New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-05-02
CALHOUN.
Il Social Settlement in the Black
Belt of alabama.

birmingham Ala. April 26-Forty miles south
of Montgomery. at Calhoun. Lowndes County.
one of the most interesting missionary works in
the whole country is being carried on On Au-
gust /. 1901. two devoted women who had al
ready had experience in negro education az
Hampton sent out a circular asking for $3.50
for the initial building and one years running
expenses for a school in the heart OF the Black
Belt-to use that term in it's secondary mean
Ing. rather than it's primary significance Of the
Hack prairie lands of Central Alabama. Lowndes
County then contained seven colored persons to
one white. and the proportion Is not much diff
ferent now. while In Calhoun there were only
100 whites to 2.JO0 negroes. The country school
for whites was in session only three months and
nothing at all was done for the blacks who were
probably shiftess. immoral and generally
degraded as any rural negro community in the
United States. Lowndes County was commonly
spoken Of as the worst in Alabama
The Ogden party spent Sunday at Calhoun 20
see the result of these women's work One OF
them, Miss Mabel w. Dillingham;. is no longer
living. but her brother the Rev Pitt DilIing-
ram. has taken her place and he and Miss
Charlotte X. Thorn are In charge OF the CAL
hOun COlOred School and its co-ordinated enter
prise OF settling the negroes. free from debt. on
their own farms.
They have built an oasis in the desert Much
of the land about Calhoun Is hilIy sandy and
poor But the school inclosure with its small.
inexpensive, but tasteful. scattered buildings.
sOping lawns. brick walks and we'll cultivated
gardens. suggests in its contrast with the sur
rounding country some monastery. like that of
Monte Oliveto. where the labor Of medieval
monks raised up orchards and VINEYARDS on the
barren chalk hills OF AscianO. But this is no
monastery for the benefit Of its own inmates
II is neighborhood centre. from which radiates
every possible civilizing influence. It is some
times said that the negro has deteriorated since
emancipation. through the loss of the influence
of the great house and it's refined womanhood
But Southern lady in herself and in the as
pect of her home ever shed finer and more
gracious influence all about her than does
Miss Thorn. with her Inheritance of generations
of New-Engand culture. Everything about the
place Is simple. but exquisite In it's dafntfuess
and taste The schOOIrooms and workshops and
dormitories are cheap and plain. but there is
in them nothing tawdry, nothing of the vulgar
attempts at decoration which can often be found
in more pretentiOus structures, both North and
South. Most of the buildings are framed but
two OF the more recent. one of them recitation
hall. are constructed of logs. and add greatly
TO the attractiveness of the place while Miss
ThOrn's own home. with its books and prints
and pieces Of old mahogany. gives the finishing
touch TO the whole.
Early Sunday morning Mr.. Ogdan's train
which had stopped the night before at the little
station in the open country. with scarcely q
hamlet about It, was surrounded by an army OF
negroes the blacklist of the blacks With horses
and mules equipped with anything from an IN
girthed blanket TO an old army saddle arks
from ancient coach houses, and six oxen yoksI
TO a wagon which a great platform
for chairs had been built The whole CO.,
n-oI vVFS,-
visitors 70 the school, The platform. when fully
occupied. proved too heavy a burden for the
oxen to draw up the hills. US. led by
Bishop Lawrence, climbed upon the mules.
which the darkes were only too proud lend.
After inspecting the school. a few of US again
took horses and mules for a visit TO the pIanta-
tions. where the negroes are being settled on
their own little farms. Two large estates con-
tanning $500 acres. have been purchased with
the aid of Northern friends of the school, divided
up into farms OF about fifty acres EACH and are
being sold at about cost-S6 and 81 an acre
10 negroes who will settle them rental
is charged for the land. which is applied toward
the purchase price. and with industry and good
crops men have been able to pay for their farms
and receive full warranty deeds in about four
years. 1 several men. each OF whom after
three years. had only $50 more to pay. had
built a comfortable cabin. had a horse or q
couple or mules, a two. some chickens
and pigs and kitchen garden A fundamental
condition of the purchase is that no borrowed
money shall be used for the payments These
must come from the product Of the farm OF
labor. such that on the railways OF IN the
mines, which IS a favorite resort OF the am
bilious during the dull s5+r~JrT. Some old men
have taken up farms which their sons thus
work to pay for. The land enterprise was start
ed eight years ago. About seventy farms have
been taken up and about forty fully paid for.
The cabins are vast improvement any
thing known before among the negroes Of the
region. They are generally built with two OF
three detached rooms. connected by what IN
North Carolina are called dog trots'' open
rooms like a wide hall running through the
middle of a house. With the front and back walls
left off. The influence of the school Is success
fully exerted to secure diversihcation of crops
and the cultivation of gardens. which will at
once secure improved diet for family and save
II from dependence on the storekeeper. Corn
and miIlet are grown for the animals. and
enough sugarcane is raised To furnish the
family with an abundance Of rnoIasses when K
is prepared at the school mill In old times the
storekeeper got all the money these negroes
ever had He agreed 10 furnish every Saturday
night their ration of bacon and corn meal. and
took mortgage on their crop Of cotton. He
never made less than % per cent on his ad-
vauces. and often much more. He grew rich.
and they were never out of debt. This was the
system all over the South. and is still in many
places At Calhoun it is rapidly being abol-
ished.
Thanks TO the high price OF cotton the farm