Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1912-06-14
NOTED PRESIDENT
BREACHES WAITEWASH AND
PAINT IS SYMBOLS OF
CIVILIZATION
sv ARTHUR N. EvANs.

lint are two of the most expressive
.-nhols Of civilization. according to
-. teachings at Tuskegee. The
rrsncb adags that nation is known
:. its soups 10 given an application.
W.. students here are taught that the
a.,nt not Is superior to the soup ket.
~ that the bathtub outranks the
ann tureen, that the scrubbing brush
T. an advance agent OF progress, and
.h.t volumes OF wisdom and ages OF
sInerience are condensed In the fve
sords Cleanliness Is next to God
,,ness." This 'nne, homely, practical
doctrine goes further. 1t breaches
That material comforts are one index
N mental and moral status, that soua.
n, IA no temple for the soul that
stbics and gastronomy are not stran-
.srs to each other, that improved en-
yronment means higher standards OF
thought, that = kitchen garden Is =
heavenly messenger az well as q tenn
no,.l comfort, and that no civilization
!. far advanced that 10 content to sub
.,st on a steady diet of fat pork and
corn bread the year round, when fresh
vegetables are fairly aching to be
grown. .ssss..s....... ii.
These ideas are drilled into the stu
dents day and night as accessories
n, the manual training and the class
room work. They are reiterated IN
some form or another nearly every
time Booker T. Washington addresses
the student body or speaks to the
colored farmers Of the south. They
are sent out in the form Of extension
leaflets containing excerpts from ad-
dresses to the LOO boys and girls at
Tuskegee. The paint and whitewash
doctrine of advancement has taken
such a hold during the years 1t has
been exploited that nowadays, when
Mr., Washington prepares to visit a
community, the residents make ready
to demonstrate that they have, made
It part and parcel Of their faith. The
Tuskegee Messenger prints many
items like the following:
Rev s. Moss and Messrs. s. w.
White and L. Pollard Of Shiloh COM
munity, Notasulga, Ala, are planning
to paint their houses by the time DR..
Washington visits that community.
Others are planning to have their
houses whitewashed by, that time.
Miss E. Lamar, the teacher, is having
! her schoolhouse reprinted"
Trivial items like these carry great
significance between their lines, de-
spite the appeal they make to the
!. liabilities, for they show the spread
Of the Tuskegee ideas, which are in
dustry, skill in labor, kindness and
Il cleanliness, all for the advancement
4 II standards Of living. - r
q At chapel few nights ago Mr..
Washington preached to the students.
At the morning exercises the insti-
Y tnte chaplain had taken the theme
|. d Samson and Delilah for his SER
D mon, but at the night services Mr..
Washington took as his text white
4 wash and paint.
s## Zone of the best lessons in civiliza-
l ton you can teach anybody" he said,
!: lis to be uneasy and unhappy when a
doorknob is even loose. In spite OF
all its antiquated and, in some cases,
almost heathenish methods, 1t is hard
to free ourselves from the slavery Of
/ the old-time book education. Every
4 good citizen, whether he be teacher
|. or is engaged in any other occupa-
ton, has something, should have
something to do with the education
that is going on in his community.
Whenever you get an opportunity to
1 exert the slightest influence, see to
1T that the house in which the teach
ers and children are assembled Is
made clean-clean inside. clean out
side; floors well swept, everything
thoroughly busted. See, to 1t that ev-
cry piece Of furniture is put in the
very best repair; see to it that, wher-
ever it can be done, the paint brush
or whiteWash brush is used on the
inside. 80.
0 "A great many people are content
Il 70 put up house and let 1t stand
Without paint, its weather boards
cracking and varying, symbol of
NoVenliness. The whitewash brush
ga the paint pot are indexes Of CIV
hi2atlon. When you leave here, see
n % 1t that your homes and your farm
Y oulidlngs and your schools are fit to
EYe in. If you can't afford paint, use
NalteTash. When you 60 into a
.caool as a teacher, take weeks
4 ume to clean up. See to 1t that the
Yard is cleaned up, every piece Of
paper picked up, every paling put
Snere 1t should be on the fence; that
ms gate hinges are all right, and all
- me broken window glasses are put in.
.uea begin using the g. whitewash
Oiusn or the paint brush around the
ss.uooinouse, on the building, on the
.suce' on the gate, everywhere, to
aaAe the schoolroom an inviting,
autl1al place, one that Is fit for hui
nan beings to live and work in. Teach
.sui pupils to be unhappy when one
smoow pane gets little cracked, and
- window pane is out, dismiss the
\ ,s .oo! II necessary until that window
]. zane s'put in place. veg. -
~. Ater you 60 away from here I
h h nm, nm to see you keep up this same
yusnt, this same idea Of activity
az !, o. keeping all your surroundings
= ~ times and under all circum-
\ ~ .aees' IN good repair. See to it that
!. ane not farmers unless the house
\ n.,s Sncn you live is whitewashed or
N. eo' See to it that when 1t be-
NJ ~. y get little out of repair, when
N =. w Y or the paint begins to
n. w a little dull, see to It that
! 4, ~, Wn'tewash, q new paint, takes
N ce. See to it that everything
BID '