The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1914-03-14
AERO-AMERCAN CULL|NCS

After a careful Investigation of the
facts, | am convinced that every day
In the year there are as many as
100000 people of my race who are
sick enough to be incapacitated for
work, writes Booker T. Washington.
Other persons have estimated the
number of negroes who are sick all
the time to be as high as 100000. If
these figures are correct, it means
that on the average every member of
my race spends annually is days in
bed, in the hospital, suffering pain
or recuperating from sickness that
might be spent in some form of
wholesome enjoyment or in useful
and efficient labor.
1t is safe to say, on the same basis,
that every day in the year there are
$4,000 negro workers idle, as result
of sickness, who would otherwise
be at work in some form Of useful
employment. This is a great loss not
only to the negro, but it is a great
loss to the country. 1t has been esti-
mated that in the south alone there
is a net loss to the negro in earn
ings and to the community as a
whole in productive labor of 100000
900 a year.
This immense loss is not due to
the physical weakness of the negro
race. l have frequently heard 1t said
that the negro, as he lived in Africa,
was more vigorous and more robust
than any other race on earth. He
had to be so to stand the climate.
Even today one will seldom find
among any race of people finer speci-
mems of physical manhood than the
sturdy, unspoiled people of the negro
race in the country districts of the
south. These people are an asset to
the country and to the south, and it
seems to me that it is the duty of
every patriotic citizen to do what he
can to conserve the life and health
of this portion of the population in
the condition in which it now is.
Boston people who are deeply in
terested in the work that DR.. Booker
T. Washington is doing at Tuskegee
turned out in numbers to hear him
at Trinity church, where he told the
story of Tuskegee's progress during
the last year. DR.. Washington has
just come from the south on his an
nual visit to Boston. Owing to the
generosity of thousands of Tuskegee's
friends DR.. Washington has been able
to give more of his time to the admin
istrative work of the institution year
after year. One of the great prob
lens now is that of training special
lists in varied lines Of southern work,
particularly those of education and ag-
riculture. Just before DR.. Washing
ton left Tuskegee 26 county superin-
tendents of education from various
counties in Alabama spent a part of
two days at Tuskegee with the idea
of getting information and plans for
their work among the colored chill
dren. The influence which Tuskegee
is exerting as a strictly educational
force is rightly gratifying to the trus-
tees. Furthermore, Tuskegee cannot
begin to supply the demand for farm
leaders. The boil weevil has con-
WINGED the southern planters that they
must take up diversified farming in
order to make their lands pay, Bank
ers and merchants are also vitality in
terested in the training of these agri.
culturists and many prizes are being
offered. DR.. Washington told his Bos-
ton audience about the greatest year
the institution ever had and the pos
sibilities of splendid advances in the
near future.