In this address I said that the whole future of the Negro rested
largely upon the question as to whether or not he should make himself,
through his skill, intelligence, and character, of such undeniable
value to the community in which he lived that the community could not
dispense with his presence. I said that any individual who learned to
do something better than anybody else -- learned to do a common thing
in an uncommon manner -- had solved his problem, regardless of the
colour of his skin, and that in proportion as the Negro learned to
produce what other people wanted and must have, in the same proportion
would he be respected.
I spoke of an instance where one of our graduates had produced two
hundred and sixty-six bushels of sweet potatoes from an acre of
ground, in a community where the average production had been only
forty-nine bushels to the acre. He had been able to do this by reason
of his knowledge of the chemistry of the soil and by his knowledge of
improved methods of agriculture. The white farmers in the
neighbourhood respected him, and came to him for ideas regarding the
raising of sweet potatoes. These white farmers honoured and respected
him because he, by his skill and knowledge, had added something to the
wealth and the comfort of the community in which he lived.
Pages:
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201