The Washington times., 1938-01-01

for a place to FLOP, the oeSG
that WaShington's Salvation
Army hall can do is to let you
sleep on newspapers on the floor
of the recreation hall. If you are
lucky, you can bunk on the pool
table.
ACUTE SITUATION
Washington has 5000 transients
looking for jobs. 1t is a more
acute relief situation than at any
time for five years.
The load is made more difficult |
by two factors: The business re
cession, with its new crop of un.
employed, and the withdrawal of
WPA funds. WPA is spending |
$4,000 less each week in Wash.
ington than in the days of FERA.
In one dormitory of the Saliva,
ton Army hall there are 10 beds
and 19 men. AS the hour for
lights out" nearS, they are loung,
ing about, smoking, sewing but
tons on their pants, and telling
tall stories.
Old Jim Bailey has a knot of
men around him. He is 1.-THE and
slender az 10. "Sock" Bailey, they
used to call him, in the days when
he licked Sam Langford, the
Boston TsV Baby, with an upper
cut to the chin which carried
Langford so high off his feet that
when he landed he Sprained an
ankle and couldn't fight any more
"It was in 1901 that I fit
Langford," Bailey explains. "I
got $2,500 for that fight, and
here's a picture that shows me
and him-the way landed that
uppercut."
SLEEPS IN CLOTHES
The men are all sober except
one. On a bed in far corner, a
heavy fellow curses at a group
that are nagging him. When he
is left alone, he stretches out in
his clothes and sleeps, waking
only to cough.
Bailey declares that there
was good money in prize fight
ing, but better money in poker.
II sat in on a poker game one
night in Reno, and the boys all
had their guns on the table
all except me. I always figured,
being a fighter, could land one
with my fist quicker than any
man could pick up gun.
"Well. sir, got out of that
town the next day with a
hundred and twenty thousand
dollars"
Mention of this fabulous figure
does not stir his audience. The
man who is sewing button on his
trousers does not even look up.
Injuries suffered in the past
are a favorite theme of the has
beenS at the Sally" A younger
man named Bishop has a scar
in his cheek that looks like a
deep dimple. He served IN the
Navy for IA years, and got shot
during rifle practice.
SHOWS BULLET HOLE
"Here, look at this, if you want
to see something" says Bishop,
pulling from his mouth a plate
of false teeth, and drawing back
his cheek with his fingers. See
where the bullet went through.
Knocked my teeth out, top and
bottom, both sides.
"I get SIS a month for that
or rather my sister does. She's
got family to take care of. And
what do l get? Wherever go
looking for a job, it's no dice.
Not on account of the mouth,
but because I'm past 35. I'm
an able seaman, and here's my
papers to prove it, ut they
don't want only kids at sea-"
The men who are spending the
holidays with the Salvation Army
are not the traditional hoboeS, not
the bindle-stiff characters Of the
open road. They are men with
trades; some have had no work
within the year, but have been
thrown out with the present busl-
ness recession.
All are working now with the
army" driving trucks to pick up
castoff newspapers or remaking
furniture for Salvation Army re-
sale. They get board and lodging
plus an allowance of 50 to SIS a
week. Even 70-year-old Jim Bailey
boosts a bale of newspapers onto
a truck.
They come to the "Sally" be-
cause it is clean and because they
don't have to take a "noSedive" toI
be treated decently.
1--WE amt no bunch of mission
stiffs. The lazy guys that don't
want to work, they go around
to the missions and give their
souls to Gawd and get put up
for a while, then move on to the
next mission"
ONCE FERA CHARGES
Two years ago men of the same
type were eating their Christmas
dinner in the FERA kitchen and