The Dallas express. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1893-1970, 1920-04-03
Negroes Who Have
Gone North VIII
Remain

Philadelphia. April 1.-The most
surprising thing to the North and
disappointing thing to the South is
the failure of the migrant to re-
turn It was confidently predicted
that one winter in the North would
be sufficient for the field-hand Negro
and those who survived would be
writing and telegraphing their good
Southern friends to please come and
get me. But this is what really hap
pened: The migrant found place to
! eat a place to sleep and a lob; and
he simply began to fit himself into
the new order of things" stated A. l..
Maly, industrial secretary Of the Arm
strong Association of Philadelphia, in
the course of a recent address on
The Migrant Negro"
One of the greatest war ard post
! war problems devolving on this we'll
known Colored welfare organization
has been the reception, housing and
proper Industrial placing of the thou
| sands of Colored Southern migrants
who have floclSed to this city during
the past two years. Such an enormous
shifting of labor must have its cor
responding effect for good or i'll on
the communities to which it migrates,
and this depends in great measure
on the economic and social way in
which the community meets this in
fluX. The specialized efforts made
by the Armstrong Association in the
handling of the Negro migration COM
ing to Philadelphia have largely con-
tributed to his successful assimila-
tion and to mako his sojourn per-
Many Failed in North.
The association through its staff
1ns pfiS n tS sas Mth 0ssR s~ and
rivals, and through the associations
social service and employment bu-
reaus finds them homes and the prop
er work for which they are fitted. 1t
is the finding of the latter which con-
stitutes the most difficult problem,
but the organization is accomplishing
many remarkable solutions
/ The previous environment and oc-
cupation of the migrant counts for
every thing in his or her failure or
success in the new surroundings. The
countrybred Negro will always be
handicapped to some extent until used
to city life, and some make complete
failures at the outset. while others
are absolutely untitled for urban life
at any time, The association tries
and very often succeeds in finding
them their right place in the scheme
Thus the case of Negro farmer,
who had come up from the South with
his wife and child to have a try at
city life is typical. He made. COM
household possessions with which he
arrived, but being also deserted by
his wife and children. The Armstrong
Association. through its industrial and
employment department No. 1434 Lom-
bard street, placed him on farm
over in Jersey. where he saved
enough money in wages to make the
first payment on a piece of land.
lead to his financial Independence.
In the earlier period of emigration
the Negro migrant was of the poorer.
uneducated and more or less irres-
ponsible type. The first-comers want
ed the high wages and short hours
promised to them and to taste the de-
light of city life in the North, of
which they had heard so much. They
arrived by the thousands, until the
South stood aghast at the extent of
the exodus. This stream of immi-
grafton has fallen off in a marked
degree of late, and the character Of
most of those who continue to come
North is of the thrifty. educated, pro-
perty;ownng type. If properly :, hand b; nd,
and are thus an economic gain to the
community.