Joseph Murphy earned $116 a week as the custodian of the building where Frand Shoop, a $60,000 a year lawyer, had his offices. Joseph lived with his wife Jennie and their two children in a house rented from Frank Shoop. Jennie did day work for Mrs. Shoop in her large suburban house. The Murphy children were home alone on the days when Jennie worked. Joseph worked weekends at a gas station to earn the additional money to pay for his family's food and shelter. When Jennie became seriously ill from an appendix that ruptured when she did not recieve immediate treatment, Joseph took her to the emergency room of the local hospital. Without medical insurance, the hospital bill placed additional burdens on Joseph. His plan to go to school in the evenings to prepare for a better job was thwarted by his truch breaking down. Failing to qualify for a loan to repair his old truch or buy a new one, Joseph used a bicycle to get to work. When the kitchen floor of Joseph's rented home began to rot from a plumbing leak that Mr. Shoop had not fixed when first asked by the Murphys, Shoop blamed Joseph for the damage and demanded that he and his family vacate the house by the first of the month. The Murphys moved in with a neighbor. Under the pressures, Joseph consumed more and more alcohol. While he was cleaning Frank Shoop's second-floor window. Shoop swore out a warrant for Joseph's arrest, and after 3 months of pretrial detention because of inability to pay bail, Joseph was sentenced to 3 to 5 years in the State penitentiary. The story is intended to be used to stimulate discussion on the social, economic, and moral issues raised. A study guide is available upon request.