Besides being old, infirm, or incapacitated to some degree, the classes assembled at Ingleside were inevitably the most discontented of all the refugees. During the months of Captain Kilian’s administration certain conditions prevailed that made his task exceptionally difficult. All the inmates had been torn from their habitual grooves of life and had suffered shock and considerable hardship; many had feebly but vainly tried to get back into old niches and could not adapt themselves to new ones. Some had applied for rehabilitation only to be gently told that they were too old to begin again or that their plans were impracticable; others had found their friends and relatives to be neglectful; still others, the last precipitate of the social confusion, were a semi-vicious, irresponsible, and idle lot who were at Ingleside only because they could not find food and shelter in their old disreputable haunts. All, regardless of capacity or need, were convinced that they were being deprived of their “just and equal share” of the millions contributed by a philanthropic public.
Among this heterogeneous company, many of whom had fallen into vulgar and disorderly, if not vicious, habits during six months of irresponsible camp life, it was Captain Kilian’s task to establish good feeling, health, and discipline. The restoration of order began with the enforcement of cleanliness and decency. When the inmates grabbed their food from the dishes on the table they were summarily relegated to what became known as the “hog table”; when they fought among themselves, or railed at the employes, or returned drunk from a visit to friends outside, they were warned; if the offense was repeated, they were ejected from camp. During the first three months 30 were ejected, and in the following year from five to 10 persons a month were sent away. Of the total of 70 persons sent away from the camp the majority (30 men and 10 women) were ejected for drunkenness; the remainder for stealing, vulgar conduct, and insubordination. It was found necessary to discipline and finally to discharge for intoxication a considerable number of employes as well as refugees. The strict insistence upon sobriety meant a better grade of helpers for the camp.
The restlessness of the inmates and the accessibility of Ingleside to five saloons at the gate and to the street cars made a rather strict regulation of admission and discharge necessary. When inmates overstayed their passes they were required to show cause on their return, and were sometimes refused re-admission. As a consequence, some ran away and others who went out on passes never returned. A curious result of the confusion after the fire is revealed by the easy movement of persons from the old almshouse to Ingleside. It appears that 59 of the 1,287 inmates of Ingleside had been in the almshouse at some time before the fire; and that 114 inmates ran away from the almshouse or were discharged at their own request between April, 1906, and January, 1907. Those familiar with the conditions of both institutions believe that between 100 and 200 persons left the almshouse and went to refugee camps to pose as earthquake sufferers, to return ultimately to the almshouse either directly or through Ingleside.[260]
[260] The almshouse records of this period do not show accurately the movement of the inmates. It is probable that a much larger number left than they indicate.
When Captain Kilian was recalled to regular military duty in January, 1907, he left a camp of about 660 refugees comfortably housed, well fed, and under excellent discipline. He had not, however, undertaken to solve one of the most important problems, the employment of inmates within the camp. During the military period, paid employes performed the greater part of the labor necessary to the maintenance of the camp. Mr. Wollenberg on taking charge required, as he had a smaller staff of employes, a definite amount of labor, varying according to the physical condition of each inmate. This policy served both as a disciplinary measure and as a means of natural selection. The comparatively ablebodied were ejected from camp if they refused to work, so that the population gradually sifted down to the aged, the infirm, and the incapacitated who had no relatives to care for them. Besides the routine duties necessary to keep the camp in sanitary condition, other work was provided. Twelve acres of ground were planted in potatoes, cabbages, and turnips at a cost of about $100. The yield was over $600 worth of vegetables. A dairy was established to provide the camp with milk; furniture was made by the men for the new Relief Home, to be opened in January, 1908. Tailoring and carpentry shops and a shoe repairing shop afforded work at a fair wage. A sewing department was organized by Lucile Eaves,[261] with an equipment of 20 sewing machines and materials in bulk from the relief supplies. Every woman who could sew was expected to be in the sewing room twice a week, and during fifteen months over 6,000 garments and 754 curtains for the Home were made and distributed. The Woman’s Alliance provided social recreation at least once a week, as well as books and magazines.
In spite of the shock of fire and earthquake, and in spite of the discomforts of camp life in the preceding summer, the health of the inmates of Ingleside Model Camp was exceptionally good. This was no doubt due to the regularity of life, the good food, the strict enforcement of sanitary regulations, and the prompt medical attention. The camp hospital, which contained an average of 30 patients during the first few months, was enlarged in July, 1907, to make room for its quota, 35, of the City and County Hospital patients, and thereafter averaged 77 patients. During thirteen months only 49 deaths occurred at Ingleside, and most of these were due to old age. There were, however, 24 deaths in hospitals to which patients were sent from Ingleside. This rather small number does not fully represent the proportion of deaths to the number of inmates, as the personnel of the camp was constantly changing. Of the 1,287 inmates of Ingleside 164 were known to be dead three years after the fire.
For the accommodation of its almshouse charges at Ingleside the city agreed to pay 30 cents a day per inmate, at the time that it was costing 38.6 cents a day to maintain an inmate in the almshouse. The average cost a day per inmate at Ingleside during 1907 was 50 cents. The total cost of Ingleside Model Camp for approximately fifteen months was:
| Construction | $36,230.59 |
| Operation and maintenance | $173,573.19 |
| Care of almshouse inmates | $21,447.04 |