THE ARMY SHELTER

Evening Star, Issue 23352, 23 August 1939, Page 7

THE ARMY SHELTER

RESOURCES BEING STRAINED NUMBER OF INMATES DOUBLED HARSH WINTER THE CAUSE Even during periods of prosperity there is always a small minority who can be called the unfortunates. The work of looking after these people is no small one, and year in, year out the work goes on, quietly and nnobstrusively. In Maclaggan street the Salvation Army conducts a shelter and home for those members of the community who have fallen on evil days. At the present time the home is full to overflowing! The harsh weather conditions of the past two months have had a lot to do with the additional calls made upon the bounty of this institution over that period, and at the moment there appears to bo no easing of the situation. No one is turned away from this place of refuge, but while the number of its inmates is now near the 60 mark, there is always a percentage of them who regularly pay the nominal charge of 16s weekly. These are the ago beneficiaries and sustenance men who have no other place to call home. However, their number constitutes only about one-third of those in the home, and with the place filled beyond capacity just now Major Taylor, who is in charge, is finding it something of a problem to keep the larder stocked and the coal bins full.

Talking to a reporter this morning, the major said the demands now being made upon his institution wore more than usual at this time of the year, for there were many men seeking shelter with him who, were the weather at all reasonable, could get out and find a little work. Their state of health was such, he said, that they could not tackle anything just now. He would be very grateful. Major Tavior said, for any donations in money or in foodstuffs, for ho was at his wits’

end. He would be particularly pleased, also, to receive any reasonably sound old clothes for the men. The inmates of the home are given three good meals a day, that of the evening being a hot one, consisting of soup, meat and vegetables, and pudding. Experience had taught him, said the major, that it was better to feed the men well and keep them warm, for then there was less risk of having any sick on his hands.

Supplies*at this time of the year were at their dearest, he added. Potatoes were prohibitive in price, and for a family of 60 to cater for, they were an expensive item. Coal, too. was necessary, as the old men had to have warmth, and the fire in their general sitting room was going from 7 o’clock, the breakfast hour, until after 10 in the evening. Warm, comfortable, and nourished, the men stopped indoors this weather, Major Taylor said. It was better so—far better than presenting them with a cold, cheerless room, which created the tendency to wander out, and with time to “kill,” they might be prone to get into trouble. Quito a number of Major Taylor’s guests arc of the wandering typo. They come for a few days, and then move on, seeking perhaps work and better conditions of living. “So long as they are respectable, we never refuse these men meals and a bed,” he said. “If they have the money to pay, they do so, but invariably what they receive is given free.” There were many citizens, he thought, who would freely give foodstuffs or in kind, if they knew of the strain being placed on the resources of the establishment at the moment, he added. And so w'c left him at the door, fathering his flock of old men and unfortunates into their midday meal.