The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1898-02-02
upYOFsNEGROILIFE......
.1ur.,,Isation Into ths sorlai and Eeon.,
enle Condition., ola Typical Negro Com.
n,unity In virgitlia, =

puilc Conditions Of Ty plcal Negro Com.
n,unity In virgitiia.
washington dispatch to che New York
Times: Under instructions from the
government department OF labor
,.uIy OF typical negro community,
that at Farmvillc. the county seat OF
Prince Edward County. ylrbinIa, was
made during the months OF July and
August, 1851, By W. L. i. Du Dois. Ph.
D.. who lived In the community during
tina, tine md tabulated such ssatlaties
as he could obtain to show the social
conditions. FarnvIle has population
Of 1851, OF which 2,isS are negroes, and
LAG whites, 1t Is tho geographical cen.
,rc OF a typical black" Virginia coun-
Is, which Md in 1890 a population OF
iissi, OF which g.e2i wese negroes Tho
same proportion holds good at the pres
ent time. These negroes held 1856
acres OF land In 1895. as against s0s.-
SS. held by whites, the respective VAL
mes being siS?, 1So and lSi.Osi. $50. II is,
therefore, as representative county
for social science purposes as Farmyllle
SarmvIile Is the trading centre for
ak counties. II ha3 an opera house,
normal school for white girls. armory,
court house and Jail, bank. depot,
churches, sixteen tobacco warehouses.
snJ factories and substantial dwell
inss. on market day. which Is
saturday. the town IL swollen to twice
Is s!=e by the Influx OF country peo-
plc mostly negroes. So Mr.. Du Bois
uncludes Il TO be US good q spot as
could be found 10 study the negro as he
sctuall,' Is under such social and eco
uomic conditions as exist to-day,
The lnvestlgator.f found q considerable
excsss OF females Ia the population, duo
40 the emigration OF males TO tho
north for employment, which Is lab-
Il among both spSes between the twen-
lies and th!rties In age, these frequent-
ly leaving their children behind them,
40 that there Is All excess OF old peo-
ME and children. As to their social con-
dillon Mr. Du Bo!s found OF S5i males
over fifteen years Of age; lii, or 4l.9
per cent were single; us. or J0.7 per
cent were married, and II, or per cent
were widowed. The remaining Y. or 81
per cent were In no case regularly d.
yorced, but were permanently separated
rom their wives. Of the S99 women,
i.S, or 3o.l per cent were single; lis, or
El ner cent were married; 70, or 1874
ner cent were widowed, and L, or 81
Der cent were permanently separated.
OF the population In 1897 10 per cent
were OF Legitimate birth, which Is a
DECIDED change for the better In TWEEN
~ wears, especially when 1t Is consider
ed that marriages are now contracted
n, a much later period In lie than
during the slavery days. The standard
OF morals Is constantly Improving. The
social lie OF the community has devel-
o,eS marvelously. says the report, due
20 the better influence OF church life
which has been much elevated and has
nassed beyond the .'excltablc and
screaming stage OF historical revivals"
anonq the better classes-and the Sc
ere, and beneficial organizations.
Negroes have divided themselves into
three social classes In the little own, the
urpe. being the land owners and peo.
pie In trade and OF rather austere hab-
lis and strict morals. the middle class
OF laborers. servants. and farm hands.
and the lowest strata. which includes
criminals. male and female, who are os-
tracIsed by the rest OF the community.
Mr. pu Bots found two cases OF misce-
geratiou, which are undisturbed despite
the law. He could get no statistics as
10 percentage. except by observation.
and that gave him these results: "Of
fo5 negroes met face TO face, $50 were
apparently Of unmixcd negro blood; ets
were brown in colcr ard showed trace.
o, white blood, and 153 were yellow or
lighter, and showed considerable infus-
ION OF white blood. According 20 this,
oae-thi-d TO one-half the negroes OF the
town are OF mixed blood, and verifying
this by observations on the street and
IN assemblies. this seemed a fair con-
c!us!on." He also concludes that the
concublnage which brought about these
results Is rapidly decreasing.
Thc,negroes are nearly all anxious TO
own lands and houses. They have es-
tsblished building aad loan associa-
ton made up OF men OF their own race
and are as rapidly as possible abandon
ing the old one-roon cabin for frame
houses with two or more distinct rooms.
The school system is Indifferent, vet
the percentage OF illiteracy has greatly
decreased and he found that of sos
people above ten years OF age, 1875 pc:
cent could both read and write, Us per
cent could read, but not write and 40
per cent were wholly illiterate. the ex-
cess OF II!teracy being now among
the mea instead OF women. as formerly.
AS to the occupation OF the negroes
abovc ten years OF age. according 20
tne popular classification OF pursuits,
he found in professional occupations. ~:
10 domestic, 2s7; in commercial. 40; in
agricultural, 10; In industrial, 2S2: not
engaged In gainful occupations, 259;and
not reported, H.. Using q different
classification, he found those woriiinS
on iheir own account, %: laboring class,
80: house service. 90: day service, l4s;
at nome. unoccup!ed. and dependent.
80; professional and clerical, q. and
rot reported. II.
There was no colored physician OF
lawyer In the town. but there were two
Preachers OF clean HE and nigh reDute,
both gtadua ties OF theological seminar
les; several young women earning from
800 to $3.50 a year as teachers during
the six months school period which is
the rule IN such communities. one uD-
dertaEcr, seven grocers, two blacls-
smlthe, one wheeIwright, n hotel and
bakery conducted by Hampton grad
uate and her husband. and the only
steam laundry In the county. conducted
by two coiored men, who also own a
laundry In Richmond, flfty-seyen miles
distant. and both paying we'll.
The entire brick-making business OF
Fe:mvllle and vicinity Is In the hands
az colored mana freedman, who
bought his oHn and his family's free
doir, purchased his masters estate. and
eventually hired his master 10 work for
him. He owns q thousand acres or
more OF lnnd In Cumberland county and
considerable F8rmville property. In his