Civic Helpfulness 91 



from which at times we drew policemen while en 

 gaged in managing the New York Police Depart 

 ment. Several came from Young Men's Christian 

 Associations. One of them whom we got from the 

 Bowery Branch of the Young Men's Christian As 

 sociation I remember particularly. I had gone 

 around there one night, and the secretary mentioned 

 to me that they had a young man who had just res 

 cued a woman from a burning building, showing 

 great strength, coolness, and courage. The story in 

 terested me, and I asked him to send for the young 

 fellow. When he turned up he proved to be a 



Jew, Otto R , who, when very young, had come 



*over with his people from Russia at the time of one 

 of the waves of persecution in that country. He was 

 evidently physically of the right type, and as he had 

 been studying in the association classes for some 

 time he was also mentally fit, while his feat at the 

 fire showed he had good moral qualities. We were 

 going to hold the examinations in a few days, and 

 I told him to try them. Sure enough, he passed 

 and was appointed. He made one of the best po 

 licemen we put on. As a result of his appointment, 

 which meant tripling the salary he had been earning, 

 and making an immense bound in social standing, 

 he was able to keep his mother and old grandmother 

 in comfort, and see to the starting of his small 

 brothers and sisters in life; for he was already a 



