The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1903-04-24

- SAAS 10 ILL., -
When the whole COM
does for each member of the
community all that can be done. this is
Christianity.
You know we have been lacking in
the south in the exercise of his COM
munity power. We southern people
a been devoted to a very strong ex-
ercise of individual power. Why. we
remind me of the work of the Irish
man, who after he had been ir this
country two or three years, heard a
Fourth of July speaker say that III the
United States one man was as good as /,
another, and the Irishman added Yes. !,
and a blame sight better Individual
ism has been alike the power and the
weakness of the south. and especially /
in North Carolina, where our effort has
been to strengthen the individual with
a disregard for others. Great men
were made under this system-Wash-
ington, Jefferson, Clay, Andrew Jack
son. Stonewall Jackson. Lee-no better |
men ever lived on the globe. We yield
to no people on earth in producing f!
greater individual men. Make q list, ,
equalling hat in the same time. il You
can, from the same territory anywhere
on the globe. Find a leader like Pat
rick Henry, a statesman and writer
like Thomas Jefferson, a perfectly bal
anced strong man like Washington. a
SlIOlS CHARACTER dIlu SldlSSilldl dIl.
leade of men like Andrew Jackson, al
invincible soldier like Stonewall Jack
son, or a more perfectly balanced.
greater soldier, scholar and gentleman
than r. E. Lee! We have a right to
be proud Of them. We have a right TO
glory in them. We have a right TO re-
member them and We will remember
them forever. These men, however,
knew but little of community power.
Not n of them ever saw sucn a
meeting as this for such a purpose as
this. Not one of them ever saw i COM
munity united and supporting q great
system of public chools for the ecuca-
ton Of every child in the community
at the public expense. This is COM
munity power. Take a machine. take
a buggy,a wagon; take an animal, and
its strength is the strength Of the
| weakest part. In the same way, a
a community with the weakness of
vice and the weakness Of ignorance,
and that community is held down by
such weakness. The human organism
is not stronger than its weakest part.
We see the esult Of community power
in the building Of good ruads, the build
ing of bridges, better court houses and
better schoo1 buildings. AS We unite
the forces Of our community we Will
again produce great men. backed by
| great communities, and we will again
| lead the United States as we lead them
in the past. And surely community
power cannot be secured better \ a by
| education. Education-the very deVel-
| opment of the forces and faculties of
the young in the community. What is
this education? 1t is no system of
examining. 1t is a system of natural
development and cultivation. 1t is the
| system that has created everything Oh
the globe Of any merit or power.
passed by a field last week-a field
which six Years ago was an old worm
out piece of land that would hardly
grow straw. 1t a not been cultrvat-
ed in 60 years, and the land had been
washed into guleys. However. a farm
err had taken possession of this field
after throwing some stones n
bushes in the gulleys and stopping the
wash, he plowed the field up and
planted which in a wonder
full way by taking nitrogen from he
air and imparting it to the land so
that other plants might feed on it. has
enriched the land. After blowing these
cowpears under and sewing a crop OF
clover, this farmer was enabled to get
20 bushels of wheat per acre from this
land that was formerly almost worth
less. This was what education does.
Humanity in the same way must be
educated and cultivated until the habit
is fixed. This is a great truth. Where
do you find the richest countries Of the
world today?
Training will make a mar great IN
any line. I have before me many eX-
amples of that. The mayor of Colds
boro before us. and your own presid-
ing officer here today. lave not had
a hand in producing these great speak
ers. while they were students at the
University of North Cardinal? Have
I not had a hand in the training of
IL . 6 ~ 11n n Cnn0nh
myself, ] ear produce the men who
can make speeches. You know the
grind-stone cannot cut. 1t is not
sharp. But the grindstone can sharp
en- the steel and it can cut. And this
is the function of the teacher. the
great power and he great glory OF the
teacher and all we need to do IS TO
apply the grindstone in every direc-
ton. And to this end. allow me to
express the hope that you gentlemen
Of the J. o. A. NJ, in presenting these
gifts to the public schools Of VIII
mington. will. in addition to the Bible
and the flag. also present the hammer
in order that you may induce the state
to rain her children not only in the
development of the intellect-the MIND.
not only in the development of charac-
ter-the heart. but in the production
Of skill with the hands"
The close of the beautiful Grafton
was marked by the most demonstra-
tive applause, which lasted several
minutes, and which broke forth afresh
when the children sang Dixie The
exercises were brought to a close with
a benediction invoked by Rev. Geo. 2.
Webster
This morning at II o'clock the Me-
chanics' committee will visit the
schools, ACCOMPANIED by the Hons
Winston and Hood, and personally
present the flags.