. They do battle
holy cause. They feel that they are
fighting for the preservation of the
home, for a wholesome community in
which to bring up their children, and
they are living up nobly to the we'll
known reputation of the female of the
species.
Besides the social element in our
publicity campaign we are using the
newspapers and the movies. The pa
pers are glad to help US by printing
instances of the unfairness of some
landlords. For instance there was the
case of the young couple whose lease
said that there should be only two oc-
cupants in their apartment. The stork
inopportunely brought a third occu-
pant before the lease had expired,
whereupon the heartless landlord inn
mediately broke the lease. evicted the
luckless parents and their presump-
tuous child SO that he could rent their
! home to new tenants at a greatly ad-
vanced rate. Another case which
gave much unfavorable publicity to a
landlord was one in which the parents
of a soldier just returned from France
were evicted because. forsooth, they
were allowing their son to live in their
apartment contrary to the said land
| lords wishes.
The Movies Help.
1.-The moving picture theaters are
also helping out our campaign. Ev
cry evening between films the Rogers
| Park tenants are reminded of bitter
reality by such terse remarks flashed
upon the screen as One man said he
was afraid the owner would find out
| If he joined the Tenants Protective
society-good thing our boys didn't
feel that way about the kaiser or
| When human rights clash with prop
erty rights human rights should pre-
vail (Roosevelt). Join the Rogers
Park Protective, ETC. Many a land
| lord in our neighborhood has lost his
| taste for the movies"
The Rogers Park Protective Society
is not down on all landlords. of course.
/ only the bad ones. In fact it has the
support of all reputable real estate
men, who are far-seeing enough To
realize that exorbitant rents will ruin
| the naiRhhnrhnnd in time hN driving