. It is but fair to say that
the fate of the Negro has been cast along these lines that were as
fixed as the stars in their courses. There have been exceptions to the
laws of civil and political change. We have read with joy the triumph
of the black man of ancient times, his power in battle, his eminence
in letters, his skill in science, his genius as an agriculturist, his
patience as a herdsman. In the great cycles of changes, it stands to
reason that the wheel of civil and political fortune will again
revolve in the Negro's favor.

The history of the black man's past in no wise serves to usurp the
functions of present duties. Notwithstanding the fact that there are
lowering clouds and muttering thunders, yet there is every indication
of a day, to express it boldly, that is coming that will outshine the
glittering sun.

'Tis not much that the American Negro asks in this racial warfare; his
aid has always been scant and rare; he has been thrown on his own
resources, buffeted about until he has become hidebound, as it were,
to those circumstances which have been so hurtful to the progress of
other nations.

Slavery, while a curse, has been a redeeming institution to the
American Negro.

It was that purgatorial step between African slavery and American
wealth. It was a necessary evil to prepare us for this most advanced
civilization of the world. Since that refining period, the Negro has
proven that he has the elements that make him a fit part of this great
country. There are those among us who have reached fame in nearly all
of the avenues of life. I take this as an index to the total
possibilities of the race. The masses, however, are to be reached. The
abilities of the few will not answer for the sins of the many. Crispus
Attucks, whose blood stained Boston Commons, the black soldiers of the
wars of our country down to that memorable engagement at El Caney,
will stand for Negro patriotism. Professors Washington, Councill and
thousands of others who are holding up the torch of learning will
stand for Negro intellect and citizenship, but behind all of these
stand the Negro masses that are not sufficiently quickened. These must
be prodded up, that they reach the front ranks of the procession. It
is but justice to the Negroes, however, to say that the doors of
opportunity do not swing wide for them. It ought to be otherwise, and
I believe it will be otherwise when a better understanding exists
between the races as to