The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1904-12-11

eral large plantations III the South wherN
Italian labor has boon in1notted. Says
the writer, At least one great railroad
System has begun to use Italians instead
of negroes for track work. The new
Corners are also finding their way into
mills and factories. But nothing will Inn
press so deeply any one familiar Will,
the life Of the South as the appearance OF
these Immigrants from Southern Europe.
particularly the italian and tl,s Ger
mans IN the sugar fields, the rice fields
and tho cotton fields. one OF tho earliest
attempts to Introduce Italians on q cot
ton plantation was by the late Mr..
Austin Corbin, ut snnnysldc plantation
on the Arkansas sl6e OF the Mississippi
River. Thc intention was to ultimately
allow the immigrants to purchase their
own holdings and the result nas been
successful from The point OF view OF tie
managers and tho owners and brilliantly
successful from tho point OF view OF the
Immigrants themselves. In Louisiana OIL
eight years there has been gradual
displacement OF tho negro by italian
labor. The testimony concerning the Cor
IMAM In quito favorable and tho SUCCESS
OF large German colonies In Texas, Ala
bama and In other parts Of tho South
has long boon established. Tho italian
government Itself las undertaken 10
divert It's immigrants ms far as possible
Into channels that would take them to
tho Southern States Considering oil these
facts Mr.. Brown cites the statement OF
Principal Booker washington, who de-
clared five years ngo that the next
twenty years were going to 90 tho most
serious III tho history Of his race. With
IN this period no said that 1t would lie
largely decided whether the negro viii
be able to retain the hold which he llas
,ks,t~. I.
whether his place will DO filled by white
people from distance. '"The wisdom
OF the forecast Is already proved; yot 1t
neglected the native poor white
In trying to determine how much ground
tho negro has lost relatively. Mr. Brown
turns TO statistics furnished by the gov
eminent, and finds from them that four-
teen leading occupations furnish enough
figures to reveal tho true course of ell
actual competition. In five OF these oc-
equations while both races gained. tho
negroes gained more rapidly than the
whites. This was true of a class known
as servants and walters; Of the mines
and the quarry men; OF the nurses and
nld-wives; Of the Iron and steol work.
$ers; and OF tho operatives In saw mills
and planning mills. In tho other nine oc-6
equations the negroes lost ground rela-a
lively TO the whites; that Is to say, the
men, truckmen and Transfers In the
South, among the steam railway en-
sployes. among the operatives In tobacco &
and sugar factories, among the flsher- Y
men and oysternlen, among the engineers I
and firamen OF othor than locomotive
engines. among tho BARRIERS and hair,
3dressers, among the laundcrcrs and
laundresses, among the seamstrcsses and
among the carpenters and jolners was i
less IN 1900 than IN 1890 Figures show
there were fewer negro blacksmiths In (
America III 1900 than III 1880, and what y
was true OF the whole country was prob
ably true OF the Southern States In tho
acquisition OF property the negroes have
not increased as they did at first. rom
1874. when tho negroes owned a third OF
million acres In Georgia, to 1851, thoy5s
doubled their holdings Of lana. Ten years
later, their total passed a million acres,
since which timo the assessed value OF (
land owned by negroes has shown q very
slight Increase. The value OF the land
owned by the whites also fell off In the
early nineties, but the statistics show :
that the negro is doing very little moro
than holding his own. and no cannot be
content with this. FOR example. the ne-s
groes own less than per cent. OF all
the land in Georgia. and but little moro
than per cent. of the total wealth: while
they arc more than one-half OF Inc pop
fulation. IF the disparity does not pid-
lly grow less says Mr.. Brown. can 1t H
be contcntcd thai the negro Is proving +
his case as a freedman, as an Amerl-
camp In conclusion, Mr.. Brown finds
that tho change Is one of standards OF 3
efficiency higher and more efficient
4 " orknnnship being demanded Is In IA the +
struggle for wealth. AS he sees It, the
white man that the negro has TO fear ~
not the man who will make him work
but the one who will take his work away
from him. THE danger, tho immediate
menace is from rivalry rather than op-.
preston" II seems to Mr.. Brown that
the caste system which denies the nc
gro many OF the prizes for which the
white men struggle may weaken tina
desire for advertisement which Is sucl,
q powerful incentive to work; be tina SO
or not. He concludes: 1T must be adj
trnitted that the competition Is unequal.
Even II 1t should provo true that the
heaviest handicap OF all Is his distinctly
racial characteristic, entirely apart from
his history in America, he might be no
better Off for admitting It. a wiser. Go
speed is to tell him that his best chance.
II not indeed. his sole chance. OF int
ing himself socially und politically. is
precisely the chance he has OF winning
in the competition now being forced upon
him. II he would strive fer the best
place he can have III our American litc
gthe way to It lies through work ana
saving. I. So Lot us tell him, at
least, that 1t is Idle to put his faith In
party platforms or laws of Congress or 4
amendments to the Constitutions Let US
tell him that II ho would have the white
mans ballot, or the white mans culture
IL he would exact from white men, across
the line OF caste, fair dealing and con-
siderate treatment; he must learn to
match the white mans Industry, his
5shrcwdhess, his forethought Of the nlor-
row. Were tho udmonitlon hnrsher, It
would be more sincere, II he would keep
the foothold no has now among US, II
he would survive and live md look to SEQ
his 5childyen5live after him. he must put
money In his purse.
Who's Who?
{ ,rba following Is q personal item clip