The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1889-07-31


wife of the newly-elected president of
the National Educational Association,
who was in that city last week with her
husband attending the sessions of the
She had, like all the visit
ors, been treated with great courtesy,
but wrote a letter to friend in Kan
sas, in which she made several slight
ing remarks about the So1th. The
letter was not intended for publication,
but the friend to whom it was written
sent it to the Topeka lKan.)
CAPITAL, and the Nashville american re-
published it. The letter was as follows:
II was rather disappointed in the
looks of the Sunny South SO far as |
have seen it. Kentucky, seen from our
car windows, seemed very much like
Missourl-unkempt and uninteresting--
the towns are small, poverty-strickeu
and dirty. At the stations the people
were sunburned, sad and stolid crea-
lures; men chewed tobacco, women
wore sunbonnets and negroes were plen.
tiful, ragged and dirty. Tobacco ware
houses were conspicuous in every place
we passed through; miles and miles of
swampy roads, and seldom saw we'll
kept and prosperous looking farm. 1t
is quite possible the railroad passed
through the worst part of the country
1t often does. Nashville is beautifully
situated on the Cumberland River and
has population of 100,O0 people.
Yesterday we went to the largest
church here, Methodist one. The min
lister was an invited guest of the one in
charge, and much to my surprire he
gave fine, liberal sermon, a regular
Simon-pure Unitarian sermon. / have
been told that they are very old-fasl-
ioned in religious matters in the South,
maintaining astrict orthodoxy. A Unita
rian Church docs not exist here. lmag-
inc my surprise, then, to hear this ser
mon. But, as | say, the man was a
stranger, and | don't think his discourse
was relished by the congregation. There
were no responsive faces around me.
His one thought was: "Religion is a
simple thing; follow the truth as it is re-
vealed to each soul, and initiate Christ. :"
He was odd and 'Beechery' in some of
his illustrations and expressions. If
you think Heaven is going to be re-
cruited from the amen corner of the
Methodist Episcopal Church alone, you
will be nightly mistaken I'VE should
not make forms and ceremonies a part
of ourselves, but wear them as we do
our clothes: ready to lay them aside for
better ones when they are outWorn. If
we wear them like our skins we are sure
to become hide-bound, and hide-bound
Christian is no better than parchment
dried old Pharisee.' The Jew is bound
by the clip theory; the Baptist has the
dip theory; Presbyterians have the grip
theory; Episcopalians have the tip
theory: Methodists have the hop and
skip theory, and they are all apt to wear
these theories like their skins, till
they are hide bound Much of his dis
course was smooth and eloquent, and
think of his quoting Emerson and Ten
nyson! A Methodist minister in the
South!
''In the afternoon we took dummy
street car and went to the outskirts of
the city, to a pretty park six miles out.
Thousands of people were enjoying the
cool breezes under the trees in a very
quiet way When we returned we took
another dummy to see West Nashville
arS sub another at-ectfon: rect ftf
The tain this time had two cars, one
for whites and the other for blacks.
Several colored girls, we'll dressed and
quiet, got into the car We were in while
we were waiting for the time to start.
The conductor told them they must get
in the next car. They left the tram
with indignant faces, and did not go at
all. l discussed the incident with a
Southern woman who sat next to me in
the car. Those girls ought not to have
been allowed to enter the car, she said.
I asked her if the colored people often
demanded equal rights OF this sort. oh.
no. she said; as rule, the negroes are
right obedient. They know they have
to be- she added. So you see the color
line is drawn sharply, and is sometimes
resented. We shall see more Of this, no
doubt, as the meetings go on. The race
question is the question of our time, |
believe. The blacks are increasing faster
than the whites. 1t is only question
of time when they will outnumber the
whites two to one. they are strong and
sturdy, they are being educated, and
have the ballot. What is to hinder
them from having the power in
their hands some day. May then be
in some convenient corner in the sky to
look down on the spectacle of black
heels on white necks. Cursed be
Canaan" will do now, but it won't last
forever. Well, our trips to the parks
showed US the people of the middle
South, or rather the working people of
the Southern city, taking a holiday:
Tonight after supper Mr.. Garfield and
l walked to the State House ard walked
through the grounds by moonlight.
We passed many solidly elegant houses.
There is much wealth Luere. The capi-
tol is on a hill overlooking the city. 1t
seemed very massive and imposing to
me tonight. Seen by daylight have
no doubt it would not look so fine, but
would appear dingy and uncared fer as
everything else in the South does. l
had call from two Southern women
to-day, wives of members of the loca
committee. The dialects, as given in
novels, are not at all exaggerated. |
rather like the soft voices, the invari-
able drawl and absenCe of RS. 1 2n
intlicting this long letter on you tonight
because my husband is late in coming
in, and am waiting for him. l hope
you will be able to wade through it all.
l have tlickering light and scratchy
pen, both drawbacks to good letter
writing.
81 am in depressed state of mind
because | have just finished a dreadful
book, novel by Florence Frick Kelley,
whom my husband is interested in as
an ex.student of kahsas University and
one he thought promising.
II have read the book because of this