ICE CREAM CONE STARTS BUSINESS

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 295, 14 December 1936, Page 10

ICE CREAM CONE STARTS BUSINESS

Assistance for the Blino

DLINDCRAET—a non-profit, philainhhopic corporation operating a manufacturing plant for the sole purpose uf omploying blind men and women at a living wage—lias celebrated its twentieth anniversary at San ! ram-isco. Although established 20 years ago through the efforts of Mrs Ruth A. Quinan, the organisation actually had it? beginnings as far back as 1901 when Mrs Quiuan. who is now president and I usiness manager of Blindcraft, opened a small reading room for Hit* blind, where they might come in ami be read to. As the story of the establishment of Blindcraft is related to-day it all began with “a lew ice cream cones on a very warm day.” Some blind boy” weic silling in a Finall reading room listening iu a story being read them by one uf Hie few people who were interested in keeping these boys off the streets. The door suddenly opened. Hie reading stopped, and Airs Quinan. who fur some time had sought to be of some assistance, came in with an ice main cone for each boy. As she sat and talked with them, while the cones were being enjoyed, one of the boys said: “I wish this lady’* husband could find some work for us so that we could buy our own ice cream cones.” That remark set Airs Quinan thinking. Before long she returned, gathered the boys about, her and told them she would find work for them—on one condition: that they would nol continue to beg and “mooch” on the streets. They agieed. Mrs Quinan then found instructors to teach these boys to make things with their hands. First it was baskets—later brooms, ami now baskets, brooms, and furniture. While the

hoys Wetc learning Io make the basKer* she sought a market for their warm and before long was able to secure these and other blirul persons a liveabb- wage. Sime that lime Mrs Quinan. who came from New \ ork, has devoted her life to humanitarian work. In the woid« (,l a co-worker at the Bli’ulcratt lactorv. “She is a real humanitarian!” Known as the “chief” Mrs Quinaa is beloved by all uf this district's blind. Among other uf her activities cunnev'cd with Blind'-ralt she has ot:»I*1 i> h• •! what is known as the Blindcrall Open L’oruni for the Blind of California. IL • the blind van come to her with their various problems, with which she hvq’.> them deal. She ha* also taken her musiial - cuts to Blindcraft. where she foriiU'L the Blimicraft Ensemble. h quartet; ■vhich has been heard weekly ovei a local /atlio station for a numbm <>£ ven i s. To-day Hie once insignificant bro--m business has grown into a regular iurntlure business. Blindcraft owns its own three-*lury favtorv building in which are employed regularly from 7" Io si workers. Must of Hie work done is in reed ami rattan. Their broom* are >o|., ;,ll up ami dow n the Pacific coast. Ih« workers are .-ailed for in Hie morning and delivered al their homes after work in a. special factory bus. At noon they eat in a special cafeteria I’.nudi room on Hie third floor of the factory. The building was a gill- some 1G \ears agu, by Mr Henry Uowell, and his two sisters, 1-obelle and Helen. I Tom this headquarters Airs Quinan estinuilcs the organisation aids more than >"U blind people in this vicinity monthly. 1 Although the organisation is nol -elf. supporting,, it does nut belong to tno Community Chest. Along this line lim Mayor of JSan I'rancisco. Mr Angelo ••• Rossi, says of the activities of Blind‘‘As ino*l •San l.‘raiici><;ins arc well aware. ‘ Blindcraft ’ is tinning on splendid const ructiv q charily. Ili a imc supported by the Communily Chest, b it relics for i's niaintenam-c upon tlm kindly assist time of generous tiieml? who acccpl the duly all of us owe Lu I hose dept i \ ed ol sigh I. ‘ ‘ Thousands of San l-’raiiciscans annuallv v:-h I ip; Howard street, and purcha*u Blimicraft broom* and a wide lange of olher useful articles, including I’uiniture I‘.i. ndci af t articles me not peddled.” Mr.~ tjiiiim- point* out- that there is lonlv one Bliii.lcrafl in tiic United Stales ai.d Hint, the name is rvgi'lcied a' : t ira b-niark in the United Slate# •patent olii<e in Washingion.

Poets as makers, poets as creators, poets as coiners of values, or as lions roaring accents over values already established—such have been many of the poets who have made poetry the gigantic, if not divine achievement it is. In their work have often been contrived the solid foundations on which civilisations have endured, or the high explosives which have blown them up. What is the work of a chemist, who kills at most a few million of men in a generation, compared with that of a poet, whose false values, enunciated with the thunder and lightening of genius, may poison two thousand years of human life? —The English Review.