176 New Yoek at the Woeld's Columbian Exposition-. 



Afko-Ameeican Exhibit. 



"When Miss Howard began her exposition work she hardly"^ knew in 

 what direction her efforts would do the most good to the women of her 

 race, but she had an earnest desire to aid them by bringing before the 

 public statistics in reference to their employment, an account of their 

 progress and samples of their best work. She was given authority by 

 the executive committee to form her own committees and follow such 

 lines as she considered best. Whatever may be the result, too much 

 praise can not be given Miss Howard for her untiring and almost 

 ceaseless work during about two years. As she is a New York city 

 public school teacher her time was not her own, and her out of school 

 hours were greatly taxed. During the vacations she visited the sur- 

 rounding and sometimes distant towns to organize sub-committees, and 

 she sent written and printed appeals all over the State to arouse the 

 women of her race to a knowledge of the importance of the occasion. 

 She early made up her mind that these women could not, except in a 

 few cases, compete with others in the different lines of women's work, 

 and when it was suggested by the executive committee that the Afro- 

 American exhibit should be made by itself in order to give it a larger 

 scope, urged by some members of her committees who claimed to see 

 the advantage of such a division, she went to worTs: earnestly to collect 

 an exhibit that might show to some degree on what lines progress is 

 being made. 



Miss Howard's first efforts were in the direction of statistics. In 

 making her researches she came upon so much that was interesting out- 

 side of New York, that she was authorized to extend her efforts to 

 other States. She, therefore, enlisted the aid of colored editors of 

 newspapers, the teachers in schools all over the country and others 

 whose positions gave them a knowledge of their people. In this man- 

 ner and also by forming associations of women in Philadelphia, Wash- 

 ington and Boston she gathered together a most valuable collection of 

 information. To Philadelphia was assigned the interests of the Middle 

 Atlantic States ; to Washington was given the task of obtaining statistics 

 about women in the South and West, and to Boston the facts concern- 

 ing New England women. These committees finally asked permission 

 to confine their reports to the cities of Washington and Philadelphia 

 and the State of Massachusetts. Not willing to give up the original 

 plan of obtaining authentic information from the different sections of 

 the United States, Miss Howard personally addressed letters of inquiry 

 to over 1,000 women, from whom extremely gratifying reports were 

 received. The data relating to New York State colored women was 

 incorporated with the statistics arranged in charts by Miss Roosevelt's 

 committee, while the general information was carefully and neatly 

 transcribed by Miss Howard herself and sent to the State board!' It 

 was found that those colored women who had done the most to show 

 their capabilities are teachers, authors, artists, doctors, designers, 

 musicians, nurses (trained), engravers, missionaries, lawyers, inventors, 

 clerks, librarians, bookkeepers, editors, etc. The facts obtained made 

 a number of pages of tabulated statements and it was at once decided 



