THILANTHROPIC WORK AND THE CHURCHES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13268, 27 April 1905, Page 8

THILANTHROPIC WORK AND THE CHURCHES.

TO THE KDITOB. i-' ' ' Sib, —When proposing a voto of thanks to General Booth the other evening I felt that it would bo unbecoming to alludo in mora than the most generahtcrms'to work, which is nevertheless of vast proportions, carried on systematically by tho Ireeognised ecclesiastical organisations. Since tho mooting on Thursday I liavo seeriiii an English . Church newspaper of February 17 an account of the relief operations submitted' to-her Majesty tho Queen, by tho Kov. 'W:-. Carlilo in a recent interview. ,• I send' ybutho paper, , and shall bo glad if you can seo your .way to publish some 'extracts for general information. It should bo : remembered that tho "Church Army" is only one of the many institutions: endeavouring devotedly to grapple with tho unprecedented conditions. I. could give a 'touching account, for example, of the labours of the Kilbuni Sisters. As General Booth himself has caused tho purport'of my. recent interview with him to be made public I may now explain that but for my sense of tho undosirability of multiplying iigencics.and organisations ■ which practically cover the same ground in a small city like oursj. I should have invited Mr Carlilo to establish' a branch' of the Church Army among us—the Rev. C. G. Biddle was formerly one of his helpers,— but if the Salvation Army responds to .my overtures, and tho other Bishops of New Zealand aro willing • to co-operate upon a plan to be agreed l upon, I do not think I need duplicate machinery.—l am, etc., : S. T. Dbnkdin, Primate. P.S.—I may add that lam well acquainted with the working of tho Church Army. On each occasion of my visiting England I have visited its headquarters, and have spoken at. a good many meetings in London in support of it. "Tho abstract of tho. Army's relief operations submitted to her Majesty showed that:— "In the Labour Homes and Special Relief Yards in London and in the provinces 5000 beds are provided for tho homeless and 13,000 meals for the starving every 2t hours. Relief is given in return for work only. Pauperisation is thus. avoided, and tho -worthless and itnhelpablo are weeded out. Thero were 110,965 paupers in London in November, 1902, but- there were 126.783 paupers.in London in January, 1805. During that month 150,000 beds, with bedding and sheets, wero provided by the Church Army, and 400,000 meals. One thousand married men are helped daily with work, enabling them to keep their families from the workhouse. With regard to the general social work of the Army; there is a network of. labour homes and similar agencies, 120 in number, in all parts of the United Kingdom. Women are received and dealt with on tile same lines as men.'

"Ex-prisoners, tramps, idlers,, and outcasts are taught to work and earn their own living. Eighty thousand are dealt with in labour homes , yearly, antecedents or creed no bar. Last year 8000 stayed in labour homes for three months or upwards, and 4000 obtained permanent employment, and; so gained a fresh start in life. Great; numbers of| others benefited mor'o or less permanently. There were 996 ex-soldiers admitted to labour homes.

"About £25,000 is paid yearly in wages to inmate;. All work is paid for fairly. Twenty-five million bundles of firewood are made yearly.' Two hundred thousand leave prisons yearly. All who will enter labour homes are welcomed in preference to other applicants. Great numbers are reclaimed. One-third of all convicts discharged ;o various societies were sent to the Church Army last year. Work is supplied to a great number of prisoners' wives, to enable them to keep the homo together and the children out of tho workhouse while the breadwinner is in gaol. "With reference to the evangelistic side of tho Army's work, 600 evangelists and mission nurses are engaged in town ant! country parishes in helping the clergy. Already 1600 evangelists and mission nurses have been trained in the training homes in London. There aro 67 itinerant vans, and 5000 van missions yearly.

"Tho King's Labour Tents are so-called because bis Majesty's generous gift of £100 was devoted to their erection. Thoy are on some waste land lent by the County Council, and 800 men arc given each two meals in them oven- day in the week. The men are received ill batches of 100 each every three hours. Upon entering they aro given a basin of soup and a good picco of bread. . Then they do some chip chopping, and they aro given another meal and a ticket for a flvepcnny bed at a lodginghouse. Tho Army contracts with numerous lodging-houses for these beds, and pays about 4d each for thcin.' The food "consumed by each man comcs to about 4d a day. so that each case costs the Army 8d a day. The value of labour being about 2d, the net cost of each case is 6d, and tho Armv will be glad if friend l - will purchase tickets at that price for distribution. Tho present writer visited tho ling's Touts on Friday last, and found a long; queue of starving, ragged men waitim their turns. Tho soup is good, and th« work just sufficient to test tho genuineness of tho rases. Only single, men or men without families depending upon them aro relieved at these tents. The married men aro helped elsewhere, and in their case aro given a longer spell of work and 2s 6d aday. The cost of all the operations of the Army is about £150' a day." ■