tion of the
riotous element, through the vigorous and constant efforts of the
rightful rulers of the South--the educated and peace-loving citizenry.
In no case has any outrage against Negroes been given the approval of
any responsible officer of the law. Violations of the letter and
spirit of the statutes are committed over the protest of the
authorities, and those who desire the aggressive execution of all the
laws in the future must exercise more care in the selection of men
intrusted with the power of administration. More attention must be
paid to the character and personal fitness of candidates standing for
office. The Negro can and will help to do this. The regeneration of
existing conditions among the whites must come from an enlightened
public spirit and a broader culture, such as are being bred through
the public schools and through the introduction of improved methods in
business and social life. First-class white men must take hold of the
reins of government throughout the Southland. The Negro is an
imitative creature, and he takes on the color of his environment. If
it be charged that he is frequently immoral, dishonest and shiftless,
the dissolute whites with whom he has been closely identified have
furnished a model that he has copied only too faithfully. Let the
Christian element become a more prominent factor in state affairs, and
the Negro will at once grow in character and address by virtue of the
inspiring example thus set for him.

This phase of the "Negro problem" carried to its logical conclusion
becomes the "white man's problem." Will the Southern American rise in
his majesty, dismiss his prejudice and prove equal to the lofty duty
allotted to him? Will he give the Negro a man's chance in the battle
of life, and depend upon his own natural gifts of mind and heart for
his supremacy?

The political phase of the race problem I shall touch but briefly.
There is no call for the Negro "to get _out of politics_;" as the term
is popularly used. The fact is the Negro should begin "to _get into
politics_" in the truest sense of the word--that is, to begin at the a
b c of political power and come up by the usual processes of
individual development. The suffrage is a privilege conferred by the
state. States make certain restrictions for their own protection as
sovereign commonwealths. Although it is unfortunately a fact that the
restrictions are enforced more rigidly against black illiterates and
black non-