Poor -- New York (State) -- New York; Social settlements
During all those years the members had been trained to self-government. All
questions are decided by the majority. There came a time when the majority
voted to leave the College Settlement. It was deplored by the projectors,
but accepted. After a few weeks a small house was taken a couple of blocks
from the East River. The house had a large yard, and by expending a small
amount of money was made very attractive. The attempt was made to have the
members of the club do neighborhood work. A very short trial proved this
was impracticable. Two things were revealed: That the mother of a
working-man's family has neither strength nor time to give away; that the
very conditions of tenement-house neighborhoods require trained, impersonal
workers. The women who gave time to the club work in the neighborhood
neglected their homes and families. The few members who tried to do
neighborhood work in the house used every advantage the club-house offered,
which they controlled, to curry favor, to revenge slights, real or fancied,
to themselves or their children. The best mothers made no attempt to do any
neighborhood work. The house became a social center, an educational center.
But it was not a success until paid workers were put in charge of different
departments, with a very few volunteer workers; and the most faithful of
these were women of wealth.
It was hoped that uptown organizations would establish branches of their
work in this house. Some did attempt it, but it failed for the reason that
so many efforts to better the conditions of the tenement-house dwellers
fail. Women lacking the right qualities volunteered, or the work was
important when other things did not interfere. Clubs were established to
which the organizers came when it was convenient. Again and again children
connected with clubs waited until darkness came, but no "dear lady" whom
they trusted appeared. In another case, numbers were the standard of
success, and scores were crowded in where units should have been. All this
forced the employment of paid workers, and centered the responsibility on
one until the burden was too great to be borne.
Added to this, the principle of self-government had given a one-sided
development to some of the members, and friction would develop when large
questions were to be decided, an aggressive minority combating a
conservative and less demonstrative majority.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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