The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1913-04-10
Address Of Booker 7. Washington
fAt Asbury NJ. E. church, March q
NN 1879

friends who have given ~ the oppOT-
tunity 10 address this audience. have
always had a desire 70 see the Hood
River neople and their valley, owing 10
the fact that they have advertised il
rather modestly at times.
Zone dav. some time ago, friend
and / we're travelling through Alabama
and stoned at a house on the way for
> meal On going TO the table our
hostess asked us il we would have lorg
or short sweetning in our coffee. As
neither of us knew what this meant
hoth waited for the other TO speak
Finally / nudged my companion as q
sign that he should speak hrst, where
upon he said that he would take long
sweetening. Then our hostess dipped
her finger into cup Oh molasses and
then placed the same hnger IN nv
friends coffee. When my turn came
| had decided to take short sweetnirg.
So the woman placed piece Of maple
sugar between her teeth, bit il in two
and placed one half in my coffee and
the other In her own. So, friends il is
the same with my speeches. Neither
the long nor the short ones are very
agreeable, but | have only time touay
for a short one.
al live in the black belt Of Alabama
there are more negroes IN Alabana
than white people here in Oregon.
Friends, did you ever realize that the
total number of negroes IN the United
States is 10. 900, 900? Why, there are
more nereoes in the United States than
the total population of Canada. And
at one time there were as few as 80 In
the United States. We black people
have one advantage over you and that
is that YOU came to America and set
tied of your own accord, while we were
invited to come here and even sent for.
And now that you have US here.
10. 900, 900 of US, the question is how
to make US an asset rather than a
| liability.
II was born in slavery, in a little
cabin 12xl8 feet, without windows and
with door that sometimes hung on
one hinge, but most of the time didn't
hang at all. When Lincoln made us
free went with my mother to the
coal mines of West Virginia and there
| worked to help support us. One day
| overheard some men talking Of
school in place called Hampton, where
negroes might be educated and where
poor boy could work his way through
school; and that day, down in the
blackness of the coal mine | made a
vow to attend that school, sometime,
somehow. A few months later
started and walked 40 miles to Rich
mond with all my personal belongings
done up in little white bundle. Here
| worked and saved, sleeping under
a sidewalk, until had saved a little
money. Then | went to Hampton and
worked my way through school.
''In 1881 | started my school at Tus-
keegee. Alabama, in one of the little
old cabins common in that region. We
started with one instructor and 80 pu-
pills, but we have grown until at the
present we employ 1856 instructors and
our pupils number 1900; and we have
representatives from 36 states of the
Union and Is foreign countries. Our
trustees are worth 81, ,2500 900, we own
over 1000 acres of land and we have 96
buildings connected with our school.
Our object is to teach our boys simple,
sensible farming and to teach our girls
cooking, sewing and housekeeping, not
domestic science and art, or domestic
economy, and | can warrant that the
meals they prepare taste like cooking
and not like domestic science.
when the older blacks first heard
of my plans they objected because |
meant to teach the children how to
work. Being use to hard work in
slavery they were prejuciced against
bodily labor. 10 change their ideas !
have endeavored to point out to thee
the vast difference between 'workHp
and being worked Working means
freedom and being worked means slav.
cry. | have tried to show the N that
labor is dignified and that idleness is
disgraceful. In late years the most
prominent movement among the older
negroes has been the dying out of this
prejudice against working.
''In Tuskeegee we teach 40 different
industries and the material for our &c
buildings, some of which are worth
5000, 900, has been made at the school.
We not only study from books, but we
also study material things. Where is
the good of studying about a horse
from book when we can study the
horse himself? In our mathematics
classes we take actual problems from
the garden, orchard, or brickyard, and
thus we join our class rooms with our
industrial activities.
"There is one more thing about
which wish. to speak and that is the
change in our commencement exer-
cses. Formerly we would have some
bright young man give an oration on
The Glory and Honor of the American
Flag, or After the Alps Lies Italy,
subjects about which the audience
knew nothing and in which they were
not interested. But now our ideas
have broadened so that in our last pro-
gram we had the stage fitted up with a
stove, table and other necessaries and
a young girl went through the whole
process of preparing and serving a
simple farm dinner. Perhaps you have
heard that turnip raising is a chief
industry of Alabama, just as apple
raising is chief industry with you.
So bright young man was selected to
tell the audience how to plant and raise
turnips correctly, so that the best re-
suits might be obtained A table piled
with huge specimens of the vegetable
stood beside him and at the close of his
address he picked up two turnips and
held them before the crowd You
should have heard those people cheer
| These are subjects which interest the
people because they know what the
pupil is talking about and the pupil
knows what be is talking about.
"And now, think have said all
that is of interest to you and beg you
to excuse me if my talk has been
rather disiointed. might compare my
case with that Of an old negro whom |
met one day who seemed to be in some
trouble. asked him what the trouble
was and he said: Use had a heap O.
trouble at home. My ole woman left
the door of the chicken house open and
the chickens all got out and went
home | think that is the way with
me, nv thoughts have all got out and
gone home. | am grateful for this
large audience and if ever | come to
Oregon again | shall certainly visit
Hood River valley. Thank you."
Reported by Emma Noble.
Frankton High School, 10.