Not a few of our men have become merchants, and they are generally patronised by both races and have high commercial rating. Two of the best examples of this class are Mr. A. J. Wilborn, who is a successful merchant in the town of Tuskegee, and Mr. A. J. Wood, of Benton, Alabama.
Last January, when in Los Angeles, California, I met by chance a young man who had taken a partial course in our nurse-training department. I asked him if he were reflecting credit upon the Tuskegee Institute? Without a word, he pulled out a bank-book and asked me to inspect it. I found a substantial sum recorded to his credit. Before I was through with the inspection of the first bank-book, he handed me a second which showed an amount to his credit at another bank. I found that Mrs. Barre, another of our graduates, is one of the leading trained nurses of the same city.
CHAPTER XVIII Spreading the Tuskegee Spirit
One of the questions most frequently asked me is, To what extent are Tuskegee graduates able to reproduce the work of the parent institution? Just as the Tuskegee Institute is an outgrowth of the Hampton Institute, so other smaller schools have grown out of the Tuskegee Institute in various parts of the country. There are at present sixteen schools of some size which have grown out of the Tuskegee Institute or have been organised by Tuskegee men and women. In all instances, these schools have become large enough to be chartered under the laws of the State.
The Vorhees Industrial School at Denmark, South Carolina, for example, was founded by Elizabeth E. Wright, class of 1894. It is now in its seventh year. Miss Wright was greatly opposed at first by both the white and coloured people, but she persevered, and has at length overcome all opposition. She has 300 acres of land, all paid for. A large central building has been erected at a cost of $3,000. This contains offices, class rooms, and a chapel that will seat 600. This building is paid for, and a girls' dormitory, to cost $4,000, the money for which is in the treasury, is in process of erection. The plans for both of these buildings were drawn by a Tuskegee student. A barn to cost $800 is nearly completed, and there are several other small buildings. Miss Wright is assisted by three Tuskegee graduates, one as the farm superintendent, one as treasurer and bookkeeper, and the other as carpenter and teacher of drawing. The day and boarding students number more than 300. Farming in its various branches is the principal work of the students, but they are also taught shoemaking, carpentry, cooking, sewing, housekeeping, and laundering, while printing and blacksmithing are soon to be added to the course. The school spent $9,000 last year in current expenses, building expenses, and the purchase of land.
Another of our graduates, Mr. V. Chambliss, has charge of the farming operations of the Southern Land Improvement Company. About forty Negro families have settled upon land controlled by this organisation, and the number is increasing each year. These families are being given the opportunity to buy their homes through their own labour and under the guidance of Mr. Chambliss. Mr. Chambliss does not use the hoe himself, for he finds it more economical to utilise his time directing the work. When the world wants cotton or corn, it cares little whether the man uses his pen or his hoe. What it desires are results. Some men have the ability to produce fifty times as much cotton with the pen as with the hoe. Another example will show how our students succeed when working directly under others. The letter which follows is to the point:
Professor Booker T. Washington.
Dear Sir: The students from your school who have been at work here during the vacation expect to return to Tuskegee to-morrow, and we want to say to you that these boys have demonstrated to our company the wonderful benefit of your teaching. These young men have taken hold of their work in a steady and businesslike way, and have worked uncomplainingly during the severe heat of the past summer. We would like, if it is possible, to induce a number of your students to purchase their homes about our works in North Birmingham and become regular workmen in our different shops. We have a letter before us now, written by one of your students, John Davis, which would reflect credit on the masters of Yale or Harvard. Please accept our best wishes for the success of the grand work you have undertaken.
Dimmick Pipe Works Company,
Birmingham, Alabama.
A conspicuous example of a Tuskegee graduate who is using his knowledge of stock-raising in a practical way is that of William Johnson Shoals, of Clear Creek, Indian Territory. Shoals owns and operates his own stock farm, one of the largest in the Territory, and has been successful from the very beginning.