New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-04-10
of those whose only social creed is theft, whose
only politics is murder
THE FUTURE OF TIE NEGRO.

Professor jerks, of Cornell University, has
reached the pessimistc conclusion that the
American negro is never likely to amount to
much. either as a man or a citizen, ana believes
that the best thing he can do IS to look for
fertile spot in Africa to which to cmlgrate
Frederick L. Hoffman, in an article III the April
"Arena.o offers some depressing theories con-
corning the colored dcath-rate. and declares
that ." the time will come, il il has not already
come when the negro, like the Indian, will be
= vanishing race" These two gentlemen,
therefore between them, in the face OF over
whelming proof to the contrary, virtually ask
the public to believe that the true destiny of
the negro lies between extinction and expatria-
ton.
It is time some emphatic check was offered
to the dissemination of such wild and mis-
chievous opinions. Following Mr. Jenks's
plan, it would be easy to predicate on basis
of adverse testimony the ruin of civilization
itself. 1t is true that in the reconstruction
period the uneducated freedman fell into APP
pallng bunders of policy and practice. But
these blunders, it is now seen. were the natural
and inevitable result of his training and en-
vironment. 1t is not true that " so FAR the
negro gives little promise of great advance
ment" 1t is not true that his progress IN the
accumulation of property is so slight as to show
negroes as a race to be still almost as careless
and improvdent as savagcs and it is not true
that history and science prove them " incapable
of an advanced, civilized sclf-govcrnment."
In twenty five years they have accumulated
property worth many millions of dollars, built
r Ill aud ahpC hooks
and established newspapers. In thirty years oil
freedom the Russian peasants, on the other
hand, have prospered so poorly that the Gar
contemplates restoring serfdom. Nirchow de-
clared the other day that we know less about
heredty now than we did thirty years ago; but
what primary student of this controlling force
can fail to perceive the groteSque absrrdlty OF
expecting in twenty-five years a complete over
throw of the influence of sixty centuries?
Mr.. Hoffmans figures do convey one doleful
lesson The mortality reports of large South
ern cities that show an annual white death-rate
of Il 81 against colOrcd death-ratc OF 3l60
in the thousand unquestionably indicate de-
fective attention to hygiene among the blacks.
But the War Department statistics, noting
deaths of 1896 a thousand Of mean strength
for colorcd troops and 11.5O thousand of
mean strength for white troops in the last
twenty years suggest forcibly that the element
of inherent physical weakness enters largely
into the calculation. In the contrast between
the descendants of near barbarism and the
late representatives of high civilization such
differences must be looked for. The negro's
surprising conformity to our habits and ideas
nevertheless points to his ultimate surrender
to physical cducatvc influence and shuts ont
the prospect of his gradual cxtirpation by the
natural assertion Of white supremacy
Far from being depressed by the present out
look. the negro has really everything to hope
for. He is American in birth, tradition and
aspiration. His home is here, and here his des-
tiny must be worked out Education will do
for him exactly what it has done for others
and this, with courage, patience and integrity
nav Yet enable him to shame his traduccrs and
place his race in the front rank as to cnlighten-
mont and virtue.