The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1901-05-03
r OF SUBSCRIPTION
NORTHERN CLERICS ON THE
SOUTH.

Northern clerical visitors who recent
Iy attended the educational gathering
at Greensboro returning home are talk
ing freely. Rev. DR.. Lyman Abbott, OF
New York, is Of the tourists in the
south. He is not as a minister a safe
guide. for he is Of the sappers and min
ers, and we nav been somewhat
amazed when we nave read of such an
enemy of the Eternal Scriptures being
invited to address southern education
al institutions. If Robert Ingerson
were redevivus, and were to talk for
an hour in his Did profane. blasphe-
nous strain to a body Of southern stu
dents he would not do one-tenth the
harm, we believe. that DR.. Abbott
would if he were to turn loose upon
foundations of Christian belief, the
battery of his high criticism" He
is a man of superior intellectual parts,
succeeded Henry Ward Beecher, and
has power to do good and not evil.
That is, If he relied more upon God and
me Divine spirit. He talks good
sense, however, and with widened pre-
science since he returned north. He
wrote this for the New York Outlook:
THE southerner has less prejudice
against the negro and more interest
in his welfare than the northerner has;
he desires the negroes education, but
believes that, whatever it may become
in the future, it should now be indus
trial rather than literary; the south
has spent on the negroes education
between three n four times as much
in school taxes as the north has spent
in contributions; the work of the north
among the negroes should be carried
on in fellowship with the southern
whites. not in antagonism to them; to
attempt to force either polical or So
cial equality is to inflict incalculable in
jury on the negro and on the nation.
In a word, the northerner should rec
ognize the fact that the southern white
man now wishes to befriepd the negro;
but the negro should recognize the
fact that he has yet to earn the south
ern white mans respect"
That may be characterized as wise
and well based on common sense. DIR.
Charles H. Parkhurst, another famous
northern visitor, returning home talk
ed about topics connected with his late
visit to the south. 1t was in Madison
Square church, New York City. He
spoke of the south's honesty, it's real
feeling for the negro being more genu-
inc than the "pretence" of the north.
He condemned the giving of the ballot
to the negro. All men of sense and
~candor know the great mistake made.
Fanatics and fools still mouth about it
and indorse the great crime perpetrat-
ed. DIT. Parkhurst is mistaken if he
thinks the southern white man of
character hates the we'll behaved, law
abiding. Industrious, polite "colored
man and brother" That is not the
feeling. The whites detest the mean,
aawless. ~rascality, thieving, lying,
revengeful negro who is ready for a
row, for rape. for a raid or for any dew
'iltry that may be suggested to what
little of mind he may possess. But let
the gifted New York preacher be heard
just hear and in his own words:
1.-THE southerner does not like the
negro any better han the average
northerner does and the two carry
themselves toward the negro with just
about the same amount of Christian
.conSideration-Only of the two the
southern white man has, perhaps this
advantage, but he does not make quite
SO f1amboyant a pretense of loving the
negro as his northern confrere does.
The southern white man dislikes the
negro and owns up to it. The white
man in the north dislikes the negro and
lies about it.
THE discriminating act by which
the negroes had conferred upon them
the right to vote was n of those blum
ders hat 1t is not easy to escape from
after once it is committed, but which
If would Scam VIC OUGHT fa have had
northern craftsmanship sufficiently in
telligent to prevent"
There are many colored men and wo-
men in MS town tina the best people
in it in character and intelligence have
kind and benevolent feelings for. We
know of what we affirm. DR.. Park
hurst also learned something of south
ern feeling for the north, but he does
not here diagnose precisely. The south
hates no good and true people who
serve God. practice righteousness and
would do unto others a. they would be
lone by. 1t does hate the enemies and
plotters, the people who are sentimen-
tai philanthropists. and stupid enough
to try to force social equality between
the races in the south and would drag
down the whites to the low level OF the
blacks, while themselves neither ex-
tending such equality or freedom OF
church membership or open-doors tt
laborers in their own section and com
munities. The south loves to despise
that whole gang as ineNpressibly con.
temptible, vicious and insolent. DR.
eParkhurst puts it thus:
.Dr. Parhurst said that the northern
party who made h recent trip did i
not because they had any special inter
est in the south as a distinct section
but because they were conscious or tn
unity which makes the north n soutl
members of each other. The confer