The age-herald., 1902-05-04
Alabama Federation Should h. struct It's Delegates on
 the Subject LATEST TYPE OF MAIDEN
She Is Known as "The Coronation GIrI'-American Girls Are Being Taught to Courtesy and Blush
 Ing Is Fashionable.
BY ANNIE kENDRIck WALKER.

The following letter which was read before the Eleanor Hord Club at its last meeting. is published by request in these columns. It was written by Mrs. S. $. Knight, formerly of Ohio, and one of It's most prominent members:
 Inasmuch as our club has selected it's ! delegates to attend the Alabama Feder- ntion of womans Clubs, 1t seems to be of prime importance that these dele gates should be instructed as to what posltion our club wishes to take in re- gard to cur admission Into the National Federation.
 From oren letters which have been published under Ire auspices of the Ala bama Federation of Woman's Clubs, we see this question Will no doubt be ore which will demand the thoughtful con- sideration of women not only from this entire state, but from almost every other Southern State.
 Our country at this time Is so large aud its c,mmercIal interests so divers fled that 1t is almost impossible to en- tirely eliminate the effect of provencial- isms upon our customs. Particularly is this the case as 'esards the 'Ii ditions Of society.
 
 predestined to take from us the advant- ages which our admission into the Ma tional Federation would certainly bring. In our own behalf we should consider this question fairly.
 That we Southern club woven who are seeking by our efforts to produce more refined society should abhor the admis- sion of the negro into our club lire seems to us not only natural, but mat ter of absolute necessity if we are ever to attain that condition which our con stitutions declare to be the sole motive of our existence.
 We must remember that the negro race has had an opportunity of less than three hundred years to assimilate or de- velop either our civilization or one equal to ours, while fAnglo-SaXon people have spent nearly two thousand years reach ing the place that they occupy today in the plain of comparative civilization. We must add to this the fact that the negro race has never produced any full-blooded representative that has distinguished himself as man of science, of letters or as an artist; and that the fundamen- tai equality claimed for him by ignorant philanthropists Is belied by the whole history of the race. We are at this time speaking of the negro race as q whole and without admixture of other blood We shall pass without comment the pos sitilities of the negroes improvement by means of his agglomeration with the white race. Whenever this has taker place. not only has the Caucason lost more than the negro has gained but both have usually fallen to lower plane than either occupied previous to this comngling. There is no more per picking question before the Southern cit izen today than the amelioration of the negroes condition without his own de- moralization.
 Education is the only lever by which mankind can be raised. The establish ment of every school house for the ne- gro will be the erection of a millstone upon the path of his upward journey. The dissemination of knowledge, means the distribution of moral culture and only as the negro receives the latter will he advance in the scale of civilization.
 Let remember this, and while we are protesting against the recognition of negro clubs, we must be careful at the same time not to destroy their ambi- tion 10 advance. and we should not be backward in giving full need of praise to those of either race who are conscien- tiousy striving to do what Is in their power toward the negroes advance ment We should be wiling to give our moral support to any organization. which looks to the improvement of human con ditions. but we should not be and are not willing to accept as on an equal plane the negroes present state of civiIi- zafion as compared with the Anglo-Saxon refinement and culture of today
 Nor is it the sense of this meeting that the Northern constituency of the Nation