RESULTS.
In the preceding chapters I have tried in a plain and practical way to
tell the story of my life and struggle for twenty-five years. I now
purpose to tell some results of this effort.
We started our work with no land, no building, and no assurance of any
support from any source. In fact, we rented an old log cabin in which to
begin our work. On the first day of opening, we had one teacher, three
pupils and fifty cents in money, a pretty small capital with which to
build a Normal and Industrial Institute. As I now look back on this
early adventure of mine, I am amazed at the undertaking. Although
penniless and almost without a place to rest my head, I had an abundance
of hope and great faith in God. These have always been my greatest
assets in this work. The people in the community were equally poor; not
more than ten acres of land were owned by the colored people within a
radius of ten miles, and there was even a mortgage on these ten acres.
The homes of the people consisted chiefly of one-room and two-room log
cabins. There was not a single glass window to be found. I remember that
shortly after the founding of the school a Negro built a house and
fitted it up with glass windows and people would go ten miles to see
it.
The economic condition of the people was deplorable. They all carried
heavy mortgages from year to year. These mortgages ranged all the way
from $100 to $1500. The people were thoroughly discouraged, and
seemingly had lost all hopes. Everywhere in their religious services,
they sang this song: "You may have all the world, but give me Jesus."
The white man was taking them at their word and giving them all of
Jesus, but none of the world. So disheartened were the people that when
Mr. Simpson offered to give us the first seven acres of land for the
school, many tried to prevail with him not to do so, saying that they
did not want any land. But as I have said, you can always find in any
place a few of our people whose hearts are in the right place; it was so
in this instance; a few of the old men were very stanch friends,--they
stood by me in this fight and we won. Such was the condition of the
people here twenty-five years ago.
Now how changed are these conditions? From the rented log cabin the
school has grown until we have at present, to be exact, 1940 acres of
land and twenty-four buildings, counting large and small. It enrolls
each year between three and four hundred students, teaches fourteen
trades, putting most stress on agriculture. The entire property is
valued upwards of $125,000 and is deeded to a Board of Trustees.
But the worth of an institution is not judged by houses and land, but by
its ability to serve the people among whom it is located. It has never
been our end to acquire houses, land and industries, these we have used
as means of enabling us to accomplish our end, which was and still is
to seek and to save that which was lost. For twenty-five years then we
have been here, seeking lost boys, lost girls, lost men and lost women.
We have tolled our bells that they might hear, and preached the gospel
of work in order that they might understand; we have used the church,
the Sunday-School, Bible classes and other religious societies that they
might feel; the class-rooms that they might know; the shops and farms
that they might handle and do. And so all of our material acquisitions
have been used to drive home one great end; social service, better men
and better women.
Now how well we have accomplished this end may be seen from the
following: Counting those who have finished the course of study and
others who have remained at the school long enough to catch its spirit
and be influenced by its teaching, we have sent out into various parts
of the South more than a thousand young men and women who are today
leading useful and helpful lives. They are farmers, blacksmiths,
wheelwrights, carpenters, housekeepers, dressmakers, printers, railway
postal clerks, letter carriers, teachers, preachers, domestic servants,
insurance agents, doctors, expressmen, contractors, timber-inspectors,
college students. In fact, they are to be found in every vocation known
to the South. Many of these young people have bought farms and homes of
their own, have erected neat and comfortable cottages; have influenced
their neighbors to buy land, to build better homes, better churches and
better school-houses. They have also been instrumental in securing a
higher type of teachers and preachers. They make a special effort
always to cultivate a friendly relation between the two races. In this
particular they have been remarkably successful. I shall speak more
directly about their work under the chapter on Graduates.
Perhaps I can in no way better show the effects of the school upon the
immediate community than by referring to an address given by me and
quoted in the appendix of this book.
It is the custom at Tuskegee to have each class reassemble at the school
twenty years after graduation. Some one of the class is chosen by the
school, to represent the class and is placed on the Commencement
program. It fell my lot to represent my class on this occasion.
Of course at the anniversary of each class, that class is expected to
make a donation to the school. Although this had been the custom for
several years, the class donations very seldom amounted to more than
$100. Sometimes they were as small as $25.00 or less. Somehow I have
always felt that the graduates of Tuskegee owed that institution a debt
of gratitude which they can never pay, and thought that they should make
the class anniversaries mean something more substantial to the school
than they had meant. So long before our time came, I wrote the members
of my class telling them that it should be our aim to give Tuskegee
$1000 at our Anniversary. They readily agreed with me and the class set
itself to the task of raising the $1000. This was done because we felt
that the time had come for the graduates to give more substantial aid to
their Alma-Mater, and as a stimulus to those who are to follow. I think
in a small way it has served that purpose, because these class
anniversary donations have never been less than $500 since that date.
[Illustration: A NEWER TYPE OF HOME IN THE BLACK BELT]
I think of all the talks I have ever made, none have given me the real
joy that this one gave. I feel that this was true for the reason that
this was a giving talk rather than a receiving one. The address is also
given in the appendix.