The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-08-04
HOW
By DIR. FRANK CRANE

Could you enjoy your dinner at one of our beautiful hotels if, instead of cleaning napery, soft-footed servants, subdued lights, and fairy music, you saw out of the window woman looking through the garbage can for refuse meat, or heard the whimper of a baby dying for want of milk: Of course not. And the reason you do enjoy your lobster Newburg and smoke your monogrammed cigarette in contentment is not that the above mentioned woman and child do not exist but merely that you cannot see nor hear them.
 You are not hard-hearted. You are kind. Tears spring to your eyes at the recital of suffering. This is an age of pity, and no class has more heart than the sports and the furred and jeweled ladies who live in extrava- gance.
 The trouble is-distance You don't know where the poor are. If you started to find them you would be devoured by crafty rascals who are experts in abusing sympathy.
 All you can do is to give a check to some charitable institution occasionally. This has it's bad side. It prevents you from getting the real benefit of a generous action, which ben eft consists in personal contact and interest. The poor need you more than your money. And you need them.
 And here, it seems to me, is the oppor-
 
 classes The rich read it in the luxurious club, and the poor read it by the kitchen stove.
 The newspaper brings buyer and seller to- gether; why should it not bring the fortu- nate and the unfortunates, the strong and the weak the well-to-do and the hungry together?
 Well, suppose the newspaper announced :: We have the addresses of a hundred chill dren who need clothes, hundred babies who can get no wholesome nourishment, a hum dred girls who are facing starvation, hun dred mothers to weak to work and hun dred men who are, in actual distress and are worthy to be helped. Anybody with kind heart who wants to help little may send us his or her name and we will put him or her into communication with one who will appreciate aid. All these cases are youched for by responsible charitable organizations; I; we receive no applications at this office"
 All this is suggested by true story heard the other day. Several men were lunching at a Broadway hotel. One of them was a man acquainted with submerged humanity. Dur ing the meal he said:
 Isn't it odd that we can enjoy our porter house steak here, while there are babies in this city that are starving to death because they can get no milk?
 Then one of the company. just a man who is known as "a good sport" spoke up and said: You give me the name of one baby like that and I'll send it quart of milk every day for year"
 And every other man at tbe table said :: Me, too"
 We do care We are not cruel. But we are very busy Besides, we are confused by the complexities of our social system. We are ignorant. And we are not little lazy and selfish.
 But if some one could show us exactly and clearly how to reach out our hand and help there are precious few of us who would not do it.
 If you knew positively there was one hu- man being, at such and such street and number, you could relieve from pain of body or anguish of mind, wouldn't you be glad to do it?
 And why is not the newspaper the natural means by which the warm hand of the good fellow" can be put into the hand of the human being who has stumbled?
 All this without clap-trap and advertising of names.
 P. S.-There is that which is better than helping your fellow creatures because you are a Christian, or a Jew, or Mason, or any such thing; it is to help them because you are human.
 For it is better to be human than to be- long to the holiest and most exclusive brother hood.