The advocate. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1901-1913, 1907-03-07
THE CHARGE

! i,.E~ THE CHARGE - -,
I by William Lloyd Garrison.
whether by concerted action or not.
tne expressive approval by President
Eliot and Bishop Lawrence of race
j separation in schools where large Ne
gro populations exist-made at the re-
cent luncheon given In Boston, in the
interest OF Berea College-the utter
ances have premeditated appearance.
Invitations were issued to friends OF
the work Announcing among other
speakers, the above named gentlemen
and. President Frost. THAT the words
spoken In that occasion should gpieye
lSandi ,Woun& the colol ed people OF the
STATE and country Is not Surprising.
| sIne Rev. William Goodell Frost, the
! grandson and namesake of a noted
early abolition leader, is the president
| OF ABerea College He was in Boston
In behalf of administration, and the
rooms pr the Twentieth Century Club
were chosen for the conference. The
college has especial associations with
anti-slavery sentiment. John G. Free,
man or martyr spirit, and e. NJ Fair
! child, the latter. for many years its
f faithful president, started -@the-entef-
! prise in poverty and under bitter dis
couragements, but never relaxed their
| uncompromlsing principles concerning
human rights. Neither race nor sex
f'sftnrt1ops were; recoaniZed by them
| Black and white, male and female,
lWeFe welcomed on the same foot ing to
the education, offered, and for4years
the. college strrdily main+ained its
| high IDEALS No difficulty was expert
enced III the working Of the plan. The
artificial ,Ratpfe of the objections to
such co-education was 'demonst: ated in
this exceptional SoutheEn school. =. Be.
cause OF it's defiance Of race and sex
| prejudice, and Of the universal, spirit
of the founders, William Floyd Gar
rison chose Berea for the single be.
quest for Southern education that It
| was In his power to- make = -: -
I I'm time the original management
passed away, and the new president,
conspicuous for qualities demanded,
was entrusted with the helm. Phe
confidence Of former friends was ex-
tended to the newcomer, and for the
first years the radical traditions o..
Berea were maintained. Gradually
murmurs of dissatisfaction. from tn.
coiored people of the neighbochood
Preached the North. Complaint was
made that the proportion Of. coloraa
| students was gradually but persistent
| ly reduced, and the white mountains
GERS given preference Of, admission.
rms srIevda1ce- WIS pfausiifpfy -e;x pTaiff..
| ed by President Frost ION hisNrectfr-
| rent visits, and assurance was forth
coming that the policy Of the founders
should be preserved. Yet the process
Of replacing black with white students
continued. At length came the pro
posal to prohibit by State law co.edu-
cation OF the races, and legal measures
were taken to oppose this consumma-
ton subscriptions for expenses were
solicited by President Frost in the
North, and presumably usei for the
purpose, but hostile legislation tri-
umpbed, and the cOl0red students were
distributed among other institutions.
If all-this were unavoidable andre
sisted to the last, in the spirit OF the
men who built up Berea College, no
criticism would be called for. Never
theless, contrary opinions came to the
friends Of the school from various
sources-opinions shared by intelh-
gent colored people at the North. 1t
Is affirmed in private letters and in the
editorial columns Of Northern organs
Of the colored race that insufficient eff
fort was made to- block the law of
separation, and that the result is not
a grief. to the faculty. A separate
,
students outside the college limits is
proposed, and contributions are asked
for this object.
Before responding to this appeal, es-
pecially since the sentiment uttered
by President, Eliot, and received with
tacit approval at the. Boston lunch, it
would be we'll for all concerned If the
real condition Of Berea, In it's relation
to Negro education, were made clear
to the public, both sides submitting
evidence on points at issue. AS the
case stands, q large educational plant
created chiefly by the money Of North
ern friends and Of the colored race is
now controlled exclusively in the. in
terests of white education. 1t is true
that the donors agreed to the joint use
Of their money as regards the impair
tial exclusion Of whites, but the pri-
mary motive Of the institutions foun-
derg was the uplifting of the colored
children of former Slaves.
If a division. had to be made, the !
coIored students should have remained
and new quarters have been sought for
the white ones.
The reasons are adequate. More
now, than at the inception Of the col
'ege, the colored people Of. the South
need special help. The smothered pro
slavery feeling has revived, and adds
increasing obstacles to Negro educa.
ton Fresh prejudice and bitterness
are meeting the race at every point.
The industrial South is growing IN
wealth, and has little excuse for neg
Letting the education of its white
children, however careless it may be
Of it's black. It is proVerbial that,
while taxes are taken from the colored
A.
ture for public school discriminates