The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-11-18
oUR VICTORY ANn<oUR Duty
a Sermon Delivered at the First Pres
b yterian Church &nst sunday by the
Rev. Peyton III. Roge, d.. D.-The Sit
nation as viewed From the Pulpit

.ue that ruleth his spirit lis better)
than he that taketh a city
xvi:32.
cinca wa last ct in these walls, by
+be good hand O.. our God upon US, we
have done both. We have taken a
citv That is much. But it is more
hecause it is our city that we nav
taken. The country r%ejoiced when II
hoard of the surrender Of Santiago and
Manila But whatever the righteous
ness of the wal and the benefit to CIV
ilization of victory, these cities were
not our own. But this city is our city.
With many.of you the city where you
were born, the city of your fathers.
With all Of us it is the city or our love
Civic pride and patriotism IS a scrip
tural virtue. The captives in Babylon
could say. IF I forget thee, o Jerusa-
lem. let my right hand forget her cum
ming" And Paul could boast that ne
was "a citizen Of no mean CITY. AS
citizens of Wilmington we loVe II. we
love it's past history and TRADITIONS; we
love it's climate and us SCENERY; 80
it's atmosphere of conservatism anu
friendship. we love our homes, ana we
love the graves of our dead. Its honor
should be as dear to US as our own.
This city we have taken-not by IN
vestment and siege, not by shot ana
shell-but as thoroughly and COM
nIetelv as if captured in battle. 1t mas
heen redeemed for civilization, redeem
ed for law and order, redeemed Tor de-
cency and responsibility. Let US nope,
redeemed for prosperity ana prog
r~ess-progress in everything goou.
progress in righteousness as well
as in wealth. Now we may
hope hat our homes will ABIDE IN
peace; that our citizens may walk the
- -:+L1,,t Hjn1anna and rOhherV.
and our women and children without
insult. For these things, let US give
God the glory. .
Rut better is che that ruleth his spirit
than he that taketh a city. MoIc
than for the victory mat mas ohCe
more placed our city under lnlelllSeht
and civilized control, should we give
thanks to God for the moderation tl"r
has been given our people IN THESE
strenuous times. When the polltlcal
conflict was waxing hotter every cay
when the tension was so great that an
outbreak was possible at any moment,
certain citizens d NOV
ment by which a clash at the pollo
might be averted. 1t was successfully
carried out and almost universally APP
proved. Observation-Disclosures arose ana
great ~provOcation was given our pollll-
cal leaders to break the agreement.
But they stood to it. This moderation
caused the election to pass over Qulet-
ly and peacefully, and under such con
ditions that no possible question can
be raised as to the laWfulneSS Oh Tie
result in this county and It's govern
ment. To God be the praise, for had
the clash come then, not only would
we have been misunderstood and mis-
represented all over the land, but IN
the heat of political excitement a spark
would have kindled a Immigration, the
end of which no one could foretell.
When the full extent Of the victory
was Known, our citizens III
such a meeting as /, for one, never
before Witnessed. 1t was not a poHtl-
cal meeting. All past party differences
had beer laid aside in the great effort
to maintain the results OF a thousand
years of Anglo-SaXOn civilization. IL
represented all classes and conditions.
1t had in it's lands absolute power, Tor
the city government had practlcally az
dictated on Saturday night, when its
executive head could not be found to
suppress a riotous gathering of ne
groes. But in spite of the heated pas
sions of the past few months, this
great assembly almost unanimously
voted down a proposition that meant
anarchy, and listened to the calm, wise
and temperate speeches of our most
conservative men, and acted according
ly.
There was one resolution of that
meeting that was outside the pale of
law. but it was an act of stern necessl-
ty. 1t was a duty that we owed to our
poorer fellow citizens. In our protect
ed homes we might not feel the need
and the stress of it. But they, often
living side by side with men of an in
ferior and undisciplined race, leaving
their homes unprotected while they
went at their daily toll, had a right to
demand that such a lesson should be
given at this time hat never agar in
this community would one dare to de-
fame the fair name of the wives and
daughters who are as dear to them as
ours are to us. But While this was
decreed. it was ordered to be done
moderately and, if possible, peaceful
ly. No blood was to be shed, no
lynch law permitted.
In the events that followed there are,
of course, things to be deplOred. There
We're some acts Of wantOnneSs that we
do not justify. But they were the acts
of a few individuals and nOt of the
mass. Look at the situation.
There were probably two thousand
men under arms. with no leaders eX-
cept those whom they chose to recog-
niZe. They were not masSed in a
body where all their actions were un-
der their leaders eyes, but scattered
all over the streets of the city. 1t was
after months of excitement when pas
sions ran high, and tse1f-restraint had
been exercised to the point where ten
sion almost snaps. Blood had beer
shed by the other side-wantonly and
without p~rovocation. That under these
conditions our people stopped where
they did; that with the exception per
haps of a few wontan shots at the be-
ginning under the first excitement OF
knowing that blood a been shed-nC
one was interfered with who obeyeG
orders, but all were kindly and quietly
advised to go TO their homes, is an ex-
ample of moderation and self-restraint
far beyond u expectations. That any
blood was shed I deplore. But 1 believe
that our people did everything in their
power to prevent 1T. and stopped il
at the first practicable moment. 1t is
hardly correct to say that we have had
n riot at oil II &C. 1..it1inAX innArclGt