Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1894-10-24
DUTY TO THE NEGRO.
DR.. Smiths Earnest Plea for the Evan.
Selization Of the Blacks.
OPEN DOORS OF THE WEST.
Dr. Combs Tells the Disciples Plainly Their
Duty I'm Extension wOrk-Other
Interesting Features

tian Missionary Convention OF the ma
tional conventions OF Disciples opened
upon a busy scene. Committees were al
work everywhere, and the happy faces OF
the delegates were witnesses to the hear'-
mess with which they entered upon their
work. The devotional exercises were led
by Rev. J. G. Waggoner, OF Buffalo, n
y, after which the report OF the BOARD
OF Negro Evangelizati0n and Education
was presented by Rev. G. G. SMITH, 'he
secretary. This report showed that curing
the past year s5.369l7 had been received
to carry on this good work among the
negroes OF the South. Notwithstanding
the unprecedented hard times OF the past
year the balance in the treasury was
shown to be 1886. In addition TO the
carving on OF the work of negro evan
celization the Southern Christian lnst-
tute. one of the schools for this WORK
received l.1s9.n, which, with books. maps
&c will swell The sum to 5000. The
school in Louisville, Ky, and at Edwards
Miss, are doing good work, and should
be well sustained. They are superintend-
ID by a. j. Thompson and ]. b. Lehman
AN EARNEST ADDRESS.
Among the most earnest addresses yet
delivered was that OF Mr.. Smith. Of Mas
siIlon. o.. who Is secretary and field agent
of this work. Among other things Mr..
Smith, after holding neither the North nor
the South guiltless of sins. said:
ut is not the condemnation OF the
wickedness itself that hurts. but the
making II sectional. Neither England nor
the North are SO pure as TO cast the ilrst
stone. England should not forget her
poppy trade nor her colonial policy IN
Africa. nor the North that she has hung
more negroes without law for an unnam-
able crime according TO her negro popu-
lation, than the South. This sectional
condemnation has called out nearly all the
apologies for this blacklist OF crimes
against God and man and country, in
which all Anarchists rejoice. and whlch
all Christians condemn, and which the
South deplores as much as the North
The quickest way to get men their rights
is to make them right Respectabilty Is
always respected, and the holy are no
longer hung on trees. The South and the
North met IN Christian Endeavor,' in
Cleveland. not TO recrimnate. but to re-
joice together They have met in Rich
lnOIl. NOI 10 ufrlTUNs DiN W save NV III
the spirit of alienation. but of love, uni
fled by one great purpose-that of uplift-
ing. in the name Of "The Christ all for
whom He died to the ends of the earth.
NEEDS NO DEFENCE.
"Nor am / here to speak in defence of
the South. She needs no defence But it
IS only matter OF justice. since so much
has been said and written TO call atten-
ton to and magnify her sins. that men
ton at least, should be made of her
virtues. Suppose some prophet had
arisen out OF the flame and smoke of APP
pomattoX and declared: These men who
have to-day been forced by the arbitra-
ment of wal TO free their slaves Will IN
the next thirty years spend S60c0,0O0 for
their education. Would he not have
been n prophet without honor, especially
in his own country And yet. not only Is
this true. but in the schOol-year Of 49,
1891 over 100000 has been expended by
the Southern States. exclusive Of benefac-
lions, on the common schools; being 81
per capita Of all who attended school. In
addition. the various Southern States, en-
trely in the control Of the white people,
voted Sl3s, 40 for the higher education OF
the negro.
MISUNDERSTOOD
wherever the South has built a school
house for the white population she has
built one as well for the colortd. The
very spirit Of the South has been misun-
derstood. Bishop Haygood. one whom all
negroes concede 10 be their friend says.
in speaking of the South: 4 am sure
the southern white people have borne
themselves under trials never known be
fore in history a. well as any people in
the world could have borne themselves
The great mistake which many true
friends Of the negro have made IS In
thinking that in order to be "A friend Of
the negro they must needs be the white
mans enemy, and the greatest wrong
which has ever been done the poor negro
since the war was in alternating him from
these. his best friends. Bishop Haygood
also says: 1t is absolutely certain that
in their ordinary dealings with the negro
the southern white people are kinder 10
him and more patient than any other peo-
pie who come into relations with HIM
LET HIM BE TURNED LOOSE.
"You of the North say, and most just
ly-poOr fellow. Yes. but let him be
turned loose on your fields till he out
numbers you three to one; let him swarm
into your towns like the locusts and
crowd you from the sidewalks. and fill
the places once sacred TO you; let II be
your property he steals and your barns
he burns, and your daughters who suf-
fer. Can you affirm you would always
stop 10 remember his past and from
whence he came, and that but for the
intervention or Providence you might
have been sucn as he? Can you affirm
that the lynchings would be less In this
case? Put yourself in the southerner's
place. Frances Willard says on this
point: Il pity the southerners. The
problem on their hands is immeasurable.'
The colored race she says multiply
like the locusts OF Egypt. The safety
Of woman. Of childhood, of the home Is
menaced in thousand localities at this
moment, so that men dare not go beyond
the sight Of their own roof-tree. We
ever have the greatest charity for the sin
that is farthest off. We weep over the
heather Chinese In China and pull his
cue at sur door. But from the above
sowing what must the harvest be? In
1880 there were l.GSo.S96 negroes Of school
age not in school"
WHY CONTINUE?
The Christian Educator says: why con-
tinue educational and missionary work in
the SOUTH and answers. Because the
ignorant and pagan populations increase
more rapidly than they can be educated
and Christanized.' At the close of the
decade ending with 1850 there were $4,000
more iliterate persons in the South than
at the beginning of 1870. The census OF
1880. not yet complete. shows that there
are many more persons who could not
read and write than in 1880. After all
that has been done for his education only
one in three can read and write. Not
one in hundred has "A good common
school education. Not one In three hun
dred has normal training, and not one
in a thousand has a finished education.
Eyes: for this class OF ignorant and sin
full ] plead. They have great claim upon
our sympathy: all the claim which the
needy have upon those who have abund
ance: which the weak have upon the
strong: which the ignorant have upon
the cultured; which the fallen have upon
the upright: which the sinful have upon
the righteous; which the barbarian had
on Paul. and which We have upon Jesus
Christ. In us Is their only hope. and as
we deliver them from weakness and sin
we free our country from pollution and
death. Yet In the midst OF this dismal
swamp may flowers grow that by con-
trast glow the brighter
At the close OF Mr. Smiths address Rev
]. S. Lamar, OF Valdosta. Ga, was called
upon and spoke a most delightful word OF
hearty commentator. An Offering was
then made. resulting in over 5000 for this
good work.
WORK IN THE FIELD.
A symposium. led by j. II. Hardin. of
on Work in the Field" was
an interesting feature of the mornings
session. Short addresses were made by