Eli Perkins (at large) :: :: University of Virginia Library

“Hundreds of little Italian boys are kept by old hags
on Cherry and Baxter streets, just to steal and beg.
If they come home at night without having stolen or
begged certain sums, the poor little fellows are whipped
and made to go to bed on the floor without any
supper. Most of these boys turn out pick-pockets,
and eventually go to the Island or to Sing Sing as
burglars and housebreakers. One little fellow who has
lived on Cherry street for seven years didn't know
what the Bible was, and he told us he had never
heard of Christ.”

—N.Y. Times.

But

“the Rev. Mr. Van Meter, who established the second
Five Points Mission House, has raised funds enough
to establish a Protestant mission church in Rome. He
writes that three more Italian subjects have been rescued
from Popery and converted to the Protestant
faith, and that he is deeply solicitous for further contributions

from brothers and sisters in the cause to
help on the glorious work and enable them to build
a snug little marble parsonage for the residence of
the American missionaries.”

—Five Points Mission Report.

2. II.

“Mrs. Mary Thomas testified this morning that Mrs.
Hurley turned her out of the Girls' Lodging House
on a stormy night to die in the Fifth Street Station
House, and Sergeant Snyder swore that on the morning
of the 18th of March he found Mary lying sick
on the floor in the station house. She was in distress,
and said:

“`For God's sake, have some one do something for
me!' and in the midst of her crying and mourning
she gave birth to a child.”

—N. Y. Herald.

But

“the private stables of Mr. Belmont, Bonner, and
many other gentlemen are made of black walnut,
beautifully furnished, and nicely warmed. The horses
are clothed in soft, white blankets, and fed and cleaned
with the regularity of clockwork. I am endeavoring
to have all other animals well cared for, too, and to
accomplish this I caused the arrest of a private coachman
to-day, and detained the carriage in front of
A. T. Stewart's, because the driver had driven tacks in
the side of the bridle, which pricked and chafed the
horse, compelling him to keep his head straight. If
cars are overloaded the horses will be stopped, and the

[ILLUSTRATION] [Description: 627EAF. Page 026. In-line Illustrations. The first image is of a poor woman with a shawl over her head. The second image is of a well-dressed woman fixing her hair.] people will have to walk.”

—Mr. Humane (?) Bergh's
Letter.

3. III.

“A woman, who up to the time
of our going to press had not
been identified, was found dead
yesterday morning on a door-step
in Thirty - fourth street.
The deceased evidently wandered
from some of the poorer wards
in search of employment, and
from her emaciated condition it
is probable she had not tasted food for several days.
It is thought that poverty and starvation caused her
death. The body, scantily clothed in a few rags,
lies unclaimed in the Morgue.”

—N. Y. Sun.

But

“Mrs. Livingstone's elegant and
fashionable reception and german,
at her palatial Fifth avenue mansion
on Monday evening, was too
gorgeous for description. Many
of the ladies' toilets came from
Worth's, and cost fabulous sums,
and the flowers which draped the
rooms—all rare exotics—must have
cost a small fortune. Among the guests sparkling
with jewels was Mrs. Lawrence, whose bridal trousseau,
when she was married last week, is said to have cost

$7,000. The rare and expensive wines which cheered
the occasion, some of them costing as high as $20
per bottle, astonished even the connoisseurs.”

—Home
Journal.

4. IV.

“Bellevue Hospital is often crowded to excess with
sick, so much so that patients suffer through bad air
and inattention. * * * * *

“It is impossible to warm the Tombs, or to keep it
from being damp, unwholesome, and sickly; and until
an appropriation of at least $50,000 is made by the
city, prisoners must continue to be crowded together
and continue to suffer, especially in cold weather,
beneath damp bed-clothes.”

—Report Commissioners of
Charities and Correction.

But

“the Park Commissioner is of opinion that it will
cost $5,000,000 to complete the new Natural History
buildings in Central Park, to give ample room for the
minerals, fossils, and live animals. The wild animals
of the zoological collection take up a large amount
of room in the Park buildings, and it costs the city
a great deal of money to feed them and keep them
properly warmed, but they are a source of great
amusement to the nurses and children.”

—Park Commissioner's
Report.