The Colorado statesman., 1912-05-18

| elmer as teachers or in some Otner
capacity, when they returned home.
Il mention these facts here because
they indicate to my mind, not so much
terest in any one particular institu-
tion or In one particular form Of edu-
cation, but rather a very widespread
unrest in regard to educational mat
ters in general, and at the same time,
a hope and faith that there are oppor-
tunities for broadening, improving and
applying education to the actual needs
of life, in ways of which we are just
beginning to realize the possibilities.
This is the reason, l take it, that
so many of you have come from dis
tant part of the world; from Eu-
rope, from Africa and the West Indies,
to attend this conference. You have
come to Tuskegee, in other words,
not so much because you believe we
have discovered or invented any new
and specific remedy for the problems
you have encountered in the different
lines of work in which you are en-
gagged, but rather because you have
heard that we have been trying ex-
periments, and that we are earnestly
| SSShAAo " auu SOLltlllllS W Jul hIO" l.
edge of what education can practically
do, particularly in the solution of some
of these new and difficult problems,
which have sprung up in different
parts of the world, as a result of the
closer contacts of the white and color
ed races"
One of the interesting portions of
the program was the reading of let
ters from the persons who were invit-
ed, or who heard in some way about
the conference, but were not able to
come. Very few of these letters were
of the ordinary formal sort. Many of
them give interesting gimpses into
the life of the native peoples and sug-
gest something of the ideas and aspi-
rations that are stirring in the back of
the black mans brain, in many parts
of the world. For example. one of
these letters was from Dr. Edward
Blyden, written shortly before he died,
an exile from his home in Liberia, at
Sierra Leone, West Africa. DR.. Bly,
den, who was born in the West In
dies and emigrated to Liberia, was
one of the most distinguished and
learned negroes the world has yet pro-
duced. He is at different times pres
ident of the Liberian Republic, ambas-
sador to France, and head of the Col
lege of West Africa He was deep
student of Arabic, and had travelled
far and wide among the Mohammedan
blacks He had a peculiar theory to
the effect that the negro could never
become a Christian because, as he
pointed out, in all of the imagery of
the Christian church, the religious
i, paintings, the statuary. and SO forth,
Christ and the angels are represented
as white. There are no black angels,
and for that reason, he said, the mass
es OF the black people are not going to
believe in the Christian heaven. Dr.
Blyden was inclined, in his latter years
to the creed of Islam, which is strong
among the native African peoples He
favored Mohammedanism, because it
forbids the use of images, pictures or
symbols of any kind in connection
with religion.
To Dr. Blyden, the Significance of
this conference seemed TO be the fact
that a negro school should have be-
come so widely known that without
any one regarding it as strange or un-
usual, it was possible to invite peo-
pie from all over the world to visit it.
DR.. Blyden said:
Il am not surprised to get a letter
from you on the important question
to which you have been good enough
to call my attention
In the first place, l may say, / am
nrpn6 that a m of hn
gro race has risen to such a position,
as to be able to summon to his home
the whole world to discuss with him
the negro question. Secondly be-
cause l have seen the invitation pub
lished in several English papers, and
not one has either by implication or
directly given any sign of objection to
the right of DR.. Booker T. Washington
to summon the whole Christian world
to meet together to deal with the ques-
tion which concerns not only the ne
gro race in America, but the whole At
rican continent"
Another interesting letter. which
perhaps gives some indication of the
kind of interest with which the ma
tive leaders of the West coast are in
clined to look upon this conference,
is from Mr.. Casely Hayford, native
barrister-at-law, at Sekondi, on the
Gold coast, who is the author of sew
eral books on the native institutions
of the West coast people and also of
a book; Ethiopia Unbound" which
is perhaps the first book written by a
native African to give expression to
the sentiment of African nationality.
Mr.. Hayforth says:
I'VE here feel that the great work
that is being done at Tuskegee Insti-
tute has mighty uplifting force for
the race, 1t may be possible, how
ever to be influenced in some degree
hy the great national tapdapoy ,ybIoh