The colored American., 1900-05-26

every pleading in the middle passage tha
| marked the journey of the negro from tn
shores of Africa to the shores of America
| was an earnest plea to the white man no
to desecrate the soil Of America by en-
grating upon it the serious problems whic
are today demanding solution.
But the voice of right then, as I fea
| 1t is today In some quarters was smothere
by the voice of selfishness; the voice O
the statesman was throttled, then, as now
In too many cases, by the voice of tn
short-sighted demagogue and we went OF
sowing the wind, and now we reap tn
whirlwind. "Be not deceived, God is no
mocked." Whatsoever a nation or a com
munity SowS, that it shall also reap.
But all this belongs to history. Our dut.
is with the present
No one who looks deeply, calmly, con
scientiously, into the present thought anc
activity can overlook the fact that we ar
now passing through a stage Of race de
velopment which is serious at every stel
and demands as never before our deepes
thought, ripest investigation and most un
selfish assistance.
Political history in our case points to NJ
oath blazef through the forests, which /:
an absolute guide in the task before us
Ours is a task which demands and which
should have the earnest assistance of the
Wisest statesmen, investigators and philan
thropistS of both races, in all sections o1
the country.
To be permanent in its influence and op
Grafton, every scheme for the settlement
Of the difficulties that beset US should have
the Endorsement of the white man at thu
south, the white man at the north and thai
Of the negro himself. Our duty is to face
the present and not to wall over the past
In the midst of the present seeming doubt
uncertainty and timidity on the part OF
many one or two things seem clear. We
shall not settle our present problem by
time spent in useless debate as to whether
the white man north or the white mar
south was responsible for the introduction
Of American slavery.
Cooperation of Races Essential.
No settlement will be permanent and sat-
isfactory that does not command the conf
dence and the respect Of the southern white
nan, the northern white man and the negro
himself Further, am convinced that moth
'ng can be gained, but much lost to the
cause of the negro by time spent in the
mere bandiage of words of blame and cen
sure between the white man north and the
white man SOUTH In the same spirit, /
would add that the negro cannot make
stronger his cause by aimless ratings
against the southern white man, neither
IAN the southern white man assist much In
The solution of the difficulty which is so
yjtal to him, by mere condemnation Of the
negro.
Both the teachings of history and the
warnings of the present emphasize that the
u,
will not remove itself from across the path
way of our progress, till it is settled in alb
solute, unimpeachable justice to all parties
:oncerned-justice to the north, who freed
he negro; justice to the southern white
nan, in whose midst the negro resides, and
Justice to the negro himself.
The foundation Of citizenship, it seems to
ne, rests upon the intrinsic worth Of each
Individual or group Of individuals. No law
can push the individual forward when he iS
IL IL IT. =
he is worthy. The worthy may be incon-
venienced, but never defeated.
No praise on the part of ourselves or
friends can help us If we are meritless No
Ibuse from any quarter can permanently
injure us If we possess intrinsic worth.
In all the history Of government I do not
believe that in any large degree any race
has been permitted to share in the control
Of government till large number of the
Individual members of that race have de-
nonStrated beyond question their ability to
succeed in controlling successfully their
own individual business affairs.
The Triumph of Natural Laws.
when the negro in this country will secure
all the recognition which his merits entitle
him to as man and as a citizen, but such
recognition will come through no process of
artificial forcing, but through the natural
law Of evolution. In word, we have got
to pay the price for everything that we get,
the price that every civilized race or nation
has paid for its position, that of beginning
gradually, naturally, at the bottom and
working up toward the highest civilization
What l am most anxious about is that the
negro shall be himself, not second or
third-rate imitation of some one else.
AS Thomas Carlyle puts it:
''An original man; not a second hand, bor-
-owing or begging man. Let us stand on
our own basis, at any rate! On such shoes