The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1894-01-25
TO UPLIFT THE NEGRO.
Bishop Poniok Makos m Eloquent
Appeal for tho Negro.
GREAT WORK DONE IN The SOUTH.
What tho Colorcd Man Has Accom-.
plIshcd In Twcnty.clGht Ycnrs-Tho
I Fearful Progress of tho Negro In
Another Observation-Disclosures Intcr.
cstlngly Put by tho bishop.

Last evening Mt st. Matthew'S church,
Right Rev. Bishop PcnIck OF tho
Protestant Episcopal church, who 10
well known in Wheeling rs mn eloquent
divine, lOcturod before small but we'll
pleased audience on tho subject Of the
"Nogro OF tho South"
Ho spoke OF tho condition OF tho
negro In tho south before tho war and
then came up to tho timo when howas
freed Two direct movements on tho
part OF the negro followed that act
part OF 1t in M upward direction, and
in tho other they worc drawn down,
down by tho viciousnOss Of our civilzu.
ton.
Look at tho bright or upward move.
ment. Twentv.cight years ago no be.
came free, and lad nothing but his
clothes, To-day, 10 their credit, they
have property in tho south valued at
5000, 100000. To-day thcy have 10000
churches, worth 2300O,0Oo, with 5,000,-
600 church members. They have in
other words actually outstripped the
I white race in their progress in this
line, Tho Colored people have n church
to every $40 inhabitants, while the
whites have ono to $50. Then not ono
in ten could read; to-day they have 25,-
900 professors, and 100000 read tho
story OF Jesus. | doubt il such rapid
strides in learning have been, shown in
history. That shows tho bright sido Of
the picture.
Now let US look ut tho other side.
They number $500, 900, onc.ninth Of the
population OF tho United States, but
they furnish 81 per cent OF all tho muir
derors. In other words, one.ninih OF
the people furnish more than one.third
OF the murderers. The terms OF all the
prisoners in all tho prisons OF the
United States foot up 227, 900 years. OF
these, the forty-six million white native
born furnish $1,000 years, twenty mil
lion foreign born furnish 1900 years.
and seycn and one-half million negroes
furnish $1,000 years.
1 Proceeding tho speaker said that the
attempt to make the young negro better
has not proved tho brightest of sue
cesses. The young negro is more dan
gerous than the older ono. OF all tho
homicides under forty years, tho negro
furnishes one-third; OF all under thirty
he furnishes onc-half, and OF all under
twenty years he makes up more than
two-thirds. Who is at fault for this
condition OF affairs? Not tho negro
alone. lie is trained 10 do it in our
schools, our bar-rooms and our gamb-
ling hells. There is where he meets the
low white man, and is contaminated.
The negro is not bad naturally, but is
made so by bad white men and bad
whisky-if you want to know the truth.
In tho south there are two white men
for every colored man. This is true in
tho tarritory embraced below line
!: drawn from Maryland to northeast
NToxas. In the rest OF the country there
z is one colored man to every fitty.eisht
Z whites. In the south before the war
Z the negro was thrown with the best OF
tho whites. Their owners took an ac-
(, tive interest in them. When the negro
& left the sunny south for tho north he
became associated with the worst speci-
$ mems of the white race. and you see tho
result, in that there is ono negro homi-
eide for every 607. In the years from
q 1850 to 1890 our wealth increased 10 per
cent; our population increased a per
+ cent and tho number OF murders grew
over 80 per cent. 1t is high time for
the American people to stop in the pur-
y suit OF money, and look after their fel-
low men. II We don't do this we will
soon find ourselves in condition from
!, which We cannot eHtricato ourselves
All this increase in our criminal record
has taken place, too, while the record in
! European countries including England
hrs declined Some one in tho audi
! once said: '.They send their criminals
I over here"
The question is, can We do anything?
: Before tho war he had never heard OF
negro dying OF consumption. Now it is
go different. Tho white race has in.
creased in population 81 per cent while
1.-THE colored increased but IS per cent.
\ The truth is these people arc dying of.
.sWhy? Because they do no: know how
to live. They are dying twice as fast MS