The Wichita daily eagle., 1899-05-19
COLORED HIGH SCHOOL
Interesting Graduation Exer-
Cises at kingfSher.
ROBERT EMMETT STEWART
Of Guthrie Delivers an EIo-
quent Address to the Class.

Kinghsher, o. T.. May 1S.-The Brandon
& Ewing opera house was filled TO its
utmost capacity Monday night with the
elite Of the city, to witness the closing
and commencement exercises of the King
fisher colored high school. Long before
The arrival of the hour for the beginning
of the exercises the people of all shades
and complexions began to file into the
auditorium, eager to see and hear the pro
gram to be rendered by the class of 1899.
The schools Of the city are separate. The
schools here began simultaneously with
the opening Of this new country TO settle
ment, and during all the ten years thst
this country has been occupied by CIVIL
Szed people, this is the first class Of coIored
graduates which has been sent out by the
Colored high school, and the white people
approaching that fact, turned out IN great
numbers to show how favorable they stHl
are to the idea Of educating not only
themselves but the colored people resid-
ing among them, to the end that their
condition may be ameliorated.
The class Of 1853 is composed of one
young woman and four young men-Mat-
tie Reid, Parthia Jordan, Dennis Lewis,
lycurgus Lewis and Emanuel Ross
Following is the evenings program:
Opening song-Male chorus.
Invocation-Rev. S. S. Jones.
Jubilee song-AIale chorus.
Grafton. Steam: A Motive PoweT'-Par-
thia Jordan
Grafton, America Emanuel Ross.
Vocal solo, Angels Serenade''-Miss
Aadia Jordan.
Grafton, observation-disclosures Lewis.
Eulogy, Abraham Lincoln'-Mattie
Reid.
Vocal solo, "Calvary"-NIiss Susie Kyle
Grafton, Frederick Douglas Dennis
lewis
Vocal solo-Nr. W. A Mcknight.
Address. "Citizenship"-Hon. R. En-
hnett Stewart, Guthrie.
Vocal duet. Swallows Fareweu'-Misses
Jordan and Kyle.
Presentation OF diplomas
Closing song-Male chorus.
Benediction-
Mr. Robert Emmett Stewart, ex-county
clerk of Logan county, delivered an ad-
dress on American Citizenship" After
quite an extended preface Complimentary
10 the class and the people Of Kinghsher
city and county. Mr.. Stewart proceeded,
sn part, as follows:
I'VE complain and petition because of
partial citizenship and of the unequal and
Inadequate protection Of life, liberty and
the pursuit Of happiness. by our govern
ment. We complain in that this enforced
rendition aarNrix-a- af
funity in the rivalry of life, and state:
that the negro as a civilian is not the OBJ
Etructionist bur the obstructed. The tura
civitatas under the constitution Of the
United States ought to be. in the fullest
manner, for the enhancement Of property
and progress, extended to every individual
alike. And having examined somewhat
into this relation, have reached the con-
clusion that this government is now and
has ever been at fault and at error in
attempting ipso jura to declare his rela-
tive rights before the law-his position in
society and in business. In other words.
3n practice it attempts to prescribe as well
rs prescribe the uses Of his citizenhip in
contradistinctiOn to the citizenship Of 9TH
Srs. This is not right, and the power.
antghtiness of the law. and strong arm of
the government canrot make IT so In
carefully studying the attitude of the su-
preme court Of the United States On this
question from the days Of Roger b. Tanev
10 Chief Justice Fuller, we are more and
smore convinced Of the operative force of
the mere ipse dixit OF the law or the court
than Of the al encompassing letter and
spirit OF the constitution-than the all
conscious knowledge Of justice-than OF
The fair. prompt and unbiased application
of reason
You viii please excuse the presenting
nf authority and quoting Of opinions, 10
hear me out in what I here assert for
lime and courtesy will not permit. But
let me say that the substitution of false
premises for reason, clear and profound.
OF passion and self-will for law and ms
tice is never to be condoned. approved or
Rpplauded. It seems more incredible than
strange that the white people. being
chiefly in control OF the property. the in
teilect. the civil and military power. and
distinguished for what they appreciate as
courage. should hesitate. fear or treuhIe
before the proposition OF extending TO the
negro his fun and entire citizenship and
equal rights before the law: 50 that he
might have no more than a fair show In
The race Of life
1T is urged that II absolute freedom
before the law was accorded the negro
shat the barrier to social equality vVou15
s---------------------------