File:Beauty for ashes (1914) (14784017625).jpg

Identifier: beautyforashes01baco (find matches)
Title: Beauty for ashes
Year: 1914 (1910s)
Authors: Bacon, Albion Fellows, 1865-1933
Subjects: Working class Tenement houses Poor
Publisher: New York, Dodd, Mead and company
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

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nt, deep-breathed feel-ing, a-tingle and a-glow — but how can one describeit? Its a mighty good feeling, anyhow, and wasjust what I was looking for when I wanted to dochurch work. And, in that connection, I wonderedwhy Friendly Visiting wouldnt solve the problem ofthe unemployed cliurch member. But, on secondthought, I realised that not all church members, even,have tact, and I felt it would be a sin to exploit thepoor to save the souls of the well-to-do. They haveMoses and the Prophets, as well as the gospels. Andthey liave bath tubs! Let them learn the way to theliearts of the rich, who are lonely and in trouble, bypractising on each other. Yet why should not every one be able to visit thepoor, as neighbours, without doing more harm thangood? It requires only earnestness, good sense, andpoliteness. If one behaves among them exactly asin the best drawing rooms, wears the same pleasedlook, exerts the same effort to be agreeable, andshows the same lack of curiosity, with the same de-
Text Appearing After Image:
y^ S p^ Si y CLUTCH OF THE THORNS 63 gree of polite interest — thats all there is to it.One will meet with exactly the same response. One reason, I believe, why some really earnest peo-ple fail in their approach to the poor, is because theytry so obviously to put themselves on their plane.The poor resent that, as we would, and resent ourgiving them modified milk conversation, or sea-soning our speech to their taste as with onions. Ifwe cant see the unfitness of these things, they can,as plainly as if we tried to wear their old clothes.Our best success came when we put those we visitedon our plane, taking it for granted that they lived,loved and aspired just as we did. And they re-sponded, as we do, to those who waken our betterselves. How we love them, who do that always!Indeed, it makes our dream of Heaven, that only ourbetter selves shall live there. There were some of our cases that were candidlypast the ability of any of our circle to handle. Thesewere the cases where there were

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