In regard to the addresses which I was to make in the North, I
recall just one piece of advice which the General gave me. He said:
"Give them an idea for every word." I think it would be hard to
improve upon this advice; and it might be made to apply to all public
speaking. From that time to the present I have always tried to keep
his advice in mind.
Meetings were held in New York, Brooklyn, Boston, Philadelphia,
and other large cities, and at all of these meetings General Armstrong
pleased, together with myself, for help, not for Hampton, but for
Tuskegee. At these meetings an especial [sic] effort was made to
secure help for the building of Alabama Hall, as well as to introduce
the school to the attention of the general public. In both these
respects the meetings proved successful.
After that kindly introduction I began going North alone to secure
funds. During the last fifteen years I have been compelled to spend a
large proportion of my time away from the school, in an effort to
secure money to provide for the growing needs of the institution. In
my efforts to get funds I have had some experiences that may be of
interest to my readers. Time and time again I have been asked, by
people who are trying to secure money for philanthropic purposes, what
rule or rules I followed to secure the interest and help of people who
were able to contribute money to worthy objects.
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