SPEECHES & WRITINGS FILE Miscellaneous Fragments Thank her. Disc. Discovered Her. Nat Council shows Progress Like to think of the U. Af. C. W. We like Splits not Banana Splits. but racial splits. National Council of Women can accomplish great things Our women have already made a great contribution to the progress of the race. We have not done all that we should have done. Have not done as much for youth & Glad Mrs Bethune emphasizes that. Not enough for unfortunate women & girls Not interested input he questions as much as we should. Convert lease [Cam?] [*Terrell Joiner*] if from the Col Wom League as they filed into the room where they were to decide upon the methods of uniting the 2 organizations and upon the rules by which the result of the union shd be governed. [by wh the union of the 2 organizations shd be effected and make the rules when governing it.] [the new organization which she'd be] It took a whole day to [*agree*] decide upon the [name] new baby. It was definitely decided that [we would call the] the infant should be known [neith] [League] neither as a Fed nor a League and so after thinking of all the possible names under the sun we finally decided to call our baby the N A of C W. Then the next day the pres had to be elected. Who shd be the first pres that was indeed the question. The Com from the Leag wd name a can & the Com from the Fed wd do [follow] ditto [*It was decided immediately that the infant shd be given the name of neither one of the organizations which were merging*] A Few Facts Concerning The Atlanta School of Social Work REASONS FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE SCHOOL The school was established in 1920 by a group of white and colored social workers who knew by daily experience the great need of social work among Negroes in the South and of trained Negro workers to administer it. They were acquainted with the problems of family disorganization growing out of the fact that a tremendously large number of southern Negro mothers have to work. They knew of the ill health and delinquency which resulted from the bad housing conditions with Negroes have to combat. They knew of other influences retarding the healthy growth of Negro children particularly in the rural sections where exist the problems of the Negro tenant farmer and they know the way in which even the cities of the South, the care of dependent Negro children has either been entirely neglected or left to incompetent and sometimes dishonest individuals and they know of the denial to the Negro of the facilities for wholesome recreation. They also knew that the most effective work in solving these problems could be done by Negro social workers rather than by white social workers, but they had found that Negroes trained in social work in the North were either absorbed in that section or did not care to come South. NUMBER OF YEARS THE SCHOOL HAS FUNCTIONED - 6. FINANCIAL SUPPORT OF THE SCHOOL SINCE ORGANIZATION. 1920-24 - There was no budget for the first few years and consequently the School should not be judged too harshly during that period. From 1920-24 it was conducted by teachers and social workers from the various colleges and social agencies in their spare time. 1924-25 - Budget of $7,500, provided by the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial. 1925-28 - Budget of $15,000 per year, approximately as follows: s $5,000 from the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial. $5,000 from the Russel Sage Foundation. $1,500 from the Atlanta Community Chest. $3,500 from individual subscribers. AVERAGE YEARLY NUMBER OF GRADUATES 1920-28 - 7. NUMBER AND TYPE OF PLACEMENTS That there is a demand for the graduates of the School is proven by the fact that the School has never been able to meet the call for its graduates. Geographical Location of Employed Graduates. Atlanta, GA., 8; Columbus, Ga., 2; Tuskegee, Ala., 2; Jacksonville, Fla., 2; Cleveland, O., 2; Memphis, Tenn., 3; Houston, Tex., 1; Charleston, S.C., 1; Omaha, Neb., 1; Raleigh, N.C., 2; Milwaukee, Wis., 1; St. Louis, Mo., 4; New Orleans, La., 1. Type of Positions Held by Graduates. Family Case Workers, 10; Settlement Workers, 4; Hospital Social Service, 2; Urban League Workers, 2; Community Workers, 2; Police Court Matron, 1; Health Education, 1; United States Employment Service, 1; School Attendance Officer, 1; Church Social Service, 2; Day Nursery, 1. time there were compartively few ch scientists. I think, and there might have been a few col women belonging to the Hebrew Ch for aught anybody knew. Then too in this new N A [of C W] [organization] [there was] wd report together women who had totally different points of view about the race question. What cd be [How was] be done about that? [that going to him] Wd they tear each others hair? Some of the women believed in [*were said to*] industrial education and nothing else. Every body might work and have little to do with books Others believed more vehemently if possible trust women in what man called the higher education. And so there were these two camps separated in views at [it was] [well defined said] as far as the East is from the West. How wd all these differences in religion & opinions about the race problem and other leading questions of the day be harmonized? Now very intelligent people shook their heads It simply cdnt be done. Such a val organization as was proposed was unthinkable. It was doomed to failure from the start. To some hopeful people [so many it] was a possibility. By some who tried to [but] be hopeful when very remote. [in others it was] Few regarded [looked] it as a probability and to a large number of men & women black & white alike it was only a huge joke over which they fairly split their sides as as the laughed SECURITIES DEPARTMENT HENRY L. DOHERTY & COMPANY HOME OFFICE 60 WALL STREET NEW YORK 7 St. Paul Street BALTIMORE, MD OFFICE of DISTRICT SALES MANAGER BALTIMORE, MD WASHINGTON OFFICE: Phone, Main 6189 803-804 Wilkins Building July 8, 1924. Miss Mary L. Terrell, 1323 Tea St., Washington, D.C. Dear Miss:- We have just published an illustrated booklet entitled "The Holding Company for Ideal Investment." This booklet explains in clear language the advantages of a strong holding company for sound investment. It contains much general information for investors and for those who expect to become investors. The booklet also contains some special information about Cities Service Company and the methods used to make its securities unusually safe and at the same time profitable. Cities Service Company is one of the largest holding companies in America, and has total assets of more than $491,000,000. This public service organization was built up through the sale of necessities, and has more than 150,000 security-holders in all parts of the United States. We believe you will find that this booklet "The Holding Company for Ideal Investment," contains both special and general information of unusual interest to you personally. We shall be glad to send a copy to you, free of charge, if you will return the enclosed card, which requires no signature, address nor stamp. Just drop the card in the mail box as it is. Very truly yours, Henry L. Doherty & Company, [*By a few who tried to be hopeful & charitable at the same time it was looked upon as a possibility altho very remote. By [either cd] very few It was regarded as a probability by very few. By the way only it was considered a huge joke over which they fairly split their sides as they laughed. But in discussing the N A the doubting Thomases forgot a very important fact indeed. They forgot that no matter how col women differed on religion, or the best methods of solving the race question they alligned on one point at least. All col women wanted to do something to promote the welfare of their race. No [And so after all] No matter how much col were who differed on non essentials they agreed on the great essential for which they had banded themselves namely to lift their race to a higher mental moral & spiritual plane.*] When the votes were counted it was [we always] poll invariably showed that each of the candidates received exactly 7 votes. Sometimes the name of the same woman wd be presented 2 more than once at intervals but the result of the poll was always continuously, discouragingly the same until some of us began to think that nobody either in the U.S. or out of it cd be elected pres of the N A C W. But finally after being in session probably all of a sweltering day in July asked the joint com which before the evening session was scheduled to begin the joint com 1st pres of [the N A C W was the] decided upon the 1st pres of the N A C W. Since that time [* the association has grow from a tiny baby into a fine intelligent useful woman. It has We should be grateful to Mrs Cook for being the first to have a call for a Nat organization & we should hold Mrs [?] in grateful recognition because she [was the first] [ever] to call together [a national group of] the first national group of col women ever held in the U.S.*] Atlanta School of Social Work 239 Auburn Ave.. N.E. Atlanta, Ga. ---------------- Forrester B. Washington DIRECTOR Established 1920 Board of Trustees Dr. Willis J. King, Chairman Dr. John Hope, Vice Chairman Dr. M. W. Adams, Vice Chairman Dr. J. H. Lewis, Vice Chairman Miss Jane Van De Vrede, Secretary Miss Mary Dickinson, Treasurer Mr. W. W. Alexander Dr. Edgar H. Johnson Miss Ada Woolfolk Miss Rhoda Kaufman Mr. J. O. Thomas Miss Florence N. Read Mrs. John Hope Mrs. J. N. McEachern Dr. M. S. Davage Dr. D. D. Martin Mr. T.J. Woofter Mr. Walter B. Hill Incorporated 1924 Advisory Board Mrs. Mary McLeod Bethune Dr. James Dillard Dr. James E. Gregg Dr. George E. Haynes Bishop John Hurst Dr. R. R. Moton Mr. Walter W. Pettit Mr. Graham Romeyn Taylor Mr. Monroe N. Work Dr. Henry H. Hibbs, Jr. Mr. Elwood Street JULY 23, 1928 Telephone Walnut 7550 My dear Mrs. Terrell: The writer, Forrester B. Washington, until a few months ago was the Executive Secretary of the Armstrong Association of Philadelphia for social work among Ne- groes, a member agency of the Welfare Federation. I resigned the Armstrong Asso- ciation to become the Director of the Atlanta (Georgia) School of Social Work be- cause I had become tired of vainly advising other trained Negro social workers to go south and felt that the only common sense thing for me to do was to "practice what I preached". I also realized that in spite of the recent northward migration the bulk of the 12,000,000 Negroes in this country are still in the South and will remain there for many years to come. The problems of reorganization of the School such as recruiting a more mature stu- dent body, a new faculty and office force and the development of a more expanded curriculum have taken most of my time so that I have not been able to give the time to the financial side that I now see was necessary since certain individuals who have helped the School in the past failed us this year. It is on this matter of finances that I am writing you today. The School depends for two thirds of its $15,000. budget on two national foundations, i.e. the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial in which gives us one dollar for every two dollars we rais (up to $5000. in one year) and the Russell Sage Foundation which gives us one dollar for every one dollar we raise (up to $5000. in one year exclusive of the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial grant), but we do not get any of this unless we raise the other third first. Just now we need $2500. to match a grant that is due from the Russell Sage Foundation which if we do not match we are likely to lose. This money is desperately needed for the necessary oporating expenses of the School. I think our School has a unique appeal in that it is the only institution in the country giving its attention solely to the training of Negroes for social work and I am sure you will agree that there is a dearth of trained Negro social workers. This is not an ordinary routine appeal-letter and I hope you will not treat it as such. Will you not look over the enclosed data concerning the School and do what you can to help us! Any amount you care to send will be highly appreciated. Very sincerely yours, Forrester B. Washington Director. Encl. W I want to dedicate this building to high ideals. It is impossible for the women of the coming generations to have higher ideals than were those upon which the N A of C W was founded 32 yrs. From the beginning we insisted that [the] [aimed to reach the stars] [fast standards] our women shd strive to reach the highest standards in their [own conduct] private life in their homes, as well as in public work. The very best women in the country rallied around the Association when it was first formed. There were present at the [first] meeting at which the asscoiation was formed & dedicate this building to a conscientious careful consideration of the needs of our children and our youth. There is nothing which shd be nearer the heart of colored women than our children. I thot so 32 yrs ago & I [think] am more impressed with our duty to Shortly after I had retired from the School Board the citizens of the Wash [called a meeting at] the Linc Un Cong Ch to give me a testimonial [in the] among other disting people who are presented like several judges of the District Supreme Court, Capt Oyster pres of the School Board of which I was appointed after [the remaining] Cong selection the mem of the Sc Board had been delegated to them and who spoke were Capt Oyster pres of School Board. A bronze statuette of Venus de Milo was presented to me and a beautiful bouquet of flowers was given me in the name of the children of the public schools as a token of their appreci for the efforts I had exer in their behalf. [It was] This was doubly Energine Dry Cleaners The Cummer products Co Cleveland, Ohio. Dampen first with Energine Make lather with Ivory soap then Rinse with warm water Olden 1800 13th St. July 20-21-22-1896 Wash D.C. Sept - 15-16-17 1897 Nash Tenn Aug - 14-15 - 16-1899 Chicago- 1901 Buffalo- Nat Fed of Afro Amer Women met in Wash M T Wed July 20-21-22 Com. from Col Wom League Norma M Thompkins Coralie Franklin West Va Aura Jones- Kans Julia F. Jones- Phil Mrs Fair- Jackson Kansas City - Florence A Barber Norfolk Va Miss E.F. E. Merritt Wash Nat. Fed of Afro-Amer. Women Mary C Terrell Victoria E Mathews, New York Rosa D Bowser- Richmond Josephine Ruffin- Boston Libbie C Anthony Jefferson City Addie Hunton Richmond Selina Butter, Atlanta- N.F.AAW- Monday morn July 20, 1896 52 delegates Brooks silver-tongued orator was there & delivered an address of welcome Mrs Rosetta Douglass Sprague only daughter of [the] Frederick Douglass, the greatest man responded to Rev Brooks Com Ross delivered an address of welcome Monday night. Mrs Ruffin responded to Com Ross' welcome. Harriet Tubman who was then 80 yrs old was introduced greeted with Chautaqua salute. She related an anecdote of her own experience during the war and sang an old plantation song which roused great enthusiasm. Mr Arthur Gray & Andrew F Hilyer made stenographic reports for the newspapers convention Mrs Josephine Bruce Pres of ladies Auxiliary which entertained them. Frances Ellen Watkins Harper Mrs. Fannie Jackson Coppin, Mrs Lucy Thurman *Alice Ruth Moore, Mrs Ida Wells Barnett & her baby chairman of Com on Resolutions. Mrs J. T Fortune The name. Elected Pres- Constitution. 1st President's statement . She established precedent of starting a Kindergarten fund. Sold book. She believed then as she believe now the hope of the race lies in the children & One discordant note & only one due to a feeling re a president who received 106 votes out of 145 delegates X Miss Mary J Cook, now Mrs Parrish. Lizzie C Carter. Mrs Hannah Surette. Victoria Earle Matthews. Mrs Hunton. Mrs T. H. Lyles Electing officers beforehand - bad precedent to establish Dont think too much about offices. Be tolerant Bow to the will of the majority. See to it that we club women who are thoroughly qualified by training experience & temperament not because she hails from the US E [was] but because she is qualified. It is the deliberate opinion of many that col people dont want the best representative There will always be differences of opinion & there shd be. God did not make 2 blades of grass alike & he didnt make any 2 minds. (1) Story & League & Federation- (2) Convention of NF of AAW who were there. Decision to merge. Com of 14- who were on it? Name - Election of Pres. Her 1st statement. I poured my heart's blood into development & growth I made up my mind that whatever else I did so far as in me lay I wd build it upon a solid foundation and I wd see to it so far as I cd that it's ideals were high. Each & every officer of the NACW felt as I did We were a unit on that. There was no disagreement there. What the Association has done. When Mrs Butler invited me to say a few words here to night and I asked her what I should talk about she said talk about clubs. Well that subject is as big as the wide world and as deep as the sea. She didn't tell me which section, division, department or angle of Club and Club work I should discuss. I have thought about many things I might tell you about Club work but I decided to be practical and tell you briefly a few things about the N.A. of C.W. in which I hope you are all interested. Having as your president Mrs. J.W. Hamilton who for a long time was treasurer of the N.A. of C.W. I am sure you must be interested in it. In the first place I want you to learn the name of our national organization. I am grieved and pained to see that so many of our women, those who have been in club work long, do not know our name. They call our organization the N.A. of C W's clubs. There is only one national organization whose name ends in the word clubs and that is the Gen'l Fed of Womens Clubs which allows no club to join if it has a single colored woman who is a member. Many years ago in Milwaukee, Wis a delegate to the G. Fed of Womens Clubs tore off the badge which Mrs. J St. Pierre Ruffin was wearing in the lobby of a hotel. There is the N.C of Women, the International C of Women, the Nat Amer Woman Suffrage Association, the Nat Woman's Party. The should be a national organization but their group which actually gathered in Boston in the summer of 1895 was the first secular national gathering of col women which met with the intent of becoming a national organization Thus was the Nat Fed of Afro-Amer women formed. Its second convention was held in Wash a few days after the League had held the first here and then a remarkable thing was done. Ive told you about the name and how where & when the N.A of C W was formed. And now I want to tell you briefly what it has done- As the pt president I felt that our organization should exert itself strenuously to save the children I urged the women to establish kindergartens, It is a testimonial to the usefulness of this institution that these first three structures, the main building, Miner Hall, and Clarke Hall, are no longer adequate to the demands upon them. Soon they must be supplemented or replaced. We are entering a new epoch in the building history of Howard. Those of you of long association here must be thrilled by this occasion. As you stand here and view this new building and the beautiful landscape which surrounds it, you must realize that Howard University is acquiring the equipment necessary to do an outstanding job in the education of the Negro youth of this country. Education is the most vital force in a democracy. In times like these, when we are facing crucial social problems, the University assumes a new importance. It is an institution which must, through the fostering of the liberal tradition, interpret contemporary trends and hazard opinions as to future developments. It must face its task with intellectual integrity and dedicate itself to championing the truth. Today, he who insists upon the right to discover the truth and then to proclaim it is often unjustly attacked and persecuted. Yet society, if it is to progress, must produce such individuals. Institutions devoted to liberal education must offer a haven to these evangels of an ever higher civilization. The Public Works Administration has concentrated upon the building of socially desirable, permanent projects. Of all the works undertaken under our program, I consider that schools and hospitals represent the soundest possible investment of Federal funds. During past depressions, local and state governments have found themselves unable to finance the expansion or even the maintenance of educational and health centers. Thus the 2 Hungered & thirsted for knowledge Put knowledge to good use- in the backwoods far from the protection and convenience of the city & town. Never a fault with which they can truthfully be charged. Engage in public work. By banding themselves together Home. Purify the atmosphere & elevate the standards of the home for years in some of the Southern States the work of bringing the light to their less favored sisters on the plantations Dotted all over the country are institutions- religious, secular charitable. Phyllis W. Sanatarium with loan Kindergartens & lay nurseries some of the finest schools for colored youth have been established. One of our most useful & successful organizations is the N.A. of C.W. which was founded in Wash in 1896 & which now has a membership of many thousands-Alabama State Federation- Georgia Questions affecting our legal status as a race have been occasionally agitated by our women- calling attention to the barbarity of the Convict Lease System I could not give a full account of the progress made by Colored women if I did not tell you what they have done to build up the church so slight as not to alter balances a large amount of money which has supported the church I wish our church done more for their [*women had done more in or out of it for their*] [erring sisters] erring sisters & girls some of wd live a decent life if they only had a chance. I wish our women had done more for the children. The colored youth is vicious we are told. Speaking of our children Meeting under Youth Ad In business & I want to refer just a second to what our women have done in business. Poems on Various Subjects, Religious & Moral by P. W h Institutions established or maintained by col. women. Phyllis Wheatley of N. Orleans Schools N.A. of C. W. - State Federations - Alabama . Georgia - Legal status Tenn - & La - protect against Jim Crow Convict Lease System Church - Not enough for Women & Children Meeting under Youth Administration In businesses Women trying to promote welfare 4 have rendered invaluable 5 service. If it were possible to ascertain the exact amount of money earned good wages because they were skillful cooks. 6 In an effort to glean facts Concerning the relation of our women to the spriritual life of the race. 7 In Institutions designed to lift the race to a higher plane women have been the power behind the throne. To me the strength & power of our women in spiritual affairs is one of the most hopeful signs of the future as it has been on eof the greatest blessings in the past. In spite of the fine 2 Slave women. Fell with the heaviest weight Nobody who knows the manner in which Christian ideals have been implanted in the mind and heart of our race- records have been so poorly kept. 3 Immediately after emancipation &c In the research & I discovered that the part played by col women in organization & growth of Bap Ch 4 The Commendable zeal which our women showed ease of kind & deportment of work designed to advance spiritual interest of the race. The pastor of one of the oldest churches- not materially to alter the balance one way or the other. In reforms of all kinds, foreign & home 4 3 work our women have done I am sorry to say they have failed to exert them selves as much as they might & should have in behalf of a group which only needed their aid - The race needs the advice & counsel of honest earnest christian women today as it never needed it before - I certainly could not give a full account of the efforts which colored women have made to promote the welfare of their race if I did not tell what they have done to build up the church - The efforts which our women have made to raise the standards of christian living to a higher plane are typical of those which have been exerted by women for 2000 years - Women shd use the franchise One of their men played a very heroic & important role at a crucial time in the history of women suffrage and helped to see us the elective franchised. Exposition Not sitting supinely by can take it. July 1 1333 to June 30 1935 $8805.10 Women sent in Rents-Contributions Expend 8567.37 in 237.43. Balance- No Fed in Maine N.H- Bonds Of 1500 in Pru Bank stolen - convention 1933 Ill pd 454.10 for 1 yr 1933 Ohio $ 280- Tennessee pd $456 for 2 yr Chicago Convention was July 1, 1933- June 30 1934 For days = $3690.60 in dues collect 6003.33 Chicago after expended 5972.37 left balance 32.02 July 1 1933 to June 30 1934 From July 1 1934 - June 1935 Received 2113.79 dues July 1 1936- June For July 1 1934 to July 30- 1935 Re 27791.66 spent 2595.16 Re 2791.76 Dues- Hdqrts July 1 1934 to June 1935 $400 + 56 pd by Mrs Pierce of Tenn Congenial Club Nashville 2540.95 dues 1 del for every 10 2540 302 votes in the Convention Michigan sent dues by clubs to the Treasurer - Tennessee sends money until Biennial Meeting - over 400 in Chicago pd nearly $500 - Sometimes collected $7000 or $8000 $900 in interest a yr for 3 yrs Taxes $1176. 17 on Hdqts up to 1935 Owe $10000 on Headquarters Women in Church do nothing for wayward girls - I beg you to discharge duties of citizenship Double Handicap Disadvantages removed by their votes Division of Eastern Division Study political methods for itself- situations, methods conditions confront col women of various states Colored women shd watch carefully what legislators of State are doing Keep posted on bills affect the race Sentimental reason why col I am sure there is a Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Detroit - I am afraid there may be a S for the P of C to Animals which wd full me if I shall fling a lot of statistics dry figures at your defenseless heads When the NA of CW was organized it created quite a sensation United their forces - Prophets of Evil Birth [of] certificate of the N A had no sooner been made out than wiseacres believed it wdnt live long it wd die an early death. Great Temptation to launch into a detailed account of what the N A has actually done thru its State organization in 40 years There must be a SPCA in Detroit Speakers wdnt be allowed to hurl long lists of dry figures at a defenseless audiences head If if were possible to tell what each of our State organizations has accomplished how many women have Tuskegee Ala Branch Dotted all over the country Need Statistics - Public Schools of South by colored Men- Kindergarten Womens attention called to losing ground in world of labor Nobody wd have predicted that 10 mil men & women wd be idle We have not done what we shd for the youth- Clubs dramatic Belasco - Congratulate Michigan raising educational fund Neglected unfortunate women and girls - at our first convention in Nashville, Tenn 1897[5]. It was a pleasure to review the program of this work which I hoped our women would do - In the first place the women were urged to do everything in their power to raise the standards & purify the atmosphere of the home And So long as any people call that place home &c Smallpox will reach the ruts Germs are no respecter of persons I hope State Fed will do everything in their power to have their members come into closer contact with our less favored sisters thru the medium of Mother's meetings Tuskegee branch of Alabama State Fed While the children of a neighborhood are gathered together in amusement and play as in no other way Dramatic clubs may be founded Women of this organization who are trying to advance the interests of their race shd not be entirely satisfied with their work unless some of their energy or some of their money or some of their brain is used in the name & for the sake of the children. And so to day I stand here and plead for the children for those who will soon represent I am sorry also that we have not done more for our young women 4 5 tempted, unfortunate wayward 2 than we have, 3 It is amazing to see that the women in our churches fail to throw protecting arms around unfortunate women & girls. labored conscientiously and earnestly to do some special piece of work which they believe would promote the welfare of their groups: how much money has been collected and spent to advance the interests of the race such an account would astound 9 out of every 10 citizens in the US, I am not claiming that the N ACW has done everything which it might or shd have done or that it started out to do, very human beings do the best they can - But I am saying that in spite of the mistakes which we have made and altho we have not done all that we might and should have done we have all made a record of which we have a right to be proud. Just before I came to this meeting I read the address I delivered as first president of the N A C W booklets which had pointed The title was the Program of Col Women. They were sold for 25 a piece sold to raise money with which to help establish kindergartens As I stand here today I am happy & proud to say that the first fund established by the N A of C W was the [to] Kindergarten fund w which was used to promote the welfare of children Tried to establish Day Nurseries Yrs ago The attention of our women was called to the alarming rapidity with which we were losing ground in the world of labor. At the time we observed that it was growing more and more difficult for colored people to secure employment every man or woman of the dominant race who wanted to work cd find a job & get a good wage. At that time if anybody had predicted that in a few years people of the dominant race in this country wd be walking the streets in idleness looking for work which they cd not find such a prophet of evil wd have been slapped into the insane asylum or wd have been laughed out of court. When I think of the 1000s of people belonging to the dominant race who are on relief today because they can not earn their daily bread, involuntarily I find myself quoting those well revered lines Tho the mills of God grind slowly yet they grind exceeding small - The women in the Nat Ass have done exceedingly well, I regret they have failed to do as much as they might have done in several ways to advance the interests of the children. More to advance the interests of our children. We have not done as much for our youth as we might have done. The col youth is vicious we are told &c Those in the audience know all about the settlements of col people. There are many women in every community who might form children's clubs thru which a great amount of good might be accomplished. Lessons may be taught & rules of conduct impressed. Dotted all over the country are institutions. How many? Bureau of Statistics Poked a little fun at statistics when I started to speak. Must keep a record of what we do. Many things have been lost Public School System of South was established by col men elected to Southern legislatures years ago the necessity of establishing kindergartens was emphasized a great deal more than it is today. Children of no group needed training to be derived from Kindergartens more than those in our own race. When we met in Chicago I took some pain Jerome Johnson and I knew his wife and daughter also - Mr Prais [*invited me in the name of the association*] who extended me the invitation to speak here tonight - kindly gave me a copy of the Constitution and a copy of the proceedings of the anniversary and banquet held on April 16, 1914 - When I looked at the list of officers I discovered I knew each and every one of them. including Mr John H. Paynter the historian - and so I feel as tho I am a member of this Association in spirit even tho I may not be a member in the flesh. I congratulate you heartily on the objects of this association upon the manner in which you have carried them out - You do well to keep alive reminiscences of the past. I wish it were possible If you had transgressed the law in a certain town in the Philippine Islands some years ago you would have been hauled before its president, a colored man Frank Stewart by name. Frank Stewart graduated from our High School and then from Harvard University - He was afterward given civil and criminal jurisdiction over that Philippine town by Uncle Sam- On Admiral Sampson's ship the New York there was a dynamo an exceedingly complicated affair which was run by a colored man whose name was Cook a colored youth trained in our Washington High School. For some reason Cook was assigned to another duty on the ship and a white man was put in his place - But the white man could not master the intricacies of the machine and Cook our Washington was restored to his place. Some of the warriers in our group who have served their day and generation all have lived here for many years The largest secular organization among our women was formed in the 19th St Baptist by the merging of two national organizations in July 1896 and some of the women who helped to plant it on a firm foundation & outline the policies which have made it such a power for good for nearly forty five years. I have lived here nearly fifty years. I consider it an honor and a privilege to be invited to address the Oldest Inhabitants Association ,Colored I assure. I know you will believe me when I say it is also a genuine pleasure to be here to celebrate the 18th anniversary of our group's freedom in the District of Columbia. Being in this presence brings back delightful recollections to my mind. As many of your know, I think my husband Judge Robert H. Terrell was a member of this Association for many years. He often attended the meetings and always spoke of it with pleasure and pride. I feel as tho I am almost a member myself. I was well acquainted with the founder, Mr (Left) I have heard him relate the most interesting and surprising facts - about the early days shortly after the abolition of slavery here - Judge Terrell was a sort of connecting link between the old line and the new - I regret exceedingly that he did not leave a record of his interesting, use- ful and distinguished career. While remember many of the things he related I dare not rely solely on my memory for names and dates. Colored people certainly wrought wonders long before the slaves were freed Last year the 75th anniversary of establishing schools for colored children in the District of Columbia was celebrated - It was a revelation to hundreds in both racial groups to learn what a prodigious amount of work to promote the welfare of their race was done by men like Anthony Bowen, Enoch Ambush, George Bell, Moses Liverpool, Alfred James, John F. Cook and others It was listening to a fairly to hear what they did to provide educational facilities for the youth of their race - I am glad I can say truthfully that a goodly number of colored people born since then have followed in the footsteps of their elders - I did not come here to right to indulge exclusively in reminiscences, but I cannot resist the temptation to tell a few cases showing that source of the most outstanding achievements and some of the finest records in our group have been made by colored men and women who have either been trained or who have taught in our schools or who have made Washington their home. Some of these achievements are in a class all by themselves and most unusual, very rare. For instance the Battle of Manilla was opened by John Jordan a youth trained in our High School. His family lived here for years. His sister was a teacher in our public schools John Jordan was put in charge of a crew of gunners in the forward turret on that memorable day in May when Admiral Dewey electrified the world. He discharged his duties so effortlessly and brilliantly that he was promoted to be chief gunner mate. to preserve in writing the achievements and deeds of prowess of our group here better than we do. In some instances it is a notable and noble record indeed. We suffer lamentably as a group because many facts which redound to our credit and which should be handed to posterity are often irrevocably lost. I am acquainted with men and women who unintentionally and unwittingly have done their race a great injustice because they have failed to leave behind them their own or their group's record during the time in which they lived. My own husband who used to call himself an oldest possessed a fund of information about representatives of our group here in 9- Altho it is enjoyable and illuminating to reminisce I want to spend a few minutes talking about the great need of the present-time I want to call your attention to the need of Moral Courage not only among our own group but among the group of the dominant race. We hear so much about war and the rumors of war of bombs submarines, explosives of various kinds sent both from the sky and the sea we are likely to think that the only kind of courage that is necessary at the present time is physical courage. But that is not the fact. It is the wrong point of view But in spite of these handicaps and injustices a large number of our group have been forging ahead and trying to overcome these obstacles as best they could. As a result of this effort and courage as a race we can present tonight such a record of progress in education industry finance and trade as has never been made in such a short length of time under such discouraging circumstances since the world began. Not only have we had moral courage but we have had physical courage too. In every war which the country has waged colored men have fought with a courage and died with a heroism surpassed by none. The first blood spilled by American Independence was shed by a colored man. It was Crispus Attucks a colored man who first led the American patriots against the British troops and fought desperately for the independence of this country until he was killed that a statue to Crispus Attucks has been erected in Boston Mass to commemorate the patriotism and the heroism of that colored - I do not like war I hope the day is not far distant when nations and governments will settle their disputes and differences by humane and Christian methods instead of by the wholesale slaughter of human beings now sanctioned under the name of war by so called civilized Christian nations who say they are superior to the dark races of the Earth But if white men insist upon fighting I am glad colored men have shown that there are no better soldiers in the world than they are - In trying to solve our problems and in contending for the rights privileges & immunities to which as citizens we are entitled I am sure we will display the same moral courage in the future that we have shown in the past. And if you ever become discouraged remember that it is not by the process of death dealing armies nor by the expenditure of vast sums of money that the most enduring reforms have been inaugurated and the greatest revolutions wrought. It is by the powerful influence of individuals and groups of individuals who have the courage work with all their heart soul head and strength for the triumph of justice and right- HOWARD UNIVERSITY 1939 - "Eugenia Buxton is A Born Pian These observations reflect un continents. RESERVATIONS MAY BE MADE School of Music. Howard University. led the American patriots a Season tickets ... Patron's tickets . Guarantor's ticket sentimentalism Propaganda. Counter Education unnecessary John Smith rich Times changes Harvard Uni Jay Gould. Boys advised to quit school, work - In 20 yrs earn no more than when they start. Statistics- Trend toward Education Adult Edu Position of dignity & to reach goal Mrs. Warren Logan [*Going to London*] illustrious FD- Use thought of illustrious & Education- In Public work. Home Dotted all over the country National Association State Fed. Kindergartens Schools Building The Church Not enough for the children & women- Businesses - literature acting sculpture- Education - Indefatigably in public work of all kinds - National Association - State Federation Tuskegee Dotted all over the country are institutions Day nurseries - kindergartens - Old folks homes Orphan Asylums Nothing lies nearer heart of colored women than the children - Will colored women work? Printed Report of vice Com mission 1726 - 5th St N.W, Home Maker - at the top. [Be careful at] Don't let anybody discourage you. Keep on trying Hundreds of men and women have succeeded because they wd not give up hope Make up your minds to do everything as well as you can. Don't stew over things. A wise man once said a little thing makes perfection but perfection is no little thing. Study yourself & see what you are best fitted to do. Don't decide to enter a certain profession or a certain trade if you havent the ability to succeed in it. You cant fit round box into a square hole. Even if you can not stay in school you can keep on cultivating Congratulate you & your parents You have a good educational foundation. Wise people dont build their houses on sand. Stay in school as long as you can. The trend of the world is toward education. The older the world grows the more determined it is that people whose brains have not been trained shall not succeed. People will tell you how much money John Smith or Bill Allen made & they didnt go to school a day in their lives. But the times have changed. It is harder to get a job to day than it was 20 yrs ago so you have to be better prepared. There's always room your mind - You can go to Night School. You can keep abreast of the times by reading newspapers & magazines and by reading good books. Try to preserve your health - No matter how lofty your ambition and how good your intentions may be if you dont preserve your health you will be terribly handicapped and will be unable to accomplish very much You are leaving the T.J. HS. with the best wishes of your parents & teachers, your family & friends. We all hope your standard of conduct & your ideals will be high. We hope also that you will work hard to accomplish the worthwhile things you set out to do. 3rd annual Youth Day of the Josephine Dandridge Club - 1st Perpetrate memory of young woman who served God & col youth- promote finer fellowship between youth & adult members of 2nd Baptist Church 3rd Bet H & I N.W. 3- To furnish talent for various occasions. Now 20 young women. Plays & Receptions. Membership represents girls of the highest caliber. 4 graduates of Miner Teachers College positions in neighboring States- 5 students One is Florence K Jackson, Senior & winner of the local & National Tuberculosis Essay award for 1938. 3 students at Howard U in schools of Education, Medicine & Music 7 recent graduates of High School plan pursue higher education in near future 3 will graduate from High School on time Delta Sigma Theta & Alpha Kappa Alpha girls. 3rd Annual Youth Day want to raise fund for a window as a material memorial to Miss Dandridge. To use thought of illustrious Frederick Douglass &c Women of Gt Britain fought hard for suffrage Colored women have hungered & thirsted for knowledge & worked so hard to get it - Great thing to want to acquire knowledge grander & nobler to put it to some good use - In public work Col women have engaged By banding themselves together in the interest of education & morality Homes - Tuskegee - Dotted all over country - Need of Bureau of Statistics - NA of CW - Finest Schools Legal Status of Race Convict Lease System Colored Women & the Church The efforts of our women of this city to raise the standard of christian living to a higher plane in this city are typical of those which have been exorted by women for 2000 yrs 4 done - I tried to help with the sewing too - But I realized early in life that the Lord did not intend I should distinguish myself with the needle- the women complained that sewing by hand was tedious and consumed a lot of valuable time. They wished they had a sewing machine. Since I [knew the] had a machine and I knew the machine would render far better service in the sewing room than I could I gave the the new Y my machine. [If the] The history of the P W Y reads almost like a fairy tale - It wd be interesting to 3 It is a great temptation to one who has assisted in establishing an institution who remembers the arguments of the advocates and the fears of some to reminisce and call the names of the most active workers. But I shall try not to yield to the temptation I remember well how earnestly and enthusiastically the women worked at the temporary headquarters in the old iIner Institution Building at 4 1/2 St & Maryland Ave SW - Among other things a great deal of sewing was named. Then it was pointed out that according to population there are more well educated colored women more colored women working & earning good wages and drawing fine salaries than in any other city of the U.S. The question was could these women be interested. And that it would be a terrible reflection upon such women if they made no effort to establish a Y.W.C.A. The arguments of the advocates finally overcame the doubts and fears of their sisters and it was decided to start and start we did. It seems hardly possible that the P W Y W C A is 32 yrs old. When C.B. Day phoned me that the Y wd celebrate its 25th anniversary May 2 I wondered if by any possible chance she might have made a mistake. It seems to me it was only a few yrs ago that a small group began to talk about establishing a Y W C A for our women and girls in Wash. It was generally conceded that a Y was not only desirable but absolutely necessary. But while we all agreed on that point some wondered whether the project could be successfully financed cily can not fail to agree that as unsatisfactory as conditions are they are much better than they would have been because of the efforts exerted & the sacrifices made & the work done by the women who have conducted the affairs of the Y W C A It is hard to imagine what life for us in Wash wd be [*have been*] wd be without this organization. A picture of the life of the women of our group with this building and its activities left out and by a very unpleasant and ugly one indeed. 7 been done has been accomplished. Unfortunately it is the very rarest kind of an individual and the most unusual organization which does everything it is possible to accomplish But I do say most emphatically that the women who have conducted the affairs of this Y W C A the presidents the chairmen of Com - the members of those com & the membership as a wholw deserve the highest praise. The most optimistic person in the room cannot possibly believe that the conditions under which we live are ideal. But the worst pessimist in the 6 dedicated Dec 19 1920 and the work which was so greatly needed here was begun in earnest. When we think of the kind and the amount of work which has been done not only for the women & girls of our group in Wash but for the city as a whole thru the instrumentality of this P. W. Y W C A - We certainly do credit to those who have accomplished are almost overwelmed - It wd be impossible to estimate the worth to the world in dollars & cents or in any other means or standard of value. I am not saying mind you that every thing that might have 5 trace the development step by step from the house at 429 T St N.W. purchased for $4300 & paid for in 2 yrs to this beautiful building in which we are meeting to day - When we learned that on May 17 - 1918 the war work council had appropriated $200,000 for a demonstration building in Washington for colored work our joy knew no bounds - And when we learned that a site at 9th St & R.I. Ave had been selected we all agreed that the situation [for the new Y was ideal-] the new building was dedicated children who present a very serious problem indeed. The colored youth is vicious Up to this point I have been telling you how colored women have been trying to work out their own salvation. And now I want to appeal for assistance to our broadminded sisters of the dominant race. I want to call yr attention to another problem which col women can not solve by themselves with trades unions colored women have hard time to earn their living Help us solve one of our problems by creating a wholesome, healthful sentiment in behalf of col women col laudresses get $5 a wk - Others get more I pick no fuss with N people because they dont like their brothers and sisters whose skin is dark I shd like to paraphrase one of A Lincoln's remarks 3 out of every 4 are colored Surely the idea of depriving col women & girls of the opportunity of earning a living must be abhorent I have not had time to call yr attention to some of the problems which confront col women - Lynching - Convict Lease System No matter how depressing the situation, no matter how gloomy the outlook, no matter how hard and difficult it may be may be the solution of the problems I assure col women are not sitting supinely by &c In a variety of ways they are showing they are trying to advance the interests of their race It will surprise nobody to learn that colored women have problems to solve - When that small but noble band of women not only because they are women Desperately and continuously Sometimes when I hear a colored man talk & seems able to subdue But in spite of the obstacles encountered the I should like to start by telling you what colored women have done to solve their problems themselves Devote 2 3 of the time telling what we have done - We dont [?] They must prepare themselves by cultivating their minds - So insatiable has been the colored woman's thirst for knowledge - It is a grander and nobler thing to put this knowledge to some good use Shirking responsibility has never been a fault with which they may truthfully be charged - for nearly 300 years colored women had no homes which they cd call their own - The problem of finding and establishing homes of their own stared them in the face Mothers Congress - National association of Colored Women Kindergarten Alabama Phyllis Wheatley State Federations - I have already said that col women have engaged in public work to advance the interests of their race - I might illustrate this by relating briefly what some women in Ala did - They wanted to bring the light of knowledge & the gospel of cleanliness to their sisters who were far removed from what we call civilization & who had enjoyed no advantages at all - And so they confined their efforts to plantations comprising 100s In New Orleans La some intelligent resourceful Col women thot they cd solve one of the problems confronting them by establishing a sanitarium with a training school for nurses They chose their particular In 1896 - Kindergarten Day Nurseries Splendid service has been rendered Dotted all over the country are charitable Nothing lies near the hearts of col women than the children who present a very serious problem indeed thru whom we know we can solve our problem in the very best way. The col youth is vicious we are told - lives of evil & shame Up to this point I have been telling you how col women are trying to work out their own salvation. And now I want to appeal to our friends for assistance to our large-hearted, broad-minded sisters of the dominant race In talking to some of my white friends I have discovered that they have no idea of the conditions under which col women live. I want to urge our sisters of the dominant race both to observe themselves & to teach their children to observe And now I want to call your attention to another problem which col women can not solve themselves with trades unions hostile to col men their outlook is very gloomy indeed but col women who have to earn their own living I want to appeal to our good friends here to night to help us solve one of our problems by [enlarging] creating a wholesome healthful sentiment in the col girls behalf so that she may have the same opportunity enjoyed by girls of other races to earn an honest living by decent toil. I pick no fuss with people of the dominant race who do not like their brothers and sisters whose complexion is dark. It is their misfortune not their fault. However with apologies to Abraham Lincoln for paraphrasing one of his well known remarks I want to say that God certainly liked human beings with In this herculean effort which our great & good president is making to chase depression away and restore good times, there are sinister signs showing that col people will be the victims of unjust discrimination unless that tendency is directed right away. dark skins he made so many of them But surely his idea of depriving col women & girls of the opportunity of earning a living solely on account of the color of their skin must be abhorrent to every fairminded person in the U.S. So long as the womanhood of any race is sacrificed on the altar of proscription and prejudice so long is the womanhood of no race absolutely secure. Yes col women are trying to work out their own salvation. The are trying to solve the many problems wh confront them the best way they can. But col women can no more solve their problems without the aid of their good white friends than a straw can stop Niagara's flow. No matter how depressing tho their outlook may be today and how huge and difficult of solution their problems may be I assure col women are not sitting Congratulate you upon living in this day and time when you have such a wonderful opportunity of acquiring a good education. You are going to school to learn to read and write to study geography so that you will know something about this wonderful world in which we live. You are learning where the different countries are situated, what kind of people live in them, what language they speak and what they do. You are going to school so as to prepare to do your work in the best possible way. You are training your minds. If your minds are not trained when you are young it is very hard to get along well when you grow to be men and women. I congratulate you upon being able to attend this fine school and to be taught by these excellent teachers. You are very much more fortunate than hundreds of boys and girls whom I have seen. These children are forced to go to ugly dilapidated buildings which are not fit to shelter animals not to mention children. If I were to describe some of the buildings in which I have seen children attend school it would be hard for you to believe me. The roofs leaked when it rained. The plaster had fallen from the walls The walls were dirty. There were holes in the floors. In many instances the teachers had not been properly trained for their work. What a striking contrast between the schools I have described and this beautiful building in which you are attending school to day. I want to congratulate you also upon the fact that you have so many fine women and men of your own racial group whom you can look up to and admire and whom you can try to emulate. When I was a girl about the age of most of you whom I see before me there were so few women and men of our racial group who had been well educated and who had accomplished anything worth while I used to wonder whether it was possible for colored people to compete with those in other racial groups. I once knew a colored boy who had great talent as a violinist and who was being taught by a great master who would not teach anybody but a student whom he considered a genius. And this young man said he was not going to study any longer because he had African blood in his veins and was descended from slaves. And no group of people whose parents and grand parents had descended from slaves could measure arms successfully with white people. Now before I go any further I want to say something which I beg you never to forget. In being descended from slaves the colored people in this country are no exception to a general - When I was a little girl I was studying my history lesson one day with a little white girl in Oberln Ohio where colored & white children attend school together we have reason to be proud that our racial group has accomplished so much - Personally I believe the greatest man the country has ever produced is a colored man I believe Frederick Douglass is The Composer of the First Negro Symphony Ever Written. It has been a long time since any one has created such a sensation in the highest musical circles of this country as has William Levi Dawson who has written the first Negro Symphony ever composed. Something almost unprecedented happened in the Philadelphia Academy of Music not long ago when this symphony was rendered by the orchestra the first time it was produced anywhere in the world. At the close of the first and second movements the audience burst into spontaneous, enthusiastic applause. In the best regulated musical families, of course, the audience usually reserves the expression of its emotions till the end of the performance. And there is no doubt whatever that the people who were present on that occasion belong in that class. Surprising as was the enthusiastic outburst from which the audience could not restrain itself, the greatest surprise came when Dr. Leopold Stokowski, who is rated as one of the three great musicians in the world, bowed his acknowledgement and actually smiled instead of glowering upon the audience with a frown. Those who are well acquainted with this great leader say he has a very strong convictions about people who applaud at the wrong place and that he does not hesitate to express his opinion frankly. On this occasion while he did not mind having the audience applaud at the end of the first movement, he was sorry it did so at the end of the second movement. "In a symphonic work of this kind," he said, "there are certain mystical transitions which should by no means be interrupted." He felt that the applause broke the enchantment. The composer of the Negro Folk Symphony which aroused so much and such favorable comment when it was recently produced both in Philadelphia and New York is a colored man thirty five years old. He was born in Anniston Alabama, but he ran away from home when he was thirteen years old, because he wanted to study at the Tuskagee Institute and that was the only way this desire could be gratified. When he reached Tuskagee, however, he Community Houses Crimes Police Court Children I wish more of our women with leisure on their hands wd find it in their hearts to do something for neglected & underprivileged or less favored children. a small club of girls might be formed - 4 women might get together and each one agree to serve once a month if it were a Ella Bushain Lottie Bennett Berea Brown Ida Burwell Flora Calkins Sarah Clark Alice Cowles Stella Davidson Carrie Days Kate Ford [Sarah Greer] Frances Ensign Julia Gage [Helen Hall] Edith Johnson [Jessie Lee] Cora Lewis Mary Lyon Mary Walter [Ida McLennan] [Katherine Roy] [Estella Sharp] Harriet Simons Helen Simes Alena Sprague Lillie Starr Rena Surter Mary Templeton Fannie Thompson Ruth Tracy Antoinette Walworth Flora Wolcott Jean Wood W B Durfee 34 41 75 Ainsworth Buckley Burwell *Carson Clark [Cook] Davis Freeman Hamilton Haskell Hotchkiss [McConnell] [McKelvey] Nye straight [O'Brien] Uni Rathbone Powell Root Saber Talbot Vancleef [Waldron] O S Wells W. J [Wells] 27 men 14 women 41 A Woodruff Sullivan [Mary Atwood] Effie Chapman M E Church Anna J Cooper O M Fish [Ida A Gibbs] J F Hayford L A Langdon Anna Metcalf L A Miner D M Thomas E L Thomas Alice Younglove [Emina Younglove] Sat Mar 31-1883- Mass church presented her arguments in a much more pleasing style than Miss Safford and her delivery was much more animated and magnetic but she failed to touch the strength of her opponent's position. Her arguments were skilfully chosen from those that were not touched in Miss Safford's paper So that's what she did say had all the power that it cd have had. But she still failed in overthrowing the strong conviction that Miss Safford left with the audience that in a Republic lay the strength & safety for the Fr people - Repulican or Monarchy in France Ladies Union Ex has the following speakers: Orator, Bennett, Essayist Ida McLennan & disputant Miss Della Thomas - Aelioran - Mrs. Davidson; Essayist: Mrs. Walworth: disputant Miss Church - Sat. April 26 - '84 - June 21 - Aelioran __________________________________ On Review Feb 2, 1884-Feb 16 Mar 1 - Mar 15 - Mar 29-Apr 12 _____________________________________ 1882 - Miss Church 84 will not return till the last of the present month Sept-23-1882 C Live Feb 3-1883 - Miss Church read an essay on The Utility of Skepticism It is not my purpose to bore you with a speech tonight but I'll introduce you to a man who will. ______________________________________ Folks don't go out stay and hear this man He fought 18 yrs in a war - He went thru hell for you and we'll have to do the same for him 1914 - 30th Anniversary - Jan 1-1879 Essay The Massacre on St. Bartholomew's Day Miss Church, Heard author of a Fool's Errand Microscope shows hair of the existing compounds in structure with that of fairest Saxon it resembles wool only in its cushion & tendency to curl. The hair shows every stage of gradation from wooly to wavy & even straight. Europeans often have hair as crisp as that of Afr savages. Prognathus, pyramidal (nomadic [?] central & Nort Asia Esqumaux Oval or elliptical skull the most [?rans]. Differences in form of skull not due to a difference of species but to influence of mode & habits of life. Carpenter Turks of Ottoman Empire & nomadic tribes of Asia once belonged to same stock but now have 2 distinct types of skull. Prognathic skull of N after long civilization becomes oval [*Last Thursday*] Wendell Phillips on Charles Sumner quest in assuming man who held attention of audience 2 hrs (Bronson Alcott Gave sketches of Emerson-Hawthorne Thoreau Margaret Fuller & Louisa Alcott Dec 18, 1880 Jan 22 1881. Miss Church affirmed & Miss Clarke denied the question. Resolved the the Press of the U.S should not be restricted more than at present. March 5 - 1881. Miss Church has accepted the invitation of friends in Washington to attend the Inaugural Ceremonies. Nov 12 - 1881. Oration Aeliorans Program Nov 4 Mme Roland, Miss Church Aelioran is preparing for a season of drill in Parliamentary Law wh has been introduced in the Society Resolved that church property sh not be subject to taxation Mrs Thomson argued the aff & Miss Church the negative. The negative won the decision of the judges Sat May 20 1882 Apr delivered by 1880 Oration The Poor of Our Cities was delivered by Miss Church Sept 25 - 1880 Should Parents spend as much money educating their [sons] daughters as they do in educating their sons was discussed by Miss Church & Miss Palmer Oct 23 1880- Oration Office Seekers Miss Church Sat Jan 22 1881 Jan 14 Program Resolved that the Press of the US shd not be restricted more than at present Miss Church approved & Miss Clarke denied the question - Its a genuine pleasure to be here with you this morning - But I do no feel like a stranger in a strange land To tell the truth I feel as tho I belong to Howard Uni - I have been coming here for many years - I have been personally acquainted with nearly all the presidents from Pres Rankin for whom Rankin Chapel was named right on down to the present efficient exemplary gifted incumbent whom I believe God has raised up to preside over this fine institution - My husband Judge R H Terrell was a professor in Harvard Uni Law School - And I myself was once a member of the How Uni Faculty - During the 1st World War I was appointed to teach conversational French to the young men who might be called to go abroad to fight. Every now and then I have the pleasant experience of meeting some young man who says, Don't you remember me Mrs? You taught me French so that I might ask for what I needed if I went to France - So you see I feel as tho I am part and parcel of Howard Uni There are many things about which I might talk to you this morning. But I want to say right now that I do not expect to say anything new - something you have never heard before. From your parents & teachers you have been getting advice ever since you could understand the Eng. language. But I want to emphasize a few things about which I shd like to have you think. I am glad to see you here in this institution preparing yourselves to do your work properly in the world. [I want to urge you to be civic-minded when you leave school & take your place as a citizen in the place where you will reside. I want to urge you to do everything in your] At first I thought I wd confine my remarks exclusively to giving you advice. I want to urge you to be civic minded - Home - public work - Home - Tuskegee Plantation Women Dotted all over the country - Phyllis Wheatley Children - LADIES WAITING ROOM JORDAN MARSH COMPANY BOSTON Why am I here this [af] evening? To do just three things To tell the truth about conditions which confront C people to day, so as to enlighten those who know [*nothing*] little about them and to try to interest you in the status of your brothers and sisters of a darker hue and to urge you to do what you can to make it possible for the C A to get a square he is the victim of the most there is an alarming amount of insidious & persistent & pernicious propaganda used against him. There is no doubt of any racial group at the present time that there is a fierce recondesence of feeling against him - I could consume all the time I have this evening citing instances to prove that conditions are much worse to day than they were even five years ago The condition in which we find the race problem to day is all the more amazing and a fair chance - Equality of opportunity are -equality before the all the C A has a right to ask and it is all that he does ask. There is not a man here this afternoon who believes in justice who is not willing that the C A should be allowed to reach [*get a square deal*] the highest standards it is possible for them thru their training, ability and aspirations to attain - at present the C A is not only not allowed to do that but when we think of the comparatively recent past - congratulate you upon development & growth - Wrote an article for the Sunday Star - on history of the Church - Star did a most unusual thing - Published it in section usually devoted exclusively to news - Great headlines Powerful A M. E Church- It set forth the most interesting and striking facts Connected with Church - Consider it [great] rare privilege to appear before leaders of thot such as are represented in this Quadrennial Conference - I have come to implore you to use yr influence to preserve the Constitution of the U S - I have Mr. W Broder s Col. Willis O. Tyler Rev. R. W. Bowman Rev. F. Douglass no intention to denounce any individual or organization and praise another But I have come to ask you to preserve yourselves & your group by saving the Con of the US - There is no group of people in this country which sh fight more desperately to preserve the Con than the one represented here today - The Con of the U.S guarantees physical freedom to the race It has clothed the group with citizenship, has provided penalties for those who refuse to allow us to [*Please call at the office of the Financial [Rev. D. Russell] rev. Sidney Amos [Rev. W. W. Traxx] Mrs. Henrietta G. Paige SPECIAL DELIVERY LETTERS Mrs. Mabel Flegler Rev. Carl F. Flipp Dr. J. W. Winchester Mr. E. F. Jessie Rev. J. T. Langham Rev. George A. Brown Nrs. Carrie B. Jones Mrs. C.L. Gant Rev. Wm. H. Thomas [Rev. T. L. Scott] Mrs. Ethel Howard*] exercise the right which citizenship [entitles] confers upon us - Even if these provisions are not carried out the fact remains that the Constitution grants these rights & privileges - If the Constitution were declared null and void our status in this country wd be pitiable & painful indeed During the last three yrs the Constitution has been bombarded, abused & attacked in such a high-handed manner that people who think look forward to the future with fear - as the framers never cd have dream in the wildest flight that the Govt wd have dared to do the things of a vivid imagination which it has done open and above board and gotten away with it Citizens here have been forbidden to do things relating to their personal affairs Just as Mussolini and Hitler are using their tyrannical powers over the citizens of It and over the Ger which they wanted to do & which it was their right and privilege to do had us in flagrant violation of the law. The Govt has [ordered] compelled citizens to do the things which it had no legal right to force them to do. The most fantastic and fanatical measures imaginable have been adopted until the country is on the verge of financial ruin. Cotton has been ploughed under while thousands were suffering from the lack of sufficient clothing Ploughing under put 800 000 tenant farmers on relief. Several million pigs were slaughtered so that pork which was to be considered the poor mans meat is so high none but the rich can afford it. The home breakfast bacon has soared so high that it is listed among the luxuries. This & much more than this may be attributed to the fact that the constitution has been violated. There is a fixed purpose to nullify the constitution to break it down not by an open attack but by trickery & stealth. Congress is being forced to do things which no group of men clothed in their [*l Department for the following Telegrams: e RS er er wn es*] right minds wd think of doing. Constitution is out of date, that it is a relic of the horse & buggy days so anteluvian & antiquated that it shd be ignored Laws have been made to give the govt power which the Constitution does not grant which it says the Fed govt shall leave entirely alone. Citizens & Congress does not make these laws but they are made by the Pres - When the Supreme C says a law is unconstitutional if govts are at once begun to enact a law containing precisely the same objective feature as the one set aside by the Supreme Court Govt protected by lawless acts Taxes have been illegally assessed & illegally collected citizens have no recourse against a wrong doer govt There have been laws 2 Every now and then I have often heard people [who have lived in] from other cities & have come [here to live] Washington criticize our group here because we take so little interest in civic affars. They call attention to the fact the men and women here who have enjoyed the best educational advantages do very little to promote the general welfare of our group. If they teach they do their work well if they engage in the professions they succeed but if you ask them to do anything for their group outside of their regular calling they say they I know come to urge you not to mind your own business so much that you will not have time to be interested in the affairs of your city. There are many things which each one of us may and shd do to promote the welfare of our group. Then too some people do not think. I believe the curse of the world at present as during the past is that the average human being does not use his brain as much as he shd. The brains of some people seem to be in their heads rather than in their 3 are too busy- I have [cause] to urge you not to mind your own business so much that you will not be interested in the efforts which the city is making to promote the welfare of our group. There are the community houses for instance, which are trying to do something for our youth many of whom are so terribly neglected as compared with the efforts made on behalf of the young people of every group but our own. Many of us have minded our 4 own business so much that we have never visited one of them. There is one in the S.W one in the S.E. & and one in the N.W.. They are all inadequate to do the work which shd be done. But there are women among us a number of who have leisure enough to lend a helping hand to those institutions who never visit them to see what is going on and what they can do. It warms the cockels of the hearts of those whose duty it is to supervise the work if they felt they had the 6 livion for this work of mine. And I wanted to take this work in my hand much as a mother does a dying infant. I couldn't eat. Sleep was out of the question. At three o'clock in the morning I found myself going to a restaurant to try to eat, but couldn't. " The next day, hope dawned. Those men had taken that piece home and worked over it faithfully. The next time I heard it I was assured that my work had not gone for naught. The men had by this time got the rhythm and swing of it, and were captivated by it. " This Negro Folk Symphony is conceded by all capable of judging such music to be a work of rare beauty with rich and interesting orchestration. It has dramatic feeling, a racial sensuousness and directness of melodic speech and a sort of barbaric turbulence. There are certain passages which have a sweep and intensity that can not be forgotten. The music has life blood, humor, feeling, force. One critic declared "it is the kind of composition that must be a joy to the players and an inspiration for a conductor and it is certainly the kind of music you want to hear again immediately. One gets a good idea of the estimate which Stokowski places upon the symphony from the fact that it was broadcast by the nation wide facilities of the Columbia Broadcasting System during a regular Friday afternoon concert of the Philadelphia Orchestra, was repeated on Saturday evening and performed the next Tuesday at Carnegie Hall in New York. In public statement commenting upon this symphony Dr. Stokowski declared: "I am happy to introduce this composition to an American audience, because I believe it to represent a distinct achievement of American music. It is a work of national importance. It is not only musically impressive in itself, but primarily because of its distinctly American character. Dawson has succeeded in eloquently portraying that aspect of American life which he has seen and lived and felt most profoundly. It is a work which is vital and personal." "Dawson, a young Alabamian, has voiced the spirit of his people [*Community houses Take interest in Crimes writing letters*] [*Police Court- Stolen Ring Children- Political*] -2- indeed. From your record in the past, I am sure you will be on the job. Please write me as fully and as often as you can. I shall be grateful for any suggestion you may care to make. But, above everything else, please let me know what you are doing. Very sincerely and hopefully yours, Mary Church Terrell National Chairman, Department of Legislation [*9 I have had 2 experiences with the Courts- shortly after I was married a friend told me she knew positively that a unique valuable ring I had in my possession but never wore which was stolen from me before my wedding was in Philadelphia. The girl who worked for the lady with whom I then boarded had sent the ring to Phil. She had stolen some gold coins I had brought from Europe also. I had brought gold coins from England, France and the other countries which I visited during the 3 yrs I studied abroad. Altogether they must have been worth at least $50 I think - Since I wished to return*] 7 murdered a colored boy in cold blood shd be made to pay the penalty for that crime We shd not mind our own business so much that we fail to let the officials of this city see that we are deeply genuinely interested in the welfare of our group. Writing letters of various kinds on various occasions may do a lot of good. It is a fine thing to let the officials of this and other cities see at least that we know what is going on and and that we are sitting up and taking notice. I over heard a distinguished woman tell how woman suffrage was won in Cal. 8 While I am talking about letter writing I want to urge you to write letters of praise as well as letters of protest. Editors of newspapers are very human. They like to receive letters praising an editorial which has appearing in their paper. We shdnt mind our own business so much that we never have time to visit the police court every now and then and see for ourselves what is going on there. We could then see how the sentence imposed upon a colored man or a colored woman differs from one imposed upon a man of another group. 6 unable to prefer a charge against him. The only excuse he cd offer for shooting that young man to death was that he happened to think of a case in which some colored boys shot a policeman, so he just pulled out his gun & fired at him. When this case was investigated the murderer was exonerated on the ground that he was mentally so wrought up at the time he didnt know what he was doing How many of us here tonight thought it was their business to write a letter of protest to Supt Brown urging that the guardian of the law who had 5 cooperation & support of the people in their own group. I have come to urge you not to mind your own business so much that you take no interest in the crimes which people in our own group commit and which are committed against them. I wonder how many took the time to write letters of protest to the Supt of police when that young man Basey was murdered by a policeman not long ago. It was definitely proved that Basey did nothing to justify the policeman in shooting him. The policeman himself was 11 when she got there I was told the Bank was not accustomed to ask such questions. But now I am coming to the part of the story which will illustrate the point I have been trying to make The day the girl was tried I went to the police court. It was a case of grand larceny and the judge imposed a stiff sentence upon the girl. I was so horrified and shocked that I begged the court to have mercy on the girl. I pleaded that she was young and that this wd be a lesson for her The judge said it was the first time a colored woman had ever come to plead for a colored girl and for that reason he wd 10 the ring to its owner I reported the matter to the police. The ring was recovered and the girl was arrested. After her arrest she confessed that she had taken my [these] foreign gold coins to a bank and sold them for $2 I leave it to you to decide whether a man in a bank who wd give an unknown young col girl $2 for $50 worth of gold foreign coins was honest or dishonest. When I went to the bank to investigate I found the girl had told the truth when I asked how it happened that in a reputable bank an employe wd take foreign gold coins from a girl without asking her 13 The girl was arrested and remained in jail 24 years - I went to see her several times, I also went to see Judge Gould and urged him to make the sentence as light as possible. He laid great stress on the fact that the girl had killed an officer and I emphasized the fact that the girl didnt know she was shooting an officer but simply shot in self defense. I had the satisfaction of knowing that the sentence imposed upon the girl was comparitively light and that she was practically allowed to go free- I want to urge you not to mind 14 your own business so much that you neglect any underprivileged children that may live near you. A great deal of good may be accomplished by showing such children that people in better circumstances are interested in them. A [*woman might*] small group of girls to meet at her house or find some other suitable meeting place It wd not be necessary to meet every wk if she didnt have that much time. Once a month wd do - Political affairs - (National Notes) Blind Deaf & Dumb col children sent to Balt. While stay here - No Florence Crittenden Home for Col - Church shd be supported with all its weaknesses. Lincoln [*Indeed. from your record in the past, I am sure you will be on the job. Please write me as fully and as often as you can. I shall be grateful for any suggestion you may care to make. But, above everything else, please let me know what you are doing. Very sincerely and hopefully yours, Mary Church Terell National Chairman, Department of Legislation*] 15 wdnt join church in Springfield Ill because only 3 out of 21 MInisters stood with him in his efforts to free the slave. Rules for Representation to the First National Convention of the National Association of Colored Women I.—Each organization shall elect delegates to the National Convention of the National Association of Colored Women, to be held at Nashville, Tenn., September 15, 16, and 17, 1897. II.—The Convention shall be composed of the general officers and the Executive Committee of the Association, one delegate at large from each organization, and one additional delegate for every ten members; and a list of the same shall be filed with the Recording Secretary not later than one week preceding the Convention. III.—The delegates and an equal number of alternates shall be elected at a regular meeting of its qualified members. IV.—Each delegate or alternate shall present to the Credential Committee her credentials as soon as possible after the opening of the Convention. It is earnestly hoped that all will be in before twelve o'clock on the first day of the first session. V.—Each credential must have the signature of the president and that of the secretary of the club of which the holder is a member. Please reply to this circular as soon as possible. Fraternally yours, National President. National Cor. Secfy., 1363 Kenesaw Ave. [Hand written] Fifty years ago a meeting less than forty years ago few sane men would have predicted that -ther? a slam or any of the other descendants would've ?? at least fifty years ago political charitable and organization of women of any color Fifty years ago the great masses of women all over the world were in a state of mental inertia. Higher education for women of all colors and races was but at first only an experi- ment and a joke. Less than forty years ago few sane men mid? have predicted that they ?? slam or their descendants would in their century at least ?? pace with their more favored ?? everything that makes for self cultivation ?? of the individual and the elevation of the race [next page] [type written] OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT 1936 Fourth Street., N. W. Washington, D. C., April 26, 1897. To the President: Dear Madam: The first Convention of the National Association of Colored Women will be held at Nashville, Tenn., Septem- ber 15, 16, and 17, 1897. You and your society are earnestly requested by the Na- tional President and the National Executive Board to send delegates to this Convention, as it is essential that each organization have a voice in transacting the important business that must come before it. Since the future plans and policy of the Association will be largely determined by our first conference, great care should be exercised in selecting your representatives. A list of subjects to be discussed will be forwarded to you at an early date. The Convention will be formed and delegates will be chosen according to the following rules adopted by the Na- tional Executive Board. 30 thousands of pictures among which only a few of the best should be studied on account of the little time at his command [abroad either to study or to see the countries about which so much has been heard or read. X X [*Begin*] The expense of a trip abroad may be greatly reduced by judicious management, and a little information of the tricks of the trade before starting. A better and more enjoyable method of studing history, and cultivating a taste for the highest art could not be devised. A tour thro' Europe is well worth almost any effort or sacrifice that might make it possible. It affords in the most delightful way an education that can be acquired [if it can be acquired at all] in one's own country only by most conscientious careful study, by a great exercise of the will power, and an unfortunate strain on the nervous system. If thro any persuasion of mine, a single individual should decide to at least make the effort to go abroad for the purpose of studying, the mission of this little paper would be more than nobly fulfilled. We may observe that punishments of unreasonable severity have less effect in preventing crimes and amending the manners of a people than such as are more merciful in general - Blackstone. For the excessive severity of law hinders their execution When the punishment surpasses all measure, the public will frequently, out of humanity, prefer impunity to it. Montesquieu. It is a melancholy truth that among the variety of actions which men are liable to commit, no less than 160 have been declared by act of Parliament to be felonies worthy of instant death. So dreadful a list, instead of diminishing increases the number of offenders. Blackstone. There is something in injustice, in cruelty which tends to defeat itself. There never were so many traitors in England as when the traitor was drawn and quartered, when he was tortured in every possible way, when his limbs torn and bleeding, were given to the fury of mobs or exhibited pierced by pikes or hung in chains. The frightful punishments produced intense hatred of the government and traitors increased, until they became powerful enough to decide what treason was and who the traitors were and to inflict the same torment on others. From Crimes against Criminals before N.Y. State Bar Association by Robert Ingersoll Read Crime and [its] Punishment by Voltairine de Cleyre Published by Social Science Club Phil Pa. Every soul shrivels in the atmosphere of hatred. He could foresee what he was wholly impotent to forefend. It stirs calm reflection rather than yeasty emotion. Men who Men who succeed by enduring to the end have this and something more, to wit a flair for the inevitable, an appreciation of the spirit of the time, a feeling, a sense of the future. He was a belated Joshua commanding the sun to stand still in the heavens. These are the notes for good or ill of that world process which we call historical evolution, and every and each of these was to Paul Kruger, anathema. Example from article on Paul Kruger. I am not a pessimist, but it is hard to see the light in the density of the darkness that surrounds us to day. The South is a despotism in which there is no such thing as freedom of action and speech at variance with the tenets to which the majority hold. Myself to Collier's Weekly. It is the nature of injustice and tyranny to pass from one degree of injury and offence toward its victims to another The desire to humiliate and oppress the weak is an appetite which grows by what it feeds upon. They, like Brutus, "carry anger as the flint bears fire; who, enforced, shows a hasty spark, and straight is cold again". He who is deficient in the art of selection may, by showing nothing but the truth, produce all the effect of the grossest falsehood. Macaulay's Essay on History page 278 Voltaire says in one of his 6000 pamphlets that he was the first person who told the French that England had produced eminent men besides the Duke of Marlborough. Macauley page 295 The fact seems to be that the Greeks admired only themselves and that the Romans only themselves and the Greeks. The effect was narrowness and sameness of thought. Their minds, if one may so express ourselves bred in and in, were accordingly cursed with barrenness and degeneracy. No extraneous beauty or vigor was engrafted on the decaying stock. - Macaulays Essay on History p. 297 Mixed marriages produced great men. Millions see a photo play thruoot the globe. Greatest publicity ever known. Whole world influenced by code who produce the photo plays. National code of ethics is liable to change. Racial character is largely fashion. Possible influence of Amer. film plays on the National life of England. This gallant, but pious Knight left none but illegitimate issue. This is [In] an old work on the Extinct Peerage. Characteristics of a race are capable of modification and even complete change. Are the best features of the present code of ethics prevailing in this country worth preserving? E's highest quality is Fair Play. A Sporting people. Ready to applaud our opponents E enforced love of law & order. Traffic more easily controlled in Eng than any where else. A man puts his baggage in the van & claims it on his word at its destination. Police are actually the obedient servants. Honesty is taken for granted. A man has to be proved guilty not innocent. Not on the look out for dishonesty. E dont like to show off, detest boasting confine theatricals to the playhouse. Fair play- orderliness, honesty & modesty are 4 leading virtues. Photoplays presented to B's audiences are from a small group of Western Amer. producers not all exponents of those virtues. Some maintain player may attempt to win by force or trickery. A runner may hustle another runner. Onlookers may rattle a player by a sudden shout Tricks & cunning 2 may be applauded as a work of intelligence as to law & order some have standards made notorious in part by Amer police force. They often submit crime to us, not as a horror and a taint, but as an exigency or a mere scrape. They negate the idea of the police being the servants of the public. They hold no man is above suspicion. Thief may be received back into society as soon as he expresses regret for a misdemeanor. If he follows the path of rectitude he receives loud applause - is an outstanding figure - uprightness is a nice quality dependent on circumstances. In regard to modesty or suppression of the blatant forms of heroics they often offend against the laws of good taste. In many there is an insidious & unintentional suggestion of a code lower standing than our own. The atmosphere is vaguely corrupt. Their standpoint is not that of a true Englishman nor yet of a true American. A criminal commits a peculiarly mean act that should forever brand him then is shown in some heroic light, which makes us feel that at first he had fallen afoul of tyrannical cut throat police. A man forges his friends name to save his sisters honor. We wonder then are there not circumstances which justify a dirty trick. A stern silent financier ruthlessly destroying his rivals is a favorite character. Businessmen are appallingly unscrupulous. Then our 3 sympathies are enlisted because he is the father of a heroine for whom he is making a fortune In these plays the police are shown as infernal bullies, the detective-superintendent with a bull neck & a paleolithic jaw thrusts his face into his victims and intimidates him with the 3rd Degree. Our sympathies are hotly on the side of the law breaker. Heredity is not taken into account. The better class Britisher wd act as tho his family were tainted with madness or some terrible disease, if his father were a crook. But the film hero is not troubled by such qualms but marries the girl of his choice who has a blue-eyed baby in whom nobody fears the family tendency may reappear. There is not a sure feeling about fair play or honor. A great tolerance for & familiarity with dishonesty. lawlessness is often countenanced. Influence upon regular frequenters must be felt. To the remotest towns in Eng & Amer there plays carry dangerous poison The world is being trained to see life as it is seen by a group of Kinema producers & writers in a corner of the US. The world is being Amer by the photo play. by the outlook of men whose wealth depends upon their ability to play upon the emotions & excite the interest of people by giving them heart throbs 4 sub shiff, human passions & situations with a kick & a push in them - Over 100,000 in U.S. - Profits are immense - Cals climate permits photos to be made all year round _ [a???] bar the money, market the facilities, the climate Finally, Brethren W folks are a perfectly helpless case where C pl are concerned - I feared that was true before the Great war. Now, I Know it - Let none wh or bl who have heard me say over and over again that I am an Optimist wag their heads at me, stick their tongue or say in ghoulish glee I told you so - I am an optimist still, not because of what W pl will do but in spite of them - I am an optimist simply and solely because I believe in something called Justice and because I am sure Justice absolute impartial justice will some day prevail - But W people will never bring it about of their own free will and accord - It will have to be forced upon them - When I say W folks be it understood from the very beginning that nobody knows better than I do that there are at least 57 varieties. There are W folks & W folks - But there is a goodly number of them who are the salt of the earth - They really want to do the fair & square thing to their brothers & sisters of a darker hue - It pains them to see how cruelly brutally unjust unfair many of their race are to human beings solely because their skins are dark - but these W folks: the good ones who want to be just have not the courage of their convictions - They dare not speak up when an injustice is done - It has become so unpopular to say a word on behalf of justice & fair play to C people when a flagrant injustice is done these good W people do not say a word. After all, they soliloquize silence is golden, Therefore Ill just keep still - Ill hold my peace - Whats the good of mixing up in this affair. Its wrong. Some of them just put a naughty explitive even and say its a darn shame, But they let it go at thinking and the wicked go on their cruel way with no one to say them nay Now and then it is true, some good just W people lift up their voices against a malevolence or against the injustice which makes it impossible for a colored men or women to earn a living unless they do menial work, but the protests raised by these good just W folks are so few and far between they are of little or no avail - I am making a few brief remarks church & the race problem about the group of good or folks that no one can truthfully accuse one of ignorance or injustice. When I refer to the crimes, the misdemeanors, the numerable hypocrisies of which w people are guilty, I do so knowing that there is a small but glorious minority which mean well and are just. I feel it is my bounded duty to write these confessions. There are several reasons which impel me to do it. In the first place there are so many thoughts about or which have been bottled up within me for so many years which I must get out of my system According to the opinion of both wh & bl whose judgment I respect it has not been expedient to explain these thoughts. I have been told for many years it would be most unwise to state certain facts How I hate that word expediency. According to the timid and the malefactor as well it is never expedient to expose injustice and tell the truth. It may do harm because it will wound the feelings of some and arouse the anger of others. But, it is high time some c person was taking his pen in hand to tell w people how some c people feel. Not all c peo of course. For as there are w peo & w. There are c & c. If there are 57 varieties of w there must be 157 v of c. C pe who are fond of w peo or who fear them never tell them the truth If they are fond of them they do not like to tell them to their face what hyp and how unjust the great majority of a people in the U.S. are. And if co fear w people they do not dare to tell the truth There is a great host of c people in the U.S. and elsewhere who would almost sell their immortal souls if they could only tell w pe what they think of them. How false to their professions of religion they are. How they claim to be believer in democracy but do everything in their power to establish caste and classes in the US How they prate about justice and deny it to people solely because their skins are dark How they talk about equality of opportunity and would die the death before they would give intelligent capably deserving col people certain jobs. I hesitate to write these confessions because I know I will be misunderstood I have many white friends some whom I have known from my youth. If any w people read these confessions they will relieve their minds and soothe their consciences if their consciences still have the courage to jog them a bit. White people so seldom hear a col person tell his side of the story, that when he does, they immediately [by saying that woman is bitter whats the good of reading.] say he is bitter. From their point of view [what she says] truth is bitterness. One of my Oberlin classmates was called (or called himself) to the pastorate of a certain church in Washington. The first time he saw me, he congratulated me on the work I had done in behalf of my race. But said he "Mollie, most of my Oberlin classmates still call me Mollie and it is music to my ear.) You are growing bitter, I fear. Now there was no reason at all for his saying that except that he had asked me some questions about certain conditions and I had told him the plain unvarnished truth. I presume he thought if his race were the victim of such injustice he would certainly be bitter indeed, and he judged me by himself. Now the fact is there is not a bitter bone in my body. I shun bitterness as His Satanic Majesty is said to shun holy water. I have enough gray matter to know that if I cultivate bitterness of spirit it will react upon myself. No matter how great the temptation [to become] may have been I have resolved by the great horn spoon not to yield to it. I wish it were possible to persuade w people that a col woman can see how hypocritical how false to their vows and professions [many of] they are without being bitter. Personally, my w friends have been very kind to me indeed. Those whom I have known from my youth manifest great interest in me and my work. I used to address the chautauquas in the West. On one occasion an Oberlin classmate came nearly three hundred miles to see me and hear me. When I had finished she rushed forward grasped my hand and said Mollie how are you. How glad I am to see you. We come all the way from X to see you. When I am in a certain large city in the West, I always notify a [woman] friend whom I have known for many years that I am coming. I have been entertained in her home more than once. If I can not go to her home, we lunch together [*Know c people are not saints*] together= When my father brought me to Oberlin Ohio, I entered what is now called the 8th Grade but what was called the A Grammar in the Oberlin public schools than One of the girls in that class she was white, of course, was pretty and belonged to one of the best families in the town. Her uncle in a nearby city was a millionaire. This girl was considered rather haughty and scornful by the other girls in the class [?] she was rather dignified for a girl of her age and unless she was pretty well acquainted with one she had very little to say. She was about a year older than myself but for some reason which I will not try to explain, she took a fancy to me and we became fast friends. I was as different from her as two girls could well be. I was lively a mixer by nature and was hail fellow well met with every body that was worthwhile or decent. No matter what I did or said my quiet haughty friend was never shocked and she was neither dignified nor haughty either to me or to another girl near whom she lived with whom she came to school every day and of whom she was fond. After I married, this friend of my youth happened to be passing thru Washington and wrote me when she would be in. So I invited Janey to dinner in our little sitting room introduced her to my husband and we had a delightful time. We forgot the years that had intervened since we left college. And since she had evidently never worried about the difference between her fair complexion dead straight blonde hair and blue eyes and my olive skin dark brown eyes and almost black curly hair there was no evidence that she had learned to be shocked or disturbed because of our difference in color or race since we had been apart. I have many other white friends who always receive me most cordially whenever they know I am in the city in which they live. Personally I have fared as well as a C woman could in a country as full of race prejudice as the U.S. So far from being bitter I frequently feel disgusted with my friends and surprised at my W because they do not give as much credit as they [*Dorothy Dix*] deserve to the w women in particular who did so much to educate the newly emancipated slaves right after the war. If ever women displayed heroism as ever women proved indisputably that they had in them the stuff out of which martyrs are made it was the white women who left family home and friends in the North right after the to lay themselves upon the altar of duty to the emancipated slaves in the South. In the first place some of them might well have feared that they were going on a Wild Goose chase. Could the blacks be educated? Did they really have minds capable of being trained? Very learned [and] presumably very honest and good men since many were members of the gospel had proved by quoting passages from the bible that the N had no souls. What if all that were true? Again these W women who went from the N knew that they were would be very inhospitably received by the former masters and mistresses of these slaves. Moreover in some cases they knew they would have to live under the same roof with these newly emancipated N and that these quarters would be far from comfortable perhaps. As a matter of fact these w women from the N were ostracized by the w women of the S. Many of them suffered martyrdom as truly as did Stephen of old. No Co person who thinks of the sacrifices made by the first w women who went from the N to the S to educate and christianize the N could possibly be bitter if he realized the invaluable Services they rendered and the sacrifices they made. Certainly I could not be. One must be grateful for what was done in the past. Moreover no c person who is honest with himself can be bitter when he realizes that many of the people who heap indignities upon him are victims of their environment just as all of us are. I hold no brief for any human being who treats another unkindly or unjustly because of the way he looks the texture of his hair or the color of his skin. It is inconceivable to me that any sane person can justify himself in withholding from another human being another group of people privileges or opportunities to which they are entitled because he is human and citizens of the country in which Outline - 8 Once believed that it was all right. First serious argument in which I ever engaged was with my father to prove that w people had no prejudice fought to free the slaves and wanted to treat them all right. I was greatly shocked when he told me that W fought to preserve the Union, not to free the slaves and quoted what A Lincoln said. We used almost to come to blows about this. Red Cross did not allow c women to go as nurses altho they had been accepted in the Spanish Amer War and rendered excellent service war. C women urged the Red Cross to take C nurses in saying c women feared that their soldiers would not receive the proper attention from w nurses. They gave examples of that attitude. Tell the mistake made by Miss Delano in receiving Mrs De[?] delegation. In no picture representing the part played by the U.S. in the war, does the face of a c person appear. Pantheon de la Guerre. they do not altho France makes her Col very conspicuous. Even Gt Britain has a picture of various c people that fought on the Allies side. Vardamann offered resolution in the Senate providing that N be not allowed to fight saying it was a w mans war. I wish he cd go into that gallery of types and he wd see it was decidedly not a w man's war. "Mr Costigan does not like little dogs and dark men". Career in Oberlin. Boarded a year with Mrs. Peck. No one wanted to march with me as we went two by two at Garfields - Mentor Ohio. Pulled feathers out of chickens. When Junior election came. Oberlin as she is today full of prejudice. Pres Rex long in chanting glittering irregularities but short on having them carried out. O totally changed. Byrne's case allowed to remain in jail all summer. Disgraceful. A w boy wd not have been allowed to do it. Extenuating circumstances. Ms experience - difficult to get into Tenney Cottage. First Sen. Freshman party. Bed bugs in every room except my girls Cd go into country with other girls. Trick I played on landlady with Mary and Byrnes. 1st chapter Prove I'm not bitter by stating my gratitude to w who have helped us without them we cd have done nothing at all. W friends kind to me personally. Have helped me in every way on school board, on lecture platform. my husband. invitations every where. Berlin. Woman Suffrage Asso. Receptions no difference shown. Classmates always cordial, not talking about myself. If I did there wd be little about which to be bitter. Outline - 7 Why I have no hope conditions will be improved. Why I say w people are a hopeless case every where [Englands Race Riots] The N has contributed a great deal toward winning the war. They were told the U.S. wanted to make the world safe from Dem. In the U.S. little was done to fulfill this promise. They shut them out of Plattsburg and did not want to allow c men to be officers. They had to overturn Heaven & Earth to get an officers Camp Then when a c officer was refused his superior [of] said he shd not have insisted on his rights. Many c girls who passed splendid examination did not receive an appointment in the gov service. A w woman sent c girls to me to get rid of them saying I had the power to appoint them She told me when I went to see her that she had overturned heaven & earth to get girls in but had failed. She had managed to see the Sec of a Dept who was so difficult to approach that when he saw her in his office he gasped. How did you get in here? Teachers who made from 90 up did not receive an appointment. My own case. C officers insulted in Paris- badly treated at home and abroad. C man returning from France killed in Hattiesburg. Nothing done about it. C officer ran out of town in Miss. Nothing done about it by the Government so far as I know. An example shd have been made of it if Govt meant what it said. They forced me to enter the Army. They might have forced them to behave themselves after were in. It was treason to treat the N in a way that made him dislike his country. There never was a greater disparity between the professions made by a Gov't and its conduct than the beautiful glittering generalities preached about Democracy and the treatment accorded the N. England's Race Riots. The U.S. has not only failed to live up to its professions in its treatment of the N but it has taught people of other countries to do the same. Notably France. Italy. Soldiers from nearly every country in the world have been taught by the conduct of the U.S. toward c people to treat him with contempt because he belongs to an inferior race Flagrant case of Hypocrisy. Altho I am an optimist so far as the N's contribution to the war is concerned I am a pessimist so far as concerns the white man himself. He has the object lesson given [*proved continually he can not treat the N right.*] by the US in the proper way to treat a N. 6 they live. But the fact remains that people who are born or reared by their elders who are narrow and full of scorn or hatred of human beings inhale this venom in the very air they breathe and fairly drink it in. Even in their lucid intervals rising superior they admit to themselves that the treatment of these victims of hatred is, unjust, it is almost impossible for them to rise superior to their environment enough to be just and charitable and kind themselves. Nobody whether bl or wh can deny that he is the victim of his environment along many lines and to a really alarming extent. There is another reason therefore that I can not feel so bitter toward Southern people as some c people do. I try be reasonable and just even toward those who are cruel and unkind to my race and myself. In addition to environment heredity plays a very important in the attitude manifested toward co people by the S. The men and women of today are descended from mothers who looked with dry-eyed hard-hearted indifference upon the anguish and poverty of c people for more than 300 yrs. For these reasons I can not be so bitter toward the w people of the S as do many of my friends I know also that there are some w people in the S who would enjoy being emancipated from the traditions and [?] which are obliged to observe. For a time there appeared in a certain large daily in the East some side splitting fables in slang The name of a woman appears as the writer of these fables. Many terms taken from games which women are not supposed to play continually appeared. My husband insisted that no woman could write these fables because she knew too many of the terms known usually only to men and use them too skillfully to boot. Several years after this discussion had raged on my home I saw in this paper that this writer of the fables in slang wd come to Washington to report for her paper a murder trial which would soon take place. I am writing these confessions in the hope that white people as many as possible will read them so that they may know what some colored people think about them. It is almost impossible for people to know what c people think of them for several reasons. Many do not dare to express them. They fear the consequences. In their particular neck of the woods it would not be healthy for them to tell w people anything uncomplimentary to their lord & ladyships. It would amount to lese majeste and tantamount to treason on the high seas. Then too there are c people courageous enough to tell w people the estimate placed upon them but they know it wd be a waste of time and energy. Some of their w friends would tell them they are bitter and discuss it at that. Others would assure them it is most impolitic for c people to say anything to offend w people in a certain section. If you say this or that you will make w people very angry. You will thus hurt your cause. It doesnt pay for c to tell the truth about w if it happens to be uncomplimentary to the superior race. You will just stir up dissension and strife. But w people do not hesitate to express their opinion about c people no matter how unpleasant or untrue it is You stammer when you can get your breath Ah but that is another thing you are told by a wiseacre who loops unutterable things at you and whose expression is more expressive than his words. And so year after year w people go on ignorant of what c folks are really thinking about them. It is of the greatest importance that superior people should know what those they consider inferior are thinking. It is quite necessary that the rich should know what the poor think. That the powerful should realize how they appear in the eyes of the helpless and weak. I can recall some well known tragedies in history in which many heads were cut off and many millions lost because there the more favored of these groups of human beings did not know what the other was thinking about it. Sat July 5 The trouble arises usually when the strong does not know & does not care the estimate placed upon it by the weak. 10 condemning the fight. But those same ministers sure saw fit to pass resolutions about Lynching. VI I went to take a trip thru the South and tried to get berth Rode on the Jim C C a short distance then always went into the W waiting room after that. The c p themselves dont like that. What the Texas man said to me about leaving on a J C Car because it was known I had arrived on a sleeper and some people did not like it. Tell about the inconveniences. Man sent for because mother was ill & begged to see him. Could not get a berth on an all sleeper & had to wait twelve hrs for the next train which had a Jim C C and his mother died before he reached her bedside. Stories about young col girls. Insulted by brakeman. Attempt while she was intact. The orals of C women VII Ran on Jack Durham I am writing Outline 9 BTW had nothing about wh to be bitter personally. But the C in Ala did not enjoy the same immunity as himself & there were many as worthy as himself. One shd not be silent about terrible injustices perpetrated upon an oppressed but deserving race because he himself enjoys a sort of recognition and an immunity from insult while others just as worthy are the unhappy victims all the time. But I am not bitter. The childhood of few have been happier than my own. Yellow Springs. Why I say you can not trust w people. They wont do Experiences during & since the war. The dominant race seems determined to make us hewers of wood and drawers of water for all time. Give facts. Wd foist upon U.S. system of caste & class of which Europe is trying to get rid. South unreconstructed II What the U.S. promised. What it said about Democracy. What it really did. What Gt Britain has done. They begger the B man to come in and help. When they out of danger they turn upon those they had called to their aid. Ingrates of the deepest die Not only do they insult the N but they teach all other countries to do so by their own example. As if that were enough they send written requests as they did in France IV It is high time somebody told W people the truth. C people do not dare to do so. The representatives who have done so have grinned and told stories so that it seemed funny rather than serious. Considering the chances they have had they have not done as well as C people. To day Mrs Moral asked me if I did not think the immorality of C people was a very serious thing. I admitted it was "But, I replied what disturbs me most is the immorality of a people. They have had so many years advantage. Yet the immorality among them is shocking. Then I related the cases Travelling South. V Today I went down town and passed a group of men discussing the prize fight. I heard Jack Johnson's name mentioned and looked in the shop window near by to hear what they had to say. Sporting men broader than Christians. The attitude of the Church. What Wm Lloyd Garrison said in his book. Tell about the fire destroying my valuable books. Visit to Miss Anthony. Visit to H.G. Wells & the Countess of Warwick. The ministers passed resolutions Washington, D.C. 2 May 17 9:30 PM 1924 Mrs. Mary Church Terrell 1615 S St. N.W. Local [*Perry Scoville. Thimble stolen & returned Mother pick up black curtains & wrote me to take them down. Bot me a bureau.*] [*19121 Mary Good 1913*] Lake trips Camping out. Big band wagons played guitar father sent me learned chords by myself sang on the road Mother rented a room treated us to a regular breakfast- My voice carrying power Prin White. Made a scarf for practically nothing. No member of my family came to see me graduate from college. Mother came for the H.School. Prin Whites reception invitation from 3 Talk with Bowerman & Segregation she would say. Particularly, if the girl who wanted the dress looked particularly wretched & wore a long face-Why not rushed Shucks she wd say in tones bristling with resolution & disgust why not make the dress dress yourself- I will help you. We were always sure then the dress should be made- We went up to our room gleeful that night for we knew that nothing but death would prevent us from [having] wearing that garment, We thought of all the good [this] deeds [swarthy servant who occupied a warm spot in my heart,I grew indignant] done to the whole family by this faithful servant who occupied such a warm spot in my heart. I was more determined than ever to see her- I banished from my mind every thot that might be a reflection upon her honesty- theres some good reason why she does not want to see me I said No matter whether I [ever see her] ever discover what it is [or not to] or not [find out what it is], I know she has done nothing wrong- Same member of her family may be in trouble & she is trying to help them but she herself is all 2 6 3 4 right- about six months after about - 15 - ly a year now, and has been especially in agricultural districts. It has been enforced in the farming districts with most satisfactory results. Of course, Madame Majerova pointed to the fact that it was passed after the last harvest; after they had had a good harvest last fall. By this law, neither men nor women are allowed to work more than forty-eight hours per week. Under some conditions, of course, the working day is longer, on account of the saving of perishable produce, grain, etc., but there must never be more than one hundred and ninety-two hours per month, in four weeks, or forty eight hours per week. Then, too, the law provides that every employee, every workman, must have thirty-two hours uninterrupted rest and recreation -- thirty-two hours that must come once every four weeks. And it is also shown, by Article IV, that this thirty-two hours must come on a Sunday, so that it would include a Sunday. Of course, in case of emergency, the weekly hours, or monthly hours of work are lengthened, but the emergency must be passed on by a committee which states that this emergency does exist. The working people of Czecho-Slovakia are proud to be the first people of Europe to have the eight hour law, it being in operation now for nearly a year; and it is also When I learned Personally I must confess that Cor C Wests refusal [to prosecute those observe the Lost Law] to prosecute the eating places which refused by promising them he wd not prosecute them had encouraged those who refused to serve us. I was greatly depressed for violating the law . When I came here 60 years ago and saw that colored people in the capital of the nation calling itself a Democracy were treated like those living in the Deep South in Jackson Miss. & Charleston S.C. for instance except that we were not forced to ride in Jim Crow street cars, I felt sure those conditions wd gradually be removed and hailed the decision of the Munici Court of Appeals as an indication of this progress And now that [Mr. West has told the eating places to continue to refuse to serve us] I realized that the capital of our country is situated on southern soil [where slavery] And now at the end of 60 yrs, due to Mr. Wests decision, I feel generally speaking conditions confronting colored people in Wash are the same as they were here 60 yrs ago. Colored people are refused service in the eating places of our Capital and we walk up and down F St knowing that we are excluded from the movies there Nigerian &c SUBSCRIBE NOW TO THE AFRAMERICAN WOMAN'S JOURNAL SUBSCRIPTION BLANK Send me the Aframerican Woman's Journal $1.50 for one year (box) $3.00 for two years (box) Name Address City Zone State (Bottom of Document) Please make checks payable to The national Council of Negro Women, Inc. 1318 Vermont Avenue, NW Washington 5, D.C. National Acouncil of Negro women, Inc. Sec. 562 P.L. and R. (POSTAL STAMP 1 CENT) 1318 Vermont Avenue, NW Washington 5, D.C. Mrs. Mary Church Terrell 1615 S. ST. N.W. City them, read, mark. learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience, and comfort of the holy Word, we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which thou hast given us in our savior Jesus Christ. Amen. O God, by whom the meek are guided in judgment, and light riseth up in darkness for the godly; grant us, in all doubts and uncertainties, the grace to ask what thou wouldest have us to do, that the spirit of wisdom may save us from all false choices, and that in thy light we may see light, and in thy straight path may not stumble; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. BENEDICTION POSTLUDE [*satisfactorily if that was possible. If I had a book here this evening telling what the ideal principal of a Junior High School should be and should click off the points one by one it would be perfectly evident that Miss Chase possesses the qualities required. In studying Miss Chase's administration as principal of the Terrell Junior High School we must remember that she was greatly handicapped because the condition of the building itself was very far from being perfect. But in spite of the fact that repairs greatly needed were very slow in being made if they were made at all nevertheless she [*Miss Chase*] pursued the even tenor of her war [so to speak] and did the best she could do under the circumstances and [like that little Hindu she literally] under the circumstances did the best she could do. And this leads me to call your attention to the fact that we are largely indebted to Miss Chase's efforts that the new Terrell Junior High School was built. As I have already said no matter how long I should talk about Miss Chase as principal of the Terrell Junior High School and no matter how hard I should try to enumerate the reasons why she achieved such a brilliant success in that position I could not do justice to the subject. But I can not close without thanking Miss Chase for the hard work she did which resulted in persuading the powers that be to build a new Terrell Junior High School even though some of us feel the location leaves something to be desired. With all my heart I congratulate Miss Chase upon the valuable service she for for many years rendered as principal of the Terrell Junior High School pal of the Langley School and feel sure she will achieve the same brilliant success in discharing the duties and obligations as principal in the Langley building.*] The opportunity of telling about a principal of a Junior High School Miss Chase is not given to an individual every day in the week and I appreciate the one afforded me today. But if I should stand here a long time trying to telling why Miss Chase has achieved such a brilliant success in this particular educational field I would not do the subject justice. And I want to emphasize the fact that I do not speak as one who has observed Miss Chase [just casually] in the capacity of the principal of the Terrell High School just now and thus but I speak as one who has observed Miss Chase in that closely for a long time. [It was natural] Since the High School to which I refer was named for my husband, Robert Heberton Terrell it was natural that I should be deeply, genuinely interested in the principle. And I was. In the first place Miss Chase's standards were high and there was distinct evidence that she exerted herself strenuously to reach them. She studied to make herself proficient She spared [neither] time [n]or energy to do this and she dutifully spent money in the pursuit of knowledge. It was quite evident to the most casual observer that she was genuinely definitely interested both in her teachers and in the pupils. One intuitively felt that the atmosphere between Principal Chase and her teachers was pleasant and the absence of antagonism was evident. In a variety of ways Miss Chase displayed genuine interest in her pupils both those who were confronted with obstacles difficult to overcome and those who possessed abily of a high order whom she [tried to] encouraged to pursue their studies as far as possible. With parents of pupils who were dissatisfied for one reason or another and who complained Miss Chase was patient, willing to explain the situation FURNITURE APPLIANCES HOME FURNISHINGS CLOTHING FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY National FURNITURE CO. Clothing & Furniture On One Convenient Account 801 7th St. N.W. Washington, D.C. Dear Customers:- IMPORTANT TELEVISION INFORMATION FOR YOU OUR PREFERRED CUSTOMER. We feel it is our duty to advise you, one of our preferred customers, that a luxury tax on Television sets will become effective November 1st, 1950. Perhaps you have in mind buying a new Television for Thanksgiving or Christmas. If so do not wait. Buy it now and save yourself from $15.00 to $50.00 in luxury tax alone. Furthermore, at the present time, we have a good selection of all the best models. R.C.A., Admiral. Motorola, Emerson, Philco, etc. We have also been advised by the manufacturers that there will be a shortage of the most wanted models for holiday selling. There is also a possibility of price increases and maybe a requirement of a higher down payment. Come in at once and I am sure that we can make arrangements for you to have the Television set you want. Very truly yours, NATIONAL FURNITURE COMPANY Anthony T. Geraci A.T. Geraci Manager ATG:hmc [*As a result of C C West's unprecedented refusal to enforce a law enacted to enable all the citizens to enjoy the rights privileges and immunities guaranteed them by the Constitution of the US let us hope that the 800 mil people in Asia, the nearly 500 mil Chinese, the 358 mil in East India the millions of colored people in other parts of the world will not turn their backs on the US and hate it because of the injustice to its colored citizens while they join hands with Russia and [*cultivate*] call Stalin their friend It pains me to think soldiers came here 60 yrs*] 4 By refusing to enforce a law enacted in the interest of Democracy Corporation Counsel West one man has done more to ruin the reputation of the USA as a genuine Democracy than all the communists in this country combined. If the Unamerican Activities Com want to find a man who is trying to overthrow the Govt of the US it is certainly their duty to call to account a[n] law enforcement officer [of the law] in the national capital who refuses to enforce a law upholding the principles of Democracy on which the Govt was [founded] built. Vernon West has done more to cause the 800 million Asians, the 450 million Chinese the 400 million East Indians, the millions of colored people in the various islands of the sea to decide to stick to Stalin and cast their lot with Russia than all the communists in Russia and everywhere else combined. It is certainly the duty of the citizens in the national capital to say nothing of those who call themselves Christians to rise up as one man and repudiate a law enforcement officer who refuses to enforce a law pronounced valid by the Municipal Court of Appeals especially a law enacted to promote [300000 colored people to continue to be suspected to an injustice of the most humiliating harassing kind,] the principles of Democracy on which the Govt was built. Let us hope that Corporation Counsel West decision to continue to subject colored people of Wash to the segregation & discrimination from which a perfectly valid law would deliver [relieve] them will not cause the 800 mil to turn their back on the US and cultivate Stalin as their friend. Let us do every thing humanly possible ourselves to secure the rights & privileges to which we are Let us appeal to the law abiding citizens of the dominant race [*all races and classes*] to use the influence & power they undoubtedly possess to have the law enforced which was enacted in carry out the moral principles of Democracy on which this Govt was built. Let us do everything humanly possible ourselves to secure the rights & privileges to which we are entitled and should be allowed to enjoy. 4. Take all precautions to prevent illness. Stay healthy, so that the doctors can concentrate on persons who are already ill. CAMPAIGNS AGAINST MEDICAL SHORTAGE The blackest spots in the wartime scene are not the big cities but the rural areas and the boom towns. To relieve this misery, the Procurement and Assignment Services of the War Manpower Commission last year instituted a voluntary method to persuade doctors to move to the shortage areas. Doctor recruiting was also limited to 20 states and the District of Columbia, which were considered well staffed. Between January, 1942 and February, 1944, 2,955 doctors were relocated. The Service had the cooperation of the United States Public Health Service, which offered the moving doctor $250 a month for three months, plus transportation expenses, provided the community paid one-fourth of the total cost. In this way, 135 of the 510 shortage areas were eased. Another 146 areas found relief by persuading older doctors out of retirement, shifting specialists to general practice and freezing doctors in essential areas. But for 166 shortage areas there was no solution. The stumbling blocks: (1) varying state license requirements; (2) refusal of older, established men to move; (3) the tendency of doctors to move from rural to urban areas. As the late Dr. Raymond Pearl of Johns Hopkins University put it: "Physicians behave like any other group of sensible business persons. They do business where it is good and avoid places where it is bad." DISTAFF DOCTORS IN THE WAR Women doctors, too, have shown a business sense in wartime. Although they fought stubbornly for military service, only a few of the country's 7.000 women physicians volunteered when the Army and Navy dropped their bars. At present 38 are in the Naval Reserve, 75, mostly middle-aged, in the Army Medical Corps. Reasons assigned for not enlisting: jobs from which they would not be released; duty to families; fear of being put on recruit examining, or of being given some job not their specialty. The more obvious cause for the small enlistment is that for the first time women doctors, by necessity, are getting a break in civilian practice. At the same time, women's registration in medical schools has boomed- at the Woman's Medical College in Philadelphia, Johns Hopkins, the University of Pennsylvania, Hahnemann Hospital, Northwestern University, University of Maryland, and the University of California, and so on. This year for the first time, in its 162 years, Harvard Medical School opened its courses to female students. [*Because although there were 2 organizations of colored women the member broadminded enough to agree that it would be impossible successfully to maintain two national organizations in that stage of their development an much more would be accomplished by putting all their energy and resources into one body than by dividing them into two. We owe a debt of gratitude to the women of the Afro-American Federation of Women and to the National League of Colored Women that we can never repay, If they had been hostile to [each other and jealous of each other] each other and had refused to unite the progress of our women would have been greatly retarded and injured and certainly would not have reached the height of achievement and useful that we have acquired. Since I am one of the comparitively few women now living who started to work in our club movement as soon as it began very briefly I feel it is my duty to present the facts since it may not be possible for me to have an opportunity to do so again The future expansion of our National Association's programs will be definitely assured if we follow the example of breadth of vision and strength of character displayed by the founders of our organization*] 2 In addition to the methods already mentioned a good salesman often tells the public how and why his product happened to be produced. He knows that giving away its history, so to speak will whet people's interest in it Referring to this method often used by a good salesman to sell his product to the public reminds me that thru the years I have been shocked more than once by the questions asked and the statements made about the circumstances under which the NACW was organized. [organizations record]. The questions asked and statements made have given indisputable proof that a goodly number of our women, who are intelligent, interested in the Association and want to help in every way they can know little or nothing about its history. It would be unjust to blame anybody for failing to make a specialty of giving the information to our members because of the very unusual circumstances under which the NACW was organized. But for the sake of having an accurate history of colored women in the US certainly the history of the first larg national secular organization should be better known than it is. Because we love one section of the country more than another or love one woman or one group of women more than another is no excuse for distorting historical facts. There is one great reason why the colored women of the US should be proud of the NACW. It was formed from two national organizations, the National Federation of Afro American Women of which Mrs Booker T Washington was president and the National Colored Wome's Leage formed here in Washington of which Mrs Helen Cook was president. Miss Margaret Jones 1811 Eye 1.00 donation Miss Merritt 6.00 Dr Anderson 5.00 4. Take all precautions to prevent illness. Stay healthy, so that the doctors can concentrate on persons who are already ill. CAMPAIGNS AGAINST MEDICAL SHORTAGE The blackest spots in the wartime scene are not the big cities but the rural areas and the boom towns. To relieve this misery, the Procurement and Assignment Services of the War Manpower Commission last year instituted a voluntary method to persuade doctors to move to the shortage areas. Doctor recruiting was also limited to 20 states and the District of Columbia, which were considered well staffed. Between January, 1942 and February, 1944, 2,955 doctors were relocated. The Service had the cooperation of the United States Public Health Service, which offered the moving doctor $250 a month for three months, plus transportation expenses, provided the community paid one-fourth of the total cost. In this way, 135 of the 510 shortage areas were eased. Another 146 areas found relief by persuading older doctors out of retirement, shifting specialists to general practice and freezing doctors in essential areas. But for 166 shortage areas there was no solution. The stumbling blocks: (1) varying state license requirements; (2) refusal of older, established men to move; (3) the tendency of doctors to move from rural to urban areas. As the late Dr. Raymond Pearl of Johns Hopkins University put it: "Physicians behave like any other group of sensible business persons. They do business where it is good and avoid places where it is bad." DISTAFF DOCTORS IN THE WAR Women doctors, too, have shown a business sense in wartime. Although they fought stubbornly for military service, only a few of the country's 7.000 women physicians volunteered when the Army and Navy dropped their bars. At present 38 are in the Naval Reserve, 75, mostly middle-aged, in the Army Medical Corps. Reasons assigned for not enlisting: jobs from which they would not be released; duty to families; fear of being put on recruit examining, or of being given some job not their specialty. The more obvious cause for the small enlistment is that for the first time women doctors, by necessity, are getting a break in civilian practice. At the same time, women's registration in medical schools has boomed- at the Woman's Medical College in Philadelphia, Johns Hopkins, the University of Pennsylvania, Hahnemann Hospital, Northwestern University, University of Maryland, and the University of California, and so on. This year for the first time, in its 162 years, Harvard Medical School opened its courses to female students. [*Because although there were 2 organizations of colored women the member broadminded enough to agree that it would be impossible successfully to maintain two national organizations in that stage of their development an much more would be accomplished by putting all their energy and resources into one body than by dividing them into two. We owe a debt of gratitude to the women of the Afro-American Federation of Women and to the National League of Colored Women that we can never repay, If they had been hostile to [each other and jealous of each other] each other and had refused to unite the progress of our women would have been greatly retarded and injured and certainly would not have reached the height of achievement and useful that we have acquired. Since I am one of the comparitively few women now living who started to work in our club movement as soon as it began very briefly I feel it is my duty to present the facts since it may not be possible for me to have an opportunity to do so again The future expansion of our National Association's programs will be definitely assured if we follow the example of breadth of vision and strength of character displayed by the founders of our organization*] The day of depriving colored people of [the] educational opportunities which they need & want [to which the constitution entitles them] especially in that section where the majority live is past. [*24*] [there is no doubt about that]. [*31*] The [decisions rendered by the] Supreme Courts decision which opened the University of Oklahoma and other southern institutions has opened the door of educational opportunity never never can [*50*] [has started a ball to rolling which it will be impossible to stop][*53*] be closed. While I [am interested] rejoice in the educational opportunities offered to our group all over the US [*69*] as one of the 1st two women appointed on the Bd [Board] of Education in the Nat Cap I am especially interested in [*our segregated*] our public schools which are segregated as is well known. And while I have always catalogued myself as an optimist by nature and determination on the principle that open confession is good for the soul I must admit that [several] things [have] happened in the public schools every now & then which make me very apprehensive indeed. [Especially] Recently this has been especially true. Permitting colored students to enter O Uni The Supreme Courts decision [which] opening the door of Oklahoma [education opportunities] and other southern institutions have The Supreme Courts decision permitting colored students to enter [attend] [*9*] Oklahoma Uni has other southern institutions has [*16*] opened to them the door of educational opportunity which can never [*25*] again be closed. [*27*] [Opening] The example of observing [*See*] the Constitution [*observed*] in [*those who flagrantly violated certainly may be willing to*] this one case may make it possible for colored people to enjoy other rights privileges & immun Seeing the constitution on observed in this case may [*8*] [*induce*] make those who [continuously] flagrantly violate it to permit [*15*] colored people to enjoy other rights privileges and opportunities [*24*] to which the law of the land entitles them. [*53*] It is to be hoped [But the segregated public schools of the National Capital] that the progress in democracy made by the colleges will soon be reflected in the elementary & secondary schools. Incidents are happening continuously in the segregated schools of the Nat Cap to show [what adherence to this] how many unfortunate embarrass incidents as a result of this [*#3 (Health -- cont'd.) improved health for all people. 4. Study and support bills for improvement in physical and mental health care and compulsory health insurance for those most in need of such assistance. HOUSING We urge continued action toward improving the housing conditions of all people in rural and urban communities, and the ultimate elimination of slum areas, and it is recommended that: 1. The National Council of Negro Women work with and urge local housing and redevelopment authorities to provide adequate housing for persons living in slum areas utilizing Federal funds provided by the current Federal Housing Act for such slum clearance. 2. That the National Council of Negro Women promote an educational program and work for appropriate legislation with he aim in view of eliminating discriminatory and unethical practices in the field of private and public housing. WOMEN Discrimination against women workers exists in industry and many service and agricultural occupations in the matter of promotions, seniority, training, and particularly wages. The vast majority of women are compelled to work because of economic necessity and it is therefore unjust and economically unsound that they should be penalized in this manner because of sex. It is recommended that: 1. The National Council of Negro Women avail itself of studies in regards to discrimination, help to publicize the facts, and work for legislation establishing equal pay for equal work. 2. The National Council of Negro Women go on record as supporting the Jeannes Fund Program and the program of the Federal government to improve conditions of work, living, and agricultural development in rural areas designed to improve general conditions of rural women and their families.*] Call loudly for abolishing this Jim Crow [program] structure in the public schools of the so-called greatest Democracy on earth We have roved around the world this evening trying to find ways and means of keeping human beings in different countries on friendly terms with each other and have discovered that so long as the Colonial system is used by powerful nations to keep less advanced and weaker nations in subjection it is utterly impossible to preserve peace in the world. Conferring ourselves to each [*country*] nation as a separate and distinct event we find that when a minority group in a country is deprived of the rights & privileges which this racial group enjoys, and as thus becomes a victim of discrimination and injustice, in such a country it is impossible to preserve the peace and it is the duty of each and every one of us to do everything humanly possible [*to change such deplorable dehumanizing*] by setting a [our own] proper personal example ourselves and by appealing to the conscience of those with whom we shall come into personal contact [*and by urging all with whom we come*] to deal justly with all human beings with whom they come into contact with regard to their religion or their race. [I want to say a few words about Communism which has really become a disease amounting to an epidemic in this country. Now I shall openly confess that I am not a Communist & have never because and I don't intend to be one and am not interested in it. When I hear people say [seriously] that Communists want to overthrow the government of the U.S. it is hard for me to take the matter seriously. It is generally conceded that the U.S. is the richest and strongest country in the world, has the most modern weapons and can get as many of them as are necessary. It is hard if not impossible for me to believe that any individual outside of an insane asylum in the wildest flight of a lurid imagination could dream of trying to overthrow the government of the U.S. The idea is so fantastic & ridiculous that I can think of it as a huge joke. But the manner in which good honest upright citizens being smeared and their reputation ruined simply by being called Communists because they entertain opinions with which their accusers [differ] do not agree is far from being a joke I have a definition for a Communist in which I am going to have patented. According to my definition which I am going] [*#4 (WOMEN -- con’d.) The ability, training and skills of women have not been utilized to the Fullest extent in many fields of service in public life. It is recommended that: 1. The National Council of Negro women endeavor to encourage women to qualify in all branches of public service and in private industry and continued efforts be made to have our government in all its branches and private industry consider and avail themselves of the skills of women fitted for posts of responsibility requiring special training and experience. In the light of reports received from members of the Council and other Women on their travels and contacts with women of other races, it is recommended That: 1. The National Council of Negro Women redouble its efforts to strengthen the bonds of friendship between women of the darker races, especially women in foreign lands, by exchange of information, publications, and other data which will bring about understanding and cooperative projects in improving the status of women. THE ATOM BOMB The World has witnessed the power and scope of the atomic bomb in the past war and has realized that the entire civilized world could be destroyed if used in future wars. It is recommended that the National Council of Negro Women urge that the Atomic Bomb be controlled by the United Nations, and that the atomic energy be used as an instrument to develop human progress and outlawed as an instrument of war. PEACE The National Council of Negro Women believe that if we fail in the accomplishment of World Peace based on universal human rights, the world will be plunged into an endless night. The way to World Peace first begins in the mind and heart of every individual*] [to have patented a communist is a colored person who wants the rights to which he is entitled and a Communist is a white person who wants colored people to have their rights. When I told my friends that I had been invited to speak for the Maryland Com for Peace I was warned that it was a Communist organization and that I had better not accept the invitation. For once in my life I had a lucid interval and called the office of the Atty General Many innocent people] How does it happen that comparatively few of the members of the NA of CW knows the history knew when and where it was organized One of our [A] prominent member asked me one day if the NA of CW once called [?] my attention to the fact that comparatively few of the members know its history, know when, where and how it happened to be organized. We just don't know our history, she said. More than once [*even I have heard this criticism*] I have realized that it was founded on fact, but I also realized that it was not altogether the fault of our members that so many have never learned. Many of us dont know our history she said Then she quoted a statement [*resulting*] made by one of our officers which showed plainly that her criticism was just. Many of them have never learned our history. It hasnt been given as often It is so clear to everybody here to night that the dominant race and our minority group should line together in peace and friend- in the capital of what is called the greatest Democracy on earth that is seems almost like a reflection upon the intelligence of this audience for one to stand up here and seriously give reasons why this should be the attitude of the 2 groups toward each other. But the fact is that owing to the custom and tradition of the section in which the capital is located generally speaking the relation between the [white &] colored people and white people of Washington is often restrained to express it mildly. And so as you all know that is the reason why a handful of people started what is called the Washington Fellowship today. There are 57 varieties of reasons why the Washington Fellowship is greatly needed here in Washington It affords white and colored people to meet each other For many years after slaves were emancipated white people came in contact with nothing but the ignorant representatives of our group. To the Editor of the Post, Dear Sir: On page 3 in the article entitled "No Bars for Harvard" which appeared in the morning Post, Tuesday April 10, one of the headlines of a paragraph is totally at variance with the facts. The Post account shows that the board of overseers settled two questions: first that "men of the white and colored races shall not be compelled to live and eat together and second that "no man shall be excluded on account of his color." In spite of that very clear language, however, the headline of the paragraph tells us in black type that at Harvard there are to be "No Negroes in Dorms" The resolution signed [?] [???ing] - It so happens that if any white student from the South or any other section does not wish to live and eat in one of the Harvard dormitories because colored students are accommodated there, he shall not be forced to do so. The Harvard Board of Overseers invites him by this resolution to go to some other institution where he may indulge his prejudice against his colored brother to his heart's content. But the Harvard Board of Trustees states as emphatically as the English language will enable them to express the thought that no man shall be excluded from the dormitories by reason of his color." To express it positively colored students will be permitted to live in the dormitories of Harvard University. The headline in the paragraph of the Post, therefore, not only misrepresents the facts but is an unnecessary cruel thrust at a race whose burdens in this country are already as heavy as they can bear. The keen wit and brilliant intellect of the man who writes the clever Postscripts are also used to shy a stone at his colored brother when he states "Harvard backpedals on race discrimination - with reservations, maybe." To suggest that the Harvard Board of Overseers did not intend to live up to the resolutions unanimously adopted is an an unwarranted and unjustifiable reflection upon their integrity and good faith. It is a great pity that representatives of a race which proclaims from the house tops its superiority in season and out should begrudge the few opportunities of education & culture which [?] I greatly sympathize with the old lady who lived in a shoe this afternoon. I have just come from Chicago and have been studying what that big city does for its handicapped children. I am going to tell you what Chicago does for its handicapped children so that you may see what it is possible to do. No child whether deaf blind crippled epileptic or mentally defective need go without training adapted to its needs. There are in the Chicago schools More than 5000 mentally and physically handicapped children. 4 schools which provide for the training & care of crippled children young delinquents recruited from 2 races [?] & Italian the least alcoholized in the world. The arrogance of humility is simply repulsive Modern Religion has made women a toy. Jewish " a submissive [?] Christian, a danger, vessel of inferiority The Christian religion has done everything it could to heap ignominy upon women- head coverings in church, practical tolerance of male infidelity, Kingly repudiation of Queens, compulsory childbearing and a multitude of other injustices- woman carries in her the slave tradition of her maternal forbears, who never did anything because they were never allowed to. Any woman inspired by centuries of independence instinctively feels that while everything is open to man, very little is open to her. She comes into the arena with a leaden sword, in most cases she hardly has energy to struggle. Never helped to understand the work of the world, political, financial, scientific and therefore grew to believe that such realms were not for them. Continuous suggestion of helplessness & inferiority must affect woman." The imprint is made and looking upon herself as inferior woman hands on to her daughter the old Slavery that was in her forbears blood. [?] generation of training and of relative literacy is not enough to undo evils neolithic in origin. Suffers much from the tradition of inferiority, from her lack of confidence in herself- Atlantic Monthly Jan. 1916 W L George [*13.50 7.50 BB 12.00 Veg 19.75 B 13.50 Cny*] [*Give me to eat, I am so hungry Oh my head is so cold do give me something to cover -- gave her cap freezing for want of a jacket -- begged for her petticoat child dying with cold, golden showers fell from heaven thot store were falling from heaven*] International Party Congress - Anthony Comstock - Tons of literature - Obscene literature confiscated - Conditions appalling Vote for Colored women What they can do with it - make laws & protect children & girls - Jim Crow car Laws source of danger to our daughters - Good women have not looked after our girls as they should have Draw aside their skirts from unfortunate women - Double standard of morals- As I have traveled about & talked with deconesses - women have so little sympathy Then the progress of col women as a mother of the dominant race mothers dont talk to girls as they should - Agent- Telegraphers # 38. B $80 to $90. ?y (2) (3) 9 Hour Basic Day (4) (5) 10 Hour Basic Day (6) ?Day Week 6 Day Week 7 Day Week 6 Day Week 7 Day Week ?P.R. 1 ½ O. P.R. 1½ O. P.R. 1½ O. P.R. 1½ O. P.R. 1½ 17 41 36 12 5 3 1 2 3 8 2 9 10 2 2 [In the first place they have been interested.] It is a fact which nobody can deny that for every blessing we enjoy to day we are indebted to those who were [broad and generous] sufficiently interested in their fellow man to see what they cd do for having aided him and then try to do it. That is all that minding the other fellow's business means. It is the easiest thing in the world for selfish people then to mind one's own business. Those [People] who want to serve and make the world [f]better for having lived in it feel that they dare not confine all their interest & their activities to themselves. [The individual who who decides [bother] to spread] [himself] over a wider surface than] But those who feel that they must pursue such a course must possess moral courage. I am more & more convinced that moral courage [*Start a drive against crime.- in justice-- for education -- opportunity*] Mrs. Sadie Lockett 117 West 141st Street New York City Miss Mary Moran 2441 7th Avenue " Mrs. George W. Young 255 West 144th Street " Mrs. E. Hortense Toliver 145 West 142nd Street " Mrs. Emma D. Payne 227 West 143rd Street " Miss Mary B. O'Neil " Mrs. Adie Hunter 372 Grand Avenue " Mrs. Susie Fountain 198 West 134th Street " Mrs. Pauline Dempsey 131st Street near 7th Ave " Miss F. Willia Davis 22 De Witte Place New Rochelle Mrs. Addie Jackson 62 John Street Tarrytown, N.Y. Mrs. Mabel Wright 406 S. Plain St Ithaca, N.Y. Mrs. Georgia Lewis 127 Monroe Street Albany, N.Y. Mrs. Rux 18 Woode Place Yonkers, N.Y. Mrs. Horace Hicks Republican Club Mount Vernon Mrs. Joseph P. Smith 814 Strong Street Schenectady Mrs. Charlotte Dett 362-2nd Street Niagara Falls Brook Mother's Club Box 10 Hilburn Mrs. Fannie K. Burns 126 1/2 E. Fayette St Syracuse Mrs. A.M. Lee 89 Garson Avenue Rochester Miss Hazel [?] Binghampton Miss Marie Chew 149 Ferry Street Troy Mrs. John Monroe 8 Water Street Newburgh Mrs. George De Witte % A.M.E. Zion Church Kingston Dr. V. Morton Jones 105 Fleet Place Brooklyn Mrs. Charlotte Bell 140 Duffield St. " Miss Esther Bradley 711 Herkimer St. " Mrs. Ella Waddell 138 Duffield St. " Mrs. N.B. Dodson 309 Berriman Street " If I were what is called a betting character I would wager a great deal that nobody in this room cd guess what I am thinking about now- This meeting was advertised as being for the Handicapped, you know- Well, I was thinking that if all the Handicapped of Baltimore had come to this meeting, there wdn't be room enough in this building to hold them. If all the Handicapped of Baltimore had come out this afternoon, there wd be have to be at least half a dozen overflow meetings and then some perhaps. But the trouble is that some people who are handicapped dont know it But [those of us] we who have come here this afternoon have a great advantage over those others, because we know we are handicapped in one way or another and we are trying to do something to overcome it ourselves and to help others to do the same thing - and now I want to make a personal reference - I want to [*285 Mad Ave New Years/ Early*] 2 tell you something about myself. It is most appropriate that I am here to speak to you this afternoon, for I am handicapped to a certain extent myself. I belong to the crippled group myself. In an automobile accident nearly 4 yr ago my kneecap was fractured and it was fractured because a young man from Baltimore who was driving a truck full of heavy iron palls was as far over on the right side of the road as I was. I cdnt get over any further over on the right than I was for there was a hole 6 ft deep on the right of me and I cdnt drive into that. The road was only 15 ft wide. And then as I looked up I saw this truck coming down a steep hill as fast as it cd. I turned my car a bit on the side. That probably saved my life for, instead of having a head on collision the big truck ran thru my engine wrecked it, of course, and when I was able to take stock of the damage done I discovered that my car was wrecked beyond repair and that my kneecap was broken and I was badly cut by the glass 3 Of course I cd not walk a step. I shall never forget the feeling of [my] despair which overcame me when I realized that I was crippled. I believed then that for the rest of my life I wd have to walk on crutches. After remaining in the hospital two months I was able to come home walked with crutches for a while, [then] with a cane and finally was able to go without either a crutch or a cane. I wish I had time to tell you what I did to restore my injured limb to the normalcy which it has already reached. I should like to tell you about this not show off or to present myself to you as a wonder, but to prove to you that an individual who has been crippled in an accident or who has been injured in any other can often do a great deal to heal or cure himself and restore to its original state that part of his body which has been hurt. But I have said enough to show you that I understand thoroughly what it 4 means to be handicapped by my own personal experience. I believe I have a right to claim that I belong to the group of people I am addressing this afternoon. A few minutes ago I said that we who know we are handicapped have an advantage over those who are not aware of that fact. Perhaps you do not understand what I mean by that. I mean that there are thousands of people who are not physically blind but who are mentally, morally and spiritually blind. They are blind to their own interests. They [can] will not look at the things which are good for them. They deliberately close their eyes to people and principals and plans which would help them to lead decent, well rounded, worth while lives. Then there are those whose physical ears are all right, but who are deaf to words of wisdom spoken to them by those who try to guide them aright. Thousands of people then are there 5 When the great demand for literature is supplied it will not only give the blind what they need but it will also stimulate the ambitions of the entire blind population and it will prove they can compete successfully with others. Printing of embossed literature is costly. Special and expensive machinery is required. Price of a book is great. Cost of an ordinary work of fiction is $20. Works of science, history, literature and art cost more. For 25 or 30 yrs blind were taught nothing but making brooms and mattresses, to cane chairs or do similar handicraft - Formerly people thought if a blind man cd make a broom he was doing very well - but now the blind compete in business & in the professions. Many blind people have reached a high degree of business & literary attainment. Lawyers, teachers, preachers, musicians, piano tuners, chiropractors dictaphone operators and typists who are doing well. To large libraries in the U.S. who 1st page 6 lend books to the blind - Illinois Department of Public Welfare offers a service to any adult who wishes to learn a finger reading system. One files an application & a teacher is sent to one's house - Only 10 lessons are necessary as a rule - Service is rendered free of charge - Let us hope that soon every person handicapped with loss of sight will be offered the opportunities he needs - That teaching, loaning & mailing of books will be free and efficient service be given that will enable the sightless to spend many hours in study, recreation, happiness & contentment to the world at large Gutenberg gave the printed word - To Louis Braille & Dr. William Moore belongs the glory of giving to the blind the embossed wood. 2nd page Marcy Church Terrell I am asking the Chairman to call in you for a 10 to 15 minute talk on Racial Relations in place of Miss Gilman 4 generally accepted in blind institutions until 20 years later, the Braille system had many advantages over other systems & was soon used all over Europe. But in the U.S. the original Braille system was not adopted. It was unnecessary and expensive to have more than one system. Those interested in promoting the education of the blind decided to establish a universal system & communities were formed for that purpose both in Europe & America. Then finally 11 yrs ago in 1918 the Braille system slightly modified was adopted in the U.S. as the uniform system for the English reading blind all over the world. [*Dr. Moore P 5*] And now to day [thanks to a blind man,] books, magazines, and music can be produced by the system which a blind man devised. Blind have material by which they can prepare themselves to enter professions-business . Need more. Great lack of study material. Depend on friends 3 a rich French army officer Barbier who did all he could to promote the education of the blind devised a system but it was not practical because the letters were too long to be covered by the finger - Louis Braille cut the French officers characters in half and made what is called the braille cell - 6 dots 3 high and 2 wide - So this blind man Braille produced the only practical dot finger reading system which now bears his name. Altho pupils & professors realized the superiority of this method over the Roman alphabet the school authorities refused to change the old system but Braille was allowed to teach it unofficially out of school hrs. It was not until 2 yrs after Braille's death that his system was officially adopted at the Paris institution. But it was not 5 pose were formed in Europe & Amer. For many yrs conferences were held. In 1918 the Braille system slightly modified to meet the requirements of the average reader was officially adopted in Amer as the uniform system for the English reading blind thru out the world. In 1847 Dr Moore of Eng invented a system that partially retains the outline of the Roman letter. It is a system of raised letter forming characters which are larger and can be easily distinguished by those who cant learn the Braille It was devised by older people - for those whose touch is less sensitive - Books, magazines & newspapers can be reproduced by means of Braille & the Moore type system wh are indispensable in civilized life. Books have been published [*Need in literary field to understanding need is the kind*] Blind can prepare themselves for professions if material which will enable the Blind to get the kind of education needed to succeed in business. Need to have special literature printed to overcome difficulties in obtaining texts & literature. Great lack of study material blind student dependent on friends. When this great demand for literature supplied it will not only give the blind what they need but also stimulate the ambitions of the entire class of the blind population & will prove they can compete successfully with others. Printing of embossed literature is costly. Special & expensive machinery required. Price of book is great. Cost of ordinary work of fiction- $20- works of science history & literature cost more. 25 or 30 yrs blind taught nothing but make brooms, mattresses to cane a chair or to do similar handicraft. Formerly 2 representing printed letters and characters. He was not born without sight. When he was 3 yrs old he tried to imitate his father who was a harness maker at his work. A sharp instrument which the child took up slipped & put out one of his eyes. The other eye became affected & he lost the sight of both of them. When he was 10 yrs old he was sent to the School for the Blind in Paris. He was an excellent pupil, doing well in literary, musical & mathematical studies. In 1826 he became a professor at the institution and taught grammar, History, Geography Arithmetic Geometry,Algebra & the pianoforte. For yrs he gave all his leisure time trying to find a system whereby the blind could read by relief Blind 1st recorded means which enabled blind to read thru sense of touch began in Spain more than 300 yrs ago - The shape size & outline of the letters were difficult to decipher- At first carvings were made on blocks of wood, strings with knots tied in them were used but they were not practical. But they did show that the blind c'd distinguish letters by the sense of touch. 200 yrs after the first effort the complete Bible was made for the blind.There were 5 systems invented to make it easy for the Blind to read. It was a blind man Louis Braille a teacher of the blind in the schools of Paris who designed the best system. He discovered that the blind cd read by means of raised dots arranged in various positions Social and Moral Reform in Its Relation to the Colored Race. Nobody who has eyes to see and uses them, who has ears to hear and listens can doubt that there is in this country an imperative need of reform along social and moral lines. If only one truth of what appears in the daily press about the wealthy classes is true this need of reform along moral lines does not admit of a doubt. Among the very poor who, in order to secure the barest necessities of life & opulence feel forced to violate the laws both of God and man. There is also a crying need of both social & moral reform. But if a war of reform along social and moral lines should sweep over this country and with its flood of purity and righteousness should wash away the vice and evil and injustice that so sorely afflict us no group of human beings would receive greater benefit therefrom than would the col people of the United States. In this world of temptation and sin the average individual feels that he has fought a good fight, indeed, if he has waged a successful warfare against the sins of the flesh, even tho his environment has been conducive to correct living, his training has been the best and he has been both guided & strengthened by watchful and loving friends. But, when, in addition to the natural weakness to which all races, classes and conditions of mankind are heir, almost insurmountable obstacles to virtue and correct living are placed in the path of any group of human beings, how herculean must be the effort exerted, how heroic must be the struggles if these heavily-handicapped individuals keep in the straight and narrow path. 2 and in manifold opportunities to do whatever it will to tell a group of human beings comparatively few in number, poor in pocket, unequal in education, who in a large section of the country where a majority of its representatives live have no voice in their [governments] affairs of their respective States have therefore nothing to do with making the laws by which they are governed nor with creating conditions under which they live. It is absurd and [for the favored race] cruel [to tell] for such a group of human beings to be told by the dominant race that if they do not reach a certain standard, it is all their own fault. Race prejudice in the U.S. is a monster with a hundred eyes that spy continuously and ferociously upon Colored people to see that at no point shall they [*escape*] slip from [under] this brain-blighting, heart breaking soul crushing glance. Thus far shalt thou go and no further is written on the portals of every vocation and every trade in which Colored people are allowed to engage. While I am The relationship existing between the Col people of this country and the reforms which the International Purity Congress was established to promote is very definite & clear. If in the Providence of God this Congress is able to arouse the conscience & touch the heart of the American people, so that they will heed the plea for national purity which it makes, so that they will set in motion those powerful forces at their command which will make reform along social and moral lines possible the progress among Colored people will be by leaps & bounds. But, I hear some one say, do not place all the responsibility upon white people. Let Colored people work out their own salvation. Let their blood be upon their own heads. The Col people of the U. S. are working out their own salvation in a degree not dreamed of by many who criticize and condemn. I do not claim that Col people are doing all that they should, for they are too much like other races to be an exception to a general rule in this respect. But it is absurd as it is unkind for a race vastly superior in numbers, in wealth, in education Seventh International Purity Congress, Minneapolis, Minn. Nov. 7-12, 1913 WORLD'S PURITY FEDERATION Advisory Board REV. A. CARMAN, D. D., LL. D., Toronto MRS. JAMES M. FERGUSON, New Orleans MR. DELCEVARK KING, Boston, Mass. RABBI HENRY BERKOWITZ, Philadelphia PROF. NEWTON N. RIDDELL, Chicago, Ill. MADISON C. PETERS, D. D., New York City HON. JAMES H. HAWLEY, Boise, Idaho REV. JOHN BALCOM SHAW, Chicago, Ill. DR. KESHAVA DEVA SHASTRI, India, Asia COMMANDER MISS BOOTH, New York City HON. CLIFFORD G. ROE, Chicago, Ill. MRS. E. M. WHITTEMORE, New York City FRANCIS E. CLARK, D. D., LL. D., Boston MR. J. C. ASTREDO, San Francisco DR. HATTIE SCHWENDENER, St Joseph, Mich MR. ANTHONY COMSTOCK, New York City HON. RICHMOND P. HOBSON, Alabama DR. HOWARD A. KELLY, Baltimore, Md. MRS. LOLA G. BALDWIN, Portland, Oregon MRS. LENORA M. LAKE, St Louis, Mo. MR. FRED B. SMITH, New York City MR. W. W. BUCHANAN, Winnipeg, Canada MR. E. K. WARREN, Three Oaks, Mich. BELLE HUNTINGTON MIX, Danville, Iowa MR. WILEY J. PHILLIPS, Los Angeles, Cal. PROF. T. W. SHANNON, Fredericktown, Mo GENERAL OFFICERS President, B. S. STEADWELL La Crosse, Wisconsin. Vice-President, Judge BEN B. LINDSEY Denver, Colorado. Vice-President, Rev. T. ALBERT MOORE Toronto, Canada. Vice-President, Rev. FLOYD W. TOMKINS Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Corresponding Secy., Dr. EMMA F. A. DRAKE Denver, Colorado. Recording Secretary, Mrs. MINNIE L. SKINNER Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Treasurer, Mr. W. L. CLARK Leamington, Ontario, Canada. OFFICIAL ORGAN: THE LIGHT, Published at La Crosse, Wis. Committee Chairmen EDUCATION PRES. CHAS. McKENNY, Ypstlanti, Mich. State Normal College. MEDICAL WORK WINIFIELD SCOTT HALL, M. D., Chicago LITERATURE REV. J. G. SHEARER, Toronto, Canada LEGISLATIVE WORK MR. JAMES H. PATTEN, Washington, D. C. BIBLE SCHOOL WORK MR. E. K. MOHR, New Buffalo, Mich. WHITE SLAVE TRAFFIC REV. ERNEST A. BELL, Chicago, Illinois. WHITE CROSS WORK REV. W. T. ALLEN, Jacksonville, Alabama CONTRIBUTORY VICES MR. J. FRANK CHASE, Boston, Mass. RESCUE WORK MRS. K. WALLER BARRETT, Alexandria, Va IOWA INJUNCTION LAW MR. JOHN B. HAMMOND, Des Moines, Iowa FINANCE - President of Federation La Crosse, Wis., Oct. 30, 1913 Mrs. Mary Church Terrell, Washington, D. C. My dear Madam: We are enclosing herein the official program of the Seventh International Purity Congress at which you are to be one of the leading speakers. We trust the hour assigned you will be both convenient and satisfactory to you. As a slight mark of appreciation for your co-operation and help at this Congress, the Federation will grant you all privileges of honorary membership during the days of the Congress. You will therefore have full voting power not only in the Congress' sessions, but also in the business meetings of the Federation. The first business meeting will be held at eight o'clock sharp on the morning of Friday, November the seventh in the parlors of the Westminster Presbyterian Church, corner of Nicollet ave. and 12th St. We are hopeful that you may plan to be present at this as well as at every other business session of the Federation during the days of the Con- gress. This Congress is receiving greater recognition than has ever been accorded a similar reform gathering on the North American con- tinent. Anticipating great personal pleasure in the association with you during the coming days in Minneapolis, I am Very sincerely yours, BS Steadwell President BS/Nm Our Alabama address Mrs. H.B. Penney Theodore, Ala. R.F.D. Box 150 c/o Collins (Mon Louis Island) [*Page 1 In a Congress [*In a Congress*] called to consider peace, it is fitting that there should be [*be*] one representative of the women of the dark races, at least. [Whatever} may have been true of the [wars waged in the past] wars started and waged by white men in the past were started*] Since I am the only person present who has a single drop of African blood in her veins it devolves upon me to represent not only the colored women of the United States, but the women of Africa and of other dark races as well. I want first to thank the broad-minded, generous hearted white women of the United States to [?] courtesy and consideration. I am indebted for the invitation to be present at this meeting. There would be no race problem anywhere in the world if people everywhere followed the example which these women have set-although I am a delegate to this International Congress [*the purpose of which is the*]. No woman abhors war and desires peace more than the colored woman, no matter whether she lives in Africa, in the United States or in the Islands of the sea. For, whatever may have been true of the past in the wars started and waged by white men to day, colored men are inevitably involved and are actively engaged. Transcribed and reviewed by contributors participating in the By The People project at crowd.loc.gov.