Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-06-04
TRAINING THE NEGRO
Importance Of Prof. W. H.
Councill's Work.
GRADUATE OF SLAVERY
SINCE 1879 HAS DEVOTED HIM
SELF TO INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION.
His Views on the Disfranchisenent OF
His Race and His Hope for
Their Future
GRADUATE OF SLAVERY
BY WILLIAM T.. CURTIS.

| NEW 1Ohh, June lNOo
| In my letters from the south relating to
| the negro question 1 have frequently men,
| toned the work that is being done at Nor
| NAL, Ala, by Prof. w. II. Councill who is
conducting there agricultural and me-
| chanical school for negroes. 1t is located
| four miles from Huntsville, Ala. has about
| three hundred students, and since it was
| organized in 1875 has sent out S94 graduates
who are engaged in all the professions and
| industries in ten different states, Africa and
/ the West Indies. During all of these thirty
years thousands of students have been COM
ing and going in trains and on the high
| ways. and there has never occurred, Prof.
Council tells me, single misunderstanding
| of any character whatever, with either a
white or a black man, and not one of all
| the graduates has ever been charged with
| crime or convicted of a misdemeanor
| This is a sufficient answer to Governor
Vardaman and others, who attri ute the
increase OF crime to negro education.
| Eighty-six per cent of the graduates own
their own homes and are paying taxes.
| Much OF this success is due to President
| CounciiIs personality. He founded the
| school. and has been its president ever
| since its organization. He Is not only CIV
| ing 1t all of his time and brains and labor
but all of his earnings: and its present use
fuiness Is largely due to his energy and
|
Alabama, whose laboring element he is try
| ing to educate and improve for those thirty
| years. has given an average of only So O37
per year from the public treasury for the
support Of the school, yet President Coun-
| Gill has raised funds to purchase and deed
| TO the state property valued at $6S 600 The
| state has never given one dollar for lands
! buildings or equipment.
| There are four Industrial schools for
whites In Alabama, for which an annual ap-
| preparation of $124,793 is made from the
| public funds. There are three normal and
| one agricultural school for negroes for
| which only 800 is appropriated annually
| Yet the white people complain that the
| negro does not make good citizen
| Inc Following is taken from the report
or the superintendent of education concern
ing the normal and industrial schools of
| Alabama
average salary per month--white teachers STA 90
| Average salary per month-negro teachers so 90
average cost-white pupil per year .., ~ O0
Average ay cost-negro pupil per year........ $40
Average cost-negro graduate. ... az m
| The school at Huntsville has 1s2 acres of
| land and eighteen buildings with academic
| normal and Industrial departments. The
| boys learn agriculture and the mechanical
trades; the girls learn sewing cookinp
| dressmaking, millinery, laundering. nursing
| etc, and the object of the school is to ouaI,
| ify them to make better use of their
| strength and brains.
President Councill's Career.
| President Council was born slave at
| Fayetteville, N. c., in 1S4S, and when he
| was nine years old was sold on the block at
| the infamous Richmond slave pen. The
| traders who bought him carried him to Ala
| bama and sold him to planter for whom
| he worked In the field until after the war.
| He attended one OF the first schools opened
for negroes in 1866, and by his eagerness
| to learn gained fair education In 1872 he
l urq al nta6
| bama legislature; in 1875 President Grant
| appointed him receiver OF the land Office:
| in 1877 he founded the Huntsville Herald
| All Of this time he was studying law. and
| was admitted to the bar of the supreme
| court Of Alabama In 1888. While he was
| registrar of the land Office he founded the
| industrial school at Huntsville and since
| 1879 has given his entire time to it.. deciin-
| Ing several honorable and lucrative posi-
| lions in order to devote himself to the i'm
provement of his people.
| President Council has great reputation
as an orator, but 1t Is based upon natural
rather than cultivated eioquence. He has
| travelled extensively in Europe, has address,
ed many public assemblies there, and has
| been kindly received by kings. statesmen
| and philanthropists He has ready for the
| press four volumes entitled From The
Richmond Slave Pen to College President"
an autobiography; "A Silver Lining rep
resenting the bright side of negro life In the
| south; The South and the Negro" being
| an analysis of the great problem. and
| Thirty Years Discussion Of the Negro
| Question" which is compilation Of his
| writings and speeches during that period
| President Councill has the confidence OF
the honest and liberal-ininded white people
| of the south because of the position he has
| always taken concerning the conduct of his
| people, which Is expressed in one Of his
| speeches In these words:
Every negro should do his best to be
| counted on the side OF the law. He should
/ be so thoroughly In harmony with his white
neighbors and establish such character OF
| honesty and cleanliness among them that
| they at all times will be ready to stand
sponsor for his rectitude. What q negro
will be depends entirely upon his attitude
toward himself as well rs toward other peo..
pie The negro must bs negro. He must
not seek to unrace himself. but ever seek to
develop In his own sphere AZ negro. after
his own nature. and then he will succeed.
He should not attempt to get away from
his black skin, discard his kinks, be
ashamed OF his physical features In general.
But let him straighten the kinks on the In
side, whtten the face through his heart,
adorn Ills physical features through his IN
telligeuce. magnify and exalt hisnself into
the recognition Of the civilkzed world. He
will - respected In proportion ~ he re-