The Colorado statesman., 1912-04-06
NEGRO SPEAKER TELLS HIS
PEOPLE ABOUT FLORIDA
BOOKER T. WASHINGTON HEARD
BY LARGE CROWD.

Looking but few years older, and
showing that remarkable vigor which
has characterized him as a noted
speaker for nearly 20 years. Dr. Book
er I. Washington faced an audience
that literally filled all space in Du-
val theater, after his introduction by
g. c. Bedell, member of the county
board OF education, and a prominent
lawyer of the bar of Jacksonville.
Beginning with happy references to
Jacksonville and it's people, and of
the whole state of Florida, the speak
er delivered an address of more than
an hours length. saying in part. as
follows:
We not only have the advantage in
state like Florida of securing land
but the further advantages of finding
plenty of work. | will guarantee to
say that there are few If any mem
bers of our race who have spent any
considerable length of time in seeking
labor. Instead of having to seek labor
labor seeks them. Our condition is diff
ferent from laboring people in many
parts of the old world where they
have to spend days and sometimes
months in seeking labor and then are
not able to find it. And then after
they do find work in many parts of
the old countries, they receive a wage
that is much smaller than the wage
paid to the average negro man or
woman in the state of Florida.
While we may have disadvantages
in other directions, we should, how
ever, bear in mind that the soil of
Florida draws no color line; its soil
will yield as much of her riches to the
touch of the blacklist hand in Florida
as to the touch of the whitest hand in
Florida. The rain draws no color line.
The sun draws no color line. In all
these fundamental respects we have
the same advantages that the whitest
man in Florida has
"In Florida, like many other south
ern states, the negro is the main de-
pendence for labor. I want our people,
in the first place, to get rid of the old
idea once for all that it Is a disgrace
to labor. Get rid of the idea, once for
all. that an educated man or woman
SHOULD, not work in the field, in the
shop, in the kitchen, in the laundry.
We must impress upon our people
everywhere that it just as dignified
to work in field or in shop or in a
kitchen or laundry as. 1t is to teach
school, preach the gospel or write
poetry.
81 do not want 1t said of our people
anywhere in Florida that they are
merely tolerated as laborers. I want
to hear it said that the negro is used
as laborer in Florida because he rem
ders such excellent service that peo-
pie feel that they do not want to dis
pense with his services If we woula
retain our place in the world of labor.
in an increasing degree everywhere
we must make our labor reliable If
we give our word that we will be at
place of labor at a certain hour on
. Monday morning, we must be right
there. not half a mile away or five
minutes late. We should not let the
temptation to go on an excursion or
the temptation to go to town on Sat
urday pull us away from our places of
labor. AS race we waste entirely
too much time in idleness on Satur-
day and in going on useless eXcur-
sions
And then if we are employed as
laborers we must learn to improve in
our methods of labor The kind of
labor that would satisfy a few years
ago will not satisfy today Progress
is being made in methods of cooking
and serving food. In laundering in
every one of these respects the negro
must make progress or he will find
himself in few days without job.
Everywhere, especially in the large
towns and cities of Florida, we must
get rid of the idle man or woman of
our race. Wherever there is idleness,
wherever there are people hanging
around on the street corners and rail
road stations or loafing around bar
rooms there you are likely to have
crime and to find racial friction. From
the pulpit, from the school teachers
desk. from the fireside, everywhere we
must impress upon our people the fact
that the idle man or idle woman must
be gotten rid Of that an influence
must be brought to bear on them that
will make them go to work and earn
an honest living and cease disgracing
our race with their idleness.
81 will guarantee to say that the
average colored man who is a farmer
in Florida does not work more than
140 days in a year. This means, then.
that half of the farming year is thrown
away. Suppose the merchant or the
lawyer or the doctor only worked half
the year, in what condition would they
find themselves? In climate like
Florida. in a soil such as you have here
the farmer can find work every day in
the year.
In connection with getting rid OF
the idle man and woman, we must
bring about an influence that will pre-