HUMAN SALVAGE

Hokitika Guardian, 13 October 1932, Page 2

HUMAN SALVAGE

SALVATION ARMY. EFFORT. WORK AND SELF-RESPECT. WELLINGTON, October 10. “All we 'do out here is to provide a little work for thos e who are down and out—something that gives occupation during the period a irian,-. is regaining his self-respect. You .would be surprised .how it acts in many cases.” ~ Brigadier. D. Macaulay, of the Salvation ' Army, was the speaker, and his rostium was the sunny verandah of the Industrial Home at Miramar, peopled year in and year out by between 30“ ■and 40» nieii who have‘'“shipped” by ilife’s way'"And. are, in need of some plkte to lie off in until they re'gain'th^x^’manhood,, and a true per* spec£ive K ’3f life and its obligations. Some 2300 went through the three homes last year. VOLUNTARY RESIDENTS. ''These men,” isaVd the Brigadier, “come- here voluntarily in . most cases; seldom under any kind of compulsion. There ar e times when we are asked by the Police Court to. take over a man for safe-keeping, a® his offences aga l nst society are more nearly foolishness and Weakness than criminal. Then there (ire some who, after coming out of prison, are a little at a loss to know what to do, and they come to us to get their breath, so to speak, and we do wft&j. we can, to help them back to their trn B selves, We never have any trouble with them.Thoy are given certain titslcs, and are expected to do them in return for their board and lodging, We .have three such homes—the other two are at Addington (Christchurch) and Epsom (Auckland).” HC'IvIBLE INDUSTRIES. At the home Brigadier Macaulay introduced the yisitpiy to. Adjutant H. ■Rive, superintendent of the home ) who has had 16 years’ experience in this 'kind of work, Y Adjutant Rive conducted the visiting party round the home to show the work done. In . one shed men were sorting great bales of scrap paper taken out to Jdiramar fropi business; houses, printing! firms,' newspapei offices, etc. When the bales" arrive at, the home they . are • emptied out on to a large carpet of -scrim, and a team of men 1 I at once set upon the contents to divide it up, and throw the paper into different bins. In one go the scraps and iff .another the '“kraft” paper (brown wrapping) and into a third the * dean white paper-, strips or newsprint. All have a market. From these great- bins ' the ’ ■ papei is placed: in two packs of, sacking in ! two • presses and tamped down, with a, wooden “toms” until it i s as tightly packed as human beings can make it ; then one of the presses is hoisted oyer the other, and by ratchet gear the floor of the one press is forced down,. until the contents aw a solid mass. Then the, paok i« strongly se\vn in readiness for shipping away to Melbourne, wfiw© the paper is repulped for making into new paper, The only- class; of scrap paper accepted, by the Mataura paper miUs"(N.Z;)- is clean white paper and'.cuttings. ■ /•:'•. .v' -if dsked- 'as- to whether' the business/ paid, Brigadier Macaulay said there was no profit in ii, but it gave the. men work' .and prevented waste. About ldO 4owt. bales of paper were dispatched to Melbourne every month from the Miramar Industrial Home. i MONEY IN RAGS. A rag-packing department is situated in an adjoining building. Here rags of every description day in k tangled, many-coloured heap on the floor. The atmosphere looked and smelt dusty. But the rags were sterilised before being handed over to the pickers, whose job was to separate the cottons from the woollens, and both from the silks (or artificial silks). All have a certain value. Some are baled up and sent to England to.be used in the manufacture of shofidy clothing, end the rest is torn to shreds by machinery and becomes flock, used very klrgely here in Wellington for upholstering furniture. “We are always in need of rags, old clothes, junk of any kind,” said Brigadier Macaulay, “as we can generally find some use for it. We recondition furniture, clothes-—anything!—and if anyone wants anything removed, from a rat-trap to a fowl-house, -we’ll do it. Junk ? Oh, yes, much of it is junk, but some we can fix up for resale, and many a poor man’s home has been comfortably furnished by the stuff we can supply from our junk shop.” v CLEANLINESS AND COMFORT. “Our industrial homes do not pay—:l wish they did,” said Brigadier, | Macaulay, “but they do -supply a real need. Here are the men’s quarters, the kitchen, reading-room, all very bright and comfortable. They get good, wholesome meals, as you see, and have nothing to worry about. We have to . jdo, the worrying. I am worried now •for a supply of men’s boots and clothes, old. or new, ragged or whole. “There is only one class Of man we do not tolerate,” said the Brigadier. “That is the ‘oil-burner’—the ‘fongays’! That is the methylated spirit addict. He i.s impossible. He won’t work; .he won’t stay put ; and he is generally objectionable. I am. sorry to s ay there ar e -a good many in Welling, ton—hopeless cases. We have had to take a definite stand against such cases.”