OBEDIENCE TO MUNICIPAL REGULATIONS RELATIVE TO HOUSING.

Fifteen years ago the board of health of Community C passed a sanitary ordinance which was approved and ratified by the council and signed by the burgess. The first section reads as follows:

The board of health of the borough of — hereby ordains all things dangerous to human life or health, all things that render the air or food, or water, or other drink unwholesome, all buildings or cellars or parts thereof that are overcrowded or not sufficiently ventilated, sewered, cleaned, or lighted are declared to be nuisances and to be illegal. Any person contributing to such nuisance shall be liable to pay the expense of its abatement and shall be deemed guilty of violation of this ordinance.

Cards specifying the number of persons allowed to occupy a house or a room were projected, but it is thought that none have been posted, at least during the past decade, during which the majority of the foreign population has arrived. The increase in the population of the borough that has occurred during the past five years has rendered the number of dwellings utterly inadequate in normal times.

Twenty to 30 men live in a single house. No attempt seems to have been made to remedy this condition, which, considering the habits of the people and the absolute impossibility of sufficient ventilation, is a serious menace to health.

The ordinance still stands on the books, and the board of health may at any time define the degree of overcrowding which constitutes a nuisance and enforce its decrees. There are, however, two or three obstacles in the way of such enforcement. In the first place, it would be bitterly opposed by property owners whose houses bring a higher rental because of the number of lodgers which the boarding boss is allowed to crowd into them. In some cases landlords are said to collect in good times an additional per capita rent of 50 cents or $1 per month for each lodger kept in excess of a fixed maximum number. Whether this practice prevails to any extent or not it is evident that houses rented to boarding groups pay much better than houses rented to families, most of the members being dependents. A second objection to the enforcement of this law is thought to lie in the fear on the part of the steel company that such a course would drive some of its labor force from the town and thus deprive it of the services now performed by immigrant employees. A third and valid cause for caution in the enforcement of the ordinance arises from the difficulty, as already suggested, which would be experienced in providing sufficient accommodations for the thousands of aliens who are employed in normal times. The gradual enforcement of the ordinance, however, after an adequate warning of some months, should not produce any evils comparable with those which would be remedied.

THE BOARDING-BOSS SYSTEM.

Most of the Slav and Macedonian aliens are males, the women and children constituting a very small portion of their numbers. Almost all of the women are married. A few families may be found occupying entire houses and sometimes two foreign families will live in one house, but these cases are few and are found chiefly among the Slovenians, Croatians, and Macedonians. Even when they occur, the family will usually be found to be taking boarders.

The almost universal method of living among the aliens is colloquially termed "the boarding-boss" system. It exists in two forms.

The most general form, the one existing among the Macedonians, Bulgarians, Roumanians, and some of the Servians, is operated as follows: A married or unmarried man who is termed the boardingboss" rents a house, and 16 or 20 of his countrymen live with him. The boarding boss pays the rent, supplies the house with light and heat, and has the washing done for the persons living in the house. In return for these services each boarder pays him a fixed sum each month, usually $3. If the boarding boss is married, his wife cleans the house and does the cooking and washing for all the persons in the house. If he is unmarried, he hires a woman to do this work and pays her usually $1 a month for each lodger. The coal and light cost him about $10 and the rent from $10 to $20 per month. The boarding boss also buys all the food for the house. At the end of the month the total cost is computed, and divided equally among the boarders, each one paying his share to the boardinghouse boss, who pays the various bills. The wife or cook receives her share free; if there are half-grown children, they count each as one-half an individual in figuring out the assessments. Smaller children are not considered.

Another system, which differs slightly and which is not so prevalent, is usually followed by the Servians, Croatians, and Slovenians. Under this plan the boarding boss furnishes heat, light, rooms, and bread and milk to the boarders. He also agrees to have their cooking and washing done. The boarders pay him an agreed sum, usually $4 per month. Moreover, each boarder buys his own food individually, in addition to the bread and milk furnished by the boarding boss. He brings it home and it is cooked by the wife or housekeeper of the boarding boss.

A third method of living is followed also. Under this plan the boarders pay an agreed sum, usually $7.50 or $8 per month, to the boarding boss for lodging, heat and light, washing, and two mealsbreakfast and supper each day. In addition to this the boarding boss supplies bread for the boarder's dinner pail, and agrees to cook the other food for the midday meal which the boarder himself buys and brings home. This arrangement is common among the Magyars and the Hungarian-Germans.

Boarding groups are less numerous among the Slovenians than among the Croatians or Servians, since the first-named race has been in the country long enough for a large number of families to be established. The Italian population consists almost exclusively of families, no large boarding groups being found here. Where boarders are kept their number is usually smaller than that of the children, and the family life is well maintained. The Italians and Slovenians, who are the longest settled of the southern races, have larger families than have any other races. In Italian families the lodgers usually pay $3 a month for lodging, washing, and cooking; they purchase their own food at a cost of from $8 to $12 a month. The boardinghouse boss is usually a married man, and works in the steel mills. Some are foremen and labor agents. In some cases unmarried women, and in others unmarried men, act as boarding bosses. In a number of cases men act as bosses and do the housework themselves.

The item "lodging," which costs almost universally $3 per month. means anything from one-half of a double bed in a room containing one or two other beds to the use of a whole bedroom where no other lodgers are kept. In good times in the most crowded houses it means a half of one bed during a part of each twenty-four hours, a man on the opposite shift having an alternating claim upon its use.

KIND AND QUANTITY OF FOOD CONSUMED.

Bread is the largest foodstuff in point of quantity consumed and. together with milk, forms the principal part of the alien's diet. Some foreigners use American bread, but the greater number buy from their own bakers loaves which are larger, heavier, and more solid than the American bread. Almost all of this kind of bread is furnished by a Macedonian bakery on the west side. Milk is delivered to the houses by American and foreign dairymen. Coffee and tea of American brands are largely consumed. Fresh meat is bought in limited quantities. The other foodstuffs used are rice, beans, potatoes, and onions. Sugar is liberally used in tea and coffee. All nationalities use beer, which is bought by the boarding boss in kegs or cases, and each man is allotted the equivalent of a bottle for his evening meal.

Under the prevailing boarding-house system described above it costs a single man from $7 to $15 per month for his board and lodging. It will be remembered that under the boarding-boss plan of living, each boarder usually pays the keeper of the house $3 a month for lodging and laundry. In addition to this each boarder pays his proportion of the aggregate amount of food consumed in the house. A typical monthly account of this kind for a boarding house of 20 Macedonian boarders is about as follows:

Groceries: Beans, potatoes, coffee, sugar, rice, and onions...
Milk..

Bread.....
Meat..

Total.....

Average per man..

Paid boarding boss...

Average expenses per man per month...

$25.00

6.00

35.00

15.00

81.00

4.05

3.00

7.05

This outlay, it is needless to point out, represents an extremely low standard of living, much below the average for the whole foreign population.

CLOTHING WORN.

The clothing used by immigrants from southeastern Europe is of low grade and is scanty in quantity. A great many of the aliens have heavily woven coats and vests of sheepskin and roughly woven underwear which they brought from their home countries. The clothing most generally worn by the men is blouse and trousers of blue jeans. These constitute the working and general dress. Many have cheap suits of "ready made" clothing which they use for Sundays and holidays. They usually also have work and dress

shoes. The women dress in cotton cloths of a cheap grade, and usually wear a head covering of some finer material. They do not wear hats. The men wear cheap stiff hats and caps. They pay $1.50 to $2 for their work shoes and $2 to $3 for their dress shoes. They also usually buy a suit of dress clothes for which they expend from $7 to $10. Their blue jeans in which they work cost about 50 cents a garment or $1 to $1.50 per suit.

The total cost of living of the average alien, including food, lodging, and clothing, will probably range from $10 to $15 per month.

SUMMARY ACCOUNT OF REPRESENTATIVE HOUSEHOLDS.

The following summary statement of facts secured by visiting certain typical households will give a fair representation of how the various nationalities live and their cost of living.

HOUSEHOLD NO. 1-MACEDONIAN AND AUSTRO-SERVIAN.

This is a two-story tenement house (frame) with four bedrooms, dining room, and kitchen. The toilet is a dry closet in the yard, and there is no bath. The woman housekeeper, of the AustroServian Face, has one small child. There are seven boarders in the house; there are usually 14 or 15, but the number is smaller while the works are running on short time. The boarders are all of Macedonian nationality, and live in three bedrooms on the second floor. Two bedrooms contain two beds each, and one has three beds. There is only one window in each bedroom and this is never opened except in warm weather. The furniture, for which. the woman paid $95 six months ago, is very scanty and simple; it consists of seven iron beds, a rough table for the dining room, some benches and plain chairs, and a small kitchen range. There are no carpets of any description.

HOUSEHOLD NO. 2-IRISH-AMERICAN.

Three brothers, who own the house in common, and an aunt who keeps house for them in return for her board and lodging and clothing, constitute this household. They occupy a six-room frame cottage, with toilet but no bath. Two front rooms are used as living rooms and the kitchen as a dining room. The furniture throughout is cheap and plain, but neat and serviceable. The house, which is in first-class condition and very neat and clean, is valued at $1,500. The three brothers are 25, 30, and 35 years of age, and the aunt is 50. The oldest brother came to this country when a child, and the aunt has been here 16 years. The two younger brothers were born here.

All three brothers work in the steel mills, one as a common laborer at $0.12 per hour, the second as a foreman at the blast furnaces, and the third as a machinist. Each pays the aunt $16 monthly for household expenses, and shares any unforeseen expenses which may arise. The three men have all been through the parochial and public schools, and the local newspapers and periodicals are commonly read in the house. No one in the house is insured, either in societies or companies, and the only insurance is against the burning of the house.

Some additional income is derived from chickens, which the younger brother raises on the lot in the rear of the dwelling. They netted him about $15 during the past year.

HOUSEHOLD NO. 3-IRISH-AMERICAN.

This is a six-room flat situated above a store located on the first floor. There is a flush toilet but no bath. Two sleeping rooms are used by the man and wife and their youngest child, and a third bedroom is furnished but reserved for guests. The two parlors are seldom used, as the kitchen serves as living room in summer and living and dining room in winter. A detached summer kitchen is used during the hot months. The building is quite new and in first-class condition; the rooms neat and clean, with plenty of good furniture. The rent is $12.

The man is 47 years old and the woman is of about the same age. They have been married twenty-eight years. They have three children, two of whom are married and keeping house for themselves. The son's wife is an Italian, and the daughter is married to a Portuguese. Until two weeks before the agent's visit the latter couple had stayed with the wife's parents, the household under discussion, paying $20 per month for the board and lodging of themselves and child.

The man is a machinist and earns $88 per month. He has had steady work and owes no money. His monthly household expenses while his married daughter lived with him sometimes amounted to $50 per month, but now they are between $25 and $30 per month. He has saved his money and paid $1,800 for a house and lot. The house, however, has needed so much repairing and overhauling that it has brought him in no rent.

Both man and wife have attended the public schools and read the local and New York City newspapers. The man belongs to several insurance societies, and his son is insured in a company.

HOUSEHOLD NO. 4-IRISH-AMERICAN.

This family consists of a man and wife and their 19-year-old son; they occupy a nine-room apartment in a brick block valued at $2,500, which they own. Gas is used for lighting, and there is a flush toilet and bath. Two bedrooms are used by the family and two are unoccupied, being reserved as guest rooms. Two front rooms are used as living rooms, a third is used as a sewing room, and the kitchen and dining room are separate. The house is in first-class repair, very well furnished throughout, and very clean and neat.

The man is 50 years old and the woman is six years younger. The couple have been married twenty-one years and have one child, a son, 19 years old. All three have attended the public schools, and read the local, Philadelphia, and New York City newspapers. The house is insured against fire and the man belongs to an insurance society, but the wife and son carry no insurance.

The man is a blacksmith in the steel works and earns about $2.60 per day. His work has been very irregular during the past year, and his wife's earnings as a seamstress in the house have helped considerably in defraying the household expenses, amounting as they do to