Huntsville gazette., 1894-02-24
SATURDAY, FEB. "a, 1894.
THE Nsa 20 CONFERENCE.
The Daily Mercury


The 900 black farmers did good
work at Tuskegee on Mon day AS
far as the reports 60, they talked
wisely and passed good resolutions.
One farmer. stockhoider in one Of
the Tuskegee banks, warned the farmers
against mortgages and waive notes. He
urged the farmers to work six days IN
the week the year round, and said that
there was work to do Oh the farm every
day in the year.
Another farmer, who one year ago had
no land, was now buying farm, payir
on it $32 per month. He made his money
by selling eggs. milk snd butter.
Another prosperous farmer owns three
lots in Opelika and pays taxes on $1,000
worth of property. This man started
with nothing.
The conference adopted the following
declarations:
1. We believe education, property and
practical religion will give US every right
and privilege enjoyed by other citizens,
and therefore, that our interests can be
served by bending all OR energies to Sc
curing them. rather than by dwelling on
tie past or by fault finding and com
planning. We desire to make the confer
ence gauge of Our progress from year
to wear. With regard to education, it is
still true that the average length OF the
country schools is only about three and
a half months. Tbere.is either no school
house, or a very poor one, and the
teacher, as a rule, is but little prepared
fer his work. We suggest as. remedies
the raising Of money by subscription to
lengthen the school term and to provide
more and better school houses. We
would also urge upon Our schools and
colleges for the training OF leaders the
importance of sending more of their best
men and women to the smaller towns and
country districts.
2. As regards property, we find that
two thirds of our farmers are still prat-
tcing the habit Of mortgaging their un-
planted crops for the supplies furnished
them, live in ore-room cabins and are usA
uaiy in debt. As remedies, we recon
mend the immediate purchase OF land
end its thorough cultivation; the raising
of sufficient food supplies for home use;
that We avoid the immigration agent,
keep out of the cities, pay our taxes
promptly, stop moving from farm to farm
every year, work winters as we'll az sum
mers, and Saturdays as well as other days
escially avoiding the expensive and il ju>
rious habits of using liquor snuff and to
bacco; and, since our interests are with
the white people among whom we live,
we would urge the cultivation in every
manly way Of friendship and good wi
toward them.
3. While in morals and religion we are
far from what we ought to be, yet we
note each year real improvement. To
help in this direction we urge better
preparation of the christian ministry, the
settlement of our differences outside the
courts, that we draw sharp lines between
The virtuOus and the immortal; that we
refuse to tolerate wrong dong in our
leaders, especially in cur ministers and
teachers; that we treat our women with
more respect, and urge upon them the
importance of giving more time to the
home life and less to the streets and pub
l.c places.
These declarations indicate that
our colored farmers are sensible
men. The ideas embodied in the
above resolutions are good. The
colored men, politically, are |becom-
ing identified with the best Interests
OF the State and no doubt see the
folly of aligning themselves always
with the worst element Of our
white population. All that is ne
cessarv to make good Democrat
of calored man in the South is to
enlighten him to the extent that he
will vote with the other good citi-
Zens.