The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1897-12-27

ton. now principal OF the Tuskegee Nor
NAL and Industrial Institute, at Tuske-
gee. Alabama. Mr., Washington is
generally recognized us one Of the
abcst men of his race In this country,
and his appearance and address at the
Int Atlanta Exposition We're enthusiasts
tIcally received. north and south, He
spent his youth in the southern part Of
this state, and was coal miner ut NAL
den, in Kanawha county, for several
years.
While in Wheeling last week he spoke
IN the Opera House on "The Negro
Problem In the south,h and his address
was interesting to an who were fortu-
rate enough TO hear him.
Speaking 10 an Intelligencer reporter
Of The work that Is being done by his
school In the "blaGk belt" he said;
Industrial education does not mean
that the negro is to be limited in his
mental development. fhe negro, like
other people, should secure all the men
tal development possible. but II is es-
peclally necessary for people in the
present condition of the masses OF the
negroes in the south TO apply their ed
ucatlon in the direction uf Industrial
life, Industrial education simply
means the conquering of The forces OF
nature The more mental development
an Individual has the more likely is he
In succeed along Industrial lines, but
mental development within itself
amounts to nothing except as 1t is APP
Piled in some useful direction. When
Industrial education Is mentioned to the
average man he gets the Idea that II Is
meant TO teach the negro to work. Far
from this; Industrial education Is
meant to teach one how not TO work.
how 10 make horse power, or steam or
electricity work for him. II Is the ig-
rurant, unskllied man who tolls from
day 10 day with his hands, While the
man With education and trained hands
makes tie forces OF nature do his work.
The masses Of the colored people work
hard, but by reason OF their want OF
skin and intelligence some one else re-
ceives the profits. There is little proht
IN the raising OF the raw material that
enters into cotton fabrics, the proht
comes IN the higher forms OF mahatae-
turing. by reason OF the pegro's lack OF
skin he Is at the present at the bottom
50 far as the matter Of profit sharing IS
concerned. AT Tuskegee we seek 10
rive him such an education as will put
him on the upper tier In the matter OIL
production and profit sharing.
In an Industrial sense, what Is the
condition OF the negro?"
"The Arst year our people received
their freedom they had nothing on
which to live while they grew their
FIRST cotton crop; funds for the iirst
crop were supplied by the store-keeper,
or former master. n debt was created;
TO secure the indebtedness a lien was
given on the cotton crop, In this way
I'VE got started IN the south what Is
known as the mortgage, or crop Hen
system-a system that has proved u
curse 20 the black and white man ever
since II was Instituted. BY this system
the farmer Is charged a rate OF Interest
that ranges from fifteen per cent 70
forty per cent. By this system you VIII
usually find three fourths OF the people
mortgage their crops from year to year,
as many deeply In debt aud living IN
one-room cabins on rented land. BY this
system debts and extravagAnce are en-
couraged, and the land Is impoverished
and values fall. The schools IN the c0un-
try districts rarely last over three and
a half months in the year, and are usu-
nlly taught In church or wreck OF a
log cabin, or under bush arhor, NY
information is that each child entitled
TO attend the public schools IN Mlssa-
chusetts has spent on him each year
between SIS and 500 In Alabama each
colared child has spent on aim this year
about seventy-One cents, and tAe White
"a mote
what Is the remedy for this state OF
things"
"Tf the colarcd people got any good
out of slavery It was the habit OF work.
In this respect the masses Of the color
"a peoplc are different from most races
among whom missionary effort IS made
In mat the negro as race, works. You
win not find anything like that hlgh
tension OF activity that is maintained
here. stlll the negro works whether the
call Tor labor comes from the rice
swamps OF the CarollnGs, the cotton
plantations Of Alabama, or the sugar
cane bottoms Of Louisiana, the negro IS
reads TO answer it-yes, toll IS the
badge % all his tribe though he may do
hfs work m the most shiftiess ana cost
ly manner. SIN with him It Is labor ]
KNOW You WIN lllAA - hafh"f' $500 $500
raad gtntlnns and corners OF streets
that loaf. lust as you win find among
all peoplo. and We have got some blnc,t
sheen In orr rock. az there are In all
N0cks. hut the masses In their humble
way are Industrious The trouble cen
tiers here: Through the operations OF
the MORTGAGE system high rents, the
nllurements OF cheap jewclry and bad
all IN aI lfln tlN
negro is deprived OF the results OF ms
labor. Unused to self government I'M
used to the responsibility Of controlling
our own earnings. or expenditures, or
even our own children u could not be
oypcctcd that We could take care Of
ourselves In nl respects FOR several
generations The great need OF the ne.
gro to-day Us Intelligent, unsnlNHh Lead
orshp In his indunirInl ana cdheauonal
lie.
Neither here nor In am part OK the
world do people come into close rcln-
tons with a "ace that " TO a large *
tent empty handed and empty headed
ono rnce Ectq close to another in pro-
portion MS they are drawn IN com
ulorcr IN proportion ns the one gets
hold OF something that the other wants
or respectg.-commerce we must &C
knowledge. IN the light Of history, Is the
great farerunner Of civilization and
peace Whatever friction exists be-
'woon the black aud white man In The
E1ufh will disappear !Ii proportion an
tho black man. hy reason At hts iHialh.
ranCe and skin, can create gome,hlnN
TINT the whites wnnt or respects can
make tho white man dependent ON the
O.. lttHNFuI NJ all tho
dsrnndonra brlng ON th1 other rllo. De.
optic all her faults. whru II comes TO
business pure nnd slnluie, The Houlh
-LL.nuL. m nnnuLIuuLLM fnN LmLIMnn.