How were the boys treated when they arrived in Hooverville? Why were they treated this way?

The boys were treated quite well when they entered Hooverville. The first group of men that they encountered were friendly toward Bud and Bugs. The men told the boys where they were, and then that Hooverville was loaded with men and women just like Bud and Bugs.

"All these people," the mouth organ man said, "are just like you, they're tired, hungry and a little bit nervous about tomorrow. This here is the right place...

The boys were treated quite well when they entered Hooverville. The first group of men that they encountered were friendly toward Bud and Bugs. The men told the boys where they were, and then that Hooverville was loaded with men and women just like Bud and Bugs.

"All these people," the mouth organ man said, "are just like you, they're tired, hungry and a little bit nervous about tomorrow. This here is the right place for y'all to be 'cause we're all in the same boat. And you boys are nearer to home than you'll ever get."

The above quote explains why the men were so friendly to Bud and Bugs: everybody in Hooverville is "in the same boat." That means they are all in the same life situation. They are all struggling together, and as the saying goes, "misery loves company."

The men notice that Bud and Bugs look very hungry, so they are nice enough to steer the boys toward where they can get some food. The only catch is that Bud and Bugs have to pull kitchen duty. They can eat, but they have to do all of the dishes. The catch makes sense. Nobody has any money, but the food doesn't come free. Each person has to do a bit of work in order to be fed.

The mouth organ man said, "You’re welcome to join us, but we all pitch in here, so's unless either one of you is carrying one of them smoked West Virginny hams in them bags, it looks like you'll be pulling KP tonight."

I said, "Pulling what, sir?"

He said, "KP, Kitchen Police, you do the cleanup after everyone's had their fill. There're a couple of other young folks who'll show you what you have to do.”

Me and Bugs both said, "Yes, sir!" This seemed like a real good trade.