The Twin City star. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1910-19??, 1914-07-10
JEALOUS WORKER
FOR EDUCATION
Success Of Miss n. {. Butler
as School Supervisor.
KNOWS HOWTO GET RESULTS

Personal etory Of the Labors Of
Tusksose institute Graduate Among
the People Of Caroline County, Va.
Hearty CO. operation In Effort to es-
cure Better sohooIhouses.
Mrs. Mamie Lee Butler, who was
graduated from Tuskegee institute in
1911 and is now serving as an indus
trial supervising teacher In Caroline
county, Va. tells an interesting and
prophetic story Of the awakening Of
the colored people to the possibility Of
having, even under most adverse con-
ditions, better schools, better homes
and better community response to
pressing needs.
Shortly after I took up my work AZ
an Industrial supervisor the state Of
Virginia, through the superintendent
of public instruction, offered to pro-
vide the salary of a second teacher for
every community that would build
two room school according to the state
plans," said Mrs. Butler on q recent
visit to Hampton institute.
~ went into four communities and
tried to show the advantages and wis
dom Of needing this call. Each COM
munity that visited, although It was
poor. took up the struggle. and ny per
sonal contributions Of work, money
and materials all Of the four schools,
each costing $1,000 and having two
teachers, hat . been built and occupied
during the past year. .---r~,-'
Sacrifices were made by our people
to accomplish this result. At Bowling
Green one man. whose property hold
ings are valued at only a Thousand
dollars and who has growing family
Of eight to support, gave out Of his
weekly earnings In one yeaI $3.50.
How did he do It? Not all at epce at
some big rally. Sometimes 1t the
freight Office he would pay a bill for
lime, cement or other materiah and
at the next meeting Of the School I'm
provement league he would quietly
hand the receipt to the treasurer.
Zone man who did the mason work
gave one-half Of bis time free. An
other man who lives in q shabby, rent
ed tenement, contributed IS of the 50
he had received for laying the cement
floors Of the porches. Still another
man who did not have the ready mon
kn x1k,
he cut and hauled logs to the mill and
contributed the lumber cut from them.
ITO push the work more rapidly the
women gathered at one school, and
while the men of the community put
on the weather boarding the women
nailed on the laths on all the side
walls and finished their tasks without
a smashed finger. Many Of the wo-
men who are helping to support their
families by washing land, I might say,
that rs cents is the price paid for an
Individual laundry in Caroline county,
have time and time again contributed
the whole amount to push along the
work of school building.
Last year the colOred people raised
by contributions. without help from
the school board, some $5.400 for build
ings and school improvements. We
are now striving to raise $4,000 to
build four more graded schools. We
are also striving to collect $500 to
equip properly the workroom at Bowl
ing Green, for wherever new graded
schools have supplanted the one room
schools we are endeavoring to use the
old buildings as workrooms in which
win be taught sewing, cooking and
housekeeping to the girls and manual
training to the boys. Every school
that has been reached has been awak.
ened to the idea Of doing something
definite to improve conditions and to
make the school buildings and grounds
attractive.
Through the summer work we have
been better able to reach the homes.
and by teaching the children In their
own homes we have been able to infiu-
ence the mothers. Wherever possible
mothers clubs have been formed. They
have for their purpose not the raising
Of money for the schools. but the
changing Of the morals and the man.
ners Of the children in the home. along
the highway and In the school
my preparation for work In this
great forward movement owe to
Tuskegee. There from the big heart
Of DR.. Booker T. Washington learned
the lessons of unselfshness and serv-
Ice. In sending me out to do indus
trial work he took me by the hand
and said, We don't expect you to fail
Thus hs gave me inspiration to put
.... .. p.