A Boys' Life of Booker T. Washington/Chapter 2
CHAPTER II
BOYHOOD DAYS
When the slaves were set free, one of the first things that many of them did was to change their names. Most of the slaves had only one name. As free people they felt that they should have the same sort of names as other free people; so they began to add a last name, and usually an initial. If a man had been called "Tom" all his life, he was now called "Tom L. Johnson." The "L" stood for nothing. It was simply a part of his "entitles," as Washington says. Another thing they did was to leave their old home place. They could not realize that they were really free unless they tested the matter by going away from the place of their servitude.
Booker Washington's stepfather had left Virginia during the war and had gone to West Virginia. Just as soon as the war was over, he sent for his wife and children to come to him in West Virginia.
He lived at Malden, five miles from Charleston, the capital of the state. It was several hundred miles from the old home in Virginia, but the family determined to go. They bundled up their goods and put them in a cart, the children walking. They traveled the entire distance in this way. They would stop by the roadside to do their cooking and to camp at night.
One night they stopped near an empty cabin. They decided to spend the night in the cabin. They went in and built a fire and spread a pallet on the floor. Suddenly a big black snake rolled down out of the chimney and on to the pallet. You can imagine that they did not care to stay longer in that house. They got outside at once and made a camp.
After several weeks, they completed their journey, and the family reached the town of Malden. Salt was mined there, and Booker's stepfather worked in the salt furnaces. Small as he was, Booker had to begin this work too. It was very hard work, and it was terrible that this child should be compelled to do it. But it was just like Booker to turn the situation to an advantage. The first thing he ever did in the way of reading was to learn the figure "18," which was the number put on the barrels of salt made by his father. Booker was anxious to learn to read; but he had no one to teach him. His own mother could not even teach him his letters. She bought him an old Webster's "blue-back" speller, and he began his first study in this book.
About this time a private school was established in the community. Booker was greatly excited over this, for he had an overwhelming desire to go to school. He was a good worker, however, and was earning money; so his father said "no," and he could not go. Booker was terribly disappointed. He went on with his work with a heavy heart, but he never missed a chance to urge his step-father to let him go to school. Finally, his father agreed to let him go for a part of the day, provided he would get up early each morning and work until nine o'clock and then work two hours after school was out.
It was a glorious day for him when he found himself going to school. However, he soon encountered two great difficulties. One was that he did not have a hat. He had never worn a hat or cap in his life. Since all the other boys had them, he felt that he must have one. So he went home and told his mother about the situation. She explained to him that she had no money with which to buy a "store" hat, but she got two old pieces of "homespun" or jeans, and sewed them together for a cap. The next day Booker proudly walked to school with one difficulty solved.
Listen to his own story of his second difficulty: "My second difficulty was with regard to my name, or rather a name. From the time I could remember anything I had been called simply 'Booker.' Before going to school it had never occurred to me that it was needful or appropriate to have an additional name.
"When I heard the school roll called, I noticed that all the children had at least two names, and some of them indulged in what seemed to me the extravagance of having three. I was in deep perplexity, because I knew that the teacher would demand of me at least two names, and I had only one. By the time the occasion came for the enrolling of my name, an idea occurred to me which I thought would make me equal to the situation; and so, when the teacher asked me what my full name was, I calmly told him 'Booker Washington,' as if I had been called by that name all my life; and by that name I have since been known.
"Later in my life I found that my mother had given me the name of 'Booker Taliaferro' (pronounced Tol-li-ver) soon after I was born, but in some way that part of my name seemed to disappear, and for a long while was forgotten, but as soon as I found out about it, I revived it and made my full name 'Booker Taliaferro Washington.' I think there are not many men in our country who have had the privilege of naming themselves in the way that I have."[1]
Booker was not permitted to go to school very long. His stepfather put him back to work but he went to school at night for a while. Here he learned how valuable the nighttime was, and he afterwards used it a great deal in teaching others.
Near Malden was a coal mine. This business became prosperous, and Booker was sent to work in the coal mines. He hated this work worse than any he ever did. The work was very dirty. It was pitch dark in the mines. It was also very dangerous, for they used dynamite to blast out the coal. His work was a mile from the entrance of the mine. Furthermore, there were many big rats in the place. Because there were many large chambers to the mine and he never could learn all of them, he often got lost. Then his light would go out, and sometimes he would have to wait for hours for some one to come to his aid. This was terrible work for a boy only ten or twelve years of age.
- ↑ "Up from Slavery," by Booker T. Washington, pp. 34-35.