Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-11-29
$780, 900 MUST BE RAISED
Ironmaster Offers Equal Amount fol
New Library.
FACES CRISIS IN ENTERPRISE
President Thirkield Urges Friends of
Colored Race to Support Move
ment With Contributions.


$4,000 as an endowment for library sup
port. necessary to enable the university
to avail itself Of the gift of a similar sum
for library building. This gift was
made. with his usual conditions, by An
drew Carnegie at the installation Of the
university's president last November
"A library" says President Thirkield,
sis the heart Of an institution and gives
character to it's work. We are here train
ing young men and women, who. as
teachers, preachers, physicians and in
dustrial and moral leaders. have much
to do in shaping and directing the lives
Of over ten million colored people. A gift
of $4,000 for library building was made
by Andrew Carnegie after his personal
visit last November, conditioned on the
raising of $4,000 as an endowment for
library support We now face a crisis in
this enterprise. Only liberal giving on the
part of friends of the university will in
sure this building
1t is said to be one of the rules of Mr..
Carnegie's work in doing good in the
world that he is willing to help those
who help themselves, and so he offers to
Howard University this munificent and
much-needed gift on the conditions
named The university, through its stu
dents. alumni and friends. and through
the sound and generous effort OF those
who are interested in the uplfft of the
negro race. must match the gift with an
equal sum to make it effective.
Story Of Mr.. Carnegie's Visit.
An interesting story is told in connec-,
ton with Mr.. Carnegies gift. At the
time when President Thirkield was to be
installed. President Roosevelt, whose aid
had been invoked, knowing Mr.. Carnegie
was to be in the city at the time, in
vited him to luncheon at the White House
and later asked him to go with him to the
university that afternoon for the install
lation. Upon his arrival, along with the
President. he received an ovation and
made happy address. ut almost seems
to me this moment" he said, that some
power higher than myself brings me here
upon this occasion. It is not my doing
/ was wholly unconscious of your meet
ing when requested to come to Wash
ington. and it does seem to me now that
it would be almost proper to say Now
have mine eyes seen the glory of the
Lord"
He also saw the library Of the uni
versity, with over a thousand students,
located on the third floor Of the main
building. where it has been for forty
years. its walls so weighted with books
that nearly half Of it's 10000 volumes
have to be stored in the basement. When
it was made known to him that the only
reading room of the university library
was room twenty by twenty-five feet
In size, with thousand students and
readers within three or four minutes
reach of 1t every day, he was deeply i'm
pressed. His gift of $4,000 quickly fol-
lowed.
University's First Appeal.
Howard University has played an i'm
portant part in the history of the ma
ton and in the life Of the colored people,
a ifS fp6 in, ba Of oh
and life of the thousands Of colored peo-
pie Of the District and of the millions
beyond its borders is immeasurable.
1t is the first time in forty years that
it's voice has gone out into the land with
an appeal of this kind, and it is believed
the thoughtful and generous men and
women Of the National capital and Of
the nation itself will not let it fall upon
deaf ears or be slow in responding to its
cry.
The total expenditures Of the institution
in the past forty years, faculty and stu
dents, in Washington have aggregated |
millions Of dollars. The influence of the
institution has been felt in marked de- |
gree by our citizens in conserving the |
best life of the thousands of cOlored peo- |
pie included in the population Of the Dis
trict. Its 1000 graduates have gone forth |
into the land as teachers, physicians and |
preachers, and many of them are intel |
lectual. moral and Industrial leaders of |
their race: The great work Of the grad
yates of its school Of medicine alone en- |
title it to distinguished recognition.
President Roosevelt says he has taken
particular interest in these doctors. Il
have seen the effects of their work close |
at hand. l think that the average of |
high among the graduates in medicine of |
this institution. [ was struck by the es
TEEN in which they are held, as a rule,
by all of their neighbOrs, and by the fact
hot -hn al
his work we'll exercised perceptible in
fuence in raising the standard of citizen
ship of all the colored citizens of the To-
callty in which he resided. do not know
of more effective bit of home mission
AIRY work than is being done in this |
way"
What Graduates Have Done.
DR.. a. c. McClennan, one of them. for
example, bought a large building in
Charleston, S. G., where he opened a hos
pital, which has been maintained for some
years, and has nurses training school,
whose graduates receive ready employ
ment, largely among the white people
r.. 7. Benson, who was graduated a
dozen years ago, went down into the
black belt of Alabama, sixteen miles from
the railroad, and established there, prac-
tically in the wilderness, an institute for
industrial and general training. That in
stitute now has several buildings, 80 stu
dents, eleven teachers and a budget of |
5000 annually. IL has the warm sup
port of all the people Of the community.
Later. seeing that the people needed to be
held to the farm and improved in their
home life, he bought an additional tract
of 5000 acres and founded the Dixie In
dustrial Company, where over 800 of his
people are now farming the land. There
is also on it a large sawmill turpentine
gin, shingle mill, plantation store and |
other necessary accessories. The uplift-
ing influence of this work has been felt |
throughout the entire black belt.
These are but few illustrations of the |
work of the university, but they serve in |
a measure to show what is possible with
wider opportunities. Hundreds of we'll |
trained teachers have been sent out from
the institution into the colleges. academies |
and common schools, and their work in |
training the colored race cannot be over
estimated. The university also has its |
school of manual training which is like |
wise doing effective service along indus |
trial lines
New Science Building.
The need of the new library building
and library commensurate with it, |
properly endowed for its successful con- |
tinuance. is Indispensable. The alumni |
at its annual meeting pledged itself to |
raise $4,000 for a new science building, |
which is greatly needed. The burden of |
these people is great, but they are cheer |
fully bearing 1t onward to success. Their |
appeal now comes with telling force and |
Will not be unheard by the people who |