Evening star., 1935-10-13
ALLEN CUTS TAPE
TO FEED FAMILIES
DECLARED HUNGRY
Chooses to Chance Losing
Food Rather Than Per-
nit Suffering.
DELEGATION OF w. P. A.
WORKERS TELLS STORY
Transfer From Old Relief Set-Up
Has Caused Want to Many,
They Say.


are facing hunger as the result Of
their transfer from the old relief sy5-
TEN to the new works plan caused
Commissioner George E. Allen to order
last night supplemental aid for any
families found apparently helpless.
Stories of "at least 100" families
without food, and some with eviction
notices because they did not have rent
money, were carried to the District
Building yesterday by delegation of
seven colored men on the w. P. A.
rolls.
The principal complaint was that
relief had been shut of too quickly
when the men were transferred to the
so-called security wages on w. P. =.
Jobs and that w. p A. wages were
paid but twice month, leaving gap
Of need untitled.
At the time Allen was at Berwyn
Heights inspecting the starting OF the
S5,5OO,OO0 low-coSt housing PROJECT
Elwood Street, welfare director. and
Miss Alice Hill, relief director. both
had gone out of town.
Hopkins Also Gone.
The delegation then went to the
headquarters of Harry L. Hopkins.
w. P. A. head. Hopkins was cruising
near the Panama Canal with President
Roosevelt. Nels Anderson, Hopkins
assistant, sent the group back to the
District Building to see Paul L. Kirby,
~
the men there was nothing his cff1ce
could do.
Later, the complaints were listed by
William o. Cleary. assistant deputy
works administrator of the District.
and Ross Haworth, Aliens. admins
trative assistant.
When Allen returned to the city, he
ordered red tape cut He dispatched
two case workers to visit the homes
of those listed last night, with direc-
tions to give food orders to all need
ing them, and to make investigations
later.
"If any mistakes are made in these
cases." said Allen, 'it should be on the
side Of giving. away some extra food
rather than to permit families to go
hungry. We can pass judgment on
specific complaints when we get the
facts sorted out"
Points Need of Additional Aid.
The Commissioner repeated his for
mer declaration that some forms Of
aid must be given in many instances
to supplement the security wages on
the w. p. A. plan The security
wages range from $45 month for
the unskilled to S79 a month for pro-
fessional workers.
Under the old Federal Emergency
Relief Administration rules, relief
cases had their needs budgeted and
were given work payments or cash
or food and clothing and fuel in
amounts calculated to meet budget re-
quirements. The budget system was
to be dropped a week after persons
on the relief list were transferred to
w. p A. jobs.
To date, some $500 persons have
been shifted from the old to the new
unemployment relief system.
Two forms of supplementary aid |
already have been arranged. One is
the granting of from Sc to $50 a
month to students under the new
National Youth Administration. Ger
tiflcation of needy young men and |
women started last week.
w. p. A. Rules Relaxed.
Alien revealed yesterday that Fed
eral officials had relaxed the w. P. A.
rules to the extent of permitting part
time work on w. P. A. by more than |
onoe member of family. In addition
to the head of the family, others be-
tween ages of Is and Is may work
one-third of each week.
Ofhcials figured this would give
considerable additional aid to the
larger families which might suffer
hardships under the security wage for
the head of the family.
The delegation yesterday was head
ed by George A. Plumber, who said
the group represented the wv. P. A
Union" George Matthews, one mem
Der, said he represented the Unem-
ployed Council. The group told |
Cleary hundreds" of relief clients re-
Gently shifted from relief to w. P.
A. were all in the same circumstances.
Slow Pay Charged.
Some of the men said they had |
worked for three weeks on w. P. A.
and had received but SLIPS, which
would be quarter of their prescribed
945 Q month. They complained that |
many working on w. P. A. jobs went |
daily without adequate lunches be-
cause of lack Of money.
/ Exis Eddy, one of the delegation,
said he had to support himself and
his wife and eight children on $45 a
month under the new system and now
was helpless because relief had been
shut on while he was waiting for his
new twice-a-month wages.
T Independent Of this delegation. Will
dam Thompson, colored. complained
he had not been paid since Septem-
her 4 and had no funds to support
his Is children, whose ages ranged
from months to l6 years.