porated as the responsible government and support of the House. The initiative was taken by the Church Club of the city of New York.

At the last report the association owned three lots at the foot of East Seventy-sixth street, near the river, and leased a strip of land on the river. Its material equipment included a swimming pool; a park with swings, benches and pavilion; a small cinder running track; a three-story frame building, with rooms for residents, parlors, reading room, baths, billiard and locker rooms; a brick gymnasium building, well equipped; a three-story brick building, with reading room, manager's room, and halls for classes, clubs and entertainments.

The report declares the function of the Settlement to be "to extend knowledge on all subjects which promote the welfare of society, and to aid in developing all the civic virtues-manliness, self-reliance, thrift, helpfulness, the love of man, of country, and of God."

To this work Bishop H. C. Potter has given the following strong endorsement in a letter in the Evening Post, November, 1896: "When Dr. Chalmers was leaving a great missionary meeting in Glasgow, when the whole air had been charged with impassioned speech and high resolve, an elderly woman, meeting him at the door, said: 'Is it a' done, sir?' 'Na, na, woman,' was his answer; 'it's a' said and now it remains to be done.'"'

"We have just emerged from a period of much strenuous speech and of ardent exhortation to citizens to awake to the rescue of the republic.

But

how? Is anybody sanguine enough to imagine that a presidential election has revolutionized the constituencies that make up our great political parties, or reconstructed the hundreds of thousands of people in our great cities who are still largely uninformed as to questions fundamental to our wellbeing? The campaign of education' in which we have so many of us been rejoicing has, after all, in too many instances but skimmed the surface. Who is to continue it, and how? I do not hesitate to say that, for the most difficult and yet imperative work, we have as yet discovered no agency that, in almost every respect, is at all comparable with the College or University Settlement. This is, verily, work among the foundations; and it is being done by men and women whose character, spirit, and methods deserve the highest honor and are worthy of the widest imitation. If any human

agency is to reach, persuade, and enlighten the multitudes in our great cities with whom, finally, so largely rests the choice of our rulers, the stability of the republic, and the progress of our civilization, I am increasingly persuaded that it is that which has shown itself to be inspired by a spirit so heroic and distinguished, by methods so singularly wise and so exceptionally successful.”

The apparent policy and tendency of this Settlement is "to keep all the social and educational work of the House as concentrated as possible." One finds here clubs for persons of various ages, Kindergarten, Penny Provident Fund Bank, a Sunday School and Children's Choir, and a Crêche. The

Fellowship-Citizenship Association is composed of men and women from 19 to 70 years of age. It listens to lectures and the membership join in free discussions. The Men's School Extension Class gives instruction to men who are preparing for city civil service examinations. There is a class in economics and sociology taught by a gentleman from Columbia University, and started under the advice of Professor F. H. Giddings. The Webster Free Circulating Library, under the supervision of the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York, is the only library on the East Side between Sixtieth street and One Hundred and Tenth street, with a population of more than 200,000.

An interesting organization, natural to the vicinity of the river, is the life-saving corps, which has already rescued several persons from drowning in the swift tides.

THE RIVERSIDE ASSOCIATION was organized in the winter of 1892, for the purpose of assisting the poor to better conditions. It provides baths, library and reading room, kindergarten, boys' department, women's and girls' department, and Penny Provident Fund. The House is always open. The HeadWorker is Mr. John F. Harrold.

The Girls' Club is provided with rooms where the members can meet in the evenings. Classes are organized to teach whatever can be useful to working girls. Social entertainments are enjoyed at frequent intervals. Trained teachers come from Barnard, the Teachers' College and Berkeley Lyceum. They feel that it does not so much matter is

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taught, whether cooking, sewing, gymnastics or poetry, as it does what the teacher stands for, to the busy girls whose outlook she may be, an outlook into a certain world, where people are aiming at honorable and beautiful things."

BOYS' CLUBS.-The Riverside Association has adopted what is called the group system. The underlying principle of this system is personal contact with each individual boy, so that each boy's disposition, capabilities, and character may be carefully studied and the right influences brought to develop that which is best in the boy, and to eradicate evil tendencies. The workers are carefully selected, with a view to securing only men and women of strong character and those who are possessed of patience and tact. Not over five boys are assigned to each worker, and no more boys are received into the club than competent workers can be found to supervise. Each club consists of four managers and of not to exceed twenty boys. Each club has a distinctive name, colors and yell. The boys in each club are required to meet with the managers one night a week; they must attend one night a week in the gymnasium; and they may attend a second night. The reading room of the Association library is open to the boys on nights when they are not otherwise employed."

At the club meetings the managers teach the boys the simple rules of parliamentary practice, and after reading, speeches and a yell, the boys go to the evening work. They are taught chair-seat caning, basket-weaving, Venetian metal work, leather

work, the making of rope mats, and fret-sawing. A half hour of fun follows the hour of work.

The object is rather to make a deep impression on a few boys than to merely entertain a great crowd. In a mob the worst boys dominate and the personality of the teacher is lost. In a small group the manager's character becomes the controlling influence, and the rough lad is awed and civilized. they grow older they will be taught in debating clubs the functions of government and the duties of citizenship.

As

THE CHURCH SETTLEMENT HOUSE; 329 East Eighty-fourth Street, New York City; founded 1894. Miss Marian L. Gurney, Director. The population of the district is about 150,000, German, Irish, with a sprinkling of French and Italians. Many are of the Jewish faith. Most of the people earn fairly good wages. "The Settlement has never insulted the sturdy independence of its neighbors by offering them charity." Assistance of an employment bureau is given, and an organization of neighborhood women administers such relief as may be necessary. "In beginning its work, the Settlement determined to try a two-fold experiment: (1) the establishing of the work on a self-supporting basis; (2) the presentation of the Gospel of Christ as the only satisfactory resolvent of the social problem. Now, at the end of its second year, it has succeeded in demonstrating the possibility of both undertakings. There are usually eight residents, and of these very few have been

able to contribute anything to the support of the

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