vacated.

The commercial and industrial rivalry of the nations of the world was
never so sharp and intense as at the present time, and all signs point to
increased competition among them during this century. In this contest the
labor of each country is primarily the grand determining factor. It must
from sheer necessity and stress of circumstances be brought in each
instance to the highest state of economic efficiency by every resource in
the possession of the respective world rivals. And this will be attempted
in the future by each of these world rivals on a grandeur of scale and
with a scientific thoroughness and energy in the use of educational means
not yet realized by the most progressive of them. For those nations who
succeed best in this respect will prevail over those others which fail to
raise their labor to an equally high grade of efficiency. Now, if Negro
labor is the best for its climate and needs, the South must seek
earnestly, constantly, by every means in its power, to raise that labor to
the highest state of economic efficiency of which it is capable. That
section must do so in spite of its chimerical fears of Negro domination,
in spite of its rooted race prejudices. It must educate and emancipate
this labor, all hostile sentiment of whatever nature to the contrary
notwithstanding, if it will hold its own in that great cosmic struggle for
existence in which it is now engaged with powerful rivals at home and
abroad. Nor can the republic be indifferent on this head. No country in
this age of strenuous commercial competition can forget with impunity its
duty in this regard. Neglect here brings swift retribution to any nation
which carries a vast horde of crude and relatively inefficient labor into
an industrial struggle with the rest of the world, for the world's labor
will henceforth assume more and more the character of vast standing armies
engaged in world-wide industrial warfare. Each unit of these industrial
armies will be ultimately trained and disciplined to the highest possible
efficiency, and will some time form together perfect machines, which will
operate with clock-like precision and purpose at any given quarter of the
field of action. In obedience to the first law of nature our country in
its battle with industrial rivals to retain present advantages and win new
ones in world markets, will have to elevate the whole body of its labor
regardless of color or race, to the highest state of economic