Burris ewell and Walter Cunningham are both from extremely poor families. how do the boys differ ?

The biggest difference between the two boys is that Walter Cunningham has pride and good upbringing. Burris isn't expected to do anything..... he's dirty, ill mannered, and neglected.

To me, the biggest difference is in how they approach their poverty. As per Jem/Scout, the Cunningham's "take nothing from nobody". They never borrow money, take Welfare payments, etc. They work for what they have, and never wait for a handout. In contrast, the Ewell's get Welfare checks & Bob Ewell takes the money to buy alcohol, leaving the kids to scounge for food in the dump, or poach deer out of season. They happily take christmas baskets from the local church every year. Unfortunately, we have many current day examples of this still happening today.