ring it never
sees, and the migratory birds follow the sun northward in the spring and
southward on the approach of winter. All this is natural instinct.

Religious instinct is something very different from the natural instinct
of any creature. It is a natural power possessed by man alone, and has
its sphere in the human conscience. Paul, writing to the Romans in
regard to the barbarians of his day, observed, "God is manifest in them,
for the invisible things of God, even his eternal power and God-head,
are clearly seen by the things that are made."

LOYAL AND PATRIOTIC

The Negro in America has always been loyal and patriotic. He has
rendered a voluntary service in the army and navy of the United States
that is worthy of special commendation. The records of the war
department show that the number of colored soldiers, participating in
the several wars of this country was as follows:

Revolutionary War, 1775-1781 3,000
War of 1812 2,500
Civil War, 1861-1865 178,975

In the war with Spain in Cuba in 1898 the first troops that were sent to
the front were four regiments of colored soldiers, and the service they
rendered was distinguished by bravery and courage.

THE FREEDMAN, HOMELESS AND ILLITERATE

In 1860 the number of Negroes that were in a state of slavery was
3,930,760. In 1910 their number in the southern states had increased to
9,000,000; and in the northern states to 1,078,000.

The Emancipation Proclamation of President Lincoln was issued January 1,
1863, but it was preceded by a preliminary one on September 22, 1862,
that gave the public a notice of 100 days of the coming event.

The Act of Emancipation that severed the relation binding them to their
masters, left them in a very forlorn and deplorable condition. They were
homeless and penniless in a country, that had been rendered more or less
desolate, by the ravages of war and bloodshed. No provision had ever
been made for the spread of intelligence among them. It has been
estimated that only about five per cent of them at that time could read
and write. Their homeless and illiterate condition rendered them
comparatively helpless and dependent.

In 1885 the number of voters enrolled among the Freedmen was 1,420,000
and of these as many as 1,065,000 were then unable to read and write.
These illiterate voters then represented the balance of power in eight
southern states and one sixth of the national electoral vote.