The Topeka state journal., 1897-05-29
NEGROES DYING.
Alarming Figures Made Public
at Conference
Of Leading COlOred Men at At
lanta, Ga.
DEATH RATE LARGER
Than Of the Whites and Rapid
Iy Increasing.
DEATH RATE LARGER
At Present Rate, Race Must
Eventually Become Extinct.

Atlanta, May 2s.-The second annual
conference upon the problems connected
with the negro city life began last
night at Atlanta university.
The present conference is of special in
terest. as following close upon exten-
sive investigation which has lately been
conducted into the material conditions of
negro life in the large cities.
In this investigation the cooperation Of
the United States department of labor
was secured. and the results have been
embodied in statistical form in the tenth
bulletin of the department (NIay, 189Z)
Butler r. Wilson of Boston, gave in de-
tail some of the most important results
of the investigation of the past year. He
emphasized the fact that the negro has
nothing to fear from rigid investiga ton,
but, on the other hand. the reuslts of
such investigation will be helpful The
guiding principles of the work. he said,
have been to get the truth regardless of
consequences, and to get such truth as
should be of practical value. The work
has brought out the following facts:
Negro families are smaller on the aver
age than was supposed. The average age
of negroes is smaller than that of whites.
There is not an overcrowding in dwell
lies by female labor is very prevalent,
which results in neglect of children.
Consumption and pneumonia are the dis
eases most fatal. Sanitary conditions
will not account for the difference in
death rate between whites and negroes.
The difference must be explained in some
other way. In spite of environment, the
health of negroes is comparatively good.
L. NJ Hershaw of Washington, read
1a nh
dition of the negro, as shown by a COM
parison of progress made during the last
fifteen years in Atlanta, Baltimore,
Charleston, Memphis and other cities.
The vital statistics of these cities show
1873 per cent excess in colored over white
mortality during the last fifteen years.
Atlanta's excess has been SIS per cent.
The greatest excess has been in Charles
ton, the smallest in Memphis. The
causes of the excessive mortality are the
same for all the cities, consumption being
| the disease to cause most alarm for the
| future.
| Prof. Eugene Harris of Fisk university,
I in Nashville, spoke of the physical con-
dition of the negro as dependent upon
! social conditions. He showed that the
/ laws of health apply equally to negroes
and to whites. and that their violation
! leads to the same results in both races.
! The chief causes of mortality, he said,
! are consumption and infant mortality.
/ The tendency to consumption in the me-
| gro has only developed to any marked
/ degree since the war. Infant mortality is
/ now so alarming to threaten the fu-
| ture of the race. In eighteen cities the
race is doing scarcely more than repro
ducing itself. True, vice and ignorance
are to be explained as consequences of
slavery. but they are not, therefore, to
/ be excused. The solution of the question
| is to be found in higher social morality;
moral regeneration is the only hope. for
| all history teaches that without social
reform the negro race is doomed to ex-
| tinction.
The proceedings of the evening closed
with the adoption of the following reso>
lutions:
Resolved. That it appears from the re-
suit of the investigation:
First, That the excessive mortality
among negroes is not due to any great
extent to environment.
80. That the excessive mortality among
negroes is largely due either to their ig-
norance OF their disregard of the laws Of
health and morality.
'.3. That the excessive mortality and
| the apparent increase of immortality
among the negroes is chiefly due to the
7 neglect of home and family life. the chief
| cause of which is the extent to which
the mothers are obliged to go out to
work.
a. That the failure of the men to en-
tirely support their families with their
| earnings has a most serious effect upon
! the social, physical and economic pro-
| gress of the race.
"5. That finally it appears that the ne
gro must reform himself and that he is
not dependent upon charity or municipal
regulations, but has the means in his own
| hands.
| Resolved. That the following recon-
mendations are made:
Il. That the attention of members OF
| the conference during the coming year
be concentrated on reforms in the family
life of the negro.
80. That greater care and attention
! should be given to the home training OF
| the children. especially of young men and
| young women. and that parents associa-
! tions and mothers meetings should be
formed for that purpose.
'3. That day nurseries should be pro-
vided for the care of infants and young
children in the enforced absence of the
| parents.
"A That friendly visiting among the
poor should be more general and more
J systematic and that such friendly visitors
! should hold weekly or monthly confer
are making a special study of social prob
| lems.'
| W. B. Johnson of Newark, o. says:
/ "One Minute Cough Cure saved my
/ Only child from dying by Group It has