The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-12-09
WILL 1T PAY!
Dr. Bunstead's Question to the People
North.
The Higher Education of a Few Colored
feopie Necessary in Order that the
Industrial Education of tn @ Mass of the
Race Be Ensure d,

People Necessary in Order that the
Industrial Education of the Mass of the
Race Be Ensure d.
Rev. DR.. Horace Bunstead, president
OF Atlanta university, spoke at the
SecondssP Parish church yesterday morning
on The Education of the Negro"
DIR. Bunstead said that he came from
the South with message from the negro. 4
There is necessity for the higher
education of the negro. The objection is
made in some quarters that the more
pressing and important thing is the in
dustrial education of the negro. Then
there is the objection that the higher edu-
cation will unfit those who will receive it
from manual labor, and it ought to, for
while manual labor is honorable, and not
to be despised, if a man can make his
life higher and better he should do it. If
man can do the nobler thing he ought
not to do the meaner. Then the same
objection holds good against all educa-
ton. The savage lives by plucking
roots, little education puts the bow
and arrow into his hands, and still
more education gives him plow and he
can cultivate the ground. DR.. Holmes
in reply to the California sand lot orator,
who. spoke so much of the hard handed
sons of toll. said that he too was a
worker, and that an ache of the head WAS
as much as an ache on the hand. But
very few colored people would be found
fit for this higher education, just as but
few, while people are likely to receive it.
twenty three out Of every one Thousand
are receiving this higher education, and
yet they will, -humanly speaking, shape
the destiny of the rest
But it is objected that these colored
people so educated, will be educated out
of all sympathy with their race but this
is not so, and will not be so. The races
are not brought together. The negro can
not go to concerts, they cannot take books
from the public libraries. in short they
are by themselves, and they must be with
their race. The education of a portion of
the colored race will be an encourage
ment to others of this race. The negro
when he looks backward has but little to
encourage him. There is great encourage
ment to every Englishman to think that
he is of the same race as Shakespeare,
Carlyle and Gladstone.
Then the industrial education of the
negro depends upon the higher education
of portion of the race. The 10000
colored people of the South must be
taught, but the races do not meet in the
same school rooms, and can we find in
the North the 80, 600 teachers we need to
teach in the schools. the South greatly
to it's credit has establishedP We must
have a class of highly trained young
colored people, and they must know more
than they teach The personality of the
teacher is of the highest Importance 1t
was the personality of Mark Hopkins
more than his teachings at Williams
college that entered into General Arm
strong and enabled him to do his work at
Hampton, and it was the personality of
General Armstrong that made BROKER
Washington the man of power he is.
The spiritual education of the negro
depends upon this higher education of
portion of their own race The existence
Of the colored race in Africa was Largely
animal, and slavery did little to help
them, and it is no wonder that at this
time the religion Of the negro IS
materialism, pure and simple. 1t is no
wonder that they sing of golden slippers
that will outshine the sun. We need to
give them teachers who will help to lift
them out of materialism.
Then we need to give this higher educa-
ton to the negro in order that we may
by their help assist in making the masses
good citizens. The negro has the ballot
and he will use 1t. Shall we leave him to
be the victim of the self seeking
politicians, or shall we give them
competent, educated trained teachers of
their own race? More and more are they
going from the country to the cities, and
greater and greater is the need of these
educated leaders of their race Then it is
said that there should be an effort made
to help the negro to get out of his cabin
with its one room into a framed house.
but what thon? We must help him to
make his new homo Christian home
He has the mechanical skill now to en-
able him TO build better home, but he
lac ks the desire. Every home made by
educated colored people becomes a oiviliz-
ing centre. We can in no way SO we'll
help the colored people of the South as by
giving to them trained and educated
people of their own race.
DR. Bunstead spoke Of the result of
twentysix years of tie work of the
university, and said that two-thirds of
the graduates are now teaching school,
the very work they were educated to do.
"Does this work pay?" will be asked.
If so it is worthy of support. The
university must have s25, 600 a year in
order to carry on it's work. DR.. Bun
stead told Of one colored boy who walked
So miles from his home to the school and
said CAN ask is work to do, that 1
may pay my way That sort of boy
was not to be sent back or discouraged,
Work was found for him and since then