" The committee believes that the ministers and leaders of the many religious bodies in our city will find out the extreme needs of some persons of their congregations who will still hesitate to ask aid. It believes, too, that the congregations of all denominations will strive to provide through the ministers and leaders the means of relief for such persons ; that strong congregations will come to the aid of any weaker ones, whose resources are not equal to the demands upon them. The clergy of several denomi nations have already taken action to that end.
" In expressing the expectation that this will be done generally, the committee asks that cases of need due to the fire which may not be dealt with by the churches shall be referred to an appropriate charity or directly to the committee.
" One suggestion only is made in connection with reli gious bodies as sources of aid — that the persons aided be really known, that reasonable pains be taken to see that they are not being aided at the same time by others, in order that there may be the truest economy of energy and money. Such economy will allow relief, when given, to be more adequate.
" The committee will be glad to be of service in any possible way to the ministers and leaders of the religious bodies, whose part in the relief of unusual need and great distress is believed to be so valuable to the whole community." An inquiry was made by the executive committee as to the need of the establishment of a special agency for making loans to fire sufferers of larger amounts than were being made by the committee itself, which were under $200. Correspondence was had with workers in other cities, and the decision was reached that no new agency had better be established for larger loans. Balti more has an excellent chattel-loan association founded by philanthropic men, but strictly on business principles.
Thus the policy as to methods and agencies was adopted and carried out. The only modification was that the com mittee dealt directly with an increased number of cases. These were mostly applications for sums of a hundred dollars or more, or where uniformity in treatment was especially desirable. The executive committee gave hours to oversight of details. Through a system of frequent reports the committee had the addresses of all persons helped by the various agencies, and the amounts ex pended. Duplication was thus avoided and responsibility concentrated. An arrangement was made with a woman of refinement and experience for the use of her services, if desired, as visitor to women applicants. But no case arose in which she was needed, which apparently could not properly be referred to the charities, especially to the Charity Organization Society, whose agents are women, or be dealt with by a member of the executive committee or by its regular visitors. A few persons found fault with the committee, but the majority and the public press either spoke helpfully or said nothing. One or two
letters and published communications called for the pro vision of work, especially work for persons who had seen better days, but no suggestion was made by which bona fide employment could be created for fire sufferers, with out publicity, which could be considered by a public relief committee. The committee, while striving to avoid pub licity and unnecessary formalities in administration, was opposed to methods which would seem to recognize an aristocracy among fire sufferers, or an aristocracy of fire sufferers compared with respectable persons in need because of causes other than this particular fire, whose only source of relief, now or later, would be the usual charitable sources. In addition to the charitable agencies used, as already stated, the Visiting Nurse Association was employed for a while for nursing services rendered fami lies with illness due to the exposure of the fire. Also, the State Employment Bureau was requested to use tempo rarily several agents in trying by personal interviews with employers to get places for applicants to the bureau who had been burned out. A number of such persons asking of the committee only work, not relief, were visited after an interval by the committee's agents. Of two hundred, in round numbers, thirty could not be found, nearly a third were found to have secured work, more than a third re ported no change in their situation, four had left the city, five had been aided already with material relief, and only eight said that they then needed such aid.
If the first strategic point to be won was the adoption of a sound policy in methods of administration, the second point was the prevention of an unwise financial policy. Opinions differed as to what sources of money for relief were best. Citizens were ready to give ; other commu nities were sending offers of aid. But the mayor set tied the matter of outside aid by saying that Maryland people would and could look out for their own. A bill was soon introduced in the legislature, then in session, to appropriate $250,000 for relief in Baltimore, after pay ment of some $40,000 from it for the militia which had served at the fire. Opinions differed widely again as to whether any such large sum could be needed. But the mayor decided not to attempt to change the bill, especially as the expenditure was placed in the hands of the governor and a small special commission, and was made contingent only upon the need, and as the members of the commission were known to desire no unnecessary expenditure. For nearly six weeks after its organization the Citizens' Relief Committee did its work on money quietly borrowed, in an ticipation of action by the state ; every case of need known of and believed to be genuine was relieved; and in that time, in so doing, about $10,000 only was expended.