New-York tribune., 1905-08-17
COLORED WOMAN,S WORK.
Mrs. Booker Washington Describes
Progress IN the South.

Mrs Booker 7. Washington Is an interested
listener and occasional speaker at the convsn-
Ton OF the National League of Negro Business
Men Speaking OF the activities OF the women
OF her race TO a Tribune representative yester-
day. she said: There is a national association
OF eolored women which is similar 70 the Gen.
eral Federation OF women's Clubs About seven
hundred clubs belong TO the association. and
these clubs are doing all sorts of practical work
for the home life Of the race For instance there
Is department club in a Southern city which
e@ch summer sends 4 woman travelling among
''e women on the plantations out through the
oouIIJ' teaching them some form OF house
M|-k- The club owns wagon and mule, and
tfls summer IL fitted up the wagon with fruit
cans and an oil stove, and sent II through q
settlement about ten miles from the city teach
ing the women how to can fruit. They have
great quantities OF fresh fruit in May. June and
July, nearly all Of which goes 10 waste because
they don't understand canning II they put UP
IEuIt they simply cook it up with molasses into
rich preserve which is not at all healthful.
while fruit and vegetables properly canned are
almost as wholesome as fresh The woman who
went with the wagon this summer was a school
teacher. who spent her vacation in that way
WITHOUT pay. The same club has conducted
sewing and cooking classes among the planta-
tion women
AT Montgomery. Ala. there is club OF
twenty-five young women who last winter
rented a small room in community Of colorei
people You know colored people are not ad-
inltted TO public Libraries In the South. They
collected library of several hundred volumes
and keep reading room open every dav and
evening. They have raised all the money to
pay the rent and heat and light the room them
serves, and they take turns fl taking charge OF
the room week at time. -
another club holds open air meetings Sunday
afternoons Tor the children Of a colored quar-
ter which Is not only poor but low. The men,
peTs teach practical religion. They open with
singing and texts and so on, but in the talks
thev teach the children how to be neat AMI
clean. polite and truthful They have been
aple through this work to rescue three children
VINO would certainly have gone 10 the bad had
they been left In the quarter. for their sur
roundings and associations were all bad. One
OF them was beautiful girl in looks. and under
Ihe nnuence or the school where they sent hsr
she is developing a beautiful character. An
other two years in the home they took her from
would have been her ruin
The achievements Of some of the young women
graduates Of Tuskegee are most interesting TO
friends OF the race There are now twelve
I branch schools OF Tuskegee. founded by grad
yates, and more or less associated with Tuskegee
in their administration. Perhaps the best known
Of all is that founded by Miss Cornelia Bomen
at Waugh. Ala She was member OF the first
graduating class Of Tuskegee, back I'm 1880:
She plunged into the heart OF the country and
opened tiny day school among the plantation
now has four large. comfortable buildings and
300 pupils, whom she takes through the eighth
or ninth grade studies, besides sewing. cooking,
poultry raising and such things. She has never
been away from the place since she went there:
except 10 spend little time in study or TO traVe!
and speak in the North where she herself mas
raised all the money for her work.
"If you were TO visit that section said Mrs.
washington you would think you We're in Il
little CITY The children all come 70 school near
and clean with their hair combed and their
clothes comfortable Miss Bomen Is power IN
that community.
Then there is Miss Lizzie Wright, OF Den
mark s. c. She spends $4,000 a year on her
school all collected by herself In the iast SIX SIX
wears she has built up a great industrial school
there"