The Booker T. Washington Papers, Vol.11, page 451, Jan. 1912, U. of Illinois Press

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JANUARY · I 9 I 2 1904 he contributed $~,ooo to the support of the Colored American Magazine and $~50 to the Boston Colored Citizen, apparently because of sympathy with BTW. (Fred R. Moore to BTW, Apr. 25, 1904, Coal. 23, BTW Papers, DLC.) To the Editor of the Atlanta Constitutions Tuskegee, Ala. January ~ a, ~ 9 ~ 2 Editor Constitution: Through your paper ~ wish to call the attention of the men of my own race to the frightful loss of life and serious wounding and maiming of human beings that grows out of the habit of carrying concealed weapons. No one can read the daily papers, giving account of the crimes and accidents growing out of shootings during the Christmas holidays, without being impressed with the fearful and useless loss of life and limb resulting from the habit of carrying concealed weapons. During Christmas week a rough calculation shows that in Alabama there were twenty-eight persons killed and about the same number of persons seriously or fatally wounded. Taking for granted that an equal number were killed and wounded in the remaining twelve southern states, and ~ think this Is a conservative estimate, we have a total of about 3oo persons killed and an equal number wounded during Christmas week. Of course I realize that all of this shooting was not done by colored people, but the majority of the crimes or accidents relate to the members of my own race. My object in writing is to appeal to the masses of our people through ministers, teachers and other leaders to give up once for all the habit of carrying concealed weapons. It is a subject that should be taken up in the pulpit, in the Sunday school, in the home and continually agitated until every member of our race who is now in the habit of carrying concealed weapons will fee] ashamed to do so. During all the years that I have lived in Alabama ~ have never carried a concealed weapon, ~ have never kept one in my house and have never felt the need o one. ~ have traveled through all parts of the south by night and by day and have never felt that ~ have been in the least danger, and if ~ had I am quite sure I would not have been protected by reason of carrying a pistol. Where a pistol or gun keeps a person out of trouble one time, nine times it gets him in trouble. Besides, carrying concealed weapons 45I