The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-08-05
NEGRO MEETING ENDS
BUSINESS SESSION OF BLACK BAP-
 TESTS FINISHED.
Timely Topics Discussed by Many Speakers Who Urge Their Race to Improve the Moral and Re-
 uafous Conditions.

ciuded that this was the most suc-
 cessful session held in sixteen years.
 The convention has been attended by
 representative negroes from all parts of the State. and embraced almost I'every line of profession and business The delegation was composed or an aggressive set of young negroes wno
 are credit to their race. They show
 ed high appreciation for the opportu-
 mites given them thsoughout Alaha- ma
 For several years Rev C. M. Wells, D. D., progressive Alabama negro has been at the head of the conven- | tion and he has labored hard for the l advancement of his race His address es have been along practical lines and in them he showed a deep interest In his race. He called the convention to order yesterday morning at q o'clock and In his address declared that the time was ripe for the negroes to start I 2 crusade against likeness crime whisixey drinking. card playing, crap shooting and other evils along this | line. He spoke of a great army or young negro ioafers in the State who are retarding the progress of the race. and said they were negroes wno should be reached by negroes.
 You are your brothers keeper, ne said, "and there Is no getting around this. You are responsible for the ac- | tion of all the other negroes. and this has been proven to us. Now. 1t IS l for us to go 10 work and reach them l if we have to take stick and wear | a few of them out
 with the gospel of Jesus Christ. you are to go into the slums and de- vote your time in reaching out for the | men. and women of our race. You are 1 to drag them out If need be- and then you will soon see the result Of your efforts along the line of right living
 Good for nothing lazy. immoral minis ters are unfit to lead the devil and they are worse than hell cats. You will pardon the coarse language, but | the remedy must be applied. and 1t requires this kind of medicine to cure ths patient
 "A few negroes trying to be in so- ciety, joining the church, giving balls in their homes. drinking wine, allow Ing their girls to roam around the streets all, hours of the night. going amount to in this way? Not thing. If you are going to follow Jesus Christ. then you may lay aside the things of the devil. When we allow l our girls to go into tho ball room IL takes from them every iota of modes l ty, and they are soon doomed This | may be my last address to you, and
  we accept all that you have sald shouted Rev. J. H. Smith, of Tusca- 1 loosa, "and I am glad that can Join you An this crusade. believe Tn | saving our young people also, ana the doctrine you are preaching is the doc- Urine which preach to my people, ana am not ashamed of it. talk plaln | to our young people, and think that this is doing some good"
 Perhaps no address delfevered eln | the convention appealed to the young negro more than the one delivered by
 Henry Allen Boyd, of Nashville, Tenn,
 who is connected with the National Baptist Publishing House. Boyd is Texas negro, and after competing ms 1 education was employed in the san | Antonio post office as clerk He re- | signed that position to work with the negro publishing house, and has been
 a success. He showed what Is pos
 sible for the young negro who Will take advantage of the many oppor- | tunities opened to him. He saio III 1 part:
 am glad that I am negro and l would rather have that distinction than to be president of the United 1 States. I say this because 1 think | that here is a possibility for us. l | I know that we must be confronted
 with a prejudice, but that prejudice works for our good. When we are refused soda in a white drug store, | we are pointed to a negro drug store | where we can get all the soda we can | drink and at the same time help the struggling negro.
 "The negro who is tripped up by stick, will never made any headway | by stopping to quarrel with the stick, | move it out of the way and continue | on his journey. We will be able to re- | .t1 hrr U- | ing attention to our shiftless set or men and women. They belong to us | and there is no need of trying to deny | them or to get away from them. By | the laws of the land we are all | thrown together, and we can only
 climb now by lifting them.
 Our young men must be taught I from infancy to work. They must love
 work Many positions have gone from | us because we have been careless. | The servant problem has been dis 1 cussed and some are advocating doing | away with negro labor and bringing Into this country foreign labor. The
 south will never submit to this. We f have been here with the white man | for a number of years and we under stand each other, and we will work | together for the betterment of our | county. Let us wipe out tgnoance' | save our money. go into business, es- | tablish banks as we are now doing, | give employment to our boys and girls
 when they greduate from our schools,
 and this will help us up. Be proud Of
 the fact that we belong to the negro | race.
 1 T believe that we are capable of | producing more men like w. H. Coun- | ell, tho man who has the full confi- | dence of the entire South. Professor Council has given his life for his peo- l ple, and we all honor and love him re- l gardless to what few negroes in the North are saying. Let us rally to our | great men. put their pictures on our | walls and teach our children about | the men and women who have made | us what we are. Teach the negro boy | that there is something higher for
 him than being an empty headed, empty | pocket dude. l say these things be- | cause 1 am young man myself anu | because 1 want to see our young men | lifted up The white people who are l interested in are anxious to see
 us do away with the loafing element,
 and they believe this will help the | whole country.
 Rev. A. J. Stokes. pastor of the Col
 umbus Street Baptist Church was in- | troduced and made an address. He
 said that he was proud of the work be- ing done by the Sunday School workers | and to see that they were taking such | a bold stand against sin and idleness
 Prof w. T. Breeding, principal of 1 one of t.:e negro schools Of Montgom-
 cry. was introduced and in his ad- dress said: "I believe that the future ot
 the race Is in the hands of our boys
 and girls of today. and I am striving | tC instruct the youth in industry, hon.