The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1922-03-31
INTER TESTING STORY OF
THE MILLIONAIRE HOBO

James f. worked his passage by
other was on board The lawyer
found It out. however, and he is the
enc who told ME the story.
How IS we'll educated He passed
through the regular grades. and later
graduated from the College of Ply
siclans and Surgeons in St. Louis
with the degree Of NJ. D. Then he
studied sociology and economics for
year at Oxford, and finished off
with year in medicine at Harvard.
Whit all his apparent aimlessness.
| How seems to have a very well-de-
fined purpose. The net result of his
Wanderings is the formation of the
International Brotherhood Welfare
Association, incorporated. not for
profit, under the laws of Ohio. A
committee Of five comrades" appoint
ed by this association disburses the
income from How's estate.
As fast as the income accumulates
| in st. Louis it is transferred to a
Cincinnati bank, where it is held sub
iect to checks signed by at least three
members Of the holding committee"
The money is used mostly for the
erection and maintenance of halls or
stations for the benefit of hobos,
tramps and buns in Cincinnati. St.
Louis. New York City, Baltimore
Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco
Chicago, Kansas City, Oklahoma
City, Memphis, Louisville, Boston,
London. Dublin, Stockholm and To-
kyo. How furnishes all the money
to keep these institutions going.
The building in Cincinnati is a fair
+ sample of the entire system. 1t is q
three-story brick structure at 410
Clinton street. The top floor is given
up mainly to a hall seating 800. On
the first and second floors are class
rooms and the office. while in the
! Easement there are facilities for
bathing. Hobos and tramps come
and go as they please. without leav-
ing names or addresses. Anybody
can use the hall for {, meeting with
out permit or price. How's idea is
to provide some measure of education
for the disemployed," as he calls
! them. AT several of the hobo sta
+ tiOns, notably in the Eastern cities
regular lectures on economics are
given, which are followed by discus,
sions. At this writing Hobo Col
lege" is under consideration and such
an institution may eventually be
started in Memphis. How does not
believe very much in organized char
ity. His view is that if man is
inoculated with sound economic ideas
there will be little need for relief
work. He seems to be trying to an.
swer the question: "Why is a hobo
or tramp and what can we do tc
help him?"
When / asked How to estimate the
number of hobos in the United States
he said:
Nearly 100000"
THE number depends entirely or
the definition of the word hobo,
added one of his associates, Nicholas
Klein, of Cincinnati, How's attorney
"We make sharp distinction be.
tween hobos, tramps and buns. Oul
definitions are: A hobo is one who
travels in search of work, the migra.
tory worker who must go about tc
find employment. Workers of thai
sort pick our berries, fruits, hops
and help to harvest the crops on the
Western farms. They follow the sea.
sons around, giving their time T.
farms in spring, summer and au
tumn, and ending up in the ice fields
in winter. We could not get in our
crops without them. for the hobo is
the boy who does that work. The
name originated from the words hoe
boy plainly derived from work or
the farm. A tramp is one who trav.
els but does not work. and bum j;
a man who stays in one place anC
does not work. Between these grades
there is a great gulf of social dis
tinction. Don't get tramps and hoboS
mixed. They are quite different il
many respects, the chief difference
being that a hobo will work, and &
tramp will not. preferring to live OF
what he can pick up at back door:
as he makes his way through the
country"
AS designated by How himself, the
holding committee that expends hi.
money. comprises John X. Kelly, 0.