The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1924-03-31

ltifc and. thoro investigation of
housing conditions ever made
| in Chicago.
1; was declared by these inves-
tigators that "the parpcse Of the
investigation is to lay foundation
| Cor reform" The Investigation is
iralol tant because Of it's scope, its
scientific procedure, and because all
housing experts say that nothing
has been done since that time to
better the evils exposed, in fact, that
conditions have been allowed to be-
come more acute.
Corrupt Politicians Blamed.
The blame for the evil housing
| conditions found is laid to "official
neglect, corrupt politics, lack of or
| ganization to force action, and above
all, to success Of the slum landlord
in combating his individual property
interests against the health and san
itary necessities of the working
people of Chicago"
Some Of the conditions reported
are: Union street, condition of rear
tenement is awful; Maxwell street,
bad lighting, very dirty; Thirteenth
street, a typical bad tenement, cheap
narrow, dark, dirty stairs; Ashland
avenue, rubbish thrown under the
sidewalk; Holt street, only two
yards in block dirty and insanitary;
Noble street, yard very dirty, rub
Dish all about; Ewing street, lots
strewn with rubbish and garbage"
"Inside the apartments the rule
was found to be darkness, lack of
air, uncleanliness, and poisonous
gases. Musty, fetid rooms, which
cannot he ventilated because Of
brick walls overshadowing the win
dows, were found, with inevitably
accumulated dirt, mold and vermin.
Emanations from the body, foul air
in dwelling and sleeping rooms COM
plicates all difficulties of bad build
ing and construction and doubles the
cost to the tenants of dark, unclean,
and badly ventilated rooms. The
limited amount of cubic air-space
for each individual caused by over
crowding has been known to suffo-
cate children.
Rotten Housing.
''The miserable construction and
ill-repair of many tenement houses
causes damp and unwholesome dwell
Mig places which are obviously unfit
for human beings to dwell in. Base
ments and cellars are inhabited, and
in some Of them all the most serious
inside sanitary conditions are found.
"The evil effects OF overcrowding
are numerous. Children are kept up
and out Of doors until midnight in
summer because rooms are unen-
durable; cleanliness of house and
street are made difficult; the air is
filled with foul odors of every kind;
a state of nervous tension, and lack
of home privacy are created.
"Chicago's tenement house popu-
lation is oppressively dense. Our
density Of population is most ap-
palling. BY comparison to the
height of our dwellings,, the real
density of Chicago's population
equals the worst in the world. In
the districts investigated there is
great crowding Of population in
a small area. The density of some
blocks is over four hundred per
acre. If this were extended over
the whole area Of Chicago, it would
mean that the entire population of
the United States could be housed
in Chicago. In one lot of less than
one-seventh of an acre, l25 people
are housed. Applying this figure
to the whole area of the city, it
would mean that more than the en-
tire population of the western hemi-
sphere could be housed in Chicago.
Evils of Rotten Conditions.
"Some of the evils resulting from
this overcrowding are: immortality,
perverted sexuality, drunkenness,
pauperism, debauchery, high death
rates, a pitiful increase in infant
mortality, terrible suffering among
little children, scrofula and congen-
ital diseases, encouragement of in
fectious diseases, inability to work,
reduction of physical stamina, con-
sumption"
Chicago may take into account
that the neglect which permitted
these conditions to arise is at the
expense of the health and welfare
Of thousands Of working people who
are now living in these tenements.
The working classes OF Chicago are
the worst sufferers. The neglect
permitted is at the risk Of even
greater danger in the future
When it is taken into account that
the conditions described above were
in existence twenty -four years ago,
and that nothing has been done in
all that time to stern the steadily