LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.
TRAMPS.
[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] excellent article on "Tramps," in the Spectator of Jane 8th, and the letter of Mr. Arnold White in that of Jane 15th, open a most difficult question. As one of the two hundred delegates who, on Tuesday last, entreated Mr. Shaw- Lefevre to grant a Commission of Inquiry into this subject, I echo the parting words of Mr. Albert Pell, who told the President of the Poor-law Board that his proposed enforce- ment of the extreme letter of the law would not touch the root of the evil. What is wanted (as he said) is " to find out how to strike at the origin of the vagrant." The great difficulty attending the question, is, of course, the mixture of those who are simply unfortunates, with those who are worthless. We fear to root out the tares, lest we root out the wheat also. The idle vagabond walks the road in company with the patient, down-hearted workman, who has, perhaps, been -thrown out of employment either by depression of trade, or the mismanagement of his employer. Able and willing to earn a subsistence, he has sunk to the lowest deep of poverty and misery. To any who doubt that many such cases are found among the ordinary "tramps," I would only say that the master of our union (where daring the past year 2,226 tramps have taken refuge) told me only this week that a con- siderable proportion of the casuals received during the past six months have been young men, who would be glad to work if they could get a job. I myself have known cases of brave, uncomplaining heroism among these "tramps," which would be recognised as such by all who realise the nobility which can suffer the loss of all things and endure their fate without complaint. Such men have to herd with the " sturdy rogues," little changed since the days when the laws of Elizabeth sug- gested the stocks and pillory as the proper remedy for this ancient disease.
The last words of Mr. Albert Pell stand as a prominent truth. So far, "we are only touching the surface of things." The question is how to " strike at the origin of the vagrant." I believe that the only way to do this is to strike at the origin of private charity. It is alms-giving which is the origin of vagrancy as a profession.
While the world lasts we shall have unfortunates in search of work, who have to go where it can be found ; for instance, scores of Cornish miners, when the mines were stopped, walked the whole way to Yorkshire and Lancashire, where some found work at building the Leeds Infirmary, others on making the Ship Canal. These are the men who fear to beg ; they dare not risk being " run in," and it is these who apply for shelter at our casual wards. This class often walk to the next union on nothing but the 7 a.m. bread and skilly. It is the pro- fessional tramp, the vagabond, who begs ; and this trade is so good a one that he seldom or never stoops to the casual ward. His profession is idleness and begging ; and he goes not to the casual ward but to the lodging-house, with his 2s. 6d. to 5s. in his pocket. (N.B.—I am told that a walk round this town is worth, on an average, 3s. 6d. in pennies.) While begging thus thrives, tramping must be a delightful profession, especially in summer weather, and there are (I am told) some who collect enough in summer to enable them to live com- fortably through the winter.
The first question, then, is how to check this mistaken charity, and, as Mr. Albert Pell said, " to strike at the origin of the vagrant." The leading idea which inspires the Local Government Board (as expressed on Tuesday by the President) would, I am convinced, have the opposite effect. He advised all Boards of Guardians to carry out the strict letter of the law ; in fact, to make the casual ward a place of penal servi- tude. The terms are forty-eight hours' confinement in solitary cell, with worse than prison diet, and more than prison labour, for the simple crime of asking a legal shelter for the night. In common fairness, a legal shelter should be as humane as possible, with sufficient task-work to pay expenses. In many unions the casuals earn is. 2d. and receive about 5d. in food. The man who asks shelter does nothing to merit punishment, —the punishment should be for begging, not for lodging. The effect of Mr. Shaw-Lefevre's order would be simple enough. He would "create a desert and call it Peace." His policy would not lessen the number of tramps, but it would empty the casual wards, and in a few months we should receive a circular calling public attention to the great success of the recent policy of the Board. It would, however, be a hollow victory. The evil would remain as before, or worse. Many bonl-fide travellers would be induced to beg, who formerly accepted the somewhat hard terms of the national shelter. A far truer policy is sketched by Mr. Arnold White in the Spectator of June 15th, but he has omitted what many regard as the most important remedial measure. I refer to that mentioned by Mr. Whittaker in his address to the President, "That every vagrant on leaving the casual ward should have enough bread and cheese for a mid-day meal."
The writer and the Chairman of the Bridgwater Union attended the previous conference for the sole purpose of urging this point, their argument being as follows :—At present all casuals have a real and sufficient reason for begging, as the existing law affords them no sustenance from the morning to the evening of the day on which they are discharged. This fact gives them a valid excuse for an appeal to private charity. Their condition naturally excites sympathy, and the fact that they are without food is so strong an argument, that the trade of begging is often found to be more remunerative than honest labour. In fact, alms-giving is the very foundation and support of professional tramping. But if this valid excuse for begging were removed by the above proposal, and if it were once made clear to the public that such arrangements had been made, as to give not only lodging but sufficient food to all wayfarers who applied for State relief, a great number of persons who now give alms would then refuse. In fact, most people would be only too glad to know that they were justified in taking this course. When professional vagrants found that the doles of food and money, which are now the great incentives to tramping, were refused, they would soon realise that though they need not starve, they could no longer get an easy livelihood by begging. The heaviest possible blow would thus, we believe, be struck at the root of this social malady.
This proposal would by no means prevent the adoption of the " way-ticket " system. It would merely make the pro- vision of the mid-day meal general instead of special. Per-
haps the most important result of this plan would be, that Magistrates would then be able to enforce the law against begging. They now hesitate to do so, except when accom- panied with violence or intimidation, as they see that by the present arrangements, a casual must either beg or hunger ; but were all necessary provision made by the State, the law against begging might then be strictly enforced, and the public warned against alms-giving. In this way we should realise the wish of Mr. Albert Pell, and " strike at the very origin of the vagrant."—I am, Sir, &c.,
Previous page
