The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1921-11-10
Frederick Haskin's etter
Especial o ArxusI
Organized Begging Abolished.
Special Csrrespondence

Rochester, N Y, Nov. S.-One
progressive sign about this city is
that it has done away with tag
: days for starving foreigners, home
less babies, and the thousand and
one other worthy causes that need
assistance
A man in another city where tag
days are a perennial feature told of
an interesting experience He said
that he had patronized three chart
ties in one week, and on Saturday
! when he saw girls wearing pink
crepe paper caps and carryin z
trays, he ducked over to the other
side of the street, thinking thereby
to save a quarter.
All day long down town he kept
out of range of the pretty girls on
the corners. But going home, he
ran directly into one. She smiled
sweetly and thrust something into
his hand. He looked down to dis
cover that he had been given a sam
pie of soap.
Rochester manages to help it's
sick and blind babies and 40 other
important philanthropies, and it
does it in a systematic way Phil
anthropy has become an efficient
part of the city's machinery, and
what is more unusual, the people
are coming to know something
about the relief and social welfare
work of their city.
The Rochester system is a COM
munity chest You doubtless re
member the war chests which about
100 cities had. All the war relief
work of these cities was financed
by having one big campaign a year
and keeping the money in a chest"
to be used when the appeals came.
After the war relief demands
Stacked, the war chests were mostly
closed. But some 20 cities have
continued the system, using it for
all their local welfare work. Ac-
cording to Rochester, it is a great
idea
Rochester has its big campaign
in the spring, with Suppose No.
body Cared?" for the SLOAN. For
one week, the whole city concen-
trates on raising over a million dol
lars in pledges and cash.
FOr-ehose who want to know what
an individual should give toward
his city's philanthropies, the COM
munity chest board made out an
estimate, merely as a suggestion.
According to this, a wage Garner
might reasonably give one hours
earnings a week for seven weeks.
Plan Works Better.
Some people have been in doubt
as to whether as much money can
be raised this way as with the old
individual campaigns, where people |
give according to the emotions of |
the moment, the amount of change
they happen to have, in order to get /
a way. Rochester says it is raising !
more. II also has found that in !
stead of the wealthy philanthropists !
Of the city dropping the burden on |
70 the shoulders of the wage earn |
ers, as some people prophesied. the |
2ity's best known givers have kept |
Ip to their standard Some have |
increased their gifts.
The advantages of the commun-
~ chest are sung with enthusiasm
by the relief workers of the city.
First, they say, each welfare Organi-
,atiOn that has a right to the peo-
PIES help gets a fair deal By the
bid regime, a tag day that came
shortly after another one, never did
IS well, regardless of the amount of
money needed, or the importance of
he cause.
Now the relief organizations
lnow how much money they have
o depend on for the year, and can
'lan their work together. A finan-
,ial statement is required of each
agency before the spring cam
'aign, and the goal for the cam
'aign is set from these require
nents.
Then the business man benefits
" the single campaign system For
nerly. he was bothered at all times
" representatives of charities who
wanted his support If he is ap-
now, and he rarely is. he
efers the organization direct to the
community chest Office 1t investi-
ates all such agencies that want
'ublic funds. and those that are
worthy go on the community chest