The coastland times with which is combined the pilot and herald of Belhaven and Swan Quarter. [volume] (Manteo, N.C.) 1959-1973, 1960-11-25

night before as supernumerary
on a truck to help with the freight.
and was hanging round to catch
another truck back to Greenville,
if one might show up. He was like
meeting someone from home.
The boot-black filled long felt
need, for here in Eastern North
Carolina such specialists are hard
to find. White boys used to be
willing to shine shoes, but few boys
of either color have need these days
to earn money, finding it so easy
to get from their parents. So
sometimes 60 for months with
out a shine, and now on taking a
trip away from home, / throw my
extra shoes into the car, and when
I come to shoe shine boy, I have
them all done at once. In this case,
I went back to the hotel for two
more pairs of shoes, and sat while
they were shined, and this brought
out a lot conversation, and l
thought some good philosophy. The
most striking thing this man re-
minded me of was his explanation
of what makes man worth while
in this life; how he is appraised by
those who know him; and what
keeps him maintaining a position
of responsibility and stability
among his fellows. This negro
said:
"a MAN IN THIS LIFE is
JUDGED BY THE KIND OF
WOMAN HE KEEPS"
Now that's the most meat in a
few words / have heard in a long
time, and / resolved that some
time / would make it the subject
of one of my sermons in these
columns.
However now to return to the
subject of this article, it goes with
out saying that a man who really
wants to work can always find Al
way to work. This basic founda-
ton of all prosperity and progress
is something that is evaded too
much these days where so many
seek only the fast buck, or some
thing free from the taxpayers. This
negro bootlack, while paying no
taxes, was evidently paying his
own way otherwise. He said it cost
him $3.50 day for his room and
board; that he was content with
earning about $50 a week while
some four to six hours
a day, and when he felt he had
enough, he went home. He said
he believed a fellow shouldn't
want it all, but must be willing
to leave something for the other
fellow.
Summing up his equipment. it
he needed only folding
chair; shoe shine box, Is cents
worth of rags, a brush or two;
and two cans of shoe polish which
last a week, he told me. I was
so impressed with what he said,
and to avoid forgetting it wrote
down his exact words, and his ap-
praisal of what upholds a man in
the community.
There is lot of truth in what
this negro boy said and it may be
applied to the prevailing standards
of the community in which one
lives, whether it concern legal we'd
lock, a "common-law" alliance, or
merely a case of "shacking up" as
the saying goes and which is so
often practiced in this day. The
quality of ones female companion,
of the standards follow
ed, either raises or lowers the
prestige of the man.
This fellow wasn't concerned
about the movement to move in
with the whites. He felt Inundated
that his race had been hurt be-
cause agitators exploit his fellows
to make an issue of integration
which may be used in taking con.
troll of large voting blocks. He said
the better class of negroes would
like nothing better than to be left
alone, even by their own fellows.
Later 1 hope to be able to do
credit to the subject mentioned; the
chief factor in Judging man in
his community, whether he lives in
New York City or the South: "a
man is judged by the kind of wom-
an he keeps!"