The age-herald., 1901-03-08
HICH TRIBUTE ID THE SOUTHLAND Enthusiastic Meeting of SOuth- ern Society of New York JUDGE VAN WYCK'S SPEECH Eloquent Words on Assuming the Presidency is a Native
 AIabamian and True
 to His State
JUDGE VAN WYCvS SPEECH

l
 numbers many thousands of members and represents the three hundred thou sand southerners resident in the metrop- olfs, was held tonight at the Fifth Ave nue Hotel, and extraordinary enthusiasm prevailed. Judge Augustus Van WyclS, who is a native Alabamian, having been | born at Tuscaloosa, assumed the duties of the presidency of the Society, to which he had been elected in succession to the distinguished pr. Folk
 When he arose to deliver his formal speech as president he was greeted with great burst of applause, which did not subside for several minutes. In part Judge Van Wyck said:
 Children of Our Southland - salute you as brothers, bound together by the tie of a common ancestry. She Is rich in splendid traditions and pregnant with beneticent ideas and leeds witch have done so much to ennoble mankind She is now leaping with swift and herculean bounds to the forefront of material de- velopment, which astounds the world and renders her independent of her former slavery to the manufacturers and miners of other sections which arc now turning to her for help. The troubles of the south are now behind her, and she faces the brightest of Aopes. However much may have bs,1ed in the liInitless ocean of unr 5.rained ambition, your generous tres sment this evening has filled to ov9r- flowing my cup of ambition-completeiy gratifed. No greater honor can be con ferred upon an American gentleman than he of he af laaa of all those societies founded upon the sentiment of common ancestry. Well might I rest at this point, for it has been wisely written that silence Is golden and speech is only silvern-
 A Pretty SimHe.
 By nature I lean toward that gold standard on this occasion at least; yet the impulse of your commands and the environments of this occasion impel inc toward the silver standard, making me appear for the moment kind of bimeta4- list, as to what a bimetallist Is, you are referred for further information to some of the distinguished aspirants for an- other presidency. Bear in mind that the estimation of the worth of any class as- sociated together by some common tie, such as the same occupation, school of thought, creed of faith or ancestry, should be measured by the average con- duct and not by some sporadic incident. This should be remembered for man, from carelessness or envy, is too prone to | judge every class, except his own, by l some depreciating exception rather than l by this general rule. No class has sui fered more from this tendency than the southern people, who have, through mod esty and an over-confiding faith in mans sense of justice, stood by silently, pa tiently and without protest while they and their dear departed ones have been unfairly criticised. The south with moral and intellectual courage has fought the good fight of life, recognizing but one courage, the courage of truth; and sat- isfied with but one victory the victory of truth-the voice of justice.
 'I accept the presidency of this society, conscious of the honor, and approaching that every privilege carries with 1t a cor responding duty, which l shall endeavor to perform in a manner deserving of your approval. This society is in its infancy with its possibilities. It has a magnifi- cent constituency, representing the south ern element 90O,000 strong, who have cast their lot in this great metropolis, the cen Ire of the severest competition in the world.
 There have heen settled forever by the arbitrament of arms three great issues First: That no successful appeal can be taken from the ballot to the bullet sec ond, there shall be no human slavery Tn this land of the free; third, that our na- ton, though based upon the consent Of the governed, has the moral and oonsti- ,-irr1,f and ctr lf n A. fend itself successfully against the armed revolt of the largest minority and still save unharmed its highly prized institu- tions But grander and stranger than all these was the felicitious sequel of these hostile forces in a few years coming to- gether as brothers of old, with equal ardor for and the same pride in the one union rejoicing alike in the preservation of the physical and moral integrity Of the nation, and that there Is a radiant star for each state and sovereign state Tor each star upon the flag of their common country That the final degree of this terrible court of last resourt has decided forever this to be an "indissolubile union of indestructible states; and that the spirit of fraternity reigns supreme throughout a country so great that the valor of the north and south can be and is counted as joint assets in the estate of her fame. You can hear the spirits of Washington, Lincoln Grant, Lee, Jackson and Sherman and their asso- ciates proclaiming in unison God be praised for the reign of this spirit of fra ternity.
 Tribute to Womanhood.
 "The peerless womauhood of the south has received not only the reverence of the southerner, but the unstinted hom- age of the civilized world to her purity intellectualty, refinement and graceful beauty.
 The time has arrived for the complete extinguishment of that apologetic atti- tude and sef-excusing speech, which modesty and aversion to boastfulness has often impelled Southerners and those speaking for the South since 1861 to adopt The time is at hand when the ostracism of any leader In any of the Southern states from equal right to contest on fair terms for the national prizes from the lowest to the very high est because of the locality of his leader ship should be effaced from the heart and thought of all good citizens throughout 1 the land
 For the old South, rich with her noble traditions, patriotism. culture and re- finement and the new South whose record has been marked by the most rapid strides in material progress ever witness