Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1906-05-31
THE PRESIDENTS ADVICE Tc
THE NEGROES

eolored students of Hampton Institute
Yesterday evening by President Roose-
welt. He dwelt particularly on the
me- essity for the development of chsrac-
ter, not only in the negro, but 10 the
white man as we'll, maintaining that
Iseducstion w)ud ct neither for citizen
ship unless accompanying it there was
the right type of family life 10 The
home. He urged the boys to take to in-
dustrial work aud the farm. Speaking
Edirectly to the negro students, be said
"Now, the first thing upon which l
wish to lay emphasis is that school
such as this, which strive, to raise the
colored men and The colored women, 10
make them better men and better women,
better citizens, is pre-eminently 10 TIE
Interests of the white man. There Is
nothing that can be done better for The
white man who is to live side by side
with the cOlored man than TO train that
colored man up to be good citizen.
The good man, who il a white man, by
his presence Is benefit to every colored
/ man ia the community, and the safety
of the white man is 10 having the color
ed man grow TO be q good and decent
man
''From the standpoint OF the white
man the safest and best thing that can
hapoen is to have the colored people
around him become thrifty, Industrious,
home makers aud home-keepers. for you
never vet had any for oidsble quantity
of criminals irom a PEOPLE or locality
where the average type was tue homs'
maker and the homekeeper.
"From the standpoint OF the colored
MAD. the only real way TO help him Is
to help himself. In the long run In
this world no human being can be car
ried. What this institution does is to
train young men aud women to walk oy
themselves. The colored man Who helps
his race most lie he who helps teach the
members of his race how to conduct
themselves with seli-rsspect. No race,
no nationality ever raises itself by the
exhibition of genius in few women;
what counts is character character
OF the average man and the average
woman.
"You have sent out from Hampton
Institute 10 all something like six thous-
and graduates. aud if ! have remember
ed rightly, there are but two OF whom
YOU have record as criminals, aud tlat
Tact is sn sll-suAicient answer to the
blind people who say that NO good will
come from educating the negro. 80 far
ia that from the truth that It may be
said that the real hope for the negro, as
we'll as for the white man, is in educa-
ton. if only we understand the meaning
of education 10 its proper sense.
at is often said that the true place Tor
tina negro is 10 Industrial work. 1t Is.
That is the true place Tor lhe average
negro. and ii is the true place for the
average man, and we will not get our
civilization upon proper basis until we
root out of the mind OF the, average man
and the average girl, of whatever color,
the belief that TO become poor CLERK Is
a better thing than being Atst-clsss
handworker, a frst-class mechanic or
first class observation-disclosures. The wrong
twist that has been given 10 our educa'
ton 10 the past has been largely respoD-
slbIe for the very healthy Development
of The city at the expense of the coun'
try.
"Never in the past has any nation
been permanently great when the CITY
population has been enormous 10 size az
compared with the country poPnlallan,
for the country folk. the people OF lhe
farms, can serve certain qualities which
those wbe dwell 10 the large cities tend
TO lose. II here is one thing l would
like especially to impress upon you 1t Is
to advise yon to lake up the work on the
farms with the intention OF owning them'
Ia doing that you will be doing only
what The best, the most intelligent and
most advanced white people are more
aud more growing TO do.
THE growth of agricultural colleges
and their development has been one OF
the sign ficant features of education tor
the white race in most all Of the STATES
of this Union, because more and more
have the people grown to realize that the
child of the farmer must be developed
scientifically, bic abilities be given full
play as they can only be given through
the aid of education and science. SO
that on the one hand, the profession
itself shall bect me more aud more attiac-
tive to men of brains and intelligence,
aud so that, on the other hand, 1t shall
be recognized more aud more as being the
| one profession, the failure to develop
which in this country would mean that
the de yelopment of all the rest Of the
| professions would count for but little.
"O1r whole civilization is going to tend
more and MORE toward recognizing the
ca pital part played by the manual worker
| the vital part played by the man who
actually works with his hands, whether
10 the workshop or on the farm. More
and more things are going to shape
themselves 30 that he snail have The
fullest recognition"