Metropolis weekly gazette. (Metropolis, Ill.) 1???-19??, 1914-10-30
AFRO-AMER|CAN CULL|NCS

Our readers have already been IN
structed and edited by Mrs. George F.
Shears account of the biennial meet
Ing of the Federation OF Colored Wom-
ems clubs at Wilberforce, o. Miss
Zona Gale. her companion, the two. we
believe. making the only white attend
ants. has given her version of the story
in Life and Labor, the organ OF the
Woman's Trade unions. The extracts
from the utterances of those present
found in Miss Gales article are SO
persuasive and inspiring that we glad
ly lay hold OF them for the benefit OF
Unity readers. The chairman OF the
executive board, Mrs. Mary Talbert OF
Buffalo. among other things. said:
Never in the history of our race
have our women had so great a priyi-
lege as Is granted to US. the privilege
TO be and to do what We will, to de-
yelop our highest powers. to improve
every opportunity. to satisfy our deep
est longings for educational adyant-
ages. For the women OF our race OF 90
years ago we're the common burden
bearers, the common property OF the
horde. refused the privilege of reading
and writing. forbidden TO recognize
their own names when they saw them
In writing And yet they were trust.
ing in God.
TO my mind comes the first Negro
club woman, Frances Ellen Watkins
Harper. who after the Civil war-or
rather. | might say, after our new birth
went up and down the Southland TO
the newly liberated slaves. and urged
upon those mothers TO start at the IRE
side. In letter dated Greenviile. Ga.
March 20, 1870, she writes: Now Ia
the time for women to begin to try to
lift up their heads and plant the roots
of progress under the hearthstones.
To-day the Negro women all over the
country have seen that flower grow.
and ii is for Us to continue 10 plant
This is the field. Now what OF the
co-operationg There can be but one
motive In all our work-the spirit OF
Christian love. the expression Of racial
brotherhood What We have done can
not be measured only by advance, but
by the deterioration which We have
helped to prevent. We know that In
every community there are splendid
women who have not yet seen the
necessity OF lifting as we climb who
have not felt that they could leave
their whist tables to do this work,
and yet they will tell you that they
are In sympathy with what we are try.
ing to do Nobody can be the friend
OF any class by being the enemy OF
any other class. You can be the friend
OF one class only by showing II the
line along which II can accommodate
its work to the best advantage. The
lines OF help are always the lines OF
this accommodation. | firmly believe
that the more we interest our women
Of the favored classes TO work with the
women In humber lives the better our
work will be done--this work OF lift
ing an entire Negro manhood and
womanhood into better life.
1T behooyes US as club women TO
see that we urge our ministry 70 coop
crate with Us. Often ministers have
been particularly antagonistic to this
club movement, fearing that II will af'
feet the financial support OF the
church. We sympathize with the feel.
ing OF such ministers. for We know
that the average minister does not re-
ceiye living salary, much less a
working salary. But we must educate
them 10 the fact that the time has
come when they, too, must Join with
us In enlarging the work by these or
ganizations OF women's clubs. Unity.