| First Applications. | Total Applications. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number. | Percent. | Number. | Per cent. | |
| Lack of employment. | 115 | 25.0 | 184 | 22.1 |
| Sickness or accident. | 102 | 20.4 | 164 | 19.7 |
| Physical defects or old age. | 27 | 5.4 | 42 | 5.0 |
| Death of wage earner. | 18 | 3.6 | 30 | 3.6 |
| Desertion | 15 | 3.0 | 24 | 2.9 |
| Intemperance | 87 | 17.4 | 166 | 19.9 |
| Shiftlessness | 50 | 10.0 | 101 | 12.2 |
| No need | 86 | 17.2 | 121 | 14.6 |
| Total | 500 | 100.0 | 832 | 100.0 |
In this table it will be seen that emphasis is laid on misconduct rather than on misfortune. The difference between the two sets of returns is obvious. Where lack of employment and sickness have been alleged as accounting for 626/10 per cent. of the total, they are believed by the tabulator to really account for only 418/10 per cent. On the other hand, intemperance comes in as the real cause in 199/10 per cent.; shiftlessness in 122/10 per cent. of the applications, and in 146/10 per cent. of the applications it was judged that there was no real need. It is very probable that these judgments are severe, but the result shows how frequently, at least, the personal character is a contributory cause of poverty.
An attempt was made when reading the records to determine the general character of the man and woman—that is, the adult members of the family. Such classification is at the best very rough, and does not give us much information. It may be said that the character was put down as good unless something distinctly to the contrary appeared. The results are given in the following table:
PERSONAL CHARACTER OF MAN AND WOMAN.
| Male. | Female. | Total. | Percentage. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good | 122 | 231 | 353 | 45 |
| Criminal | 15 | 1 | 16 | 2 |
| Insane | .. | 1 | 1 | .. |
| Intemperate | 81 | 56 | 137 | 17 |
| Shiftless | 56 | 52 | 108 | 14 |
| Suspicious | 13 | 30 | 43 | 6 |
| Untruthful | 5 | 15 | 20 | 3 |
| Uncertain | 38 | 65 | 103 | 13 |
| Total | 330 | 451 | 781 | 100 |
| "Shiftless" includes | Male. | Female. | Total. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Professional beggers | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| Loss of independence | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Lack of push | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Laziness | 1 | .. | 1 |
| Extravagance | .. | 2 | 2 |
| "Worthless" | 7 | 5 | 12 |
| Prostitute | .. | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 16 | 17 | 33 |
| Shiftless indefinite | 40 | 35 | 75 |
| Total | 56 | 52 | 108 |
It would seem from this table that the judgment of the investigators was lenient. In nearly one-half of the cases the character of the men and women was said to be good.
Fire tests of cast iron columns, made by order of the city authorities of Hamburg, are described in recent issues of the Deutsche Bauzeitung. The columns were 10 feet 8 inches long, 10.5 inches in diameter and of 1/13 inch or 0.5 inch metal. They were loaded centrally and eccentrically, and some were cased with a fireproof covering. A hydraulic press was placed below the column and its crosshead above it, and then a hinged oven containing twelve large gas burners was clamped about the column. The oven was furnished with apparatus for measuring heat, with peep holes and with a water jet. On an average a load of 3.2 tons per square inch, with a heat of 1,400° F., produced deformation in thirty-five minutes in a centrally loaded column without casing. This showed itself by bulging all round in the middle of the heated part, especially where the metal happened to be thinner; fracture occurred finally in the middle of the thickest point of the bulge. If the load was less, this occurred at a higher temperature. Jets of water had no effect until deformation heat was reached. The casings had the effect of increasing the time before deformation began from half an hour to four or five hours.
[1] Report of Richmond Mayo Smith, Franklin H. Giddings, and Fred. W. Holls, Committee on Statistics of the New York Charity Organization Society.—Condensed for Public Opinion.