The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-04-08
FUTURE OF THE NEGRO.

While the race conflict RACES in the
south and men are trying to devise
ways and means to stop it, some ne
groes are denouncing white people for
alleged debauchery of the negro race
and others are advocating measures of
retaliation.
Professor Edgar Weber of Fisk uni
versity recently contributed a paper
to the controversy, which is in accord
with the opinions advanced by most of
| the negro race. Among other things
he said:
There are several reasons why ne
! groes should eschew politics and devote
themselves to the acquisition of wealth,
education and the other fundamental
! elements of power.
Intelligent self-interest clearly indi-
| Gates to the negro race that they must,
! in order to be their own masters, lay
! hold of a large share of this worlds
! goods. 1t is better for them to devote
! themselves to the pursuit of the various
industries and professions, in which
remuneration may be at first slower,
! but decidedly surer, than in politics.
! The race must acquire a foothold in the
financial and industrial world The
great drawback to the Haytien govern
/ ment today is that its people, Instead
OF developing the wonderful resources
! of the island, are constantly plotting for
/ office. The intelligent men of the coun-
try arc not directing the minds of the
masses into the proper channels for the
| production of wealth. but the leading
men, If not already in public positions,
are occupying themselves plotting and
intriguing to overthrow the existing
lerfNT H..
positions as a result of a revolution
| Hence the Haytiens continue to have
an undeveloped country, a bankrupt
/ treasury, country fraught with po1it-
zeal upheavals and revolutions. unable
to protect itself from the baser ele-
ment at home and defenseless prey
| to the stronger nations of the world
who are unjust enough to take advant-
age Of its weakness.
I'm the United States the negroes
should not trouble themselves too much
| about politics.. l think we can leave
| the governmental affairs pretty largely
| in the hands of the more favored race
with safety just now. The attention of
the race needs to be turned with con-
centration in the direction of self-cul-
ture, the learning of trades and the ac-
quiring of property and all other forms
of wealth. The negroes must possess
! themselves of the wealth of this coun-
| try as condition precedent and alb
solutely necessary to their well-being
and happiness. This turning of the at
tention to. political affairs is not only
especially injurious to the negro race,
but it will have its bad effects upon the
well-being of any people"
AS jealous worker for the ameliora-
ton of his race, he urges upon his peo-
pie to break away from that political
slavery in which they suffer themselves
to be held as firmly as once they We're
held in proprietary bonds. And he con-
tinues:
1T must be conceded by those of US
who are the most ardent advocates of
higher education that the advice of
Booker T. Washington is the advice
which the masses of our people need,
because all of us cannot be lawyers,
doctors, ministers or teachers; and adj
hitting that higher education Injuries no
one who gets it, or even admitting that
all would be benefited by it, still, in
this material age, it would be a great
J loss to the race materially if four or
five years of every colored boys or
girls life was spent in that direction
| when college education would not be
necessary to fit them for their life'S
work.
ASIDE from the fact that the best in
| terests of the race require that negroes
devote their attention to those indus
trial pursuits wherein financial gain is
reasonably sure, the best interests of
the government undoubtedly require
that the masses of negroes keep or be
kept out of politics. This may sound to
some of you as a strange doctrine for
a young negro to be preaching: but it
is nevertheless a sound doctrine. Let us
look at this matter from an unbiased
standpoint. 1t must be borne in mind
that the masses of our people are still
ignorant; that they are still not pre-
pared to exercise the elective franchise
intelligently. They are not yet capable
of deciding questions of public policy
for themselves, or even to comprehend
the political issues Of the time. No
man ought to have a voice IN shaping
the destiny of a great nation. who can
not do that, be he white, black, grizzly
or gray"
This is his conclusion, and it seems to
present the only way out. of what is
fast becoming most serious difficulty.
1.-THE duty of the race clearly is in the
direction of the acquisition of wealth.
Wealth, education and character are
the foundation stones upon which, If
we build. we shall rear a temple of
power that will endure throughout the
ages-a temple that will give us polit-
ical power and insure us protection-a
temple which will bring it about that
we shall enjoy all of those rights and
privileges, civil and political, which are
guaranteed to US by the constitution.
When we have acquired large share
of the wealth of this country. and when
the light of learning and intelligence
and the salutary influence of thrift and
l,a1 1,-yr- lead he
masses, we, like the once despised Jew,
will come into full possession of our
rights. We will then be the wards of