To avoid obtaining an erroneous idea from this table it is necessary to note distinction between mere literacy and education. Educated negroes are the least criminal.

These figures would be changed materially if the large number of negro criminals of the southern states were included who never reach a prison, but who are lynched by mob.

Three-tenths of the negroes are found in the southern South Atlantic states, nearly three-tenths more in the eastern South Central, and nearly two-tenths in the western South Central. These three regions contain over three-fourths (77.7 per cent) of the entire negro population of the United States. The Western states and the New England states have the smallest number, only I per cent of the negroes being found in these regions, which contain 12.8 per cent of the total population.

More than three-tenths of the entire negro population of the country are living in the three adjoining states of Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. These, together with the adjacent Atlantic coast states of Virginia and North and South Carolina, and the two gulf states of Louisiana and Texas, are the only states each having over half a million negroes in 1900. Taken together, these eight states contain nearly seven-tenths of all of the negroes in the country. The states with the smallest number of negroes are, as a rule, those at the greatest distance from these states. Thus there are nineteen of the fifty states and

territories which have less than 10,000 negroes each, and contain together less than two two-hundredths of the negro population of the United States, although having more than one-eighth of the total population.

There are 55 counties in the United States in each of which at least three-fourths of the population are negroes; 19 in Mississippi, II in Alabama, 8 in Louisiana, 5 in Arkansas, 5 in Georgia, 4 in South Carolina, 2 in Florida, and 1 in Virginia. This shows clearly that the great region of predominant negro population lies along the lower Mississippi, where 29 of these 55 counties are situated.

In the north and west the negro is almost as pre-eminently a denizen of cities as in the south he is a denizen of country districts. In the north and west seven-tenths of the negroes and only half the whites live in cities having at least 2,500 inhabitants. The difference is most marked in cities having at least 100,000 inhabitants. Such cities include less than one-fourth of the whites and more than one-third of the negroes.

Cities of the United States having over 30,000 negroes:

Cities of the United States having over 30,000 negroes.

Washington...

Baltimore..
New Orleans..

Philadelphia.

New York.

Memphis

Louisville.
Atlanta..
St. Louis.
Richmond..
Chicago...

Nashville

86,702

79,258

The following table shows the increase of negroes and of whites in the 38 cities of the United States having at least 100,000 inhabitants in 1900 and in the rest of the country:

These figures show that in the large cities of the country, as a whole, negroes are increasing at a somewhat higher rate than whites. This is the more noteworthy, both because in the country, as a whole, and in the country outside these cities, the increase of negroes is somewhat slower than that of whites, and, also, because 33 of these 38 large cities lie outside of the southern states, in which nearly nine-tenths of the negroes live, so that the rapid increase of their negro population must involve, in many cases, long-distance migration. This has also to a great extent been due to the importation of negro laborers by large manufacturing firms of the northern cities. When discharged by such firms they remain in the north. The following is an example of negro migration: On August 16, 1893, Rev. J. F. Davidson (colored) arrived in Tacoma, Washington, from New Orleans with 25 negroes for the purpose of colonization.

The negro race has a much larger proportion of children than the white race. Their death rate is also much higher, as shown by the

following table:

of

In Continental United States, 4,394 negro children under 15 years age, over five-sixths of them girls, were reported as married. Excluding the children under 15 years of age, there were, in 1900, 53 per cent of the negro population of the United States reported married and 55.9 per cent of the white population reported married.

From these reliable statistics it is obvious that

I. The occupation of the negro has varied only in a small degree during the past forty years.

2. Their birth rate and death rate is higher.

3. Illiteracy is gradually being overcome by the more progressive. 4. Amalgamation is gradually taking place between the two races. 5. The percentage of crimes among negroes continues to increase. 6. The center of the negro population remains in the South, and over nine-tenths of the colored population of the United States has remained in the southern states.

Upon careful consideration one could only expect these natural results.

CHAPTER IX.

OCCUPATION OF THE AMERIcan Negro.

1. The negro as a race is naturally indolent. They inherited this trait, and we will not criticise them for being so. We will merely comment on it in connection with other characteristics. In the northern and western states, where the percentage of negroes is small, they are more progressive than in the southern states. The negroes of the latter seem to prefer picking up coal along a railroad track, fishing, picking berries, or hunting all day for a rabbit or 'coon than to work steadily at any occupation.

From all I have been able to observe, comparatively few negroes work steadily the year around. The statistics show that of all those who have employment, there are on an average 1,159,900 unemployed a part of each year.

Permanent progress is only found in continued industry or employment, or in thrift and practice of moral obligations. This seems to be most lacking in the negro race.

Many of the southern whites employ negroes simply because they can get no one else. Their efficiency as day laborers is far below that of the whites, and far below that of slavery times. People of every southern state tell me that there is little choice between leaving their work undone and hiring average negro help. A few personal illustrations may serve to explain this statement. I employed at various times within a year eight different negro women and seven negro men. In every instance their work had to be looked over and in many cases done over after them. The women would burn clothes when ironing, leave corners dirty when scrubbing, or cleaning, waste more in the kitchen than their wages amounted to, accomplish about half as much as the average white person, and leave a pungent odor on every piece of clothing or material in the kitchen that would absorb it.

They seemed to regard their work in a subconscious state of mind. most of the time.

When I left the men to saw wood they usually began about 10 o'clock A. M., and, although the weather was mild, being in October, they always built a fire by which to keep warm while sawing. Whenever any of their friends came along they stopped sawing, lit cigarettes, and talked for hours at a time. When pay-day came they were disap