.' Now, my friends, that is mighty discouraging to the colored
man!" At this not only the colored people, but the white people sprang
to their feet and shouted, many of them, "You're right, Doctor!"
"That's mean!" "That's not fair!" and other such expressions.

[Illustration: Mr. Washington feeding his chickens with green stuffs
raised in his own garden.]

[Illustration: Mr. Washington in his onion patch.]

[Illustration: Mr. Washington sorting in his lettuce bed.]

Every morning before breakfast when at home Mr. Washington would visit
his chickens, pigs, and cows. He said of finding the newly laid eggs:
"I like to find the new eggs each morning myself, and am selfish
enough to permit no one else to do this in my place. As with growing
plants, there is a sense of freshness and newness and restfulness in
connection with the finding and handling of newly laid eggs that is
delightful to me. Both the realization and the anticipation are most
pleasing. I begin the day by seeing how many eggs I can find or how
many little chicks there are that are just beginning to creep through
the shells. I am deeply interested in the different kinds of fowls,
and always grow a number of different breeds at my own home."

But none of the animals interested him and aroused his enthusiasm as
did the pigs. He always kept on his own place some choice specimens of
Berkshires and Poland Chinas at whose shrine he worshipped each
morning. Also he always insisted that the swine herd of the Institute
be kept recruited up to full strength and in fact considerably beyond
full strength in the opinion of the Agricultural Director who in vain
protested that it was not profitable to keep so large a herd. It would
be interesting to know whether the great economic importance of the
pig to his race was at the bottom of Booker Washington's fondness for
the animal.

After breakfast he mounted his horse and made a round of the Institute
farms, truck gardens, dormitories, and shops before going to his
office and attacking his huge correspondence. This correspondence,
both in its dimensions and catholicity, was typical of the man. His
daily incoming mail amounted to between 125 and 150 letters. The
outgoing ran to between 500 and 1,000 letters daily--in large part, of
course, "campaign letters,"--as he called them, letters seeking to
interest new friends in the work of the Institute, and others keeping
in touch with friends already interested, etc. His advic