Iron County news. [volume] (Hurley, Wis.) 1913-1950, 1915-12-04


among his auditors were the govern
or and legislature and many of the
leading men and women OF Richmond.
Meanwhile he had taken luncheon
with Queen Victoria. had dined with
the president of France, and had been
received everywhere that he visited
in Europe with most distinguished
consideration. No white person can
read the story of this struggle from
under the handicap of slavery, col
ored blood, and doubtful parentage,
without thinking as he lays it aside
that the white boy or man who can
not do as well or better, with his sup
RENE advantages, should hang his
head in shame and humiliation.
But Booker Washington was not a
sentimentalist. He was not dream
er. He was never sloppy or maudlin
in his talk to or about the negro. As
a friend of mine who knew him, and
had felt the driving impulse that he
put into everything and everybody,
when he was on the ground, at Tus-
keege, said to me. "He was more a
great captain of industry in his meth
DDS than philanthropist. % He be-
lieved his work worth doing and he
did it with all his power, which was
unusual and well directed.
| once enjoyed an interesting OPP
portunity to study Booker Washing
ton and Theodore Roosevelt. For an
hour l was the third person during an
interview in the cabinet room at the
White House. Mr.. Roosevelt was
going over the field of southern APP
pointments and asking Booker Wash
ington's advise about local institu-
tions, about men, especially colored
men, and their sultableness for fed
eral appointment. Both showed great
familiarity with the field and both
were, apparently, in perfect harmo-
ny and sincerity, endeayOring to do
the best they could to secure proper
public servants. Booker Washing
ton sat in the presence of the presi-
dent of the United States unabashed,
with no obsequiousness, and with en-
tire dignity and self-command. When
he spoke he went TO the point in few
words and with no air of speaking for
a class or favOrite. He made no
special plea for the negro. He asked
only that he be taken into the reck-
oning on his merits When New Or
leans was reached, Washington told
the president that the Louisiana de-
legation in congress was trying to
drop the colored appointment there
from Il 50, 300 position down into a
81, 500 place. At this the president
called in Mr.. Cortelyou and found il
to be the fact, and / venture to say
the colOred man held his job. Both
of these men were unusually alert
and decisive, mentally. Neither
wasted words and it was clear that
the mind of Booker Washington, and
his mental processes, were those OF
the Caucasian, and that only his skin
and features betrayed the negro. He
performed a great work for his peo-
pie and pointed the one way by which
the color problem of the South will
be satisfactorily adjusted, and it is
one of the stupendOus. if not actual
ly the most menacing of the social
problems of the nation. He pointed
out that to the coIored man that when
he becomes self-supporting, he will
become self-respecting. That when
he has attained to both these qualifi-
cations he has paved the way to be
respected by his white neighbors, and
begun to make himself permanent
and honorable position among men.
1