The Nashville globe. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1906-193?, 1912-10-04
PROF. SMITH
EXPLAINS
SAYS HE DID NOT MAKE STATE.
MENT.
Thinks Globe Wants to "start Some,
thins"-Roard Did Not Send For
Him-Went on Another Mis-
siOn-Brought up High
HimseIf-For Others.

Prof. F. G. Smith, principal of Pear
High School takes exception to tn
article that appeared in the Globe re
Gently relative to statement mad
by him in regard to the location o
new High School, Prof. Smith
position is clearly stated in the fol
lowing article:
To the Editor Of the Nashville Globe,
In the issue of your paper of Sep
tember goth there appeared an arti
Gle which think was very unkint
and very unjust. l have been tryine
TO discover a motive for the article
and to see what good the Globe hoped
TO accomplish by such a sensational
Wrlte-up. The article was headed
recommends Black Bottom. Prof
Smith thinks that the place for High
School" The following is a quotation
from the article:
Recently, however, it wes said that
a statement was made by Prof. F. G.
Smith, Principal of the High School
that aroused the Indignation Of the
Negroes of Nashville, and one that it
Is not believed will be accepted by the
school officials 1t is said that Prof
Smith few days ago told the pupils
OF the High School that the Board
of Education had sent for hin. and
asked him to point out a suitable To-
cation for new High School It is
further stated that he told the pupils
In the school that he told the Board
that the present location was the
very best that could be found in Nash
vile, and that the new high school
would be erected on the present site.
The young people. went to their sew
eral homes, many of them with tears
in their eyes, and all of them with
heavy hearts"
Now Mr. Editor, there is not one
one word of truth in that quotation,
which can be proved to you by every
child and teacher in the Pearl High
School. | told you this in our CONVEX
sation over the phone, and l cannot
see why you publish the rumor except
that you wanted to start something.
or desired to go out of your way to
give the High School Principal All un-
deserved rap | wish to say to you
again that the Board did not send for
me, they did not ask me to point out
a suitable palce for the new High
School, did not state to the Board
that the present location was the
very best that could be found in
Nashville, and did not say that the
new school would be erected On the
present site. To begin with, Mr.. Ed
itor | wish to state that it is my cpin-
ion that a new High School for Ne
groes is too far in the future for us
to waste words about a site. Save
your ammunition; you may need it
in the next five or ten years. The
matter has never yet been brought be-
fore the Board in its meetings and
they have never even discussed it Off
cially, so you see an argument over
a site is premature l am glad to see
that the Globe is deeply interested in
our High School. 1t wields a great
influence and could be used to serve
our people to great advantage, if it
adopted constructive policy and its
efforts were properly directed. On
the other hand, it could do untold IN
Jury if it adopted a destructive policy,
showed poor judgment and allowed
its efforts to be misdirected. With
your permission, that the public may
know all the circumstances and be
able to form an intelligent opinl1n as
to whether l recommended Black Bot
tom or not, ! will rehearse the de-
tails of my visit to the Superintend-
ent Three new textbooks were in
troduced into the white High School
course of study that l felt should have
gone into the Pearl High School |
course-West's Ancient World, in the
History Department, Hawkes-Luby |
and Touton's Algebra in the Mathe-
matical Department and Milliken and |
CtslS Euy SlCS III tllS OOlOuOO DSpdl y
ment. l called at the Superfntend-
ent's Office to confer with him and to
advocate that these books be used by
the Pearl children had already
talked with the clerk about it on a
occasion, had interviewed
the superintendent over the phone
about it and was now making a per-
sonal visit to still further do all that
I could in behalf Of the children to
get these books introduced. l sue
ceeded in having the order held up
fo~ the children to buy the old books
from Thursday until Monday, when
CONTINUED ON Page 81