People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1895-04-25
John Temple Graves.

John Temple Graves delivered his
famous lecture on "Uncle Toms Last
Cabin" at the auditorium Monday
night it being the last attraction OF the
course. Mr.. Graves lecture waSSOme-
what in the nature of surprise to
those who expected to hear a "pOpu-
lar" lecture in the sense in which that
word is generally accepted. The
theme and leading idea Of his talk
was the present condition and the
ultimate political and moral state of
the negro race. He described the
negro as he was when by the prOcla-
mation of President Lincoln the
Shackles of slavery were forever
broken and the African stood among
his white brothers free man and the
political equal of the Anglo-Saxon
race. He then described him as he is
and from his deductions he proved
that the experiment to educate and
civilize this unfortunate race while
mixing end mingline DrOmiscuOusly
with the superior race by which they
were surrounded had proved dismal
failure both as to the civilizing intiu-
ences upon the cOlOred race and the
effect upon the industries Of the
south.
The people in the south he said laid
aside all differences Of political
opinion in an effort to hold the negro
in subsection and until a change
occurred by which the negro was dis
franchised or transported the ''solid"
south would remain unbroken, a curse
TO our fair land and serious menace
to the life of the government itself.
And while it was a fact the move
meut which finally liberated from
slavery the African race in America
originated in the north, yet the
prejudice against this people was not
confined to sections or even countries,
but was universal wherever the his
tory Of their lives was known. As an
instance, the white people of this
country almost unanimously, regard
less Of sectional boundary lines less
than sixteen months ago applauded to
the echo the successful overthrow of
the negro Hawaiian government by
the predominant and ruling power of
the white man.
AS panacea for the ills pictured he
boldly advocated the foundation Of a
new state to be occupied, owned and
ruled wholly by the negro race. He
would select from the public domain
If possible body of land measuring
about so millions of acres and at the
expense Of the government arrange
irrigating appliances and all other
expenditures necessary to the health
and prosperity of its inhabitants and
then in this land of promise he woulC
offer free homes to the negro race ant
as an extra inducement to immigra
tion he would here make the coloret
man entirely free from the cOmpeti
tiOn of the white man by excluding
all but negroes from the right O.
suffrage or the right TO hold property
At the close of his speech he invited
the audience to take part in the dis
cuSSiOn of the plan as outlined and he
answered and explained every ques
ton asked, stating at the time that
they were only his individual idea:
and were questions which could bt
settled only after experiments haC
been made. Mr.. Graves by his earn,
est elOquence and evidently sincerity
of purpose gained the complete sym.
pathy of his audience regardless Of
political or other differences of opin.
ion aud it was pronounced by all who
heard itas an able plea for the better.
ment Of the condition of the African
race in America.