Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1902-06-26
CHATTER VI.
THE PREACHER AND THE WOMA
OF BOSTON.

THE PREACHER AMI HE WOhAAN
OF BOSTON.
The next day the preacher had call
from Miss Susan Walker. Of Boston,
whose Iiberality had built the new negro
school house and whose life and fortune
| VAS devoted TO the education and eleva-
ton OF the negro race. She had been IN
the village often within the year, running
up from Independence. where she was
building and endowing a magnihcent
classical college for negroes. He had Of
ten heard of her, but as she stopped with
negroes when on her visits he had never
met her. He was especially interested in
her after hearing incidentally that she
was a member Of Baptist church IN
Boston.
greeted his visitor with the Difference the
/ typical southern man instinctively pays
TO woman
Il am pleased to meet you. madam" he
said with graceful bow and kindly smile.
as he led her to the most comfortable seat
he could find.
she looked him squarely in the face for
a moment as though surprised and smil-
inly replied:
Il believe you southern men are all
alike, woman hatterers. You have a way
of making every woman believe you think
her a queen. It pleases me, l can't help
confessing it. though 1 sometimes despise
i
you an opportunity TO feed my vanity this
morning. I've come for a plain face to
face talk with yoL on the one subject that
fills my heart. my work among the freed
men. You are a Baptist minister. have
a right to your Friendship and co-opera-
ton"
A cloud overshadOwed the preachers
face as he seated himself. He said moth
ing for a moment looking curiously and
th0ughtfully at his visitor.
He seemed to be studying her character
and to be puzzled by the problem She
was a woman OF prepossessing appear
ance. well past thirty-five. with streaks
OF gray appearing in her smoothly brush
ed hair. She was dressed plainly in rich
brown material cut In tailor fashion, and
her heavy hair was drawn straight up
pompadour style from her forehead with
apparent carelessness and yet in way
that heightened the impression OF strength
and beauty in her face. Her nose was
the one feature that gave warning of trou-
BILE in an encounter. She was plump In
figure, almost stout and her nose SEEM
ed too small for the breadth of her face.
1t was broad enough, but too short, and
was pug tipped slightly at the end. She
fell just little short Of being handsome
and this nose was responsible for the fall
ure. II gave to her face when agitated.
in spite of evident culture and refinement,
the expression Of a feminine bull dog.
Her eyes were flashing now. and her
nostrils opened a little wider and began to
push the tip OF her nose upward. At last
she snapped out suddenly:
well, which IS IT, friend or foe? What
do you honestly think OF my work."
Pardon me. Miss Walker. I am not ac-
customed to speak rudely to lady, II
am honest. don't know where to begin"
BAH Lay aside your Don Quixote
southern chivalry this morning and talk TO
-
whether am a woman or a man. / am
an idea. divine mission this morning.
mean to establish high school in this
village for the negroes. and to build q
Baptist church for them. learn from
them that they have great faith in you.
Many Of them desire your approval and
cooperation. VIII you help me?''
TO be perfectly frank. 1 will not. You
ask me for plain English. I will give It to
you. Your presence in this village as a
missionary to the heather is an insult to
our intelligence and Christian manhood.
You come at this late day a missionary
among the heather, the heather whose
heart and brain created this republic with
a. civil and religious liberty for its founda-
lions. a missionary among the heather
who gave the world Washington, whose
giant personality three times saved the
cause OF American liberty from ruin when
his army had melted away. You are
/
ington. Jefferson Monroe, Madison, Jack
son. Clay and Calhoun! Madam, have
baptized into the fellowship Of the church
OF Christ in this county more negroes
than you ever saw In all your life before
you left Boston.
at the close Of the war there were
thousands Of negro members OF white
Baptist churches in the state. Your mis-
sion is not to proclaim the gospel of
Jesus Christ. Your mission is to teach
crack-brained theories OF social and polit-
ical equality TO four millions Of ignorant
negroes. some OF whom are but fifty years
removed from the savagery of African
jungles. Your work is to separate and
ALLEVIATE the negroes from their former
masters, who can be their only real friends
and guardians. Your work is 10 SOW
the dragons teeth OF an impossible social
order that will bring forth its harvest Of
blood for our children"
He paused a moment, and suddenly fac
ing her continued: IT should like to help
the cause you have at heart, and the most
effective service I could render II now
would be 20 box you up in a glass cage.
such as are used for rattlesnakes, and
ship you back to Boston"
Indeed! I suppose then IT Is still
crime in the south to teach the negro?"
She asked this in little gasps Of fury, her
/ eyes flashing defiance and her two rows
OF white teeth uncovering by the rising
Of her pugnacious nose.
For you. yes. 1t is always a crime to
teach a lie."
r'Thank you. Your frankness is all one
could wish!"
Pardon my apparent rudeness. You
not only invited, you demanded IT. While
about II, let me make a clean breast of ii.
do you personally the honor to acknowl-
edge that you are honest and in dead
earnest. and that you mean we'll You are
simply a fanatic"
ALLOW me again to thank you for your
candorF"
Don't mention IL, madam. You will be
canonized in due time. In the meantime,
let US understand one another. Our lives
are now very far apart, though we read
the same Bible. worship the same God
and hold the same great faith. In the set
Element of this negro question you are an
insolent interloper. You're worse, you
are a willful spoiled child of rich and pow
erful parents playing with matches in a
powder mill. not only will not help you,
I would, II I had the power, seize you and