Salt Lake Herald | 1908-02-09 | Page 26 | Chief Pitt Says Soup Kitchens Attract Bum Element from Afar

CHIEF PITT SAYS SOUP KITCHENS ATTRACT BUM ELEMENT FROM AFAR Free soup kitchens for idle workmen do not receive the approval of Chief of Police Pollee Pitt He says that they attract to Salt Lake worthless characters from all over the intermountain regions and that the multitude of indigent strangers filling the streets makes It difficult for tor forthe forthe the police to carry on the work of rid ridding ridding ridding ding the city of o vagrants It should not be understood that I oppose helping unfortunate te men who have been thrown out of work during the dull times said Chief Pitt yester yesterday yesterday yesterday day but abut the assistance should be given in such a way that the undesirable ele element element element ment can be weeded out and driven from the city This afternoon I went to the free soup kitchen of the Volunteers of ot o America across from police pollee headquarters to look at the crowd of applicants for relief There werd wen I was told I men there for fot the free soup Last night men were given shelter In the Volunteers lodging house houge yet the number of homeless men who applied at police headquarters for shelter re remained reI I We furnished sleeping quarters in the basement basement of po police police police lice headquarters for more than sixty men I have not learned how many men were sheltered In M J Dixons lodging house h use for the unemployed As matters now are we are unable to make cases against vagrants They insist that they find sleeping quarters in the free lodging houses and subsist upon the two free meals a day given them The wandering element elem nt f which fills up the tile free lodging houses and the base basement basement ment meat of police pollee headquarters at night contains many characters that need watching We have sheltered men here at police pollee headquarters and the very next day arrested d them for petit lar larceny larcen larceny ceny cen cenA A Salt Lake business man who has just justi returned from a visit to Ogden stated yesterday that the Salt Lake free soup kitchens are arc looked upon with great favor by residents of the Tune June Junction tion City ity This it was explained was because all an of Idle and floating population has moved to Salt Lake to get a taste of the free soup