The Nashville globe. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1906-193?, 1913-01-24
STAY OUT OF
POLITICS
ADVICE OF HON. SAM'L H. THoMP
SON TO NEGROES.
Delivers Address at State Normal
Discusses Subject "A Race School,
Speaker Only Republican Mem
ber of State Board of Educa-
tion-Audience Surprised
at Position Taken.

Hon. S. H. Thompson, of Athens, in
delivering an address at the dedlca-
tlon of the State Normal, startled his
audience when he made strong plea
10 the Negro men TO stay out or poll
tics. Mr.. Thompson advised Negroes
~ 20 to the polls and vote and then
eturn TO their Work and wait until
mother election. These remarks
we're made in the midst Of well-pre-
pared address and had no part in the
exercises. Hon. Thompson is the
only Republican member of the State
Board of Education, and the colored
voters were surprised to hear him
make such a statement. The address
is as follows:
A RACE AT SCHOOL.
Samuel il. Thompson, Athens, Tenn.
In the brief time that shall speak
to you it is not my purpose to review
the Negro race. Nor is it my purpose
to flatter or criticise that race, but
to point out, if l may, some Of the
things that concern you most and
that also concern us most.
l do not propose taking you
into the clouds, dropping you
into the abyss or spiriting you across
the chasm, but | do hope to say some
things of practical worth both to you
and to those who may listen, come
after us or Investigate the work this
state and school are doing not only
for the Negro race but for the white
race as we'll.
Emerson says in one of his many
essays that are never too numerous
that America spells opportunity. This
nation with all her fine institutions
has long been the refuge Of the op
pressed and downcast and sometimes
the "Outcast" of other lands. We
are known the world over for our stu
pendous munificence to those in nee(
and distress. Our own fair state has
been Iemiss in her duties along thii
line. Every ready as we always seen
to be to respond to those in 1mmedi
ate distress we have sometimes for
gotten to relieve the continued need
at our very door. And thus almos
a generation after our sister state
provided adequately for the prope
training of teachers of both races w
hesitated to take hold OF the mos
important educational problem OF tn
age, namely the preparation Of thos
who direct and instruct the .younI
of our land. But finally, after man.
seeming failures, we have come int,
our own and are now safely Launched
in an educational propaganda tha
will be of untold and unlimited valu
to us in citizenship for all the year
to come.
II might be worth while right here
for the sake of some who do not hav
time to study and of others who d
not care to do so, to go into statistic
lust a little, but with some reserVs
tion and always bearing in mind tn
three kinds of lies described by tn
Washington newspaper correspoT
dent, namely, common lies, damne
lies and statistics.
Quoting from the latest report Q
the United States Commissioner G
Education you will find that in twer
ty-three state, including the D.striC
of Columbia, there are one hundre
fifty public High Schools for Negroe
with 519 teachers and 9,641 students
OF these the largest number, AZ, ar
in Texas with 90 teachers and 1,S5
students. while the following seve
states widely scattered throughor
the nation have but one such schot
each, with an average of 12 teacher
and 1872 students: Delaware, Distrlt
of Columbia, Kansas, Louisiana, MI
ryland, North Carolina and Pennsy
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