The colored American., 1900-05-26
EDITOR FORTUNE RoAsrs TILLMAN.
Close of the Zion Conference Mr.. Daney
on the State of the Country Negro and
the Ballot-No Sympathy Fer The
Beers,

fhe eaiiot-No sympathy Fer The
Beers.
Ths closing session of the general
conference Of the African Methodist
EpissOpal Zion Church Monday, was
full Of interest. The report of the com
mittse on the state of the country was
pEe 'ented, and the comments made by
=. ThOmas Fortune, the editor of the
new 0Fk Age, were sensational. The
report dealt at some length with the
question OF the suffrage for the Negro,
and EdIter Fortune, in speaking on
shis point vigorously denounced Ben
I1llmaD, Of South Carolina, and ia the
most unstintsd terms pitched into the
one eyed seOundrel who daily digraces
the United States Senate by his pres
ence, and who outrages every instinct
Of deoeney by his brutal and cowardly
attacks upon helpless black people
It had cost tons of blood and tons Of
Eeney, he said, to place the fifteenth
amendment in the Constitu ton of the
Uaitea States, and is will cost tons Of
blood and tons Of money to get 1t out.
The speaker was applauded to the echo
when ne sat down. after urging the
Negroes to organize. The address scin-
ttliated With bright points and was de-
Nvered Ia Mr.. Fortunes earnest and
ls:-aitaole style. 1t was said. to be the
New Workers. best oritoxical effort in
recent years Edltor Manly. Prof.
LFwson and Mr.. Whitfield EeKinly
else spoke.
The report OF the committee on the
state Of the country was o lengthy one
It was submitted by John q, Dancy,
she chairman of the committee. and
dealt principally with the work of the
Negroes during the PERIOD that has
elapsed since the civil war. The re-
pors extolled the bravery of the eolored
Fesinents in Cuba and the P Pnilippines
and went en- to say that, While bIunders
mlght have been made. it was the
9uty OF the people of the church 20 ac-
eept the situation and carry on mis-.
sienary work in the countries that have
recently been acquired by the United
States. 1t pointed to the strides that
had been made by the people OF the
oolored race, along industrial and pro,
fessional lines, and deplored tAe fact
shat sAe national government had not
provided q system of national educa-
tion fer the celosed people.
The report further commended ths
proposition to take away the franchise
o. iiliterate Negroes and allow Hitter.
ate whites to vote, and said while op-
portunity for education vas denied &c
che Negro he ought aot to be con
demned for not having sufficlent learn
Ing to properly cast hls ballot. The
Grimes against women and wropgdoine
OF every kind was denounced. and thu
members Of the Conference were urged
TO begin crusade TO prevent this stair
upon their race.
The war in South Africa was dis
missea with the expression that had
the Beers observed the ''gol0en ruie'
In she past, they would now be en-.
titled bo the sym patby OF the people OF
this country, but THAI the coaferepee
hoped under the circumstances that the
national governments would not be mis-
LED into an expression of sympathy 70,
the side OF that people against Eng
land
The desire for q fair chance to com
pete la the labor world and sn express
sion Of support for the national eoun.
ell closes the report.