The daily morning journal and courier., 1903-09-04

Other avenues of labor have been, opened by the marvellous industrial, growth of the south. The cotton fac tories and iron works, with their kin dred industries, will intimately demand efficiency in utter disregard of color. There is not an ounce of sentimentality or one grain CT prejudice in the law of the survival of the fittest.
 The negro must settle his destiny in the south; it cannot be settled by the few who, unable to bear the stress of the situation, escape to the north, to Canada or to Europe, whatever the con- dition of that few may be. The world s judgment of the whole negro race will be made up from the outcome in the southern United States of America.
 There can be no possible reason for doubt that the vast majority of our race must devote themselves to intelligent and useful manual work. This is Book CT Washington's opinion, an opinion sadly misunderstood by many of his own people. He has been. accused and assailed as if he had said that no negro, however capable, should lift his aspira- tion above the blow and the anvil; whereas his sayings from beginning to end disclose no excuse for the aecusa- tion.
 OUR POLITICAL ROLE. a When Lee surrendered and the south gave up her cause and the disbanded remnants of her heroes returned to the ashes of their former civilization, the negro was given freedom; and like a child with a gold dollar, he saw no higher use for the thing than pastime and merriment. z...sz.A ,s.;sz,s.sy s.ss4.. t
 'The negro problem is solved, said the north with innocent complacency. But few years showed that instead of being solved it was almost hopelessly in- volved. 'sThe ballot!" cried Sumner, "the ballot is an educator" He forgot that ballots had not educated, the Anglo Saxon, but that he had climbed by self-exertion from base to summit of the tyrant's throne and wrung the bat lot from his hand. Through his efforts to attain it he acquired the strength to hold it; what a people takes by its self
 developed strength it can never be de- prived o. # The ballot and democracy are the.very tip-top of governmental forms This Is | just where the negro was started,-at the top; and starting at the top he had | but one way to progress and that was I to progress backwards This he has I done with such uniform rapidity as tc reach the base again within little more
 than generation. The thing was a most interesting farce. Before the revolution of 1S7t | ignorance took charge of the southern governments and loaded them witf ,1ebt, while the north lookeSi on in ( half-grim smile to see what the new
 creature would do. But the .'revolu.
 tion" came, the Invisible Empire" Is. sued it's interdict to the negro voter arlt l the black began to fade out of legisla' | tive halls like the passing of an eclipse
 Then after quarter-century of politi I cal trickery the south tires, confesses
 reconstructs it's suffrage laws, make! the ballot a prize for industry ant character; and the north washes, 1t:
 hands and lays this fiattering unctiot upon it's conscience: We will trus
 
 the negro to solve their own problem. Y. The rancor that cruel war leaves il | the breasts of men doubtlessly made | 1 necessary for the government to lgol I after it's newly-c created wards, but thi: l child of freedom should not have beet turned into politics like child in lab ! oratory to mar and scar itself for life | We must win our place and not expec it gratis from congress and the presi I dent. The negro must so fit himself fo suffrage that even blind justice woult utter a cry of shame if he were deniet his proper rights.
 We can accomplish very little by lag 3l itation." The thing that speaks loudes is not the orators tongue, but his char sI acter. The thing that will help the ne gro race is not abstract argument, bu
 concrete work. While some negroes Q the north are busyings themselves witt
 demonstrating from the dry skeleton of logic that Washington is wrong Washington Is in the south worktn upon and elevating the real negro 0 actual flesh and blood. Wefneed4work CTS, not "agitators." If we want ou people to vote, let us lift them up to tn standard that is set for both black an
 white and then appeal to the justice o
 the world and the Judge of Heaven they are denied. The law of the survi
 val of the. Attest is as memorable as tn q law of gravitation. : Of those who claim that the most ig II noranf man needs tho ballot in "Shee self-defense'' I would like to ask, "Is {. razor or revolver in the hands of : child a weapon of self-defense or self : destruction?" .-a
 If all the lung power that Is spent i abuse of the southern white man, all tn
 thought that is put into foolish paper of denunciation and agitation, if all thi wasted energy were concentrated upo the one purpose of elevating the negrt | it would not be two generations befor any state of the Union would be prou of a constituency of black citizens. !. Whoever breaches to negroes the doc |. Urine of hate and revenge, be he blac as midnight, he is the worst enemy (
 the negro race. r.. '-: :, Not every individual who favors ne , suffrage laws does so with conscienc , clear of unjust intentions toward m , race. Alas, there are some whose mo tives are narrow as their hearts. Bt i the men who stand in the. forefront ( American affairs are not of this clas
 Justice wakes and God lives
 .I OUR SOCIETY.