At the conclusion of Mr. Page’s address, Mr. William H. Baldwin, Jr., one of our Trustees, and a member of the Committee on the Investment of the Endowment Fund, spoke in behalf of the Trustees as follows:
“It is my privilege to speak to you as a Trustee of Tuskegee Institute on the subject of its finances. The generous friends who have made Tuskegee possible should know its exact business condition. It has been a hard but beneficial struggle for Mr. Washington to raise the funds necessary to pay the current expenses of the Institution, to acquire the 2,267 acres of land, and to erect the 42 buildings now comprising the school.
“During the 18 years of development, there have been imperative demands from time to time for buildings for which no specific funds were available. The rapid growth of the work, the constantly increasing number of students, with applications for admission far beyond the capacity of the buildings, put a burden on the Trustees which compelled them in their positions as Trustees, to advance some of the unrestricted contributions for the construction of buildings to protect the general welfare of the Institution.
“During this period, enough money has been collected to pay the current expenses, and to accumulate $300,000 in plant and equipment, and an endowment fund of $62,253.39.
“No mortgage has ever been placed upon the property, and the Trustees desire to pay any and all indebtedness without mortgaging the property, and without using other resources which should be used for endowment, or for increased plant.
“The grant of 25,000 acres of land from the United States Government in 1897, is valued at a minimum of $100,000, and that land, together with unrestricted legacies to be received, are obviously full security for the advances made by the Trustees. But these resources should be kept for permanent uses, and to care for the constantly increasing demands of the School.
“The income for the fiscal year ending May 31, 1899, amounted to $110,161.59. The current expenses for running the Institution were $64,386.70, showing very economical administration for the care of nearly 1,200 people. The balance of income was used in the construction and completion of buildings, and in reducing a part of the indebtedness. The Endowment Fund received $38,848.93 last year.
“In order that the accounts of the School should be kept on a strictly business basis, the Trustees, in 1897, appointed an Auditor, a Certified Public Accountant of New York, to direct and supervise all the accounts. The Trustees are in position to assure you that any contributions made, are properly and rigidly accounted for; and furthermore, that all expenditures are made with great economy and wise discretion.
“In short, Tuskegee has a good business organization, and warrants the entire confidence of its friends. Its Endowment Fund will be strictly preserved. Special contributions for buildings or other specific purposes, will be kept separate for their particular uses, and the contributions for current expenses will be expended economically and effectively.
“Though the School is still in need of simple buildings for dormitories, classrooms and shops, the Trustees determined in 1898 that a point of development had been reached when the Institute should not go into debt for any new buildings, and that in future no buildings should be erected until all the necessary funds are guaranteed for the purpose.