The New York herald., 1922-09-18
BECCARS HERE GET
S36,O0O,OO0 YEAR
More Than 5000 Imposing
on New York Public, Says
Charity Society.
NOW DODGING CRUSADE
Starting for South in High
Powered Cars to Return
for Christmas Rush.
GIN LOVING LADIES FLEE
Escape Terms i'm WOrkhousc
With 'NVeepers' and
!ThrowerS.'
NOW DODGING CRUSADE
GIN LOVING LADIES FLEE

Five thousand professional beggars
in New York city-3.00o in Manhattan.
the C'omstock Lode of Beggardom,
alone. The daily take of these takers
averages 100000, which is s7o0.0oo a
week, $4,000 900 a month. $3s,o0o,o00
year.
These are the facts as averaged from
information obtained from the Charity
Organization Society, the Brooklyn
Bureau of Charities. the Salvation
Army, various business mems associa-
tions and the police. The figures given
are extremely conservative, since the
probability is that there are more than
5000 professionals imposing daily upon
the benevolence Of the most charitable
city In the world, and that the daily
receipts of these frauds average bet
ter than $50.
1t is this pest OF begging against
which a crusade Is now being made by
the magistrates and the police. backed
by the big charitable organizations and
welfare societies and by the business
mems associations. There hasn't been
a beggars' cleanup like IT since the days
of that strange expert In mendicancy.
James Forbes. once hanged in effigy
by the celebrating mendicants in the
back room of Diamond Dan O'Rourke's
place In Park row. Prodded by busi-
ness and organized charity the police
arc arresting prosperous beggars right
and left, while the magistrates, earnestly
cooperating. are sending the takers TO
the workhouse in patches or paroling
them under strict conditions il they are
really badly crippled and really helpless.
Motor From CITY.
The crusade against the beggars has
produced exactly the same panic among
the assailed as Is caused among the
crooks when truly big cleanup is or
dered by the powers that be. Profess
sional mendicants are leaving the city
in their high power automobiles or In
comfortable Pullmans-not the side door
variety by long shot-most of them
for the sunny South.
They won't be back until this trouble
has blown over and things have settled
back. This. they say. should be along
about Christmas time, the richest pick
ing OF all for the floppers and the plingers
and the throwers
The Austrian Prince blew the town
last Thursday. Chi Slim quit the game
a week before. The old undertaken and
his fiddle haven't been seen on Sixth
avenue since early last week and have
gone probably 10 New Orleans or Los
Angeles. Gossip among the Black Hoods.
as the old. gin loving women on the
fringes OF beGgardom are called, all
points TO a hurry and scurry to get
away from the danger OF "bit in stir"
In the Workhouse. Anything but that.
Very few High Heels. as the often
good looking young girls In the game
are known tthe kind that approach you
weepingly with a letter from mother who
Is sick and near TO death and wants her
little daughter at her bedside. and
daughter hasn't a sou marquee. and SO
on and so on) are seen around
London Harry, one of the shrewdest
and most successful beggars in the busi-
ness-for II Is a straight business-told
reporter for THE NEW YORK HERALD
last night that the cleanup was on the
level and that 1t had been impossible
TO do business with the cops. II was
too much for him He was taking the
air--to Baltimore first and then ambling-
ly on South. Harry, who is the most
artistic fake sore maker Of the whole
crew. and who Is also an expert
''thrower.' practicing the knack OF
throwing arms or legs out of normal use
and making them appear hopelessly
crippled. takes In on the average $50 q
day. but II isn't worth II to stay here
now. The most reliable testimony there
lore. is that sure enough smoking
out f. going on. The professional beg
gars say go.
Up to the Police.
That Is also the opinion Of Lawson
Purdy head Of the Charity Organization
Society, and OF John =. Godfrey OF the
Brooklyn Bureau Of Charities.
"Beggary of the professional. intoler-
able sort can be abolished in this city II
the police do their duty and II the police
have the support OF the citizens" Mr..
Purdy said. 1T will do no good II the
police drive the beggars off the streets
only to find the people handing out
money to the same beggars when they
drift back TO the street People must
realize the absolute truth that the great
est unkindness you can do to man In
ninety-nine cases out Of hundred IL to
give him money. Begging had been
pretty well eliminated In New York when
the war came along. That and a follow
ing period OF hard times and unemploy-
ment caused revival Of begging to un-
precedented proportions. Everybody
was softhearted and sympathetic. Con-
ditlons have changed. War is long over
Unemployment Is passing. Men can get
work. There are plenty OF institutions
20 take care of the crippled and helpless.
The public mind wants to see these
street nuisanccs stopped. think the
police and the Magistrates are going TO
do good job OF IT.
Similar opinions were expressed by
Mr.. Godfrey, who corroborated other
Information that there were probably
1000 professionals and that their cash
taklngs were rich. Major Edward Tn
derwood of the Salvation Army, who
has studied the mendlcancy game thor
oughly, and has even posed as a bcggar
70 see what the profits were like, said
that twenty-five out Of every twenty
six beggars are rank frauds. not one
of them picking up less than SIS or
$50 for q few hours whining and lying.
Magistrate Peter Hating wants the
people to take warning against mis-
placed sympathy for beggars. Tho Fifth
Avenue and Thirty-ffth Street associa-
tlons along with the Broadway. are in
tho fight Altogether, Il looks as II
tho merry mendicants are UP against it.