The Washington bee., 1911-06-03

vile, Fla. The choral class elected un-
guarded applause in its rendition of In
fanatus," by Rossini. The solo work
of Pearl Y. Reid was good
One of the finest introductions ever
made by President James z. Shepard.
one that was equal to his introduction
of DIR. Eliot, President Emeritus Har-
yard University, was made by DR..
shepard this morning in introducing Jus-
hce Wendell Phillips Stafford, Associate
Justice, Supreme Court District of Co.
lumbla, who received an ovation which
Registered one of the negro's deep ap-
IpreciationS of his white friends.
The Gospel of Poetry" was the sub
Ject of the judges address, which was
an effort which caused stronger and
Ideeper recognition of true poetry, being
heavenly inspiration found in the ma
tire OF a peasant as we'll as the patri-
clan. The following utterance, Poetry
IS a golden bridge from the real to the
ideal, conveyed a gospel strongly enun-
ciated by him, which imbued his audi
Ience. That man does not wear his
heart upon his sleeve, and this fact was
| accentuated by his statement that Kip
fhng was the poet laureate of the Ia
DoTer, and his high poetry showed the
laOorer was doing poetic work.
| Among the greatest needs of the coun-
try, ne said, was a singer of the true
cause of the nation, and inspiring epics
were shown to be created by their au-
thors' lives being in touch with nature
and humanity.
AS an example of the negro race be-
hyy h. Il Z
| his court experiences when a negro, in
reply to a query concerning his ability
| to make home comfortable for his wife.
for whom he was pleading to be released
from the hospital for insane, said !:
Home is comfortable for me when she
| is there"
Judge Stafford said in part:
1T is great pleasure to have a part
IN such an occasion as this. 1t is the
second commencement of your school.
You are still on the threshold of your
undertaking. What it may bring forth
for the good of the black race and the
welfare Of the country at large can
not be foretold, for none of us will
presume TO claim the gift of prophecy
But there are present here such cheer
full auguries, such solid grounds for
hope, as ought to make any good citi-
zen rejoice and take courage. In the
first place, your enterprise has had a
natural and sound origin 1t has come
into being to meet a want that actually
exists and must be recognized and dealt
with. The COlored people need an in
stitution of this character They need
competent teachers. They need sensible
and devoted pastors They need wise,
true leaders, And to furnish these is
the principal aim and purpose of this
school. There are two ways of judg-
ing a people. One is by the great men
and women it produces. The other is
by the average merit of the mass of
the race. But the two always go to-
gether. A great race produces great
representatives and great representa-
tiveS raise and lead forward the people
from which they sDrang. Think of the
mighty lawgiver of Israel. Moses was
the true child of his race. and he proved
his greatness by leading his people out
of the land of bondage into land of
liberty and light Or take the black race
and think of Toussaint L'ouverture. A
slave on a San Domingo plantation who
became chieftain, ruler, statesman,
and finally martyr for his people. His
fate stirred the pulse of Wordsworth,
who wrote of him:
There's not a breathing of the common
wind
That will forget thee
1--WE might come nearer home, to our
own day, and not lack for example
This school was born of the reaiza-
ton of this deep truth, that every race
must have its leaders. It is not enough
to provide for the average man; you
co-E;r~a1 20 O,oo 6.,a