THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 BOYS of the STREET 
 HOW TO WIN THEM
 
 12 MO. CLOTH 75c. NET 
 
 THE WORKINGMAN 
 AND SOCIAL PROBLEMS 
 
 By CHARLES STELZLE 
 
 It wins the reader's confidence by its grasp of 
 actual conditions, and corrects many misconceptions, 
 — Congregationa list. 
 
 This work is the outcome of: first, several years 
 as a workingman; second, a series of circular letters 
 to labor leaders ; third, practical work among work- 
 ingmen, settlement and city mission work. — Chicago 
 Record- Herald. 
 
 Clergymen, settlement workers, church members, 
 laboring men, in fact every one who is interested in 
 the workingman and social problems will enjoy 
 reading this book. — New York Observer. 
 
 Mr. Stelzle was a real workingman and knows 
 the feeling and aspirations of the wage-workers. 
 He is fair, honest, and a keen observer. — The 
 Standard. 
 
 Mr. Stelzle has an intelligent appreciation and 
 sympathy for these work-people of all grades. 
 " The common people, the toilers, the men of un- 
 common sense, — to these we owe a debt of grati- 
 tude." And those who wish really to help these 
 multitudes of men and women "of uncommon 
 sense " will find herein many admirable sugges- 
 tions. — The Examiner.
 
 BOYS of the STREET 
 How to Win Them 
 
 By 
 
 CHARLES STELZLE 
 
 Author of 
 The Workingman and Social Problems 
 
 New York 
 
 Chicago 
 
 Toronto 
 
 Fleming H. Revell Company 
 London and Edinburgh
 
 Copyright, 1904, by 
 FLEMING H. REVELL COMPANY 
 
 New York: 158 Fifth "Avenue 
 Chicago: 63 Washington Street 
 Toronto: 27 Richmond Street, W 
 London: 21 Paternoster Square 
 Edinburgh: 30 St. Mary Street
 
 
 Hv 
 
 s u 
 
 " It is by the Boys' Club that the street is 
 
 hardest hit. In the fight for the lad it is that 
 
 which knocks out the ' gang' and with its 
 
 own weapon — the weapon of organization." 
 
 — Jacob A. Rus.
 
 PREFACE 
 
 I was number "8" in the now famous St. 
 Mark's Boys' Club of New York City — the 
 first boys' club started in America. That 
 was over twenty years ago. Since then I 
 have conducted a number of clubs of my 
 own. My first attempt was with a mass 
 club which had a membership of over five 
 hundred, and which was composed princi- 
 pally of newsboys and bootblacks. This was 
 followed, in another city, by a group club 
 which was limited to eight members. Dur- 
 ing the past five years my interest in boys' 
 work has been centred in self-government 
 clubs. 
 
 The material in this book is the result of 
 this varied experience. Abstract theories 
 have been avoided. Nothing is suggested 
 but what has been actually tested and found 
 helpful, either by myself or by some other 
 practical worker. 
 
 The book is founded upon a series of 
 
 7
 
 8 Preface 
 
 articles written by the author for the Sunday- 
 School Times and an article printed more 
 recently in the Outlook. I gratefully ac- 
 knowledge the permission given by the 
 editors of these papers to use the matter 
 which has been incorporated into this book. 
 
 Charles Stelzle. 
 
 Evanston, III.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAP. pAGE 
 
 I. Why Boys' Work is Needed - - 1 1 
 
 II. The Object of the Work - - 20 
 
 III. Various Kinds of Clubs - - - 25 
 
 IV. Some Things That a Club May Do - 37 
 
 V. A Boys' Club Constitution - -46 
 
 VI. The Headquarters of the Club - 53 
 
 VII. Religion in the Club - - - 59 
 
 VIII. The Clubs' " Esprit de Corps " - 74 
 
 IX. Club Managers - - - - 80 
 
 X. Some General Observations - - 88
 
 WHY BOYS' WORK IS NEEDED 
 
 " I'm always a-movin' on, sir. I've always 
 been a-movin' on, sir, ever since I was born. 
 Where can I move to, sir, more nor I do 
 move?" 
 
 That half-defiant, half-pitiful cry of poor 
 Joe, the street waif, in Dickens's "Bleak 
 House," in response to the policeman's com- 
 mand to "move on," is a cry which is not 
 confined to London nor to Dickens's time. 
 It is heard in many American cities. Every 
 member of a boys' club which was composed 
 of the fellows in one of my Bible classes, had, 
 with one exception, spent at least one night 
 in the police station before joining the club, 
 guilty of no greater crime than that he had 
 no more convenient place to meet his friends 
 than upon the street corner or in front of his 
 own home. 
 
 Whether the police station is a better place 
 for our boys than the street corner is a ques- 
 tion which our municipal authorities have 
 
 ii
 
 12 Boys of the Street 
 
 apparently decided for us, but whether we 
 agree with them or not, it is likely that we 
 will unanimously decide — and I think that 
 the policeman will agree with us — that there 
 should be better places for city boys than the 
 police station. 
 
 One night a city paper announced that a 
 boy had committed suicide in a drunken 
 spree. He was about eighteen years of age 
 and unknown, and it was said that if any 
 mother had such a boy as was described she 
 might find her boy at the morgue. Two 
 hundred mothers went to look at that face. 
 Was not that an awful commentary ? 
 
 A visit to any one of our penitentiaries 
 will reveal the fact that the great majority of 
 its inmates are young men. As one goes 
 through the corridors and work-shops of the 
 great institution, and thinks of the lost op- 
 portunities represented in the wrecked man- 
 hood of the prisoners, it seems as though the 
 sad words "it might have been," are written 
 upon the forehead of every criminal. 
 
 But the time when " it might have been " 
 was back in the boyhood days of the man 
 who is now hardened in crime. If he had 
 had a friend to advise and help when he was 
 beset by the temptations of city life, he might
 
 Why Boys' Work is Needed 13 
 
 now be found occupying a position of honour 
 instead of wearing the prisoner's stripes. 
 
 The home no longer influences the average 
 boy as it did in the days when society had 
 fewer claims upon us, and the problem of 
 what is to become of the boys without 
 parental oversight and training is serious 
 enough in the refined home. But what can 
 we say for the boy who has no place that is 
 a real home, but simply a lodge where he 
 spends the night ? 
 
 There are thousands of boys in our cities 
 whose homes consist of only one or two 
 small rooms in a tenement house, sometimes 
 back of a dark, dingy alley. These condi- 
 tions in our crowded tenements have more 
 to do with crime and immorality than will 
 ever be known this side of the judgment 
 day. Eighteen persons living in three rooms, 
 twelve of them being adults, are not calcu- 
 lated to stimulate high ideals in the mind of 
 the average boy. 
 
 The boy in such a home rarely has the 
 sympathy of his father. At any rate, his 
 father is not always the help that he should 
 be. If the boy should happen to lose his 
 "job," sometimes through no fault of his 
 own, and be unable to secure another, the
 
 14 Boys of the Street 
 
 epithet "loafer" will frequently drive him 
 out of his home, and, if he was not a loafer 
 before he lost his job, he is in a fair way to 
 become one now. Few of us are aware of 
 the large number of young men who board 
 outside of their own homes, even when their 
 parents live in the same city. 
 
 The boy in the city usually starts to work 
 at fourteen. If he is large and strong for his 
 age, he goes to the factory just as soon as he can 
 pass for that age. His evenings are now open 
 to him, since he has no school lessons to pre- 
 pare. He has more money to spend than he 
 ever had before. His circle of acquaintances 
 is enlarged, and, ordinarily, it includes some 
 young fellow who has seen something of the 
 shady side of city life. Going about town 
 with him, and seeing its gay life, he begins 
 to compare it with his own monotonous ex- 
 istence, and it is a question of only a short 
 time, usually, when the slender tie that binds 
 him to his humble home is broken, and he 
 falls into the clutches of the manager of the 
 cheap theatre, the saloon keeper, and the 
 keeper of the down-town dive. 
 
 And then, too, the candy store and the 
 tobacco shop will welcome him, especially 
 if he wants to organize a club. I sometimes
 
 Why Boys' Work is Needed 15 
 
 marvel at the apparent coldness of some of 
 our churches in disapproving of an organiza- 
 tion of some kind for their boys, as though 
 they were aliens of a dangerous type, who 
 needed to be supiciously watched, until the 
 average boy comes to believe that he is an 
 Ishmael, against whom every man's hand is 
 turned. 
 
 In most of our cities, our boys are attracted 
 by the small halls which may be found in the 
 poorer parts of the town, where they adver- 
 tise " Dancing to-night at eight clock," or a 
 "Soiree on Sunday night; Gentlemen twenty- 
 five cents; Ladies free." Or else they are 
 tempted to join a social club which meets 
 back of a saloon because there is no rent to 
 pay, on the condition that the members of the 
 club will treat. The chief function of the 
 social club is to " run " a ball, and attend the 
 balls conducted by other social clubs, each 
 striving to outdo the rest in the gorgeousness 
 of the badges worn by the floor-manager and 
 his assistants, or in the prizes offered to the 
 best dancer, or the most elegantly dressed 
 couple, the badges and prizes being displayed 
 for several weeks previous to the ball, in a 
 favoured store window. 
 Most of these social clubs are a positive
 
 16 Boys of the Street 
 
 curse to the boy who has become associated 
 with their members. The rooms are open 
 every night, and the new boy learns more of 
 sin in a single evening, by sitting about the 
 table and listening to the coarse and immoral 
 stories which are being told, than he will 
 forget in a lifetime. There is absolutely no 
 effort made to improve the mind. The 
 young men simply gather at their headquar- 
 ters to spend the time in idle talk, coarse 
 singing, card-playing, and "canning" beer. 
 Of all the institutions in our large cities 
 which are sending the boys down to destruc- 
 tion, this is not the least. 
 
 A young member, in telling about what 
 was done at one of these clubs, said: " They 
 have kissing all through pleasure time, and 
 use slang language, and they don't behave 
 nice between young ladies." 
 
 It is unfortunate that the poor boy, even 
 when he would do right, must go to some 
 cheap " variety show " if he would spend an 
 evening of relaxation after a hard day's 
 work in the shop, because, in most instances, 
 there is no other place to which he could go 
 where he would secure that diversion which 
 he needs. If he has a love for music, he 
 cannot indulge that most elevating taste,
 
 Why Boys' Work is Needed 17 
 
 unless he can afford to spend as much for the 
 concert as he has earned in a whole day. 
 The only alternative is to resort to the vaude- 
 ville, where he may hear fairly good music, 
 but where he must take with it so much 
 of evil that the good is usually more than 
 over-balanced. Where else could he go in 
 the average city if he would see the "mov- 
 ing pictures " which have become so popular ? 
 
 It may be well enough to make the state- 
 ment that any boy with push and ambition 
 will find useful employment during the 
 evening, but we must remember that not all 
 boys have this push, and that the great ma- 
 jority are only ordinary boys, and will 
 be only ordinary men. But if they are to be 
 only ordinary men, we ought to help them 
 so that they may at least become good men. 
 
 It is difficult to make a boy realize his un- 
 conscious needs, when he is constantly 
 reminded of his conscious wants. But 
 when you open one door to enjoyment and 
 healthy pleasure, you have closed a dozen 
 avenues to sin and shame. 
 
 Jacob Riis once said: "It is by the boys' 
 club that the street is hardest hit. In the 
 fight for the lad, it is that which knocks out 
 the 'gang,' and with its own weapon — the
 
 1 8 Boys of the Street 
 
 weapon of organization." Boys are naturally 
 fond of organization and discipline. This 
 has been demonstrated in the work of 
 the Boys' Brigade. The late Henry Drum- 
 mond applied this truth to the movement in 
 his own country. " Amazing and preposter- 
 ous illusion!" he declared. "Call these 
 boys, boys, which they are, and ask them to 
 sit up in a Sunday class, and no power on 
 earth will make them do it. Put a five- 
 penny cap on them and call them soldiers, 
 which they are not, and you can order them 
 about until midnight." 
 
 It is quite a common thing to establish res- 
 cue missions for the street boy when he 
 has become a man, when it might have been 
 a comparatively easy task to save his life as 
 well as his soul twenty years before. And if 
 he cannot tell the harrowing story of a ruined 
 life, it will not take away the power of his 
 testimony, neither will it mar his influence as 
 a citizen, nor make him less of a father or a 
 worker in his life's occupation. 
 
 Boys' work is cheap, even though it cost 
 ten times as much as is required to conduct 
 the average rescue mission, but it is safe to 
 say that not one-tenth as much money is 
 spent for that class of boys outside the Sun-
 
 Why Boys' Work is Needed 19 
 
 day-school and similar organizations which 
 are not reaching the street boy, as is put 
 into rescue mission work, which aims to 
 reach him when it is almost too late. The 
 work is infinitely cheaper, on the theory 
 that prevention is better than cure, even 
 though it may not show up so well in an 
 annual report.
 
 II 
 
 THE OBJECT OF THE WORK 
 
 There is perhaps no form of social work 
 which may be more easily inaugurated than 
 a boys' club, but experience has taught us that 
 it is not always the least difficult to main- 
 tain. 
 
 Any one can open a reading-room, and 
 allow the boys to flock in. But this does not 
 mean a boys' club; it usually means a 
 rabble, and ends in a row. The almost 
 inevitable result will be that your club-room 
 will become the plotting-place for a gang of 
 boys who will soon become a nuisance in the 
 neighbourhood, and your unfeeling fellow- 
 citizens will present you with a petition ask- 
 ing that your philanthropic enterprise be 
 discontinued. 
 
 A boys' club will surely fail in doing its 
 best work unless there is a definite plan in 
 the mind of the manager with regard to the 
 whole enterprise, and a definite purpose in 
 every entertainment or meeting held. Be- 
 
 20
 
 The Object of the Work 2 1 
 
 fore inviting a boy to meet you for the pur- 
 pose of organizing a club, it should be very 
 clearly settled in your own mind as to what 
 shall be the foundation and purpose of the 
 club. The matter of determining as to just 
 how this purpose shall be carried out is 
 quite another thing. One cannot settle that 
 in the beginning. The club worker will 
 never cease thinking about and planning for 
 it. Sometimes one will get help from the 
 boys themselves in determining one's plans. 
 However, the boys will indicate their need — 
 which is, of course, the factor in planning 
 for the object of the club — quite uncon- 
 sciously. 
 
 It is a mistake to confine oneself to purely 
 negative work. Keeping the boys off the 
 streets may be a good thing. Putting some- 
 thing into their hearts and minds which will 
 be helpful is far better. 
 
 The most prominent feature in many boys' 
 clubs is the social element. In fact, some 
 managers have attempted to carry on their 
 work upon this basis alone, and they have 
 found, invariably, that the boys could not be 
 held permanently unless something besides 
 games and socials were provided. It is true 
 that in some crowded neighbourhoods an
 
 22 Boys of the Street 
 
 interest has been maintained in this way, so 
 that the membership has seemed to grow to 
 almost incredible proportions; but it would 
 be found, upon investigation, that the great 
 majority had simply "passed through " the 
 club, making room for the hundreds, and 
 sometimes the thousands, who followed. 
 
 Some club managers go to the other 
 extreme: they strive to build up a great 
 educational institution, rivalling the evening 
 and the technical schools in curriculum and 
 general management. This is also a mis- 
 take. While it is an excellent plan to es- 
 tablish an educational institution for boys, 
 the manager of the boys' club who attempts 
 it is departing from the original design of 
 boys' club work, and is entering a field 
 which is clearly out of his province. The 
 boys' club is not an evening school, and the 
 time and energy of the manager might better 
 be directed into other channels, because he 
 will find that the work which is already 
 being done in the evening school is far 
 superior to that which he can possibly do. 
 
 Work in a boys' club should be largely 
 inspirational. It should have for its supreme 
 purpose the building up of character. And 
 the simpler the machinery, the more effective
 
 The Object of the Work 23 
 
 will be the work. Not that classes may not 
 be maintained with profit. But the real 
 benefit from the classes will result from the 
 personality of the leader or teacher, rather 
 than from the technical knowledge which 
 may be obtained from a particular study. 
 
 The class work will be a point of contact. 
 The common interest in a certain subject or 
 industry will give the leader an opportunity 
 to direct the boy to better and higher things. 
 When the boy is ready for a regular course 
 in the evening school, the club will have 
 largely accomplished its purpose for that 
 particular boy, for he will have little use for 
 the club after that. 
 
 The earnest workers who are so fearful 
 lest their efforts in behalf of the boys will be 
 worse than useless unless they can get the 
 boys to apply themselves to some specific 
 study, should not forget that education and 
 discipline and character may be acquired in 
 the gymnasium or in the game, as well as in 
 the class-room. Fair play and cooperation, 
 which are demanded in these things, will 
 work wonders in the average boy's char- 
 acter. It is because the boy is indifferent to 
 these things that he needs to be helped — not 
 thrown overboard to perish because he is not
 
 24 Boys of the Street 
 
 pleased to apply his mind consecutively, — 
 about which, by the way, some of us who 
 are older are not particularly anxious. 
 
 Whatever is suggestive of a sweeter and a 
 stronger home life should be here introduced, 
 because it must not be forgotten that, after 
 all, one of the chief purposes of the club is 
 to develop that love for home which for 
 many reasons may have been eradicated. If 
 this can be accomplished, the boys' club will 
 have fulfilled a great mission.
 
 Ill 
 
 VARIOUS KINDS OF CLUBS 
 
 In a general way one may say that there are 
 three kinds of clubs — the group club, the 
 mass club, and the self-government club. 
 Then there is what has been called the com- 
 bination club, which includes two or more 
 features which are found in the clubs just 
 mentioned. 
 
 The first boys' clubs to be organized were 
 mass clubs. They were organized, primarily, 
 for the purpose of keeping boys off the 
 streets, and were necessarily somewhat 
 crude in some things. With the growth of 
 the boys' club idea there has been a radical 
 change in the plan of organization. Instead 
 of there being a great company of boys, 
 meeting nightly for the purpose of reading 
 and playing games, with an occasional en- 
 tertainment, leaders have started the group 
 club, which is usually confined to from six 
 to ten boys. These boys are generally made 
 up of the same "gang," therefore of the 
 same age and the same neighbourhood. 
 
 25
 
 26 Boys of the Street 
 
 The group club will usually meet only once 
 a week, and is under the immediate direc- 
 tion of a leader who is responsible for the 
 work of the club. 
 
 Unquestionably, there are decided advan- 
 tages in limiting the size of the club, so that 
 there will be that personal touch with the 
 leader which cannot always be secured in a 
 club which numbers several hundred. One 
 of the very best clubs ever organized is com- 
 posed of a Sunday-school teacher and her 
 class of boys. The teacher will find no bet- 
 ter way to hold her boys if she can meet her 
 scholars in this way during the week. It is 
 important in a group club to get together 
 boys who are congenial. In form, the club 
 is very simple, but its very simplicity gives 
 such a club a wide range of possibility. A 
 group club has about it a great deal of elas- 
 ticity. The plans may be more easily changed 
 than is often possible in a larger club. Usu- 
 ally, the group club has a common interest 
 in some subject, the subject being deter- 
 mined almost altogether by the ability or the 
 talents of the leader. What this interest may 
 be does not really matter, so long as it may 
 be made helpful, and prove to be a point of 
 contact. Some of the things suggested in
 
 Various Kinds of Clubs 27 
 
 the chapter on "What a Boys' Club May 
 Do," will be helpful in deciding as to what a 
 group club may make its specialty. 
 
 Since the group club has so little machin- 
 ery, it depends very much upon the leader for 
 its success; much more so than does the mass 
 club. The leader of such a group must know 
 intimately every boy. His must be a strong, 
 sympathetic nature. A club of this kind offers 
 a great moral opportunity to such a person. 
 
 Mr. Alvan F. Sanborn, in the South End 
 House Bulletin, tells of his experience with a 
 group club. He writes: "1 gave myself 
 conscientiously to amusing a group of boys 
 with table games for several months before 
 I discovered them to be worthy of much bet- 
 ter things. Then the discovery came by the 
 merest accident. The boys were twelve and 
 thirteen years of age. There were seven of 
 them, and they came to my room once a 
 week. Their ignorance of the commonest 
 facts of country life (I have heard a squirrel 
 called a young monkey) led me one night to 
 show them a dusty natural history collection 
 I had made when a very small boy. In- 
 stantly it was to them as if they were in a 
 fairy palace. The specimens, — mainly in- 
 sects and birds' eggs — were battered, worm-
 
 28 Boys of the Street 
 
 eaten, and discoloured; but my boys' eyes 
 were full of wonder, and reverence was in the 
 touch of their hands. They were stirred with « 
 a new enthusiasm that boded much good. 
 I saw that I should have to rack my brains 
 no more for amusements; that our meetings 
 were at last to answer a real purpose. 
 
 "The collection alone, petty as it was, 
 held the attention of the boys for several 
 nights. Then, as it was winter, I tried to 
 tide the precious interest over to spring by 
 planting seeds in sawdust and sand, and get- 
 ting them to do the same. Early in March I 
 was able to show tree buds and catkins as 
 trophies of walks in the country, and a little 
 later, live frogs, turtles and snakes. As soon 
 as bird-nesting time arrived, it was easy to 
 make a striking display every week. On 
 occasional Saturdays I took the boys into the 
 country and there they became infected with 
 the egg-collecting fever. 
 
 " I love Thoreau and I love Burroughs and 
 all the rest of the outdoor fraternity. I 
 longed to share my pleasure in them with 
 the boys, but lacked the moral courage to 
 make so risky an experiment. Finally, I re- 
 membered the charming bird biographies of 
 Olive Thorn Miller, and ventured on them.
 
 Various Kinds of Clubs 29 
 
 It was a happy venture. This so far em- 
 boldened me that I read them, in quick suc- 
 cession, parts of Bradford Torrey, Bolles, 
 Abbot, Burroughs, and even Thoreau. Of 
 these, Burroughs, I think, was the favourite. 
 That the finer shades of thought or the 
 strictly literary qualities of these writings 
 were apparent to the boys, I do not for a 
 moment affirm. Of course I had to choose 
 chapters wisely, and avoid altogether or sim- 
 plify ideas which were taken in and the fresh 
 out-of-door flavour was appreciated. 
 
 "This past summer, the study and collect- 
 ing have gone on very much as in the year 
 before, except that the nature-love is now 
 'inside the skin.' This it is that makes me 
 glad. The boys no longer wait for me to 
 take the initiative. They take electric-car 
 rides into the country by themselves, when 
 they can raise dimes. When there are no 
 dimes they walk out through dismal city 
 streets to such country as is to be found at 
 the end of two or three miles — tame enough, 
 as most of us know. 
 
 " Those of us who have faith that no good 
 influence, however weak, is vain, as well as 
 those of us who are Wordsworthians enough 
 to believe in the special ethical value of a love
 
 30 Boys of the Street 
 
 of nature, will feel it is really no small thing 
 for the child of a crowded city neighbour- 
 hood to grow to manhood with such a love 
 within his soul. 'Nature never did betray 
 the heart that loved her.' In these hours of 
 rollicking country research are life and food 
 for future years." 
 
 While much may be said in favour of the 
 group club, there are some advantages in the 
 larger or mass club which are ordinarily lost 
 to the smaller club. Chief among them is 
 the fact that the club is reaching a greater 
 number of boys. It is quite likely that at 
 least six boys out of the larger club will re- 
 ceive as much benefit as the six boys who 
 would compose a club of that number, al- 
 though the benefit may be of a different kind, 
 besides helping the larger number who would 
 otherwise have been left out. 
 
 A large club tends to break down some of 
 the barriers of creed, race and colour. It is, as 
 a rule, more democratic than the smaller club. 
 The club spirit is stronger, and the enthusiasm 
 more lasting among average boys, and these 
 are the kind that you will deal with. Your 
 model boy rarely needs the boys' club. 
 
 Contact with a large number of bright, 
 wide-awake boys is bound to stimulate a
 
 Various Kinds of Clubs 31 
 
 duller boy. The large club is richer in tra- 
 ditions. There are the achievements of the 
 baseball nine or the football team, the glee- 
 club or the orchestra, the memories of the 
 picnics and the summer camp. Then there 
 are the lessons of brotherhood and coopera- 
 tion, which can be taught more effectively in 
 the larger club. 
 
 The mass club is economical. The same 
 argument would hold good for a large club 
 that holds for a large church or business. As 
 a rule, its affairs are administered better be- 
 cause it is directed by a committee or board 
 which contains men of large experience and 
 sympathy. The club, however, must have a 
 head with undivided responsibility. This 
 kind of a club will reach the neediest boys, 
 because they will be more likely to go where 
 there is a crowd, than to a place where they 
 might be more closely scrutinized as to the 
 clothes that they can afford to wear. As a 
 rule, the expense of belonging to a group club 
 is larger than that of a mass club, because 
 there are usually some boys in the group club 
 who will insist on excursions or some other 
 features which may cost more than the poor 
 boy can afford. This, of course, may be pre- 
 vented by a wise leader.
 
 32 Boys of the Street 
 
 Any boy should be eligible to membership 
 in a mass club, and he should be retained 
 until he very clearly proves himself unfit for 
 the association of other boys. Even then he 
 should have the personal care of the manager, 
 because just then he will need it most. It is 
 customary to have the rooms open every 
 night for the mass club. There should be a 
 number of assistants who may be depended 
 upon, each having his work mapped out, as 
 indicated in another chapter. It will cost 
 more to conduct a mass club, but it will be 
 easier to raise money for it than for the 
 smaller club. Indeed, there are few things 
 that appeal to the average citizen more readily 
 than boys' club work. The people who con- 
 tribute largely to mission and church work 
 are confined to a comparatively small circle. 
 There is a large company of people who are 
 not contributing towards regular mission 
 work who could be induced to give towards 
 the work of a boys' club. 
 
 It has been said that it is impossible for a 
 club manager to become acquainted with a 
 large number of boys in the mass club. That 
 is true, but it should be remembered that the 
 boys become acquainted with him. 
 
 When it has been decided to have a club
 
 Various Kinds of Clubs 33 
 
 which is to take in as many boys as the 
 rooms will accommodate, it is best to limit 
 the membership in the beginning, so that the 
 manager may become acquainted with the 
 boys who are to be largely responsible for 
 the future of the club, the limit being in- 
 creased from time to time, until the full num- 
 ber has been reached. This plan places a 
 premium upon the membership, giving it 
 a value which it might not otherwise possess. 
 A combination of the mass club and the 
 group club makes the best form of organiza- 
 tion, in the city. This is the plan which is 
 being rapidly introduced in many of the 
 larger clubs, some of which have not been 
 getting the results which they might have. 
 This form has been arrived at from the other 
 end in some churches and settlements, where 
 the group club was the beginning of the 
 club idea. After a number of clubs have 
 been started, they have been federated. The 
 plan is more easily arranged when this has 
 been the case, and in some ways is more sat- 
 isfactory than the formation of small groups 
 selected from a large company of boys, be- 
 cause the natural selection has in most cases 
 been already made in the group club. How- 
 ever, it is not at all impossible to divide the
 
 34 Boys of the Street 
 
 boys into separate groups after the mass 
 club has arrived at a large membership. The 
 selection may be made according to age or 
 natural interest, the latter being always the 
 best method of selection. 
 
 In the case of the federation idea, meetings 
 of the united clubs may be held once a week 
 for business purposes and for games, al- 
 though there should be some kind of a per- 
 manent organization, having a definite ob- 
 ject, with its officers and general committees. 
 
 Whatever the form of organization, it 
 should be the aim of the leader to meet the 
 boys as often as possible, and in a crowded 
 city, where there are so many temptations 
 alluring the boy into sin, some provision 
 should be made for the nightly care of the 
 boys of the community. For this purpose, 
 the mass club, with its reading and game 
 rooms, besides the occasional entertain- 
 ments and talks, seems to meet the greatest 
 need. 
 
 It is well to give the boys some part in the 
 management of the club. This gives them a 
 personal responsibility, and they will natu- 
 rally take a great deal of pride in maintaining 
 a high standard for the club. Probably the 
 best way to maintain order is to take the
 
 Various Kinds of Clubs 35 
 
 ring-leader in the capers of the boys, and 
 give him the authority of a policeman in the 
 club-rooms. He will then be just as enthu- 
 siastic in keeping order as he was before in 
 leading the boys into mischief. 
 
 The self-government club is, in many re- 
 spects, the ideal club. A model constitution 
 for this kind of a club may be found in the 
 chapter on "A Boys' Club Constitution." 
 The boys elect their own officers, appoint 
 their own committees, and become respon- 
 sible for the business of the club in every 
 particular. 
 
 The manager of the club is appealed to 
 only when a question becomes too complex 
 for their settlement. A wise manager will 
 sometimes permit the boys to make a mis- 
 take, so that they may profit through the ex- 
 perience. The members of the self-govern- 
 ment club should be taught to appreciate the 
 fact that the success of the club depends 
 upon their own efforts. The committees 
 should know that they are expected to do 
 the work that has been assigned to them, 
 and not to depend upon the manager for the 
 execution of the will of the club. 
 
 All this develops a spirit of self-reliance, 
 and it cultivates the habit of right thinking,
 
 36 Boys of the Street 
 
 because the boys very readily see the result 
 of wrong action taken by the club. 
 
 The question of discipline may usually be 
 left in the hands of the boys, since most boys 
 have a keen sense of justice, and will stand 
 up for that which is right and fair, and dis- 
 cipline administered by the boys will ordi- 
 narily be far more effective than if it came 
 from the manager, while at the same time 
 the manager may still be regarded as the 
 friend of the offender. Permanent expulsion 
 from the club should rarely be resorted to as 
 a means of discipline. One needs to distin- 
 guish between the exuberant life of boy na- 
 ture and downright viciousness. 
 
 Ordinarily, the clubs which are composed 
 of boys who are never guilty of any of the 
 pranks which are peculiar to boys are very 
 slow affairs, and they rarely turn out a good, 
 live "hustler." This, of course, does not 
 necessarily follow. It is simply a matter of 
 general observation, and should be an en- 
 couragement to the worker who thinks that 
 his boys are unusually " bad."
 
 TV 
 
 SOME THINGS THAT A BOYS' CLUB 
 MAY DO 
 
 It has been said that work in a boys' club 
 should be largely inspirational. By this I do 
 not mean that it consists only of "goody 
 goody " talks, or even the really inspirational 
 kind. Neither do I mean that no definite 
 work should be attempted. 
 
 A study of street boy nature — and this 
 kind should receive the most attention — will 
 reveal the fact that whatever taste for quiet, 
 consecutive work or enjoyment he may have 
 possessed has been taken out of him by the 
 experiences of the street. The glamour of 
 city life has been the curse of the boy who 
 has spent all of his life amidst the unhealthy 
 surroundings of the cheap theatre, the saloon, 
 the dance hall, or even the unusual excite- 
 ment of the busy street. He now feeds 
 upon this excitement, and it is with the ut- 
 most difficulty that he can be brought to 
 think about matters which are more refined. 
 
 37
 
 38 Boys of the Street 
 
 To take a group of such boys and suddenly 
 plunge them into a course of study which 
 requires hard, consecutive thinking will drive 
 them away at once. We should never forget 
 that we have to do, not with the ideal boy, 
 but with the careless, happy-go-lucky average 
 boy, who left school, or hates it, because he 
 had to study, sometimes under very unfa- 
 vourable circumstances, when he went there. 
 
 How to get him to think seriously and con- 
 tinuously is the problem that will confront 
 the club manager. The boy loves power. 
 Show him that he can obtain it through knowl- 
 edge. He loves praise. Teach him how he 
 may deserve it. He has energy enough to 
 accomplish wonders if it can be rightly di- 
 rected. Now, if we can find some form of 
 education which will engage this power, we 
 shall have solved the problem, and the boy 
 will be on the way towards higher and better 
 things. Boys like to make things. Teach 
 them the dignity of labour. Most of them 
 will be mechanics. Show them how they 
 may become the best mechanics. It may be 
 a very simple thing, sometimes; a mere sug- 
 gestion, given at the right moment, will put 
 a great new idea into the boy's mind which 
 will completely change his career. For this
 
 Some Things That a Club May Do 39 
 
 occasion the manager must be always on the 
 lookout. The plans which follow are merely 
 suggestive, for no one can outline the work 
 which may be introduced into every boys' 
 club. Each manager must work out his own 
 salvation, even though it is sometimes done 
 with fear and trembling. 
 
 It has been found an excellent thing to in- 
 troduce the kindergarten idea into some boys' 
 clubs. This will require considerable thought, 
 and may even mean the employment of a 
 special teacher. For the smaller boys this 
 will prove to be interesting and helpful, for 
 you will find that few of them ever so much 
 as heard of a kindergarten. 
 
 As boys grow older they become interested 
 in politics. City politics are especially fasci- 
 nating, because the boys early take an active 
 part in them. For such, city history clubs 
 may be made profitable. Study the begin- 
 ning of the city's life, its early landmarks, 
 its development, its industries, the various 
 departments of municipal government, the 
 administration of public utilities, etc. Any- 
 thing that has to do with the life of the city 
 may be investigated by such a club. 
 
 In some clubs miniature elections are held, 
 with all the paraphernalia of the regular elec-
 
 4-0 Boys of the Street 
 
 tion system. Speeches are made for the can- 
 didates, and as much liberty as possible is 
 given to the orators. The various parties ap- 
 point campaign committees and call mass 
 meetings. Boy poll clerks, inspectors and 
 watchers at the polls, are appointed, and on 
 election night the regular customs are fol- 
 lowed, the Australian ballot being used. 
 
 Most boys are fond of music. A glee club 
 is always popular, and instrumental music 
 will interest many. A Penny Provident Bank 
 will inculcate habits of saving, besides teach- 
 ing many other valuable lessons. A success- 
 ful club manager says with regard to this 
 phase of the work: "I consider the savings 
 bank one of the best features of boys' club 
 work. It is a practical businesslike way of 
 teaching lessons of thrift and economy. The 
 bank once successfully introduced advertises 
 itself. Boys are persuaded to become depos- 
 itors because they see the bank-books owned 
 by their companions and are anxious to pos- 
 sess one themselves. To own a bank ac- 
 count, even if the deposits are counted by 
 pennies, means much to the average boy. 
 Then the growing amounts, the rapid way 
 that pennies increase, is often a genuine sur- 
 prise to boys who little realized that the few
 
 Some Things That a Club May Do 41 
 
 pennies spent here and there for candy and 
 cigarettes soon amounted to dollars. No 
 millionaire ever counted over his riches with 
 more satisfaction than some youngsters dis- 
 play as they show their first dollar saved. 1 
 have always encouraged in my club the idea 
 of saving for some definite object — a pair of 
 shoes, an overcoat, a suit of clothes, even a 
 bicycle — anything a boy can look forward to 
 buying with his own money. Boys, even the 
 poorer ones, frequently have more money 
 than at first seems possible. Nearly every 
 street boy picks up a good many pennies sell- 
 ing papers, blacking shoes or running errands. 
 If he is at all ambitious the sum may amount 
 to considerable. Many of them carry their 
 earnings home, but nearly every one has 
 something for himself, and when they begin 
 the habit of saving the little amounts they 
 soon appreciate the value of even a penny." 
 We once had about two thousand depos- 
 itors, who saved over $6,000. The parents 
 and sisters of the members should be encour- 
 aged to become depositors, as they were in 
 this case. A complete banking outfit may be 
 secured from the Penny Provident Fund of 
 New York City without any charge excepting 
 for the postage.
 
 42 Boys of the Street 
 
 If possible, a boys' club should have a cir- 
 culating library. It should be first-class, even 
 though there are no more than a dozen vol- 
 umes. Travelling libraries, with a few games 
 enclosed, have proved to be helpful in the 
 homes. A picture loaning library might also 
 be beneficial. 
 
 Debating societies are frequently organized 
 among the boys from fourteen to eighteen, 
 and it almost takes one's breath away to see 
 the rapidity with which they discuss and dis- 
 miss matters of world-wide interest and 
 importance. But the practice in debate and 
 the knowledge of parliamentary law which 
 is acquired, is always helpful to the boys, 
 many of whom will some day debate in real 
 life, when there will be real issues at stake. 
 
 Many of the members of the clubs are 
 newsboys. Why not have the boys print a 
 small newspaper ? There are few things 
 which will prove to be more fascinating, 
 even to those who do not sell papers. 
 
 In some cities Junior Leagues of the De- 
 partment of Street Cleaning have been 
 encouraged, cooperating with the street 
 department in keeping the streets clean by 
 compelling an observance of the city 
 ordinances. Nature-study classes are some-
 
 Some Things That a Club May Do 43 
 
 times full of interest, as has already been 
 noted. The study of heroes will be found 
 inspiring, and the love of animals will instil 
 nobility of soul. 
 
 Lectures or talks on the care of the body, 
 the development of the sciences, the conduct 
 of great business enterprises, such as the 
 daily newspaper, the department store, the 
 railroad, or the stock exchange, are always 
 helpful, if presented in a manner which will 
 appeal to the average boy. Some time ago 
 we arranged for a course of addresses in our 
 boys' club which became so attractive that 
 the boys were glad to extend an invitation to 
 their boy friends, who seemed eager to 
 attend. 
 
 The editor of the newspaper sold by the 
 boys came down to tell us how a newspaper 
 is made. A college professor talked on 
 "Habits." A surgeon told, simply, of the 
 progress of his art. A factory superintend- 
 ent told the boys just what characteristics 
 were most appreciated by him in his em- 
 ployees, and as many of the boys expected to 
 work in his factory, he was listened to with 
 keenest interest. Experience has indicated 
 that public talks on social purity are often 
 suggestive of the very things which they are
 
 44 Boys of the Street 
 
 supposed to put out of the boys' mind, and 
 that more harm than good usually results 
 from such addresses. 
 
 Some clubs assume a military form. 
 Others are organized for temperance work. 
 And then there are the clubs similar to the 
 " lend-a-hand " idea, which are organized 
 for purposes of helpfulness to others. 
 
 The following familiar entertainments are 
 always appreciated: '"Talking" machines, 
 lantern picture-talks, " Tricks " by a profes- 
 sional magician, ventriloquism, plays and 
 dialogues, musical entertainments — vocal or 
 instrumental, athletic exhibitions, reading 
 and recitations, "Fire-Sides" with stories, 
 historical impersonations and tableaus, 
 shadow pictures, mock trials, experiments in 
 chemistry and electricity, spelling matches, 
 and informal talks on the biographies of self- 
 made men. Other public entertainments will 
 readily suggest themselves. Excursions to 
 factories, public buildings, museums, parks, 
 historical places, and outings on Saturday 
 afternoons or some other convenient time 
 will bring the leader into closer touch with 
 the boys, besides being helpful to them in 
 many ways. 
 
 The following games may be suggestive
 
 Some Things That a Club May Do 45 
 
 for use in the club: Crokinole, dominoes, 
 basket-ball, hand-ball, chess, authors, tid- 
 dledy winks, shuffle board, " Nellie Bly," bean 
 bag, spring ritle with rubber tip on point 
 of projectile, going to Jerusalem, post-office, 
 beast bird or fish, stage coach, lotto, table 
 tennis, pillow dex, piece puzzles, button 
 button, charades, blind man's buff, donkey, 
 blow the feather, spin the platter, scout, po- 
 tato race, quoits. 
 
 If manual training is desired, some of the 
 following occupations will help: Mechanical 
 or free hand drawing, cobbling, Venetian 
 ironwork, basket weaving, bamboo work, 
 bead work, box making, clay modeling, 
 sloyd, china painting, cooking, wood-carving, 
 whittling, scrap-book making, poster work, 
 printing, passe-partout, fretwork, leather 
 work, lettering, rope mat making, toy furni- 
 ture making, cabinet making, carpentering, 
 bookbinding and burnt woodwork.
 
 V 
 A BOYS' CLUB CONSTITUTION 
 
 The constitution to be adopted will de- 
 pend upon the kind of a club that is to be 
 organized. Four kinds of clubs are dealt 
 with in this book— mass, group, combina- 
 tion and self-government clubs. 
 
 The mass club is usually run on tradition, 
 although there are generally a few well un- 
 derstood "rules" which are necessary for 
 the highest good of the whole number. 
 One of the best mass clubs that I know 
 about has the briefest kind of a constitution, 
 namely: "Be a gentleman." The most 
 elaborate constitution ever framed cannot do 
 this for the members of the club, and it is 
 admitted that the making of a gentleman is 
 one of the chief things sought for in the club. 
 
 The group club does not require a very 
 elaborate constitution, because there isn't very 
 much of parliamentary law in connection 
 with the club. It is rather a familiar group 
 under a leader who has the confidence of the 
 club to such a degree that his wish usually 
 becomes the law for the club. 
 
 As the combination club is what the name 
 implies— a combination of the mass and the 
 
 .46
 
 A Boys' Club Constitution 47 
 
 group clubs, it follows that what applies to 
 these clubs with regard to a constitution, 
 would also apply to it. 
 
 The self-government club, however, re- 
 quires more elaborate treatment in this re- 
 spect, as the boys will need frequent guidance 
 in their deliberations, and the rules upon 
 which their organization is built must be 
 clearly defined. When a constitution is de- 
 sired for the other kinds of clubs mentioned, 
 sufficient will be found in the constitution 
 given for the self-government club to draft a 
 set of rules which will serve as a guide or a 
 foundation. 
 
 It should be remembered that, after all, a 
 constitution is the expression of the desires 
 of the members of the club. It is not a police- 
 man's baton to be held over their heads. This 
 expression may be very brief, and yet it may 
 comprehend all that makes up a good club. 
 
 It is not the constitution that makes the 
 club, but the club that makes the constitu- 
 tion. To paraphrase a familiar expression: 
 "The constitution follows the club." The 
 following constitution may have to be adapted 
 as well as adopted. It is given simply as a 
 general guide to those who will readily see 
 just what is needed for their particular club.
 
 48 Boys of the Street 
 
 CONSTITUTION. 
 
 Article I. 
 
 Name. 
 
 This organization shall be called The 
 Young American Club. 
 
 Article II. 
 Object 
 The object of the club shall be to develop 
 the physical, mental, and moral natures of its 
 members. 
 
 Article III. 
 Colours. 
 The colours of the club shall be red and blue. 
 
 Article IV. 
 Membership. 
 
 Section 1. Any boy between the ages of 
 ten and fourteen may become a member of 
 the club, upon the recommendation of the 
 membership committee, and upon a ma- 
 jority vote of the club. 
 
 Section 2. Each boy, before being ad- 
 mitted to the privileges of the club, shall 
 sign the constitution, after his election. 
 
 Section 3. Any boy who is absent from 
 four consecutive meetings will have his name 
 taken from the membership roll, unless he
 
 A Boys' Club Constitution 49 
 
 has a good reason for his absence, which 
 must be sent to the Secretary in writing. 
 
 Article V. 
 Officers. 
 
 Section 1. There shall be a President, 
 Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer and 
 Chaplain. 
 
 Section 2. All elective officers shall be 
 chosen by ballot, the persons receiving the 
 highest number of votes being declared 
 elected. 
 
 Section 3. The term of office shall be 
 three months. 
 
 Article VI. 
 Duties of Officers. 
 
 Section 1. The President shall preside at all 
 meetings of the club. He shall have power in 
 case of a tie vote to cast the deciding vote. 
 
 Section 2. The Vice-President shall pre- 
 side at all meetings of the club in the ab- 
 sence of the President, and shall assist the 
 President in all ways possible. 
 
 Section 3. The Secretary shall keep an 
 accurate record of all proceedings of the 
 club. He shall keep a list of the names and 
 residences of all the members, and call the 
 roll at each meeting.
 
 5<D Boys of the Street 
 
 Section 4. The Treasurer shall keep a cor- 
 rect account of all money received by him, 
 and shall collect all dues from the members, 
 and give a weekly report showing the finan- 
 cial condition of the club. 
 
 Section 5. The Chaplain shall be re- 
 sponsible for such religious exercises as may 
 be determined upon by the club. 
 
 Article VII. 
 
 Committees. 
 
 Section 1. The following named standing 
 
 committees shall be appointed for each term 
 
 by the President, after consulting with the 
 
 Executive Committee. 
 
 (a) Membership. — It shall be the duty of 
 this committee to propose desirable candi- 
 dates for membership in the club, and to 
 visit and report upon all absentees. 
 
 (b) Rooms. — It shall be the duty of this 
 committee to see that the club-rooms are 
 properly heated, lighted and ventilated, and 
 that all furniture is in its proper place before 
 and after the meeting. It shall also be the 
 duty of this committee to see that order is 
 maintained in and about the building. 
 
 (c) Social. — It shall be the duty of this 
 committee to arrange for and take charge of
 
 A Boys' Club Constitution 51 
 
 the socials given by the club, securing such 
 assistance as they may need. 
 
 (d) Educational. — It shall be the duty of 
 this committee to secure speakers for the reg- 
 ular meetings of the club, to take charge of 
 all work of a literary character, and to ar- 
 range for all public meetings not otherwise 
 provided for. 
 
 0) Athletic. — It shall be the duty of this 
 committee to organize teams for outdoor 
 games, and to have supervision over the 
 pharaphernalia in the gymnasium. 
 
 Section 2. The Executive Committee shall 
 consist of the elective officers. 
 
 Section j. Special committees may be ap- 
 pointed by the President upon the recom- 
 mendation of the club. 
 
 Section 4. The manager of the club shall 
 be ex-officio member of all committees. 
 
 Article VIII. 
 
 Misbehaviour. 
 
 Any boy misbehaving at a meeting of the 
 club or about the building, shall be tried be- 
 fore the club by a committee appointed for 
 that purpose, the club determining the pun- 
 ishment which shall be inflicted.
 
 52 Boys of the Street 
 
 Article IX. 
 Dues. 
 Dues shall be one cent a week, payable 
 weekly. 
 
 Article X. 
 Meetings. 
 Section i. The club shall hold its regular 
 meetings on every Tuesday night at seven 
 o'clock. 
 
 Section 2. Special meetings may be called 
 by the Executive Committee, or upon the 
 written request of three members. 
 
 Section 3. The quarterly meeting of the 
 club shall be held on the first Tuesday even- 
 ings in January, April, July and October, 
 when there shall be an election of officers, 
 and reports from the standing committees. 
 
 Article XI. 
 Quorum. 
 Two-thirds of the entire membership of 
 the club shall constitute a quorum. 
 
 Article XII. 
 Amendments. 
 This constitution may be amended by a 
 two-thirds vote of the members present at 
 any regular meeting, notice of such amend- 
 ment having been given one week in advance.
 
 VI 
 THE HEADOUARTERS OF THE CLUB 
 
 The success of any enterprise depends 
 very largely upon the attention given to de- 
 tails, and what is true of other matters ap- 
 plies with equal force to the boys' club. 
 
 The arrangement of a room and the selec- 
 tion of its furnishings have much to do with 
 holding the boys. They cannot explain why 
 the room has an unpleasant effect, or why 
 they become restless and drowsy, but the 
 manager may know, if he gives the matter a 
 little attention. A proper regard for venti- 
 lation will work a great change in the be- 
 haviour of the boys, who cannot read or con- 
 tinue to play games because of the impure 
 atmosphere. The arrangement of the lights 
 is an important consideration. A poorly 
 lighted room is never attractive, but a glare 
 of gas may be equally bad. 
 
 There should be plenty of carefully selected 
 pictures, the meaning of which it may be 
 well to explain to the boys, so that they may 
 carry with them the lessons or the idea in the 
 
 53
 
 54 Boys of the Street 
 
 mind of the artist. It is much better, how- 
 ever, to have one good picture than to fill the 
 wplls of the room with a lot of cheap chromos 
 which may mean absolutely nothing, or sug- 
 gest something worse. Good pictures are 
 cheap enough; in fact, they may be cut out 
 of some of our first-class magazines or art 
 journals, and changed in the frames from 
 time to time. 
 
 Fresh-cut flowers tastefully arranged, help- 
 ful mottoes placed upon the walls or upon 
 the blackboard, or any little thing that may 
 be copied and placed in their own homes, 
 will be found helpful in training the boys to 
 appreciate the beautiful things which God 
 has given mankind in nature or through the 
 talents of men. 
 
 Many new clubs are dependent upon their 
 friends for second-hand reading matter, to be 
 used in the club-rooms. This should be re- 
 placed as soon as possible by new and regu- 
 larly published matter, which must be kept 
 on file in an orderly manner, because the en- 
 vironment of the boys will have much to do 
 with their general behaviour, and the best 
 influence will always be exerted when the 
 rooms are neatly kept and everything is done 
 decently and in order.
 
 The Headquarters of the Club 55" 
 
 The games should be carefully selected, so 
 that even in their amusements the boys may 
 be trained to right habits of thinking. It is 
 best to have tables in the game-room which 
 accommodate only four boys each. 
 
 When there is a gymnasium — and this 
 should be secured if at all possible — it should 
 be kept as clean and orderly as circumstances 
 will permit. It may be suggestive to some 
 of the boys if they are reminded that their 
 dirty hands and faces are not in harmony 
 with their surroundings, and it would be 
 well to have soap and water close at hand, 
 so that they may be used when required, 
 although it will not be long before the neatly 
 kept room will have its influence upon the 
 average boy. 
 
 It is best not to permit the boys to get the 
 impression that you have an unlimited 
 amount of money at your disposal — very few 
 clubs have, by the way — because it will have 
 the effect of making them reckless with the 
 privileges which they then enjoy, and they 
 will not appreciate what you give them so 
 much as if they realized that the new feature 
 cost somebody a struggle; and they will 
 enjoy it still more if they have done the 
 struggling themselves.
 
 ^6 Boys of the Street 
 
 One club that I know about became in- 
 terested in securing the material for a small 
 gymnasium for their own use, and they pro- 
 ceeded to earn the necessary money by 
 gathering the empty tin cans found upon the 
 lots and in the garbage heaps in their part of 
 the city, and selling them to a concern that 
 paid them ten cents per hundred cans. Some 
 of the boys earned several dollars in this 
 way, and enough money was raised to fit up 
 quite a respectable gymnasium. 
 
 A group club may meet in the home of the 
 leader, and there are many advantages in this 
 arrangement. But if it is at all possible, the 
 club should have a room set apart for its 
 own use, which may be decorated with the 
 club colours and such other trophies as will 
 inspire an " esprit de corps." 
 
 The inability to secure an ideal room 
 should not prevent an earnest man or woman 
 from organizing a boys' club. Almost any 
 kind of a room in any kind of a building 
 may be transformed into a club-room. In- 
 deed, the more unique the room, the better 
 it will be enjoyed. 
 
 1 remember that when some of the boys 
 with whom I associated when I was nine 
 years old organized a club which met in the
 
 The Headquarters of the Club 57 
 
 dark cellar of a New York tenement, and 
 when we had nothing but tallow candles to 
 illuminate the darkness, we thought that 
 that club-room could not be beaten. 
 
 But while it is true that other things may 
 easily make up for the lack in certain things 
 in the furnishings and the arrangements of a 
 boys' club-room, other things being equal, 
 the room that is most neatly kept, will hold 
 boys longest, and do them the most per- 
 manent good. 
 
 In some instances schoolhouses have been 
 opened for the use of boys' clubs. There is 
 no reason why this may not be done more 
 generally throughout the country, especially 
 in the great cities, where social centres for 
 the people are so much needed. It would 
 seem that any reputable person should be 
 able to secure the use of a schoolroom for 
 boys' club meetings, upon the payment of a 
 small fee. 
 
 Social settlements, are, of course, rec- 
 ognized as centres for special boys' work, 
 group clubs receiving particular attention. 
 The average settlement will always welcome 
 the club which desires to make its building 
 the headquarters of the club. This privilege 
 is often secured by helping to pay for the
 
 58 Boys of the Street 
 
 care of the room. There is no doubt that 
 the best group clubs are found in the settle- 
 ments, largely because the workers are ex- 
 perts, and because they go at the work in a 
 businesslike way. 
 
 But, more and more are the churches be- 
 coming community centres. The rooms in 
 the average church are more conveniently 
 arranged than the schoolroom for boys' club 
 work, and it should not be difficult to secure 
 the permission of an official church board to 
 use one of these rooms for a club composed 
 of the boys in the neighbourhood. 
 
 Some boys' clubs throughout the country 
 have been so greatly prospered and so richly 
 blessed that they have been permitted to 
 erect buildings which are being used ex- 
 clusively for boys' club work. Such a build- 
 ing, is, of course, ideal, and many more of 
 them should be erected in our American 
 cities.
 
 VII 
 RELIGION IN THE CLUB 
 
 The question of attempting any direct 
 religious work in the club has been variously 
 decided. When the club is composed of the 
 members of a Sunday-school class, as many 
 good clubs are, this question is not very per- 
 plexing, as the boys receive religious training 
 in the school. But when one is working 
 with mass clubs in neighbourhoods which 
 are not being reached religiously, and where 
 the members of the club are not Sunday- 
 school attendants, it is quite another matter. 
 
 Many club managers think it unwise to 
 introduce religion into the club because of 
 the large Roman Catholic and Hebrew ele- 
 ment represented among the club members, 
 or because they fear that it will have the 
 effect of driving away the boy, who, ap- 
 parently, cares nothing for religious teach- 
 ing. 
 
 If, however, the club is connected with a 
 church organization, and if it was organized 
 
 59
 
 60 Boys of the Street 
 
 for the purpose of winning the boys for 
 Christ, there seems to be but one thing to do 
 — win them. How this is to be accom- 
 plished, will depend upon the wisdom of the 
 manager. It may be best, for various reasons, 
 never to have an open religious meeting, but 
 rather to do personal work among the boys 
 when the opportunity offers. 
 
 In a certain Sunday-school there are more 
 boys than girls, most of the boys having 
 been drawn into the school through the boys' 
 club connected with the church, although 
 there has never been a public invitation given 
 in the club-rooms, neither has there ever 
 been a religious meeting held especially for 
 the members of the club. 
 
 However, prejudice against religious teach- 
 ing is not nearly so prevalent among boys as 
 is generally supposed, because it has been 
 found that boys can be interested in the 
 gospel of Christ, and that it is the power of 
 God unto salvation even for the wild street 
 arab, — although, of course, it requires a 
 leader who has some knowledge of boy 
 nature, and who can present the gospel in 
 such a way that it will attract him. 
 
 It is a well-known fact that boys between 
 the ages of ten and fifteen are more inter-
 
 Religion in the Club 61 
 
 ested in religious matters than they are at 
 any other period in their lives. It seems a 
 pity that so few workers possess the sense 
 or the tact to give the boys the best thing 
 that will ever come to them, at a time when 
 it will be most readily received. 
 
 The claim that a denominational club will 
 drive the boys away is not well founded, 
 because even the Jew and the Roman Cath- 
 olic will come to the Protestant club so 
 long as it continues to prove attractive, 
 although he may not come to the Sunday- 
 school. 
 
 Sometimes, however, we are so much con- 
 cerned about there being enough religion in 
 our plans for the boy, that we forget to 
 leave enough boy in them. "The building 
 is sacred," some good brother will say, "and 
 we cannot permit that which savours of the 
 secular." According to his notion, the ideal 
 boys' club would consist of prayer-meetings 
 and Bible classes, with an occasional mis- 
 sionary talk as a treat, and, perhaps, magic 
 lantern views of the Holy Land as a dizzy 
 climax. 
 
 I believe that a club or a work of any kind 
 for boys that stops short of religion fails at a 
 most vital point. But it must not be for-
 
 62 Boys of the Street 
 
 gotten that the average street boy "needs 
 homely virtues more than spiritual graces." 
 Much of the religious training of the Sunday- 
 school is unnatural for the boy of a strong, 
 virile nature. He despises cant, and he will 
 not be a prig. Practically all the speakers at 
 Sunday-school gatherings, in relating the 
 conversion of Sunday-school scholars, con- 
 fine themselves to "sweet, beautiful, blue- 
 eyed, golden-haired, little girls." To the 
 American boy, nearly everybody who has 
 anything to do with religion is supposed to 
 be a woman— from the kindergarten teacher 
 to the angels in heaven. It is not to be 
 wondered at that the presentation of that 
 kind of a religion does not attract the street 
 boy. He loves and worships the heroic. I 
 believe that the reason many boys leave the 
 Sunday-school is because the heroic and 
 manly side of the ideal man Christ Jesus is 
 not taught in such a way as to appeal to this 
 side of boy-life. 
 
 Philip E. Howard, of the Sunday-School 
 Times, tells the following incident: 
 
 "A crown of thorns, brought from the 
 East, was shown from the platform of a city 
 mission-school by the superintendent. Very 
 little was said to aid in this visible demon-
 
 Religion in the Club 63 
 
 stration of the means used in the humiliation 
 of Jesus, but after the school session the 
 roughest youngster in the room made his 
 way alone to the desk. 
 
 " ' Say, may I look at that ? ' he said. 
 
 " ' Yes,' answered the superintendent, ' and 
 you may take it in your hands.' 
 
 "The boy rested the crown of thorns 
 lightly on one hand and touched it here and 
 there with the other. His mischief-breeding 
 eyes were serious. He looked earnestly at 
 the superintendent, and lifted the crown to 
 the platform table. 
 
 " ' Did He wear one like that ? ' asked the 
 boy. 
 
 " ' Yes, very much like that, I think.' 
 
 " 'Well, if He wore a thing like that, I 
 don't wonder that He had pain.' And the 
 rough little boy of the street made no mis- 
 chief as he went through the crowd and out 
 of the school that day. 
 
 " Here was a phase of the life of Jesus that 
 appealed to him— a waif who was known to 
 be brutally handled at home." 
 
 " When I go fishing for trout," said Amos 
 R. Wells, " I do not consider what I liked 
 for breakfast nor what I want for dinner; I 
 consider what the trout's mouth is watering
 
 64 Boys of the Street 
 
 for. When the average teacher goes fishing 
 for a boy, however, I fear that she bases her 
 campaign entirely on her own likes and dis- 
 likes. She is interested in pretty little stories 
 with lovely morals, and she takes it for 
 granted that the boys will be interested in 
 the same thing. She is fascinated with a 
 volume of Mr. Meyer's noble expositions, 
 and she jumps to the conclusion that the 
 boys will be glad to have her read a chapter 
 to them. She is delighted to discover the 
 hidden symbolism of the Bible, as that Go- 
 liath typifies worldliness and David the quiet 
 power of Christian faith, and she is entirely 
 oblivious to the boys' concentration of inter- 
 est on Goliath's armour and David's sling." 
 
 Hearing his class talk baseball one Sunday, 
 the teacher remarked: " Boys, not anymore 
 baseball; I want to hear no more about base- 
 ball. This is the Sunday-school." If that 
 teacher had been wise, he would have pur- 
 chased a baseball guide for the current year 
 and studied it. Anyway, he should have 
 talked baseball with his class on that Sun- 
 day. Had he done so, he would have en- 
 tered upon the study of the lesson with a 
 bond of sympathy between himself and his 
 class.
 
 Religion in the Club 65 
 
 Valuable as the International Sunday-school 
 lessons are in Sunday-school work, I think 
 that we have become slaves to the system. 
 There is no reason why the teacher or leader 
 of a boys' class should not get as far away 
 as possible from the ordinary Sunday-school 
 lesson, if that seems the best thing to do, 
 especially if his work is done in connection 
 with a boys' club. Old Testament stories 
 may be made intensely vivid to the street 
 boy, and when he learns to admire and en- 
 joy the Bible as literature, and when he finds 
 out, as B. Paul Neuman wrote, that " faith 
 and immortality, and the forgiveness of sin 
 are subjects just as ' live ' and almost as im- 
 portant, as vaccination and strikes," a long 
 step will have been taken towards the goal 
 of arousing a genuine and hearty interest in 
 religion. 
 
 I remember a rollicking boy in a New 
 York tenement who burned his face very se- 
 verely on a Fourth of July. After he had 
 sufficiently recovered to sit up, he began 
 reading the Bible, — for want of something 
 else. He became interested in the stories of 
 David, and for weeks that boy read nothing 
 but the Old Testament, as he sat in a rocker 
 in the back yard. And he did not do it for
 
 66 Boys of the Street 
 
 show, either. He read because those unfa- 
 miliar characters had suddenly become real 
 to him — just as real as the heroes of the dime 
 novel— and that is saying a great deal for that 
 particular boy. 
 
 I sometimes think that we are too much 
 afraid of innovations. In a certain Sunday- 
 school that was surrounded by fully a hun- 
 dred thousand children, the average attend- 
 ance was about three hundred. In spite of 
 every effort put forth by devoted workers 
 the attendance could not be increased. The 
 workers were given the liberty of holding a 
 meeting on a week-day afternoon which was 
 called a "Children's Hour." A children's 
 choir of forty voices was organized, the 
 children recited or sang solos and duets, 
 sometimes the stereopticon was used, and 
 the pastor always gave a ten minute address 
 packed full of gospel,— although it was prac- 
 tically a children's program. But— and this 
 was what stunned the critics — the children 
 also sang popular street songs of the best 
 type. They threw themselves into the sing- 
 ing in a way that threatened to burst some- 
 thing, while the staid old sexton stood near 
 the door, shaking his head and nervously 
 fingering his keys. They also sang hymns,
 
 Religion in the Club 67 
 
 which were stencilled upon a banner, but 
 they were not so familiar with them. They 
 were street children — Jews, Catholics, and 
 those of no religious faith — and had rarely, 
 if ever, gone to Sunday-school. When the 
 critics came to the leader and remonstrated 
 with him because he allowed the children to 
 sing street songs at a religious meeting, he 
 calmly told the objectors that it was not a 
 religious meeting, but an entertainment for 
 the children into which he introduced re- 
 ligion. They permitted ballads to be sung 
 at their entertainments, he said: why not 
 permit the children to sing them at theirs? 
 The result of the work was that there were 
 fully twice as many present at the children's 
 hour as there were at the Sunday-school, and 
 it is not claiming too much to add that they 
 received as much gospel as did the children 
 in the Sunday-school. 
 
 But change there must be if we are to reach 
 and hold the boy over twelve or fourteen in 
 the so-called mission districts of our cities. 
 If the day stands in the way of changing the 
 program of the school and introducing fea- 
 tures that seem out of harmony with the 
 Sabbath, it might not be a bad plan to change 
 the day for the meetings for this particular
 
 68 Boys of the Street 
 
 class of boys: possibly operating through the 
 boys' club. 
 
 I would not have it understood that I see 
 no mission for the average church Sunday- 
 school in a home church. I am now plead- 
 ing for the street boy. No Sunday-school 
 worker of any experience will claim that the 
 average Sunday-school of to-day is making 
 much progress in this kind of work. In- 
 deed, our church Sunday-schools are barely 
 holding their own, and it is becoming a seri- 
 ous question as to what will become of that 
 institution, great as are its possibilities if 
 rightly appreciated. 
 
 The Presbyterian Church has made prac- 
 tically no progress in the number of attend- 
 ants in its Sunday-schools during the past 
 five years. The twentieth century move- 
 ment for the ingathering of a million new 
 scholars brought in about five hundred thou- 
 sand children, but it required that number 
 to take the places of those who had mean- 
 time dropped out of the ranks. The same 
 thing is practically true of every denomina- 
 tion in this country and abroad. During 
 a recent year in a western city, 20,000 
 children were lost to the Sunday-schools 
 of that city. In the same year, London
 
 Religion in the Club 69 
 
 lost over 30,000, according to a printed 
 report. 
 
 If the Sunday-school cannot hold its own 
 among the better class of children, what may 
 we expect when it comes to handling the 
 problem of the street boy ? 
 
 Unfortunately, when the average Sunday- 
 school engages in boys' club work, the man- 
 agers insist that the boy must attend the 
 school if he would receive the benefits of 
 club or reading-room, with the result that 
 the boy will usually abandon both the school 
 and the club, because the school rarely has a 
 strong enough life of its own to hold him. 
 Strange that the Sunday-school worker does 
 not get his cue from the things that win the 
 boy to the club! Not that the Sunday-school 
 should introduce on Sunday the gymnasium 
 or the checker game of the boys' club, but 
 something of the same snap and spirit 
 would wonderfully attract the wide-awake 
 boy. 
 
 Neither is the Junior Endeavour Society 
 reaching him. The average Junior Endeav- 
 our Society is made up of girls. When I 
 asked a boy why he did not attend a Junior 
 Rally he replied: "Oh, it's on de bum." 
 Analyzed, his answer meant that there was
 
 70 Boys of the Street 
 
 only one boy in the society with which he 
 was to go. The average boy of the age 
 with which we are dealing is not attracted 
 by a society that takes in both boys and 
 girls. The boys' club will attract him be- 
 cause it satisfies his natural instinct for the 
 society of those of his kind. 
 
 One who has had considerable experience 
 with boys recently said: 
 
 "The Endeavour Society movement has, 
 through its great body of enthusiastic young 
 men and women, its admirable organization, 
 fellowship and scope, and its excellent litera- 
 ture, its wide-awake leaders and its popular 
 hold, the best opportunity to attack this 
 problem. If these leaders would be willing 
 to acknowledge that possibly the methods 
 used for young men and the weak imitations 
 of the Sunday-school are not always the best 
 methods to use with boys, and various clubs 
 of boys could be formed under their shelter 
 whose aim should be to grow up later into 
 full-fledged Endeavour Societies, I believe 
 that the Endeavour movement would be 
 strengthened, that a large number of excel- 
 lent boy leaders would be provided, and that 
 thousands of boys would be held to the 
 church and the Endeavour movement who
 
 Religion in the Club 71 
 
 are now drifting away for lack of the right 
 touch." 
 
 There is no doubt that much of this would 
 take place if the aggressive members of the 
 Endeavour Societies would throw themselves 
 into boys' work. 
 
 The Young Men's Christian Association is 
 not reaching the street boy. The Associa- 
 tion is too " high-toned" for him, admirable 
 though it may be for the specific work which 
 now engages its attention. "Any young 
 man of good moral character, without regard 
 to religious belief, is eligible to member- 
 ship," but that does not reach the street boy, 
 liberal as is this qualification. This is not 
 said in criticism of that splendid organiza- 
 tion. I am simply mentioning a fact which 
 is generally admitted among its workers. If 
 the Young Men's Christian Association is to 
 reach the street boy it must establish separate 
 branches in the parts of the city where the 
 boy lives, and it must conduct the enterprise 
 very much as the boys' club is conducted, 
 although, needless to say, it will not make 
 the mistake that the average boys' club 
 makes, when it leaves out religion. 
 
 It seems to me that instead of the boys' 
 club being an organization from which re-
 
 7 2 Boys of the Street 
 
 Iigion must be debarred, it really presents 
 one of the finest opportunities for such work. 
 In one of the churches that I know some- 
 thing about, there was a chaplain in connec- 
 tion with practically every club and society. 
 It seemed the perfectly natural thing to have 
 such an officer in the boys' club because of 
 this fact. The office may be filled by one of 
 the older boys, and at the beginning of the 
 regular meeting he may read a brief portion 
 of scripture, and he might lead the club in 
 repeating the Lord's prayer or some other 
 prayer which may be applicable to the club 
 and its special needs. It is recognized by 
 the boys that the chaplain is a regular officer 
 in the United States army, and this may be 
 made the occasion of the introduction of 
 such an officer into the club. It may seem 
 best, sometimes, to have an adult serve in 
 this capacity. If this is done, and especially 
 if the minister or an experienced worker fills 
 the office, it will give him an opportunity — 
 or an excuse — to give the boys an occasional 
 address on religious matters. This office 
 should be an elective one. If this is so, the 
 boys will have a deeper interest in the serv- 
 ices of the incumbent, because he is their 
 own creation. Even a circus recently ap-
 
 Religion in the Club 73 
 
 pointed a minister as its chaplain. He is to 
 constantly travel with the thousand or more 
 members of the company. Why should not 
 a boys' club have a chaplain, too ? Rightly 
 presented, the matter will appeal to every 
 boy in the club. 
 
 In some neighbourhoods it may be a good 
 plan to have a mass-meeting for the boys on 
 Sunday afternoons, conducted by the chap- 
 lain. Attendance should not be made com- 
 pulsory, but the meeting may be made so 
 interesting that the boys will want to come. 
 As already stated, the study of Bible char- 
 acters may be made very interesting to boys, 
 and under the direction of a wise Christian 
 teacher, the members of the club may be led 
 to take a deep interest in the things that have 
 to do with religion. Gathering together a 
 class of boys who are not touched by any 
 other religious organization, it will pay to 
 put into this effort the very best that God has 
 given you.
 
 VIII 
 THE CLUBS' "ESPRIT DE CORPS" 
 
 Money is not the chief consideration in 
 making the club a success. There is some- 
 thing which money cannot bring to a club, 
 and yet, without this almost indefinable some- 
 thing, the club will be a failure. 
 
 There is a club in New York which spends 
 five thousand dollars a year for its work, and 
 it is doing good work, too. But there is an- 
 other club in a western city with a member- 
 ship about twice as large as the New York 
 club, which managed to get along on thirty- 
 six dollars, and the western club accomplished 
 a great deal of good, even though the work 
 attempted was not so elaborate as that of the 
 New York club. The success of the west- 
 ern club was due to its esprit de corps. 
 Every boy in the club was thoroughly en- 
 thused. He was intensely interested in mak- 
 ing that club a success. 
 
 One way to arouse this interest is by having 
 the boys pay something for the privileges that 
 they enjoy. It is a mistaken policy to con- 
 tinually offer privileges to any class without 
 
 74
 
 The Clubs' " Esprit de Corps " 75 
 
 requiring some service or self-help. This of 
 itself is an educative feature that is most 
 valuable. I once had a young men's club 
 which was limited to ten members. They 
 were all employed in factories near the 
 church. The boys wanted a gymnasium. I 
 told them that I would provide them with a 
 room, if they would manufacture some of 
 the material necessary for fitting up the 
 gymnasium, and that I would help them in 
 the matter of purchasing other material, 
 which they could not afford to buy. They 
 soon had a simple outfit, and I had con- 
 tributed only about ten dollars. The boys 
 appreciated it far more than if it had been 
 given to them outright, and it was a pleasure 
 to see how affectionately they regarded every 
 part of that crude affair. It was their own- 
 purchased at a real sacrifice. The moral and 
 mental discipline acquired through this effort 
 was of more value than any physical training 
 they might have received in a more elaborate 
 gymnasium, and the club meant more to 
 them after that. 
 
 In some clubs there is a small initiation fee 
 with regular dues, but these rarely amount 
 to more than one dollar a year, payable 
 monthly or weekly. Most boys can pay a
 
 76 Boys of the Street 
 
 penny a week, and it is a good plan to have 
 the boys pay it to the treasurer when they 
 respond to the roll-call at each business meet- 
 ing, the secretary checking the attendance, 
 and the treasurer the amount of the dues paid. 
 
 The boys will always be interested in hav- 
 ing a name for their club, and it should be 
 chosen by the members themselves, although 
 they may need some help in this matter. 
 Sometimes they will be tempted to name it 
 "The Lily Club," or " The Yellow Kids," or, 
 perhaps, "The Cuban Avengers." The 
 name, however, should mean something to 
 the boys, and should be selected because of 
 the inspiration which comes from it, or be- 
 cause it suggests the object of the club. 
 Following are the names of some successful 
 clubs: "Success Club," "Young Ameri- 
 cans," "Loyalty Club," "The Pilgrims," 
 "North Side Boys' Club," " Agassiz Club," 
 "Clean Street Aids." 
 
 In addition to a name, some clubs have a 
 motto. Very frequently it is a text of Scrip- 
 ture. "Our God, whom we serve, is able," 
 "Not slothful in business, fervent inspirit, 
 serving the Lord," have been helpful to some 
 boys' clubs. Other clubs have been inspired 
 by the following mottoes: "To do the best
 
 The Clubs' " Esprit de Corps" 77 
 
 we can, and to rejoice with those who can 
 do better"; "Progress," 
 
 " Look upward, and not down, 
 Look forward, and not back, 
 Look out, and not in, 
 Lend a hand." 
 
 By all means have a club colour. When 
 there are several clubs in connection with the 
 same organization, it is best to have a ground 
 colour, to which each club may add another, 
 which will distinguish it from the other clubs, 
 and yet indicate the relationship. This would 
 be especially applicable to the group clubs 
 which are made up of the members compos- 
 ing a mass club. If, for instance, the ground 
 colour selected is blue, the first club may 
 have red and blue, the second yellow and 
 blue, the third white and blue, and so on. 
 
 A boys' club never fails to become enthusi- 
 astic when giving the club yell. The words 
 of almost any college yell may be paraphrased 
 for the convenience of the boys, if it seems 
 difficult to secure an original yell. One club 
 has adopted the following yell : 
 
 " Boom-a-lacka ! Boom-a-lacka ! 
 Sizz ! Boom ! Bah ! 
 We're the Young Americans ! 
 Rah ! Rah ! Rah ! "
 
 78 Boys of the Street 
 
 Some managers have a genius for compos- 
 ing club songs. Sometimes they are so 
 elaborate that they give the name, the place 
 and time of meeting, the object of the club, 
 the name of the manager and the club's admi- 
 ration for him, and close with an invitation 
 to attend the meetings. They are usually set 
 to some popular tune, so that the club can 
 master the song in a single evening. 
 
 Songs for special occasions may be easily 
 composed by some one connected with the 
 club. In fact, some of the boys will compose 
 quite a good many songs themselves when 
 once the spirit of club singing is aroused. 
 
 Button badges, with the initials of the club 
 name upon them, are worn with considerable 
 pride, and arouse much interest among the 
 boys outside the club. Special ribbon badges 
 for the officers of the club are sometimes 
 worn, especially during the meeting. 
 
 Membership cards are quite useful. In- 
 deed, they are almost essential. They may 
 be used as admission cards, and should be left 
 with the person who has charge of the games 
 whenever a game is borrowed, so that he may 
 know whom to hold responsible for its return. 
 The card is quite simple, the following de- 
 sign answering all ordinary purposes:
 
 The Clubs' " Esprit de Corps " 79 
 
 No. ... , 1900 
 
 North Side Boys' Club 
 
 Ninth Avenue, N., near Washington 
 
 Name 
 
 Address 
 
 The rules of the club may be printed on 
 the back of the card. These should be few 
 and enforced. Sometimes probation cards 
 are issued, and if, after a month's trial the boy 
 proves himself worthy, he is admitted to 
 full membership, and given a regular ticket. 
 Whenever there is a variety of tickets, they 
 should always be printed on differently col- 
 oured cardboard. 
 
 Have public meetings open with a salute to 
 the American flag, the form of salute being 
 somewhat as follows: "I give my heart, my 
 head, my hand, to God, my home, my 
 native land." This may be followed by the 
 club song and the club yell. 
 
 If the boy can really be persuaded to give 
 heart, head and hand to God, home, and 
 native land, one could not ask for more, for 
 this is the sum of man's duty. The boys' 
 club is doing much in this direction.
 
 IX 
 CLUB MANAGERS 
 
 A club may have the best appliances to 
 be obtained and an unlimited amount of 
 money with which to push its work, and yet 
 be run into the ground because of the incom- 
 petency of its manager. The success of 
 the whole enterprise depends upon the wis- 
 dom of the man or the woman who has the 
 work in charge. 
 
 Of all kinds of social or religious effort, 
 
 the personal element enters most largely into 
 
 boys' club work. It is more attractive to the 
 
 street boy than an institution or an abstract 
 
 principle. Many a so-called ignorant mission 
 
 worker is having larger success with boys 
 
 than some college graduates, and, probably, 
 
 is doing them more good, possibly because 
 
 he or she understands them better. Because 
 
 one can glibly quote pedantic phrases as to 
 
 the social conditions of the poor, it does not 
 
 always follow that one has the best grasp of 
 
 the situation. 
 
 80
 
 Club Managers 81 
 
 Genuine interest in the boy is taken for 
 granted. It is also assumed that the worker 
 is a Christian — that is, one who has the spirit 
 of Christ. And this spirit will constitute 
 the major part of one's personality, and, 
 hence, one's influence. 
 
 It is quite a fad, among a certain class, to 
 take up some form of social, or even relig- 
 ious work, and then to drop it when it is 
 found that it means hard work, or the exer- 
 cise of brain power. The faddist is not the 
 successful boys' club worker. Neither is the 
 man or the woman with a "mission." 
 There is a seriousness about the work that 
 should engage the best that there is in us, 
 but sometimes the tremendously serious man- 
 ner in which some people seek to reform 
 others is quite laughable. And the average 
 reformer is rarely a success in boys' club 
 work. 
 
 The successful boys' club worker has a 
 store of humour which is always at command. 
 Not that he needs to tell funny stories, but he 
 must see the funny side of what would dis- 
 hearten the average man. In boys'club work 
 the appreciation of a joke is the beginning of 
 wisdom. This sense of humour is some- 
 times quite as effective as a policeman's club.
 
 82 Boys of the Street 
 
 I knew a young lawyer who undertook to 
 manage a room full of boys who were rather 
 inclined to have some fun out of any new 
 man who came down in the capacity of 
 "care-taker." As a rule, boys don't like to 
 be " taken care of." The lawyer had rather a 
 serious face, anyway, and he was very much 
 in earnest. During the evening an amusing 
 incident occurred which raised a laugh in a 
 corner of the room. The care-taker swooped 
 down upon the little group, and administered 
 a rebuke which was worthy of a better 
 cause. In the earnestness of his oration he ac- 
 cidentally struck a boy in the face. Instantly 
 every boy in the room was after him. They 
 threw him down-stairs, and then chased him 
 until he was taken under the care of a police- 
 man. An appreciation of the ridiculous 
 would have saved him, and he might still 
 be working with the boys in that club, do- 
 ing effective service, because he was really a 
 very good fellow. 
 
 It should always be remembered that the 
 influence exerted in the boys' club depends 
 altogether upon the character of the leader. 
 In the schoolroom the teacher is supported 
 by a certain well-recognized authority. The 
 club manager has only tact and force of
 
 Club Managers 83 
 
 character. But if he has these, he is sure of 
 his ground; surer than if he had the backing 
 of the most feared school official. 
 
 A successful manager must be a man of a 
 great deal of enthusiasm. He must have 
 sympathy for the boys. He must have 
 patience and yet be firm. He must be ab- 
 solutely honest, never making a promise that 
 he knows he cannot fulfill, and he must take 
 a personal interest in every member of the 
 club, so far as that is possible. He should 
 visit the boys in their homes, and become 
 acquainted with their home life, thus becom- 
 ing familiar with the peculiar situation of 
 each boy, and knowing far better just how 
 to deal with him than a hundred meetings in 
 the club-rooms would indicate. 
 
 He may have any number of assistants, 
 but he should be present every time the 
 club meets. Furthermore, he should always 
 be on time. There are few things that are 
 more demoralizing in club work than a tardy 
 manager. The assistants should arrange to 
 be present on the same night of each week 
 when they cannot come every night, be- 
 cause, in most cases, they will be likely to 
 meet the same boys, week after week; and 
 it is only in this way that they will have an
 
 84 Boys of the Street 
 
 opportunity of knowing the boys intimately. 
 It is absolutely necessary that a warm friend- 
 ship exist between the boy and the manager 
 before the greatest amount of good may be 
 accomplished. 
 
 It is a good plan to specialize the work of 
 the attendants, particularly when the club is 
 large. Select one man to look after the 
 reading matter, and make him responsible 
 for it in every way. Another might have 
 charge of the games. This task should not 
 become perfunctory, but he should make a 
 study of his work, noting, for instance, the 
 effect of certain games upon the boys, and 
 inventing new games for the boys which 
 will be an improvement upon those which 
 are being used by the club. Still another 
 should be delegated to see that the room is 
 well kept,— lights, pictures, and all furnish- 
 ings being under his care. One man might 
 keep a record of the attendance of the club 
 members, using a day-book containing the 
 names of all of the boys, and checking them 
 off as they enter the room. In this way the 
 manager will know which boys will need his 
 attention. A complete record book should 
 always be kept by this same man, showing 
 the name, address, age, number, occupation,
 
 Club Managers 85 
 
 pet, and hero of each boy, besides other 
 points of interest. 
 
 This may seem like spending a great deal 
 of time in details, but that is what helps 
 make the club successful. The manager 
 should be relieved of as much detail work as 
 is possible, so that he may give all of his 
 time to the individual boys. He may ac- 
 complish more by playing a game of 
 dominoes with that new boy than he could 
 by spending the entire evening giving out 
 the games at the desk, although he would 
 probably learn a great deal doing that, if he 
 is a close observer. 
 
 The presence of a refined woman who un- 
 derstands boys will usually have a good 
 effect upon the boys, although some of them 
 may be inclined to show off at first. There 
 is no reason why a woman should not take 
 entire charge of the club. In fact, some of 
 the most successful boys' club workers are 
 women. 
 
 The club-room attendant should remember 
 that when he shouts or becomes excited he 
 is losing his grip on the boys, because they 
 are not slow in appreciating the weakness of 
 which this is a sign. 
 
 More important than what is done is the
 
 86 Boys of the Street 
 
 question as to who does it. It may be a 
 boys' club or simply a reading-room. It may 
 be through the evening classes or through a 
 social evening at one's home that the boy 
 will be reached. It may be a Junior Republic 
 or a City History Club, a League for Street 
 Cleaning or an Anti-" Some-thing-or-other " 
 Society. But whatever it is, do not depend 
 upon the method. No one has ever dis- 
 covered an organization that will universally 
 help boys. A mother of seven boys was 
 asked what her method was, as they had all 
 turned out well. "Bless your soul," she 
 replied, "I have seven methods." If the 
 boys are to be helped, it will be when the 
 worker has made his work a passion — and 
 that will solve almost any problem. 
 
 There is an increasing demand for men and 
 women who will make boys' work a life oc- 
 cupation. 
 
 Mr. Frank S. Mason, one of the leading 
 club managers in this country, recently said: 
 
 "Universities are establishing professor- 
 ships in child study. Every social settlement 
 recognizes the importance of work for boys. 
 The church and the Young Men's Christian 
 Association are laying out, and offering 
 greater advantages to the boy. All along the
 
 Club Managers 87 
 
 line it is becoming recognized that the boys 
 of to-day are the men of to-morrow. 
 
 "These are hopeful signs, and why is it 
 not wise, at this time, to suggest that this 
 position, with its wonderful opportunities for 
 doing good to humanity, shall be adopted by 
 some of the brightest young men of the 
 country, as a profession ? 
 
 "There can be no valid objection, except 
 that the means of support are so scanty and 
 inadequate for the conduct of the work, and 
 that the basis of support is on such an inse- 
 cure footing. Every year, however, adds to 
 the number of clubs that are formed, and ex- 
 tends the life of the majority of those which 
 have been previously organized. 
 
 "The average director's salary is, to-day, 
 larger than that of the average minister, and 
 it is safe to say, without any disparagement 
 to the boys' club director, that the education 
 demanded for the position is not as great as 
 is that demanded for the ministry. Certainly 
 the work does not demand more from the 
 man, in the way of time or effort, and the 
 spiritual rewards are nearly as great."
 
 X 
 
 SOME GENERAL OBSERVATIONS 
 
 One of the best ways to win boys is to be- 
 lieve in them. The world does not believe in 
 boys. Most people want to get rid of them. 
 If a window is found broken, our first thought 
 is that some "bad boy" has done it. I do 
 not believe in making a silly thing out of a 
 boy — you would not get very far along even 
 if you tried it — but I do believe in giving him 
 the same chance as a girl. 
 
 The standard set for the behaviour of a boy 
 is what a nice, sweet, clean girl will not do. 
 The boy may be wrong, but this negative 
 standard does not appeal to him. He is not 
 very sweet or beautiful; at least, the boy's 
 sweetness and beauty are not much spoken of. 
 The average boy knows that his sister sins as 
 much as he does, but in a different way. 
 She is selfish, jealous, covetous, deceitful, — 
 as he is — but the sins of her heart are not so 
 much in evidence as the sins of his mouth. 
 Give the boy a fair show! 
 
 88
 
 Some General Observations 89 
 
 Study the tastes and talents of the boy and 
 use them in reaching him. A Sunday-school 
 teacher had a boy in his class who gave him 
 a great deal of trouble. He finally went to 
 the mother of the boy to talk with her about 
 his needs. " Don't talk to me about that boy,'' 
 she blurted out, as soon as she discovered his 
 mission. " I have trouble enough with him; 
 he is a great trial to me. Just come into the 
 kitchen with me and see what he has done 
 there. " The teacher followed the tired mother 
 into the kitchen and there on the walls were 
 drawn pictures of animals and landscapes and 
 people. They were well drawn, and the 
 teacher saw the artist in embryo. He said to 
 the mother: "I thank you for bringing me 
 into the kitchen. You have given me the 
 key to your boy's heart." 
 
 Next Sunday he was at his place with a pad 
 of paper and a good soft lead pencil, and he 
 used it in the class. He wanted a map drawn 
 that day. and he asked the boy if he would 
 draw it. He said to him: "I have learned 
 that you can draw. Just make that outline 
 with the water line, then draw these moun- 
 tains and put in these rivers and mark the 
 towns." 
 
 The boy did it; he was a partner in the
 
 90 Boys of the Street 
 
 concern that day, and it marked the end of 
 all trouble in the class so far as that particular 
 boy was concerned. 
 
 There is nothing like getting into the homes 
 of the boys in order to reach them. An in- 
 cident which occurred during the early part of 
 my career as a Sunday-school teacher has 
 often helped me to bear with an unruly boy. 
 This particular boy had been quite trouble- 
 some, and seemed to be demoralizing the en- 
 tire class. 1 told the superintendent that he 
 must be taken out of the class. It did not oc- 
 cur to me at the time just where he was to go. 
 I was simply anxious to get rid of him. Dur- 
 ing the week that followed 1 called at the 
 boy's home, because I was not altogether 
 satisfied with my own course. I met his 
 mother and sisters, as well as the boy him- 
 self, and spent a very pleasant evening, noth- 
 ing being said about the trouble in the class. 
 
 On the next Sunday I went to the superin- 
 tendent and told him that I had decided to 
 keep the boy. I have never forgotten the 
 look of pleasure and relief which came into 
 his face. Later, when I became a superin- 
 tendent I understood what that look meant. 
 Soon after the boy came into the class. He 
 had a small package which he handed to me
 
 Some General Observations 91 
 
 with some embarrassment. I found that it 
 contained his photograph. I never regretted 
 that I held on to that boy. Shortly afterwards 
 1 left the city, but returned about ten years 
 later. One night, after I had been addressing 
 several hundred young mechanics at a tech- 
 nical school, a strapping fellow stepped for- 
 ward with a smile to tell me that he was for- 
 merly my scholar in that old Sunday-school 
 class. He was the boy who had worried me 
 so sorely when I was teaching that group of 
 New York youngsters. He was then in a 
 good position, exerting a splendid influence 
 because of his strong, Christian character. 
 
 Another New York boy comes to my mind 
 who was so full of life that somebody got up 
 a petition to have him expelled from the 
 church and the Sunday-school, which he 
 faithfully attended, in spite of his supposed 
 viciousness. It had been impossible to drive 
 him away by hard looks and harsh words. 
 That boy and his " pal " stuck to the re- 
 ligious organizations, not especially to engage 
 in their services, but because there was a 
 preacher there who seemed, somehow, to 
 care for a fellow. However, the boys always 
 happened to find the creaky bench, when 
 there was one, and somehow the gas-pipe in
 
 92 Boys of the Street 
 
 the outer hall had a peculiar attraction for 
 them while the meeting was going on. Soon, 
 there was no light in the hall, and a little 
 later the people in the church were sitting in 
 darkness. Naturally, they were just a little 
 vexed. On the evenings that the church was 
 closed, and that meant every night except 
 Sunday and the prayer-meeting night, the 
 boy "hung out" with the gang in a milk 
 wagon which stood on the corner across the 
 way. I have often thought that it would 
 have been a good thing if somebody 
 connected with the church had started a 
 boys' club for the group that spent the even- 
 ing in that milk wagon. It is quite likely 
 that there would have been less mischief all 
 around — both in the church and outside of it. 
 
 But that petition — only six signatures were 
 obtained — be it said to the credit of the folks 
 who attended that church, so the boy was 
 permitted to remain. The six people who 
 signed the petition afterwards came into dis- 
 repute, and the boy — well, he became a 
 preacher, and some years later he was called 
 to become the pastor of the same church, and 
 one of the first organizations that he started 
 was a boys' club. 
 
 Boys may be trusted to a far greater ex-
 
 Some General Observations 93 
 
 tent than is generally supposed. Never per- 
 mit the impression to go out that the care- 
 taker or the manager is a " policeman." A 
 boy will usually turn out to be what you ex- 
 pect him to be. If you put him on his 
 honour he will rarely disappoint you. If you 
 make him feel that you think he needs 
 watching, make up your mind that you will 
 not be able to watch him close enough, for 
 he will surely get the best of you. The 
 average boy will take excellent care of the 
 games that are entrusted to him. The open 
 shelves of the public libraries have been a 
 revelation of the natural honesty of the 
 children. 
 
 If once you can enlist the interest of a 
 group of boys, there is no limit to which 
 they will not go. I know of half a dozen 
 young men who worked all night and until 
 seven o'clock the next morning, to prepare 
 the hall for an entertainment of the club, and 
 then went to work in the shops in which 
 they were employed. Needless to say, they 
 spent a good share of the next night at the 
 entertainment. The wisdom of this may be 
 questioned, but it certainly was an evidence 
 of the enthusiasm and the love which these 
 young fellows had for their club.
 
 94 Boys of the Street 
 
 There should be constant movement in the 
 work of the boys' club. If the enterprise 
 lags, the boys will not wait for it. Watch a 
 crowd of boys following a fire-engine ! There 
 is something definite about it. It suggests 
 life, and duty and heroism. You can find 
 few things which more readily appeal to the 
 average boy. The club is doomed if the 
 boys get ahead of it. 
 
 Neither should they be permitted to get 
 ahead of the leader. They will sometimes 
 attempt it, but after a good square trial in 
 which you have shown yourself equal to 
 them, they will have the greatest respect and 
 admiration for you. 
 
 I heard of a day school teacher who had 
 just come to a certain school. The boys in 
 the class resolved that they would humiliate 
 him. Coming into the room one morning, 
 he found written on the blackboard: " Our 
 teacher is a donkey." He wasn't quite that, 
 and he proved it. Walking to the board, he 
 added the word " driver," and then went on 
 with the lesson, without mentioning the in- 
 cident. That settled the boys. They felt 
 decidedly sheepish. They never again at- 
 tempted to be smart with that teacher. 
 
 It will pay to respect the boys. If there is
 
 Some General Observations 95 
 
 anything in the world that a boy hates it is to 
 be treated like a little boy. He thinks that 
 he is older than he really is. He certainly is 
 older than most people think he is. Never 
 call him ''bub." Did you ever notice the 
 look of glad surprise that came into the face 
 of a boy whose name you remembered and 
 used when you met him only the second 
 time ? It is worth while to study the names 
 of the boys. 
 
 Do not permit the club-rooms to become a 
 mere loafing place, and under no circum- 
 stances allow the boys to smoke in or about 
 the building. While in the room, every boy 
 should be interested in a book, paper or 
 game, unless there is some good reason for 
 his lack of employment. A boy should not 
 be allowed to change a game until he has 
 finished playing it. There is a temptation to 
 make frequent trips to the game counter, in 
 order to try all the games in a single evening. 
 This will be done especially by the smaller 
 boys. 
 
 Order should be the first law in a boys' 
 club, as well as in heaven. Boys really pre- 
 fer order. They love " the imperialism of 
 good-natured firmness." If there is disorder, 
 it is usually the fault of the manager. The
 
 96 Boys of the Street 
 
 cause of disorder is that the boys have found 
 something more interesting than you have 
 given them. 
 
 On a cold or wet night the furnishings of 
 a boys' club are incomplete unless there is a 
 coffee-kettle, coffee and sugar and milk in a 
 cupboard, and a little money with which to 
 buy some cookies or doughnuts. The stormy 
 evenings are the times you can get nearest 
 the boys. 
 
 One of the most vivid memories of my 
 boys' club days is connected with the large 
 blackboard which was stationed near the 
 door, where every boy would see it. That 
 blackboard had chalked upon it some helpful 
 mottoes which have gone through life with 
 many an east side boy. Often there were 
 simple rules of conduct " which are observed 
 by every gentleman," we were informed. 
 
 I remember that the rules were all positive 
 rules— never a " don't," that I can recall, but 
 always a positive "be." In that rule of the 
 manager there may be found a valuable 
 pointer for the boys' club worker.
 
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