started a bank in that same town which direct and reliable
information convinces me is in a prosperous condition. The
bank has the confidence of both races. It is a curious
circumstance that while objection was made to this black
family being at the head of the post-office no objection is
made to this black man being president of a bank in the same
town.

A letter just received from a reliable banker in Mississippi
contains the following sentences:

"Now, with reference to Mr. W.W. Cox, of Indianola, Miss., I
beg to advise that no man of color is as highly regarded and
respected by the white people of his town and county as he.
It is true that he organized and is cashier of the Delta
Penny Savings Bank, domiciled there. I visited Indianola
during the spring of 1905 and was very much surprised to
note the esteem in which he was held by the bankers and
business men (white) of that place. He is a good, clean man
and above the average in intelligence, and knows how to
handle the typical Southern white man. In the last statement
furnished by his bank to the State Auditor, his bank showed
total resources of $46,000. He owns and lives in one of the
best resident houses in Indianola, regardless of race, and
located in a part of the town where other colored men seem
to be not desired. The whites adjacent to him seem to be his
friends. He has a large plantation near the town, worth
$35,000 or $40,000. He is a director in Mr. Pettiford's bank
at Birmingham, Ala., and I think is vice-president of the
same. He also owns stock in the bank of Mound Bayou."

Yours very truly,

[Signed] BOOKER T. WASHINGTON.

_To President Theodore Roosevelt, Washington, D.C._

In August, 1905, Booker Washington spoke one Sunday morning before a
large audience in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. After his address Mr. John
Wanamaker and his daughter were among those who came forward to greet
him. They also invited him to dine with them at the United States
Hotel that afternoon. Mr. Wanamaker had been particularly interested
in Booker Washington and his work for many years. Mr. Washington
accepted this invitation without the least thought of reawakening the
clamor caused by the Roosevelt dinner. The dinner itself passed off
quietly, pleasantly, and without particular event. It was not until he
took up the