The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-05-09
THE WOMEN OF THE SOUTH.
Industrial Training For Southern Women.
BY BOOKER II. WASHINGTON.
Principal of Tuskegee Normal Institute.
ESPECIAL ART1cLE.1

is, what to do with the women in an
industrial sense. This applies not
alone to the colored women, but in
larger measure to the white women.
Slavery taught both that labor was
to be escaped-to be got
ten rid of just as soon as possible.
In most prosperous countries wo
men are employed to large extent
in factories, shops, stores and various
forms of industry, but except in a
very limited way this is not true of the
South. For many decades the edu-
cation of women in the South has
been largely along the line of bellies
lettres, art and music. With the
dawn Of freedom the temptation was
to educate the colored girls alongthe
same lines. Nor have many as yet
seen that it is necessary to change to
a large extent the education of the
white women, especially of the poorer
and middle classes. Art and music
for the people who live in rented
houses and have no bank account are
not the most important subjects to
which attention can be given. Such
education creates wants without a
corresponding increase of ability to
supply these increased wants. One
of the saddest sights | ever saw in the
South, was colored girl recently re-
turned from college. sitting in a
rented one-room cabin, attempting
day by day, to extract music from
second-h hand rented piano, when all
about her indicated poverty, want of
thrift and cleanliness.
Isuppose it is safe to say that about
three-fourths of the women and girls
in the South have no profitable and
commendable way to employ their
time. The changed conditions re-
sulting from the freedom of the slaves,
have forced many white women, who
have not been trained to do anything
more profitable, to become various
kinds of agents for cheap books, cheap
periodicals, so-called silverware, etc.
The colored woman, to evade the
hard work of piowing or hoeing or
splitting rails by the side of men, es-
capes as soon as possible to the city,
where she too often finds nothing that
she is fitted to do, and the result is
life of shame.
1t is true that in the country dis
tricts of the South the white women
and girls take their places in the field
by the side of the men, but they, like
their colored sisters, feel that this is
not their proper place, and who can
blame thema
Those conditions bring us face to
face with the question as to what is
the best thing to be done with the
millions of poor white women and
girls in the South, and the equally
large number of colored women and
girls. The recent introduction of
cotton mills into the South has given
employment to few white women in
few local centers, but this does not
settle the matter.
What are some of the industries in
the South that women can be trained
to follow? l mean industries that
will be creators of wealth. Among
others l would name dairying, fruit
growing, small berry growing, fori-
culture, poultry raising, fruit can
ming, as industries that the South is
especially suited for. Work along
these lines for women is infinitely
better than peddling cheap books
and other cheap wares, and is vastly
better suited to the constitution of
woman than plowing, hoeing or split
ting rails. Such work is not only
more elevating, but it will pay, will
produce wealth where there was none
before. Such industries make pro-
ducer rather than a parasite.
The average man in education likes
to do the same thing that was done
centuries ago, with no other reason
for it than that it has always been
done thus. Why not in the South
face conditions as they are and apply
ourselves to the remedyi
There is room and need for half
dozen great institutions in the South
where women can be taught in con-
nection with academic studies, can
be given the best theoretical and prac-
tical training in dairying, fruit grow
ing, growing of small berries, Aori-
culture, poultry raising, etc. Such
institutions are needed for colored
and white girls. The schools should
be supplied with instructors of the
highest type of intelligence and
broadest culture. The instructors
should possess such special knowl-
edge of the industry as will result in
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