Evening star., 1928-12-06

script to red-headed cockatoos Every
ORGANIZATIONS palm itched and heart
bled for wealthy men and women with
reputation for willingness to dig into
the pocketbook on its board of direc-
tors. In fact, it could hardly survive
without them.
Stand on Their Merits.
Now this is all a thing of the past.
The organizations stand upon their
merits. Under the Community Chest
plan, they play fair with the public, and
the public supports them much better
than they ever were supported IN the
past.
theoretically there are two organiza-
tionS in st. Louis, as in most other
cities where this plan is in effect. One
is the Community Fund organization
proper, governed by an executive COM
mittee and with committees to arrange
for the annual campaigns and for bud
getting
The other is the Community Council,
composed of delegates from all the
member organizations, whose duty 1t
is to conduct researches, determine
needs and attend to the practical So
Geological work. This council elects
two-thirds of the members of the
Community Fund executive committee.
These two-thirds elect the other third,
to represent the public at large.
f, The Community Council covers con-
siderably more territory than the
Community Fund. It includes the ma
jority of the Catholic and Jewish or
ganizations who cooperate in the re-
searches and in the division of re-
sponSibility, but, by their own decision,
do not participate in the fund at pres
ent. They do, however, have vote
in the election of the fund executive
committee. Both organizations have
the same director.
The Community Council is the CO.
ordinating agency. 1t works for all the
others in such matters as the invest1-
CATION of child welfare activities and
needs, hospital needs, etc. 1t main
tains a Social Service Exchange, which
gives three-minute service. When any
new person or family applies to any
of the agencies for aid the agency asks
the Social Service Exchange for the
pas Alistory of the case. It is all care
fulls~ card-indexed and countless hours
of unnecessary work in investigation
and duplication are saved.
Sociology Applied.
The council stresses the application
of sound sociology to the cityS human
problems. Thus it upholds the inclusion
of such agencies as the Y. M. G. A. and
the Boy Scouts in the Community
Fund. They are good investment and
their training in good citizenship saves
the expenditure of many dollars IN
charity later on. Above all the council
works for the exercise of sound Judg-
ment in charity SO that conditions will
be cured rather than aggravated. Thus
father of which refuses to work is a
worthless palliative. 1t simply encour-
ages the man in his lazinesS. The
problem Is to put him in position
where he can buy coal-or to make
other arrangements by which the FAM
lily will be placed on Self-supporting
basis. This has been the reason for
a great deal of educational work. Or
ganiZations are frequently criticized by
givers because they don't Immediately
relieve distress by what appears on the
surface as the simplest method--pro-
viding money or supplies. Actually
this often Is the worst thing that can
be done, and the council has done yeo-
man service in educating the public
to this effect.
Just now it is in the midst of a
campaign to rid the streets of st. Louis
of beggars. With the start of Winter
the buns are drifting in, box car after
box car of them-to the pavementS and
the steam heat.
Hey, mister, how about dime for
a cup of coffee?" is frequent Saluta-
ton on busy corners when the police
man isn't looking. Now, if any man
really needs cup of coffee in st. Louis
he doesn't have to beg for 1t. There is
Society for the Relief of Homeless
Men, which will deal with his case in
an intelligent fashion-see that he gets
some kind of a job or reutrnS to his
home, if he has one. The council is
endeavoring to educate the public to
refer the buns of this society and to
give them nothing. Every dime passed
out in such charity not only is wasted
because it very likely is spent for booze
-but>it encourages begging.
Don't give penny to beggars, no
matter how pitiful story they put up
the council Is preaching to the general
public. Police report that the campaign
is already showing good results. 1t is
considered the only way to rid the city
Of the perpetually hungry hobo:
Neither the council nor the fund es-
cape entirely without criticism. There
is one self-appointed head of religious
begging society-organized by himself
and of which he is the only known
bona-fide member-who published Bit
ter diatribes against the fund. It's di-
rector, he insists, gets an enormous sal
ary, while he, hiInself-holy man that
he is-expends every cent he takes in
for the relief of the lowly. He crates
yociferouSly on the street corners.
"Ill guarantee" the publicity repre-
sentative of the Community Council
who has made a study of such condi-
tions told The Star representative, Ito
90 to some other city-any city where