The Hobo: The Sociology of the Homeless ManAnderson, Nels
General
The Hobo: The Sociology of the Homeless Man
Anderson, Nels
Chicago (Ill.) -- Social conditions; Tramps
TYPES OF MISSIONS[67]
Aside from the religious work of the Salvation Army and the
Volunteers of America, three types of missions are to be found in
Hobohemia: (1) the permanently established local mission, (2) the
migratory national mission, and (3) the “wild cat” local mission.
1) The permanently established local mission either owns its
building or holds it on a long lease. These missions are sponsored
by some church or by a board of directors composed of business
men of more or less local prominence. Not infrequently these
contributors are successful converts.
These local missions dispense charity in the form of food,
clothing, and beds for homeless men.[68] They differ, however, in
their methods of relief as well as in their policies of relief. One
mission may care for every man who asks for aid without question as
to his worthiness, another feels that better service can be done
by helping only those who are willing to work, or those who are
incapacitated for manual labor. Only the verbose intoxicant is ever
ejected from the mission--all others may come and go as they wish.
In the permanently established mission is found the better type
of mission worker who is compensated by a definite salary rather
than paid on a commission basis. The permanent workers consist
of a superintendent and a secretary assisted by converts who
have made good, usually old men who use the mission as a refuge.
Still further help comes from students of the various religious
institutions in the city and from the friends of the mission.
2) The national migratory missions may have headquarters in Chicago
or some other metropolitan center with branches or sub-missions in
nearby towns and cities. These organizations are generally financed
by solicitations. Men and women are employed to canvass places
of business; to “drum” on the streets and to make house-to-house
calls. This practice of drumming on the streets is known as
“ballyhooing.” These solicitors receive, in most cases, as much
as 50 per cent of the amount they collect, which greatly lessens
the sum to be used for the homeless men after the rent for the
building, the salaries of the men in charge, and other expenses
have been deducted from the remaining 50 per cent.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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