Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1915-02-13
NEGRO TEACHERS
HEAR {. M. WATSON
Not Heads and Theories
Only But Hands and
Skill.
g MEETINGS A DAY
Organization Complete and
Ready for Business
Today.
8 MEETINGS A DAY

The eighth annual session Of the
State Association OF Negro Teachers
is in session at the A. NJ. f. church,
where more than three hundred are
gathered to discuss ways and means
Of lettering the condition of negro
schools in Oklahoma.
The morning session was given over
to the formal opening, which was be
gun bv singing america" followed by
PRAYER by Rev. j. A. Johnson or
Tulsa. Enrolment and appointment
OF various committees was followed
by the address OF welcome by Mr..
johnson, representing the city at
large, and Mrs. j. w. Hughes for the
schools Response was made by Prof.
F. w. Bruner of oklahoma city.
The afternoon session was opened
with a song and a chorus rendered by
the High School club Principal
Woods then introduced superintendent
Oberholtzer of Tulsa city schools, who
charmed the audience with his simple
e1oQuence and earnest plea for better
prepared servants in the schoolroom.
Attorney Roberts of Wagner re
sponded to the superintendent.
Annual Address.
After an instrumental solo by Miss
Clark OF Langston and a vocal solo by
Miss II. H. Townsend OF HoldenNille,
President E. NJ. Watson, professor OF
science at Langston university, deliV-
cred his annual address, showing a
broad grasp Of conditions as they con-
front the negro teacher His talk was
deep and showed thorough under
standing Of educational conditions and
tendencies everywhere.
The point which the president espe-
clally stressed was that Of the bene
fits and necessity OF vocational train
ing in public schools i'm general, and
showed in particular where It applied
to the negro school children in par
ticular, at least for the present. The
president said in part;
Culture is good for anybody, but
efficiency and capability are better
for we are no more judged by what
we know so much as by what we can
do, not by the route through which
we have come, but by the perfectness
to which we have developed in
breadth of view, clear reasoning, good
judgment, tolerance, high ideas, sensi-
tVeness to art and devotion to service.
1t is all right to have an educated
head in books. but what we are suf-
fering for most is educated hands in
things.
Too Much Theory.
1--WE need to care less for profess
sionalism and more for the develop
ment of all the folk who live in this
state, to the end that new rural
civilization may be produced. Our
educational process must reach the
real fundamental strata and broad hu-
man level. The bottom of the edu-
cational ladder should be put down
where the great bulk of our boys and
girls are, go that they can, by their
own efforts. climb to the top.
THE idea that | would like TO EN-
phasize just here is that something
must be done for the 1875 negro boys
and girls out of every 200 who never
reach our high schools and universi-
ties. Our educational process ought
to be modified so that every boy and
girl can have the opportunity to learn
to do some thing well, from which he
can earn a living.
1T is my strong conviction that the
temporal salvation Of our race for
some time to come is to be won out
of the SOIL that shllful agriculturists
and mechanics and good housekeepers
are needed more than poets, orators
and office girls; and that we shall sue
ceed or fail In this country as we shall
utNONt Jul tS db ID ldNt lllblt anu
more to the fundamental industries.
For the Common People.
Il do not mean by this that we must
Danish literature, poetry, music, art,
architecture or shut our eyes to the
beauty of flowers and the glories of
the skies or take sculpture from our
mantles and pictures from our walls
and put under ban the graoes of pleas
urable intercourse and social satisfac-
tion, for this would lower us to the
level of wild savages; but / do mean
that our educational process must be
made more attractive and suited TO
the needs of the common people, and
that school should hold up true pic
ture OF life in all its activities. and
that teaching be conducted from the
standpoint OF living as well as mental