The Nashville globe. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1906-193?, 1917-11-23
The Danger Of
Extravaganza.
Rev. ]. P. Robinson, D. D.

Extravaganza is the most common
thing now going on possibly. 1t is
mighty common among the American
people and although this statement
may be a little broad yet especially
Is it true as it concerns the colored
people. With all of the sign-boards
Of warning that have been set up
upon the road Of prosperity, yet 1t
does not seem to check the Roadway
of my people rushing into this seeth-
ing whirlpool. They seem to delight
in glorying about what they spend
and throw away; they never stop to
think about the coming rainy day,
or of the impending snow-storm or
the great expanse of the future.
Thousands of my people made in the
this year as high as nine
and ten dollars day for months and
they spent it as If this kind Of thing
would last for the next hundred
years. When the work at these
places was principally suspended for
colored men, some of these same per-
sons had but little more than they
had when they first began work. The
greatest desire of my people, it seems
today is to throw away what they
have earned by hard toll and sweat.
They only count the dollars but
never count the cents just as though
cents did not make dollars. And so
they go on through life in this care
less and uncertain way. am asham-
ed of the careless spendthrifts among
our race who have been proverty-
stricken for more than two hundred
years.
Provisions are so high that a man
will squirm to pay the prices for them.
And some things, especially food
stuffs are up so that one cannot af-
ford to pay the price. Yet my people
buy cigars, snuff and such worthless
things. Now this is what l call an
unholy waste; it is both sinful and
devilish; and such a life is not worth
living. 1t is very unbecoming for
parents to raise up children in this
way, teaching them to throw away
their ernings and use their moneys
in way that is not beneficial neither
helpful to them. Such actions only
mean that the children will only exc
out a poor existence and will soon
die with disease and decay.
One of the many things that we
should know is how to prolong life
and to retain healthy conditions in
our person and in our homes. But
I fear too many of us discard the idea
to do those things but prefer to do
the things which we please to do, and
especially is this true when we are
pleased to do wrong.
Many of our farmers are making
Just money enough to take care of
themselves comfortably; yet they are
buying automobiles when they do
not even own homes and have no
place to put an automobile after 1t
has been purchased. This is both ex-
trayagance and nonsense. The frst
duty of every man is to secure home
for himself, wife and children. There
is land enough in America sufficient
for every citizen to have home,
either in the city or rural district. l
ask any sensible man-why plunge
into luxury in this way when the
main spring of life has been left OFF.
A homeless man as well as homeless
family is a very pitiful object l
would advise my people everywhere,
If you are a farmer to buy farm
and if you are to live in the city,
buy house and lot. Whatever you
do buy home somewhere. / wish
1 could turn the heart of my entire
people against extravaganza and
teach them to save that which costs
you dearly. Warnings are put up in
every cross-road possible, in every
district and hamlet, warning the peo-
pie against this merciless extrava-
gance, but I am sorry to say that
thousands Of them are like the peo-
pie in the day of the food who paid
no attention to the warning until
they were swept from the face Of the
earth by the on-coming flood and
then it was too late. The pests have
come to the farmer and destroyed
his cotton and the draught has come
and burned up the farmers corn and
almost all crops have been cut short.
Then why should we not heed this
warning against extravaganza and
become prosperous and saving peo-
pie whose aim would be to better the
condition of both man and beast and
the entire country at large. Let us
remember that this is no time for
folly. and play but we must get down
to real business-we are in life's bat
tie for butter and bread.
l fear that of all the people in
this country my people are the most
wasteful Now this I say must not
last for it sets us in the light Of the
world as both worthless and dan
gerous to society and furnishes that
which initiates against us as race.
Let us hear and take heed while 1t is
day. For the time will soon come
when every word of warning will
stare us in the face and whom devast-
alton and ruin shall cause us to halt
and opportunity rise up and condemn
US at the bar of intelligence.