It is a line from a frayed old book from my secondary school library, which I buried in a box for years- a wonder that it sparkles in my mind after all these years.
It is from a story told by Booker T. Washington (a Negro who was an ex-slave and lifted himself up to an educator and statesman in America) in a speech given to all the white people from the higher society from North and South America and the men of his own race, for the first time, after freedom:
A ship lost at sea for many days suddenly sighted a friendly vessel. The unfortunate ship hoisted on top of its mast a signal saying "water, water; we die of thirst". The vessel returned "cast down your bucket where you are". The distressed ship gave the signal a second time, "water, water; send us water!" and was answered "cast down your bucket where you are". A third and forth signal ran up and were answered "cast down your bucket where you are". The captain of the distressed ship finally heeded the injunction and casted down their bucket, and it came up full of fresh, sparkling water from the mouth of the Amazon River.
The line was originally meant to tell people to cast down their bucket where they are in making friends with all races in their neighborhood, as both races can be as separate as fingers but one as a hand to bring mutual progress (the Negroes were one-third of the population). It was also meant to tell people to cast their bucket down all kinds of industrial labour as well as other professions. Many black men struggled for an education only to get rid of labour, since they were freed from slavery. But they overlooked the dignity of labour, as essentially the masses still lived on productions of hands.
Mr. Washington started a school without any money and resources and he was glad it started off this way. He asked all his teachers and students to build the school buildings together by themselves, meaning doing all the brick making and furnacing, wood and metal work, etc. Not only at a later stage the bricks were of the desired quality that could be sold in the market with a commercial value, but it taught the students to love the school as their own property, not by law and regulations: Not only a few times, a student tried to mar the school wall with a lead pencil or a knife; an older boy came up to stop him and said, 'Don't do that! That is our building. I helped put it up!'
Labour does not only bring economical values. But by lading a man with hardship and responsibility, he grows to endure all discomforts and treasure the fruit he has made for himself, and he is not 'stuck up' with comforts.
At our time, the line makes the sense to me to cast our own bucket down, not only our own talents, but the ordinary and even nonsense around us, to make the best sense and use out of them. Perhaps we will find an oasis.
Labour of the mind and body is valuable exercise these days, as life is so much easier that people do not take the troubles.
