the low standard of living among the blacks keeps down the wages
of all classes of whites. So long as the Negroes are content to live in
miserable huts, wear rags, and subsist upon hog fat and cow-pease, so
long must the wages of white people in the same kind of work be pressed
toward the same level. The higher we raise the standard of living among
the Negroes, the higher will be the wages of the white people in the
same occupations. The low standard of the Negroes is the result of low
productive power. The less intelligent and skilled the Negroes are, the
less they can produce, whether working for themselves or others, and
hence, the less will be the total wealth of the country.

But it may be asked, When the standard of living of the Negroes is
raised, will not wages go up, and will not that be a drawback? Certainly
wages will go up, because the income of all classes will be increased.
High wages generally indicate high productive power and general wealth,
while low wages indicate the opposite. Only benefits can arise from
better wages.

In the next place, the Negro's propensity to crime tends to excite the
criminal tendencies of the white man. The South enjoys the distinction
of having the highest percentage of crime in all the civilized world,
and the reason is that the crimes of the one race provoke counter-crimes
in the other.

The physical well-being of the one race has such a conspicuous influence
upon that of the other that the subject requires no elaboration. The
uncleanliness of person and habits of the Negroes in their homes and
in the homes of their employers tends to propagate diseases, and thus
impairs the health and increases the death-rate of the whole population.

Again, the lack of refinement in intellect, manners, and dress among the
Negroes is an obstacle to the cultivated life of the whites. Ignorance
and the absence of taste and self-respect in servants result in badly
kept homes and yards, destruction of furniture and ware, ill-prepared
food, poor table service, and a general lowering of the standard of
living. Furthermore, the corrupt, coarse, and vulgar language of the
Negroes is largely responsible for the jumbled and distorted English
spoken by many of the Southern whites.

Seeing that the degradation of the Negro is an impediment to the
progress and civilization of the white man, how may we effect an
improvement in his condition?

First, municipalities should give more attention to the