Page:Boys Life of Booker T. Washington.djvu/84

68 'Don't shoot! How much do you want?'" And President Eliot said that Washington could beat him raising money.

Before Washington's death in 1915, it required from $250,000 to $300,000 a year to run Tuskegee. That is a big sum of money. A very large part of it had to be raised by personal solicitation. And it had to be raised almost entirely in the North. This meant that Washington had to spend a large part of his time away from Tuskegee, traveling over the country, making speeches, and talking to individual men. It was hard work, and it took a great deal of strength and effort as well as time. He had many remarkable experiences. He met many great and good people, who were glad to help him. He had an opportunity to tell them about his school and about his people in the South; and an opportunity to hear this remarkable man was given to many people.

This is the way he was led to undertake this work. When the girls began coming to school, they had to have a dormitory. The boys had been staying in the attic of Porter Hall, living in the shanty, or boarding in town. But this would not do for the girls. They must have different accommodations. The boys ought to have, but the girls must have better surroundings. So they proceeded to plan a dormitory. They did not have any money with which to build a house. It was just like starting Porter Hall. But they said they