The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1885-02-13
IN NEW ORLEANS.
THE ATTENDANCE OF coLoREo
CHILDREN At THE SCHOOLS.
Exceedingly Anxious to Learn Up 10 q
Certain Poiat-Enscts Of Education
Upon tho Colored Laboring
Mana Problem.

L
In passing through the streets Of New Or
leans the stranger is impressed by the large
number Of colored girls and boys whom he
sees going to and from their schools The
schools for colored children are very largely
attended In New Orleans, and, as rule, the
pupils are said to be quite proficient In the
rudimentary branches. They learn to read,
write, and do sums" In arithmetic ouite
readily, but very few Of them, am told.
exhibit any desire 10 climb the hill Of knowl-
edge much higher. They are exceedingly
anxions to learn-up to q certain point; bue
when that point Is reached they consider
themselves fully educated" and, with rare
exceptions, are not ambitious to explore the
mysteries Of science or wrestle with the class
les But some Of these exceptions are really
notable. At the Leland university, an in
stitution In the suburbs OF tho city, which
has an endowment out Of the Peabody fund,
there arc number Of attendants who have
become excellent classical scholars One of
them-an old man Of 60 and quite black
VINO, ten years ago, could neither read nor
write English, has not only acquired good
knowledge Of that tongue. but has also
become highly proficient In Greek and Latin.
lam told that he Is familiar with wide
range OF classical literature, aud that he win
TAAQh-
ing Of the dead languages. 2E
Very few, indeed Of the rising colored ceu-
tlemen in this city are growing up in abso-
Lutte illiteracy. The colored youth who can
not read the daily newspaper, or write a lot
ter to his "Rirl," finds himself target for
the ridicule Of his associates. The desire
to escape the reproach Of being an ignorant
niger leads many colored boys and girls to
study their readers and their spoilers who
would otherwise neglect them, and thus a
sense OF pride rather than thirst Cor knowl-
edge induces them to put forth efforts to
keep pace with their more eager and ambi-
tious companions. r....
The little smattering Of education which
most Of the colored youth Of to-day are re-
csiving In the city the plantations the
"niggers" are not so forward-does NOT In all
cases. ! am told, have q tendency to increase
their immediate usefulness 10 the COM
munity. There Is universal complaint to the
effect that few colored women under 30
make good servants The old and the mid.
die aged-those who were born In slavery
and whose heads have not been turned by
Abook larnin' '"-are In great demand for
household work, because so I was told by a
New Orleans lady-they 1know their places"
understand their duties and are not consumed
by a adevouring ambition to shine In the world
OF society and Of letters The col ored female
who Is educated, on the contrary, lis prone to
look upon household service as somewhat
beneath her, and only accepts IL as dernier
resort She Ii not anxious to excel In tho,
art OF cookery, or to gain reputation rs
waiter or q chambermaid She demands
special consideration from her employer
upon the score OF her attachments and nc.
complishments, and her object in life il 10
make brilliant" matrimonial alliance. to
rise In the social scale, and to become the
head OF her own establishment Her ambi-
tion is very laudable, to be sure, and all that.
but 1t Is exceedingly inconvenient to those
who are dependent upon her for their daily
rations
And 30 with the young colored men who
are graduates from the primary schools.
they do not care to be coachmen, or bar
bers, or whitewashers, or teamstels, or por-
tsrs, and only accept such employment un-
der the pressure Of dire necessity, and until
they can do something better. They wish to
be letter-carriers, or policemen, or bank
cashiers, or palace-car dignitaries. This
Is a laudable ambition, but highly
'nconvenient to the naughty Caucasian who
may employ one Of these scholarly per-
'onages in the capacity Of team
'ter, Tor instance, or whitewasher
We like to sec the colorei men getting
along" said former stakeholder to me
, day or two ago after he had been enumer-
lting some Of the shortcomings OF the aedu-
,ated niggers" when engaged in humble en-
ployments. ave like to sec them acquiring
and accumulating property, and
an ambition to rise In life. We
Eeep up their schools and help their churches
md try to encourage them in all their efforts
o better their condition. But, really, In 80
loing, We seem to be destroying the sources
4 supply for many departments Of labor,
md moro especially Of female labor. The
'roblem which Il thus being raised really
'romises to be q serious one, both for tho
olored pe0plo and for the whites"