Plight Of Sydneyites Recalls Worst Slump Conditions

Chronicle (Levin), 16 July 1949, Page 5

Plight Of Sydneyites Recalls Worst Slump Conditions

Reeeived Friday, 8.50 p.m. SYDNEY, July 15. Conditions equalling the worst which appeared in the depth of the deprcssioii period are commonplace today in the poorer suburbs of Sydney and Newcasile. While severe hardship extends into what onee were the higher-salaried brackets, the peak of inisefy lias already been reached by thousands of families whqse earnings were never much above the basie wage. Soeial workers expect that seores of thousands of people will be living 011 charity by the^ niiddle of next week. ' Reverend S. IV. MeKibbin, of the Methodist Mission, lias beendisti'ibuting soup and clothing for a fortnight in the poorest Sydney distriets. "II any people are hungry now," he said today, "but next week most of the families of men unemployed through Ihe strike will be very short of food. They have not .enough money to l)uy anything like the amount of lood they need. In the Blehe-Newtown area of workingelass suburban Sydney a newspaper survey shows that nine out oi' ten families ha\ e ceascd paying rent in order to buy food ior their children. Sonie niotl eis snv they have been feeding children on soup, bread and pomdge since the strike started. • . i About 3000 families in this area have applied for unemployment relief, but the means test has debarred many others whose fcw pounds of savings must go bei'ore they become eligible to receive the meagre dole allowance. Pressmen aecompanying soeial workers find that most people are ashamed of accepting charity and will not give their nanies. "They say their neighbours might jeer," commented the missioner "but'by next week not many around here will be jeenng at Because they thought the strike would end quickly ™any people did not apply for unemployment relief when they lost their jnbs and now are pathetically eager to receive cheques which will not be available until a week ai'ter registration. Manv people in the stricken areas have been ordered speeial foods bv* doetors and normally would have been sent to hospital. Xow the hospitals are unahi e to take them. and no money is available for speeial diets. Cleneral praetitioners 111 the area believe that some of these people will die if forced to suffer privation any 1 Oll t, TI* "in eentral Svdnev the Salvation Army homes are handlmg reeord numbers of destitute men. Oue wluch normally fed 90 men dailv now feeds 150, many of whem cannot pay the sixpence asked for a meal. All the beds are oecupied and 50 men are bemg turned •iwav nightlv. Shops are displaying "no credit ' signs. '.\ vncvo-ed armv eombs the dustbins in the citv streets and salvaaes cigarette luitts. Ti n whistle and mouthorgan players and niainlie^'gars liaunt the suburban railwav stations. The demand is growine for the hard-.pressed Oovernment to implement some sysfem of relief designed to provide for unemployincnt in the faee of the present boom prices wlneh made the prcsent dole woefully inadequate.