Rich and Poor (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1899 edition. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER X CHARITY To many minds, and those often of great sympathies, the preventive work we have been describing is less attractive than that of relieving actual distress--what is generally known as charitable work. For one thing, if you can succeed in removing distress the result is much more obvious than the seemingly negative result of preventing it; and for another thing, it always seems easier and pleasanter to distribute money than to acquire expert knowledge in any branch of social work. But we are beginning to learn that to distribute money is not necessarily to relieve distress, that indeed it may even increase it; and also that true charity is one of the most difficult branches of work which can be undertaken, requiring, if it is to be thorough, the knowledge and experience of the experts in all other branches. Of course this knowledge can seldom be accumulated in one person, but one great qualification for the charitable worker is that he should know where to go for help and advice on the difficult cases he comes across, and that he should be willing to accept that advice. There are, roughly speaking, two ideals of charity. One, I hope we may now say the old-fashioned one, is that of distributing as much money to as many people as possible. "In a report dealing with a poor and populous district of London stands written--'District Visiting Society: 600 families relieved: 60 1$s.' It would be a pleasing discovery to find that 600 poor and worthy families have been really relieved by the modest expenditure of 60 15J., or 2s. per family. Families in such districts are often large, with as many as five, six, and seven children. If, however, we take only two children as the average, a simple sum will show that 2,400 of...