South Australia - Social Matters
- Children and Youths
- Dancing and Other Sins
- Domestic Servants
- Early Closing
- Marriage and Divorce
- Old Age Pensions, etc
- Village Settlements
- Card "Sharping"
- Horse Racing
- State Lotteries
Temperance and Allied Matters
- Alcoholism and Drunkenness
- Local Options
- Sunday Drinking
- Teetotalism and Prohibition
- Treatment of Inebriates
Adelaide - Asylums, Reformatories and Homes
Adelaide - Destitution
An Essay on Charity at Work in the 1880s
On Sunday morning miscellaneous food... was furnished to an eager crowd, who
pressed eagerly together and stretched from the eastern footpath of Twin Street
to the western, and some of whom waited thus packed for nearly an hour and
a half... The people nearly without an exception ill-dressed, dirty and ragged,
and the children bare-footed for the greater part.
(Register, 12 June 1884, page 5h)
In the 1880s "exceptional distress" prevailed in Adelaide and had the effect of "bringing once more to the fore the charity of all sorts"; the more affluent offered money and contributions of all kinds "as their mite towards alleviating the distress, furnishing thus a conclusive proof that Adelaide had only to know of deserving cases for help to come from willing hands." One such case was described by a charity worker:
The latch was turned by a poor little woman in a threadbare cotton dress and
shamefacedness as she asked us to come in. We sat down on two angular, decrepit
chairs with backs bent and legs shaky through age. She, suckling an old-faced
baby, thinly clad, entrusted her weight to a soap box, disguised by an ancient
canvas covering... During more than six years she has supported her family
by scrubbing and washing day and night...
Why does the law allow people to live - breathing a fetid atmosphere in such wretched houses in this "bright Australia'. I am quite prepared to hear some sleek well-fed member rise in his place in Parliament and say that these descriptions are exaggerated; but, more than that I am ready to prove that they are not...
Alderman Kither and His Charitable Work
The depression was at its peak in 1884 and the plight of the working class was to continue into the 1890s. With winter approaching the charitable organisations could not cope with the demand for food and clothing and so Alderman Kither of the Adelaide City Council set about remedying the situation by distributing free soup and bread from his premises in Rundle Street, commencing on 27 May 1884. At the first distribution thirty gallons of soup and forty loaves of bread "were carried off by eager and indigent and genuinely grateful applicants."
"As each applicant came he was closely scrutinised without being aware of it; but except in one case the absence of imposition and the presence of pressing poverty was attested by one of the missionaries [assisting Mr Kither]. There was no mere sentiment about the affair, and there was no attempt by distasteful sermonising to make the gift scarcely valued because of the necessity it entailed to listen to ancient and excellent maxims and fragmentary bits of religious advice. And, above all, there was no Bumbledom. The poor people were welcomed with a cheery greeting and a hearty hand shake; they were given their bread and soup; they were asked to come again so long as the need lasted; and - there was the end of it.
"The character of the utensils brought varied as the colours of the chameleon. There was a respectable billy-can and a demoralized old half-pannican which had been over the fire since some remote period in the far distant past. There was the war-scarred jug with handle amputated and lip completely gone; there were preserve jars, polished and unpolished, rough and smooth; there were great water ewers, damaged mostly, and homely porringers. In three or four cases a milk pail was brought, two or three needy families borrowing the nearest dairyman's most serviceable utensil.
"Nearly all displayed a lively gratitude to Mr Kither and the dispensers of his timely relief. Specially this is true of one poor old woman, with nose and chin in remarkably close acquaintanceship; owing to the teeth having long shifted to other quarters, and with clothes which seemed as if specially rent with grief at the demise of a former scarecrow master. This poor old lady let tear-globes cross the rather dilapidated bridge of her withered nose, and so reach her chin, as she said huskily... ""Oh, you dunno how I thanks you. When I got that ticket I was wond'rin' what I should ha' today for a bit o' dinner. I had nawthin' in the house."" This distribution will be continued every day between noon and two o'clock, Sundays excepted."
On Wednesday the bread was supplied as a gift by Messrs A. and W.D. Thomas, bakers, and a continued supply from other bakers was assured for the rest of the week. Within a few weeks destitute people were flocking into the city from the suburbs and on 11 June 1884 "195 families were relieved" including "genuinely needy persons" from Thebarton, Bowden and Hindmarsh and as a consequence "the supply was very much taxed."
Food Distribution in Twin Street
By this time the conduct of the relief campaign was too much for Mr Kither and his small band of helpers and so a committee was formed at the end of May 1884 under the auspices of Mr G.C. Knight of D.& J. Fowler Ltd and a room in Trim Street close to Mr Kither's butcher shop was rented for the purpose of assisting in the distribution of the free food.
"This committee disbanded on 9 August 1884 when the last of the general distribution of food to all and firewood and clothing to the especially needy was witnessed on Saturday... The work occupied from shortly before noon until nearly 4 o'clock and it was about 5 o'clock before the committee ceased from their self-imposed tasks. The distribution was made at the office in Twin Street.
"Here each applicant, having been questioned as explained below was supplied - with particular reference to the Sunday dinner - with bread, tea and sugar, a little joint of meat... and, besides delicacies in case of sickness, a small bag of potatoes. Thus burdened they were checked out at the side entrance and passed on to the soup kitchen...
"It had been announced that the distribution would begin at noon and half an hour before some of the poor folk had gathered. Their numbers swelled gradually until about half-past 12 o'clock the space in front of the office was thronged by a motley crowd of all sizes and ages, and in varying stages of misery, and raggedness, and dirt... The pressing they kept up was so severe that three of the female applicants - poor, emaciated, perpetually sorrow-laden creatures - fainted through the excessive exertion necessary to enable them to hold up at all. Some of them had to wait fully three hours thus hemmed in, and whilst they waited the rain poured down persistently, doubtless wetting the worst-clad through and through..."
This evocative report continues with derogatory comments on the condition of destitute women and is a sad reflection upon the male conception of the place of females in colonial society. This latter-day male chauvinist goes on to describe these unfortunate ladies and offers no comment on the appearance of their male counterparts.
"Several women had dirt fairly engrained in their hands and arms and faces - actually soaked in like grated nutmeg on the surface of a tapioca pudding! ... Some of the towels and other scarcely describable rags which they brought to wrap up the gifts in were disgusting in their dirtiness. A few of the children, too, who brought them were so filthy as to their hands that (according to a facetious committeeman) they might tarnish charcoal if they touched it. Their eyes were fringed with dirt, and the head of one boy was so thickly spread with it as to suggest the idea that his hair grew out of it like grass through a top dressing of manure."
Our reporter with, no doubt, a full stomach and fresh from a morning tub proceeds on his rampage against the destitute people of the city and suburbs - "Surely the poor need some trumpet-toned, big-brained, great-hearted man, whom they will hear, to preach to them the gospel of cleanliness; to tell them that dirt and disease are father and son, and that they are very partial to and rarely absent from each other; that one dirty family may infect a whole neighbourhood - ay, and in times of epidemic decimate perhaps half a city.
"There are, of course, scores of cleanly poor, wrapped up in threadbare clothes, but neat and tidy. The homes of these people are, but for their bareness, pleasant to look upon." He proceeds with his mockery - "The deal table shines, and you could almost see to comb your hair by looking at the brass door knob. But this is not true of half of them. The rest, now they are fed, should be led out by one by one into the market place and scrubbed, the majority looking on for the good the example would do them, while the minority were smarting under the friction.
"The committee have found that the direst poverty is accompanied by the greatest amount of foulness. Where poor people are clean it has not been so bad to raise them. Where, rarely through necessity, they eat and sleep in the same clothes, day after day and night after night, never removing their garments from week's beginning to week's end, it is next to an impossibility to help them."
At this juncture our reporter injects a lighter vein to his narrative - "To prevent a repetition of the pocket-picking which has been detected thrice on similar occasions, the Commissioner of Police sent a detective and constable and as these kept back the crowd with official zeal, you would occasionally hear some bold pauper make facetious comments. These would be renewed when a sadly crushed old woman, unable to bear the pressure longer, would viciously elbow those close to her, and tell them not to crowd their betters...
"Then the elbow mania would spread, and the whole crowd would sway to and fro in bad temper. At length some joker would launch forth with a witty sally, and turn the tide of wrath in this sea of ragged humanity would show itself by a ripple of merry laughter passing rapidly over it. The crowd was a curious study!... At tables near the doors were posted Mr Scott, JP, Miss Spence, Mr R. Hay, Mr T Rhodes, Councillor Green and Mr Sowden. They were furnished with lists containing these headings: - Name, nation, how long in the colony, number of children, how many at day school, at Sunday school and at work, religion, occupation, and general remarks as to circumstances - if husband out of work, and if so how long and why..."
"The people answered readily and ingenuously, except in a very few cases, and the sum of their communications will form most interesting reading... There were on Saturday 900 applicants supplied with food... About two-thirds of the applicants live in the city; Brompton furnishes the next largest number; Lower North Adelaide and Bowden and Hindmarsh are about equal; Parkside and Kensington and Norwood come next... Thebarton is almost as prominent, and the least so are in the order of their naming - Goodwood, Hackney, Prospect, Walkerville, Eastwood, Maylands, Unley and the Grange...
"According to my estimate fully 75 per cent of the children who are old enough attend day school, and about 50 per cent go to Sunday school. There would be a greater proportion according to the parents if their little ones had clothes fit to wear. The Irish show as well as any other nationality in this calculation..."
"Seventy per cent of the [destitute] were Irish; most of them Catholics... There was not one Chinaman and not a single Jew... I notice... that amongst the committee helpers no lady or gentleman of the Catholic Church appeared at any time. The other denominations were fairly represented, members of the Jewish Church being praiseworthily energetic."
And so this worthy cause closed down its operations on account of the fact that "the prospect [of jobs] generally was brightening... To the generosity of Mr Kither... no praise could be too high. Such generosity the committee could not hope to sufficiently recognise, but so noble-minded a man would assuredly have his reward... Hundreds of people who otherwise would this winter have had to half-starve and shiver in destitute homes, and some who but for this movement would have died, had reason to be thankful for the timely aid..." rendered with the backing and support of the Register newspaper.
Suburban Relief Funds
Twelve months later the destitution still persisted in some quarters and in a charitable gesture the Advertiser conducted a poor relief fund managed by suburban committees and, in August 1885, Mr E.J. Ronald of the Thebarton committee reported that up to 17 August forty cases had been relieved in the district at a cost of about £25. A soup kitchen was established at Hindmarsh to assist in the amelioration of destitution prevailing in the area; a short history of its foundation was given by a reporter following an interview with its founder, Mr W. Shearing:
About two months ago, he said, some cases of distress in the neighbourhood came to his notice, upon which he interviewed the missionary of the town, Mr Harkness, with a view to establishing a soup kitchen. That gentleman disapproved of the idea. Mr Shearing then started one himself. Mr Oxenham kindly agreed to supply the meat and Mr J. Longman volunteered to forward a certain quantity of bread weekly as long as the distress lasted. To avoid any sectarian feeling Mr Hunwick was asked to form one of the committee... "To what do you attribute the distress?', I asked Mr Shearing. And said he - "To scarcity of work in the neighbourhood. Some two years ago I employed ninety hands in my brickmaking establishment and at the present time I have not a third of that number, because the trade is so dull. I am only one among others.
There are other large works here at a standstill or nearly so. The extensive pottery works of Mr Marks are almost idle and Messrs Wright, Weeks & Co and the Brickmaking Company have reduced their staff considerably... We have not only to provide for people in our neighbourhood but we have to relieve people coming here from all parts of the country... It was our original intention to discontinue the soup kitchen at the end of the present month, but I do not see now when we are to leave it off,
Another organisation intent upon easing the plight of the poor and unemployed was the Sunday Brigade and its subsidiary the Breakfast Brigade "who energetically march through our streets early on Sunday mornings when most good Christians are asleep." They provided a free breakfast on the Lord's day and commenced operation in 1883 and, beginning with about 30 sittings, in 1886 they were providing in the vicinity of 150 each week. "From the byways and slums, half-naked, ragged and dirty, they come, and all are treated kindly, whatever their class or their creed."
As a remedial measure to the chronic lack of work the government employed men on relief works and by February 1886 1,080 men were engaged in various projects around the State whereas in the previous year at the same time only 600 occupied such positions. One location was at Marree where the men worked on railway construction; in May 1886 a tragedy occurred when five men were killed and in editorial comment in the Register it is said that the government:
Had the inhumanity to demand from the relatives... payment of the costs incurred in burying [two of] those unfortunate men. This action is without parallel in meanness and audacity... We have no hesitation in saying that this mean haggling over corpses is a disgrace to the government.
Misery and depression continued into the 1890s while the emerging Labor movement sought political power and pointed to impending class conflicts. The following remarks made by a parliamentarian (G.W. Cotton), sympathetic to the cause of the working-class, and two members of that class with diverse opinions as to the road to be followed are, perhaps, a suitable close to this essay:
Some of us think we see the dawn of a Christian socialism, when the strong in brain and heavy in purse shall need no goading to induce them to share their superior endowments with their weaker brethren...
Alas! in these days an employer, with his almighty weapons of capital, and the help of "democratic" Government (save the mark), dare do anything, even from starving men to death on the "freedom of contract" racket, to throwing them into prison for demanding their rights... I believe, with Lord Lytton, that "The people, like the air, is rarely heard, save when it speaks in thunder."
Unions have bin formed... for the purposes of securing the rites of the wage earners, but reely to giv kumfortable billets to men who prefer to poak their noses into other peeple's bisnes, to doin an onest day's work... Fellow workers bewair; unionism has already gone 2 far and if pushed much further will kill the guse that lays the golden eg.
Destitute AsylumAlso see Adelaide - Asylums, Reformatories and Homes
A proposed refuge for the destitute is discussed in the Observer,
12 April 1845, page 5b. Also see
8 March 1855, page 3d,
10 March 1855, page 3c.
The Destitute Asylum is discussed in the Observer,
24 March 1860, page 6c,
2 January 1864, page 4g,
2 December 1865, page 2c (supp.),
14 April 1866, page 6b,
16 March 1864, page 2b,
2 October 1865, page 2e,
7 October 1865, page 4f,
21 November 1865, page 2c,
9 April 1866, page 2f,
13 June 1867, page 2c,
26 February 1868, page 2d,
21 March 1868, page 2e,
16 July 1868, page 3h.
Also see Express,
22 October 1867, page 2b,
13 July 1868, page 2a,
18 July 1868, page 9a.
The asylum is described in the Register,
3 March 1862, page 2e; also see
22 and 28 March 1862, pages 2e and 2e,
31 December 1863, page 2h.
Entertainment for the inmates is discussed in the Express,
30 August 1871, page 2e.
"Outdoor Destitutes" is in the Express,
2 August 1875, page 3d; also see
24 November 1877, page 4g,
24 September 1878, page 3a,
23 October 1878, page 2d,
27 December 1878, page 2e,
17 August 1883, page 2g,
5 February 1886, page 4a,
2 January 1892, page 3d,
19 May 1893, page 3e,
6 January 1894, page 3f,
21 July 1894, page 4e.
"The Asylum Picnic" is in the Observer,
16 February 1884, page 41a.
"Outdoor Relief at the Destitute Asylum" is in the Chronicle,
6 February 1886, page 22d.
A "treat" for the inmates is discussed in the Register,
17 February 1891, page 5d; also see
8 July 1904, page 5b.
The life stories of a few inmates are in the Observer,
23 January 1892, page 42b,
12 March 1892, page 42a,
3 August 1895, page 33a.
Also see Adelaide - Destitution
Feature articles are in the Advertiser,
19 and 24 May 1893, pages 6d and 7g; also see
12 June 1893, page 3h,
14 July 1894, page 41a,
2 and 16 January 1897, pages 16c and 22b,
11 January 1897, page 7c,
13 May 1898, page 6e for "a visit of inspection"; also see
31 December 1897, pages 2e-3f.
A "Chaplain's Tea" at the asylum is reported in the Register,
31 December 1898, page 4h.
"Treat at the Destitute Asylum" is in the Register,
28 September 1899, page 6h.
"In the Destitute Asylum" is in the Observer,
28 October 1899, page 34c; also see
12, 19 and 26 November 1898, pages 9a, 8a and 8a,
3 October 1908, page 3b,
2 February 1903, page 4f,
4 June 1904, page 1d.
"Christmas Cheer for the Aged Poor" is in the Register,
23 December 1908, page 4h.
A visit to the Destitute Asylum is reported in the Register,
4 August 1902, page 6h.
An obituary of T.H. Atkinson, Chairman of the Destitute Board, is in the Register,
7 July 1904, page 4i.
"Bread for the Destitute [Asylum]" is in the Register,
4 June 1907, page 8e.
Information on the asylum is in the Register,
24 and 27 July 1907, pages 6e and 5e,
20 and 27 September 1907, pages 4h and 9f.
"Among the Poor" is in the Register,
6 June 1908, page 8h.
The delivery of adulterated milk to the asylum is reported upon in the Register,
28 July 1908, page 4h.
"Among the Old Folk" is in the Observer,
5 November 1910, page 53c.
A visit by the Governor is reported in the Advertiser on
2 June 1910, page 11d; also see
4 August 1910, page 7d.
Its demolition is reported in the Advertiser,
22 April 1925, page 13e.
The Destitute Board report is reproduced in the Register,
4 November 1910, page 11a.
Information on the asylum is in the Register,
25 September 1911, page 6i.
The need for a new asylum is discussed in the Register,
27 January 1912, page 12f.
"A Seasonable Entertainment" is in the Register,
18 December 1912, page 14g.
A history of the Destitute Asylum is in Register,
20 May 1914, page 13b,
7 April 1928, page 3a.
The closure of the asylum is reported in the Register,
2 February 1917, page 4i.
Photographs are in the Observer,
10 March 1917, page 26.
Destitute BoardInformation on the Destitutes' Board is in the Observer,
9 February 1856, page 6g,
23 August 1856, page 6h,
6 September 1856, page 6d,
4 October 1856, page 5g,
11 April 1857, page 6c,
2, 4 and 5 September 1856, pages 2c, 3d and 3d,
3 October 1856, page 2c,
1 and 7 April 1857, pages 2b and 2e.
"The New Destitute Board" is in the Register,
29 January 1867, page 2h; also see
22 August 1868, page 2b.
"Destitute Board Regulations" is in the Chronicle,
24 May 1873, page 11d.
"The Report of the Destitute Board" is in the Register,
24 March 1876, page 4e,
17 August 1877, page 4d,
8 March 1878, page 4e,
6 September 1878, page 4f,
14 March 1879, page 4f,
5 September 1879, page 4f,
19 March 1880, page 4d,
18 and 28 March 1881, pages 4f and 4e,
26 October 1881, page 4f,
4 August 1882, page 4e,
12 October 1883, page 4d,
9 January 1885, page 4f,
18 September 1885, page 4e,
21 and 26 October 1885, pages 4d-5a-7b and 6b,
20 August 1886, page 4e,
19 August 1887, page 4h,
7 September 1888, page 4f,
13 and 14 December 1888, pages 5b and 5c,
25 August 1889, page 4f,
20 October 1905, page 3f.
"The Destitute Act Commission" is in the Register,
15 January 1884, pages 4f-7a,
10 and 29 March 1884, pages 4f and 7e,
26 and 29 April 1884, pages 4f-6b and 6f,
3, 10, 17, 24 and 31 May 1884, pages 4g-6f, 4d-7e, 5a-6e, 5h and 6h,
7 and 14 June 1884, pages 4e-7a and 1e (supp.),
14 and 30 August 1884, pages 7f and 7f,
6 and 27 September 1884, pages 7f and 2d (supp.),
4 and 11 October 1884, pages 1h (supp.) and 7b,
8, 24 and 29 November 1884, pages 1f (supp.), 7d and 1e (supp.),
12 March 1885, page 6e.
"The Commission and the Destitute Department" is in the Observer,
3 May 1884, page 24e.
A meeting of the commission is reported on 17 May 1884, page
"The Destitute Department and Its Work" is in the Register,
27 September 1884, page 4f.
"The Destitute Board on Its Defence" is in the Register,
20 March 1886, pages 5a-6h.
"The Destitute Board and Children's Labour" is in the Advertiser,
28 July 1886, page 7c,
2 August 1886, page 7a.
The resignation of the Destitute Board is reported in the Register,
29 October 1886, pages 4g-5b,
4 November 1886, page 4e,
30 October 1886, page 31d.
"The Destitute Board and Children's Labour" is in the Advertiser,
28 July 1886, page 7c,
2 August 1886, page 7a.
"The Destitute Department" is in the Register,
15 September 1893, page 4f,
21 September 1894, page 4f.
"The Destitute Poor Report" is in the Register,
30 August 1895, page 4f; also see
30 September 1896, page 5a,
19 December 1913, page 3g.
An obituary of Arthur Lindsay, Chairman of the Destitute Board is in the Observer,
26 June 1909, page 41c.
"Fatherless and Widows - State System of Relief" is in the Register,
30 September 1911, page 17e,
8, 10, 20 and 21 October 1911, pages 3d, 9g, 10a and 5d.
"Helping the Destitute" is in the Register,
24 December 1914, page 7f.
Charity - MiscellanyA history of charity work in South Australia is in the Register,
31 December 1890, page 6b.
"Charity" is in the Register,
3 July 1857, page 2e,
11 July 1857, page 5d,
6 August 1859, page 6f; also see
8 and 29 March 1862, pages 6d and 6d,
5 April 1862, page 6c,
5 July 1862, page 5g,
13 September 1862, page 1d (supp.),
27 February 1864, page 4f,
15 June 1867, page 4e (asylum described),
22 August 1874, page 13d,
27 February 1875, page 13c,
8 February 1879, page 21d.
"Female Destitution" is in the Observer,
5 July 1856, page 1b (supp.),
"The Destitute Poor" on
9 August 1856, page 6b.
"Relief of Distress" is in the Observer,
3 and 10 April 1858, pages 1b (supp.) and 1e (supp.).
The formation of a Benevolent Society is reported in the Observer,
14 and 21 August 1858, pages 1d (supp.) and 3e,
"Benevolence" appears on
8 January 1859, page 1f (supp.).
Information on the Benevolent and Strangers Friend Society is in the Express,
3 August 1869, page 3b.
"The Charitable Institutions of South Australia" is in the Observer,
16 June 1860, page 6d; also see
4 August 1860, page 5d and
28 December 1861, page 6b,
11 January 1862, page 6c,
7 November 1868, page 13b,
2 and 7 August 1860, pages 2g and 3b.
"Charitable Institutions" is in the Chronicle,
23 June 1866, page 2d,
10 June 1882, page 5e.
"The Destitute Poor" is in the Observer,
28 March 1868, page 12c.
"Charitable Institutions in 1867" is in the Register,
4 November 1868, page 2d.
"Destitution in 1869" is in the Register,
6 April 1870, page 4e.
"Can the Pauper Taint be Eradicated?" is in the Observer,
8 May 1869, page 12d,
"The Cost of Destitution" on
26 June 1869, page 3a,
25 June 1869, page 2e.
"Local Government and Destitution" is discussed in the Register,
29 July 1869, page 2e.
"The Progress of Destitution" is in the Register,
28 April 1869, page 2c.
"The Destitute Poor" is in the Register,
3 September 1869, page 2e (supp.).
"Destitution in 1869" is in the Observer,
9 April 1870, page 11a; also see
1 October 1870, page 5a,
25 March 1871, page 13c,
"Destitution in SA" on
28 August 1875, page 3a,
14 August 1875, page 4e.
"State Charity in SA" is in the Observer,
1 April 1871, page 13b,
3 June 1871, page 3a,
"The Public Charities Bill" on
17 July 1875, page 13f.
"Relief to the Destitute" is in the Register,
18 March 1872, page 4f,
"Our Destitute Poor" on
9 September 1872, page 4e,
"The Destitute Bill" on
5 November 1872, page 4e.
"Railway Passes for the Destitute" is in the Observer,
22 April 1876, page 7e.
"An Extraordinary Case [of Destitution]" is in the Register,
22 February 1878, page 6d.
"State Charity" is in the Chronicle,
1 June 1878, page 5c.
A series of weekly articles on "Destitution" commence in the Observer,
24 January 1880, page 154c.
"The Destitute Persons Bill" is in the Register,
18 August 1881, page 4e,
3 October 1881, page 4f.
"Local Benevolence" is in the Express,
12 October 1881, page 3b.
"Population and Pauperism" is in the Register,
13 October 1881, page 4d.
"Destitute Persons" is in the Register,
11, 20, 22 and 28 February 1882, pages 4e, 6b, 6c and 4g.
Editorials on charitable institutions are in the Advertiser,
22 April 1882, page 4e,
31 May 1882, page 4c,
26 October 1882, page 4e.
"Remedies for Pauperism and Vice" is in the Register,
20 May 1882, page 4e.
"Decentralization of the Destitute Organisation" is in the Observer,
19 August 1882, page 24c.
"Two Classes of Destitution" is in the Register,
3 December 1883, page 4d.
"Compulsory Providence' is in the Express,
29 May 1884, page 3c,
"The Functions of Charity" is in the Register,
31 May 1884, page 4e,
25 and 28 June 1884, pages 4e-5g and 7b,
8 and 14 July 1884, pages 5g and 7d,
27 January 1885, page 4f,
17 November 1885, page 6g,
19 January 1886, page 4e.
"Indiscriminate Charity" is in the Express,
9 July 1884, page 6c.
"Charity Organization" is in the Register,
15 and 31 May 1884, pages 5a and 4e,
19 January 1886, page 4f.
"Charity Saturday and Sunday" is in the Chronicle,
23 May 1885, page 5e.
"The New Destitute Bill" is in the Register,
22 December 1886, page 7f.
"The Poor of the State" is in the Register,
13 December 1888, page 4h,
15 December 1888, page 24e,
"Charity in SA" in the Register,
15 November 1890, page 6f.
An Australasian conference on charity is reported upon on
31 December 1890, page 6b; also see
22 June 1897, page 5h.
The first annual general meeting of the Strangers' Friend and Charity Organisation Society is reported in the Register,
2 October 1885, pages 4g-6f,
1 October 1885, page 5f; also see
23 December 1885, page 4c,
18 August 1885, pages 4f-6e,
22 December 1885, page 6f,
21 and 28 September 1886, pages 7c and 7g,
25 February 1899, page 9a.
"The Charity Organization Society" is in the Register,
16 May 1885, page 3f,
18 May 1886, page 7c,
29 June 1886, page 7f,
20 July 1886, page 5e,
11 December 1886, page 5a,
15 February 1887, page 4h,
2 and 12 March 1887, pages 5a-7h and 5a-6f,
5 May 1887, page 5c.
"The Guardians of the Poor"is in the Register,
27 December 1888, page 4g.
"Charity and Pauperism" is in the Register,
27 February 1889, page 4e,
2 March 1889, page 25b.
"The Government and the Poor" is in the Register,
9 and 29 August 1890, pages 7d and 4e.
"Charity in South Australia" is in the Register,
15 November 1890, page 6f,
22 November 1890, page 31c.
"Charitable Work" is in the Register,
23 April 1891, page 4f.
"The Battle With Poverty" is in the Register,
12 May 1891, page 5a.
"Our Helpless and Hopeless Poor" is in the Register,
2 and 7 September 1891, pages 5g and 7d.
"The Destitute Poor" is in the Register,
4 September 1891, page 4f,
5 September 1891, page 25d.
"Poverty and Charity" is in the Register,
3 and 4 March 1892, pages 4g and 5c.
"The Destitute Blind" is in the Register,
13 September 1892, page 4g.
"What Shall We Do With Our Beggars?" is in the Register,
22 October 1892, page 4h.
Charitable societies are discussed in the Observer,
29 October 1892, page 25d.
"Winter and the Poor" is in the Register,
16 June 1893, page 4g,
"Remedy for Bad Times" on
16 and 26 June 1893, pages 3e and 6h.
"Helping the Poor" is in the Register,
11 April 1894, page 4e,
"Relief of the Poor" on
1 June 1894, page 4e.
"Public and Private Benevolence" is in the Register,
19 and 27 July 1895, pages 4f and 4e.
"A Hint for Social Puritans" is in the Observer,
7 March 1896, page 25d.
"Almsgiving and Charity" is in the Register,
1 March 1897, page 4e.
"The Ever-Present Poor" is in the Register,
24 September 1897, pages 4g-5a.
"How Can the Aged Poor be Helped" is in the Register on
6 and 7 December 1897, pages 4f and 4f,
"Wanted - A Beggar Resisting Association" on
12 December 1898, page 4e.
"Lazy Loafers and Abuses of Charity" is in the Register,
5 August 1898, page 4d.
"The Aged-Poor Commission" is in the Register,
23 November 1898, page 4e.
"Wanted - A Beggar-Resisting Association" is in the Register,
12 December 1898, page 4e.
"Abuses of Giving" is in the Register,
3 August 1899, page 4e.
"The Aged Poor" is in the Register,
9 August 1899, page 4e.
"What South Australians Spend in Charity" is in the Register,
14 August 1899, page 5h.
"The Poor and the Friendless" is in the Register,
28 August 1899, page 4d.
"Our Aged Poor" is in the Weekly Herald,
7 May 1898, page 6a,
3 November 1900, page 5a,
"The Aged Poor" is in the Observer,
12 August 1899, page 14b,
"Helping the Helpless" on
19 August 1899, page 46a,
'The Poor and the Friendless" on
2 September 1899, page 41d.
"Relief of the Aged Poor" is in the Advertiser,
26 November 1898, page 9a,
20 July 1899, page 4e,
"The Destitute Poor" on
25 August 1899, page 4f,
"Practical Philanthropy" on
18 August 1900, page 6d,
"The Trend of Modern Charity" on
8 August 1903, page 6d.
"Our Institution and Charities" is in the Weekly Herald,
8 April 1899, page 9a.
"Helping the Helpless" is in the Observer,
19 August 1899, page 46a,
"The Poor and the Friendless" on
2 September 1899, page 41d.
An editorial on Social Service is in the Register, 3 April 1903, page 4d:
The Laws of England were marked by more than Draconian severity and were framed notoriously in the interest of the wealthy classes. The poor knew that whoever else was against them their most unrelenting enemy was the law... [Today] if Christianity is true it must also be a social thing; it must touch human intercourse and relations at every point, Expressing itself in social institutions and bringing home to its votaries the vital truth - "I am my brother's keeper"... The doctrine of laissez faire provided only for the survival of the strongest. But there is a more tender and beautiful philosophy requiring acceptance, which teaches that this world does not exist for the strong only... Many good omens shine upon us and give courage to all workers for the common cause.
21 August 1903, page 4c.
"The Charity Problem" is in the Register,
5 November 1903, page 4d.
"The Blind Beggar - How the Public Treat Him" is in the Advertiser,
4 January 1904, page 11b.
"How the Poor Are Relieved" is in the Register,
22 March 1904, page 4h,
26 March 1904, page 41c.
"Is Charity Overdone?" is in the Register,
26 August 1904, page 4c.
"A Blessing to the Poor - The Wyatt Benevolent Fund" is in the Register,
27 October 1904, page 6f.
Also see Place Names - Kurralta Park
"The Sick and the Poor - Their Christmas Prospects" is in the Express,
23 December 1904, page 4f.
"Charity With Injustice" is in The Herald,
2 June 1906, page 1a.
"A Study of Poverty - The Problem of the Poor" is in the Register,
23 and 24 April 1906, pages 8g and 6c; also see
24 May 1906, pages 4e-6f.
"State and Private Charity" is in the Register,
27 June 1906, page 4c.
"Systematic Poor Relief" is in the Register,
12 July 1906, page 7c.
"Dependants and Defectives" is in the Register,
20 July 1906, page 4c.
"The Aged Poor - Compelled to Live Apart" is in the Register,
3 August 1906, page 9a; also see
2 November 1906, page 4h.
"Almsgiving and Charity" is in the Register,
2 May 1907, page 4c.
"The Aged Poor Problem" is in the Register,
22 May 1907, page 6e.
A Destitute Department's annual report is in the Register,
20 September 1907, page 8b.
"The Helpless Poor" is in the Register,
28 March 1908, page 8d.
"Unemployment" is in the Register, 16 October 1908, page 4d:
Hunger and wretchedness tend to make strong men fierce and unreasonable; but, if the law-defying methods of suffragettes to obtain a Parliamentary vote are in any sense justified, who will dare to denounce workless men for forcibly drawing attention to their terrible necessities.
"Racing Clubs and Charities" is in the Register,
17 July 1909, page 8f.
"Relief of the Poor" is in the Register,
26 August 1910, page 4d.
"Roman Catholic Charity - Facts and Figures" is in the Register,
23 January 1911, page 10.
"State Benevolence" is in the Register,
15 December 1911, page 12d-f.
"Unwise Charity" is in the Register,
2 June 1911, page 6b,
"Modern Charity" on
17 April 1912, page 6c,
"Relieving the Poor" on
24 April 1912, page 6e.
Information on the Benevolence and Strangers' Society" is in the Register,
20 May 1912, page 9e.
A lecture on laws relating to poor relief is reproduced in the Register,
7 September 1912, page 17c.
"The State and the Poor" is in the Advertiser,
13 December 1912, page 14f.
"Is There too Much Begging" is in the Register,
28 May 1921, page 6e,
"The Ethics of Charity" on
31 May 1924, page 8g.
A proposal to give assistance to "needy mothers" is discussed in the Advertiser,
30 August 1923, page 12c,
1 September 1923, page 22b,
3 October 1923, page 8g.
"Caring for the Poor" is in the Advertiser,
28 October 1926, page 8g,
"The Charity Carnival" on
15 August 1927, page 14a,
"Police Charity Carnival" on
7 November 1927, page 12e.
"Making Buttons for Adelaide on Button Days" is in The Mail,
6 July 1935, page 2.
"Bringing Christmas to the Needy" is in The Mail,
14 December 1935, page 12d.