POVERTY IN CITY

Dominion, Volume 24, Issue 242, 9 July 1931, Page 11

POVERTY IN CITY

Cases of Acute Distress INSTANCES OF STARVING Instances of acute distress at Wellington are an everyday experience of the Salvation Army. In spite of the soup kitchen organisation, there are dozens of families who are suffering privation, and victualling on a scale which would abolish all distress is too large an order for any existing social service. The following are extracts from typical reports by Salvation Army officers: — “This woman has six children. Her husband is unemployed. She has not been able to have anything cooked for a week, as she has no money for gas or firing. “Two members of the family sick, No money coining in. ... , , “No food iu house. Family has had nothing but stale bread for weeks. Husband out of work and ill. “Woman with three children, one a baby only a few days old. She had to get out of bed to go and ask for food.. "Man broke down as he told how he had come to end of everything. Had no money and no food in the house. He was six months behind with rent and was likely to lose b°u se an<l , nll he has ‘ .® e has one child. ’ ■ , “Six children in this family. Father has had very little work for many months. Mother gets occasional work, but finds it hard as she has to take three babies with her.”