HELPING THE NEEDY.

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 154, 2 July 1927, Page 11

HELPING THE NEEDY.

CRY OF THE CHILDREN. THE OLD WASTERS. RELIEF WORK IX AUCKLAND.

"We do not care to give too much publicity to the details of our relief work, and that is why we do our work silently and persistently throughout the year with benefit to those who, through dire need, have to come before us," wa* the way Mr. G. Knight, the chairman of the Relief Committee, put it at the close of the meeting this week. "There are a few things, how ever, that the public will like to know just to show what is being done at this time "when there is so much unemployment about." Applications for relief often ran in grooves, and it was a strange coincidence when thev last met, case after case of a similar nature presented itself for investigation. Parents with four children seemed to predominate, just as at the preceding meeting the majority of cases seemed to be families where there were three children, It was a problem which needed very serious consideration how far the committee could go in relieving the necessities of each case. If the family had good health, 25/ per week, for six persons, to supply groceries and milk, was the amount usually given, but there were cases very often where the children needed special care and attention and then small additions had to be made. For very young children "child's food" was allowed, so that they might be properly nourished, and firing was not often refused when there were "kiddies" : to be kept warm in the very depths of winter. But the cry of the children, which was the most appealing thing of all when there T-as so much unemployment, and their needs had special attention. At the other extreme of relief work conld be numbered the "old wasters" who were helped time and again, but who, despite all promises of reform, returned to their former habits and often found themselves locked up for some silly offence they had committed. Xumbers of these" people were no use in special homes; they only made life intolerable for those weil conducted residents who are already there. All social workers in the city knew of almost impossible cases, and yet kind hearts went out to these ungrateful people. They were not allowed to starve and had their wants attended to. As the city grew so did relief work, those who were engaged at it gave freelv of their time so that distress may be relieved and xaany people given fresh hope and very often a fresh start in life. At the meeting this week 150 cases were attended to, and the meeting was a very lengthy one. The majority of those in attendance came because of lack of employment. The.carpentering trade seemed exceptionally dull, and wheelwrights and saddlers seemed down and out, with little chance of getting work at their trades.