The Nashville globe. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1906-193?, 1913-04-11
THE IDEAL NEGRO As NE IS
PICTURED BY A WHITE NAN.

Qen university, June z, 1911.
Mr.. Cooper, in his address to the
Negro teachers assembled at Walden
University last Friday, said in part:
The ideal Negro has righteousness
in his life, intelligence in his head,
joy in his heart and skill in his hands.
He is a Negro that nobody hates; that
everybody loves. You can find him
now, putting his talents to good use,
whether %scrubbing floors or laying
brick, whether laying crossties or
blowing fields, whether hauling gar
bage or healing the SEX, whether
bleaching the gospel or teaching
school, ideal Negroes differ in talents
as much as ideal white folks. There
are thousands of ideal Negroes in this
country. We have had ideal Negroes
ever since our old black mammies
nursed us into knighthood long "befo'
de wah.' We have got them now, and
] pray that the seed may never die
out. No mob wants to lynch the ideal
Negro; no state wants to Danish him;
no law wants to rob him; no court
wants to jail him. We all want him
out, to help us in the busy fields Of
life. We are praying and looking for
the ideal Negro; and when We find him
we call in our neighbors to rejoice
with us that we have found a friend
to every virtue, a foe to every vice.
We white folks are so anxious to
have our state well supplied with the
ideal Negro that we gladly give u
time and taxes to help raise up a race
of ideal Negroes; to transform or
evolute the ordinary Negro into the
ideal Negro.
You Negro school teachers are the
messengers of Christian civilization,
employed by the state to perform and
perfect the glorious business of sup
plying the state with ideal Negroes.
The true glory of the Negro race
and the peace and happiness of all
our people depend, in large measure,
upon the Negro school teachers. For
one bad Negro, just like one bad
white man, can bring pandemonium
to any community. (,.Y
The Negro school teacher is the
white mans tribute to peace and
He goes to reincarnate the
gospel of righteous living and honor
able industry.
Negro Teachers Worth.
Every good Negro teacher is a pal
ladium of the states happiness. He
goes to the schoolroom, like aSpicket
to his post, without bond or seeprtty.
We trust him like a Roman guard
to watch and work for the states
best interest; and for his duty well
performed he deserves as rich re-
wards as martial heroes ever wrote,
The hand that rocks the cradle
still rules che a&O44d. 6Rwe s9harethei
Negro teacher to put heads full OF
sfnEe Xnd\h he FITS 6ll u Virtue 20
Eule\tke hah& thHs rocks the
and rules the wofdA l avn
proud OF the great and good work
you are doing. bid Godspeed in
the grand work of helping every
Negro boy and girl to grow up TO be
an ideal Negro
Your success will mean that the
dives of shameless men will
go into bankruptcy and decay for
want of Negro loafers, Negro thieves,
Negro idrunkardss Negro gamblers and
Negro cruflaus. .a.-G r;cdag adt ..4s |
Then, the selfish politicians will
have no Negro dupes to vote for vice
m virtues vestments. .ts siQo
Scarce three hundred years have
passed since first the Negro was sold
slave upon our soil; not halfsa cen.
Jury has passed since he became a
citizen. Yet today in many places
he Negro stands the involuntary ar
3iter10f eur civic destiniesaN WeohaYe
son him Weld the balance ofnPpWeH
dis vote S 1almo9tias much asQught
AIS in the p9lticaleWaTld sassjs his
ab9r in the industrial world ,maqeq
If the Negro is, ever TO decide our
conflicts in the political world; If
he Negro is to vote us forward 10
ward paradise, or backward toward
'erdition, then ! pray that that Ne
,ro may be an ideal Negro.
The path of duty is always the
'ath OF safety. And if we white folks
lon't do our full duty toward our
'rothers in black; if we don't strive
With might and main to make an
deal Negro, the time will come when
he Negro who was sold a slave to
make us rich will sell us to the devil
t the ballot box or bind us out in
Hest slavery to public p~lunderers.
We have got to save the Negro in
rider to save ourselves.
Joseph went to Egypt as a slave,
ut he stayed to save Egypt from
anime and death. The Negro came
o America a slave; | want him to
tay imbued with virtue, to help us
ave America from a famine of bread
nd a famine of righteousness.
His skin is black, but it takes more
han a black skin to make an outcast,
it takes nor than a white skin
o make a gentleman. God sent
'hilip from home out upon the desert
o preach the truth to the Ethiopian.
Z we fail to follow this great exam
lie Ethiopia will rise up to condemn
6, If not to inflict us with unuttera-
lie woes.
Story of Hercules.
The old Greek story of Hercules is
I'LL of universal truth. Hercules was
4 slavery and was told that if he
'ould perform twelve great tasks or
lbors he would be free and happy.
he labors before him seemed impos-
lble tasks, and Hercules at first de-
of ever being free. All the
gods stood anxiously watch
lg to see what Hercules would do.
nd when, after much prayer, he
dpprmiupd IN do oil 4bo toeIye