Morning journal and courier., 1885-11-11
Wednesday, November n, 1888,
A NOTABLE MEETING.

A notable meeting was that held at the Morris Brown church at Charleston, South Carolina, the other evening. Those present were, for the most part, ex-slaves and de- scendants of slaves, and they met to consider "the negro question"
 The speakers were all negroes, and what they said is interesting and significant, and much of it thoroughly practical. For in stance, the Rev. L. R. Nichols urged the colored people to stand by one another in business, to push one another along and ahead in every legitimate way. It was time, he said, for them to get rid of the foolish and hateful jealousy that made them suspect every prosperous negro of feeling stuck up'' and refuse to rejoice in his success. It was time to cultivate race-fesling and race pride not hatred of any other race, not at all but love of their own. "f we were not ashamed of ourselves as negroes" he said, Eve would be better off. We should forget that fact and deal with ourselves simply as . people who are anxious to go forward on all the lines of improvement. Acts and amend ments and special legislation have been pass ed, but they haven't availed us much. I say that if we are to attain any prominence on this continent we must help each other. There is no harm in colored people patroniz- ing each other exclusively. We shall never have wealth, education or morality until we help ourselves to them, and then we shall be power in this country, but not until then"
 Perhaps the most sensible of all the speeches was that of Rev. E. o. Brown, who strongly urged the young colored men to learn trades. The State had a great supply of common laborers, but skilled labor was already at premium, and, with the devel- opment of the new industries now springing up everywhere in the New South, would be in constantly increasing demand. Unless negroes learned trades, skilled mcchanfcs from the northern States and Europe would come in and crowd them to the wall Parents should look to this-should send their boys to an industrial school if possible, as soon as they reached the proper age. He was grieved to see young colored men behind bars or in the lottery business. s'The masses" he said 'smust be given trades; the geniuses will look out for themselves"
 The Rev. H. Cardzoa paid attention to the political problem. He said there could be no stable prosperity in the State without peace between the races, and there could be no stable peace without justice. Both the white man and the black had things to learn and things to unlearn. This speaker earn
 estly advised the colored citizens, in the in
 terest of their own future, to divide theil
 votes. That would divide the white vote he argued. "We are here to stay," said MT Cardoza, 'tand by Gods hel p we intend te make this country better for us and oul children"
 There was much more talk, which wa eagerly listened to by the large audience Before adjourning, the meeting asked th' preachers who had addressed it to prepare l and publish an address to the people of bot races. This document will undoubtedly b ! an interesting one, and will have weight un ! less it's matter and tone are unwise.