Moreover, in our record never have we joined with other classes, who, with a rebellious spirit have excited civic revolt and disturbed public peace. While it is true that many of the base and corrupt walk the streets in idleness, the better element at the humble trades and more exalted professions have set out to live by the sweat of their own brow and with their powers to work out their own destiny.
We may not, indeed, boast of achievements which other races have accomplished in hundreds of years. Nay, we confess that ignorance and immorality and vice of every description exist among us. To eradicate totally the curse of slavery in thirty years would be miraculous indeed. There are among us some who steal, but not all of us are rogues by any means. When a decision of our accomplishments is given, some judge us by the number of prisoners among us. But there are among us many good men and women, who uphold the right, who in competition with other men and women have held their places with credit.
A comparison of the negro of to-day with the negro of thirty years ago shows a contrast. A new negro has sprung upon the stage of action, one who has had the advantages derived from the seminaries, colleges and universities founded and fostered by philanthropic people. The incredulous have been made to confess that we are susceptible of higher education and refinement. Through books we have realized intellectual growth. The wisdom of the past has enriched our souls, kindled our imagination, and deepened our thoughts. We have begun to look upon the world with new eyes. Our minds have been turned upon ourselves. We compare ourselves with other races, not as black men, but as men, and we thirst for knowledge and for individual perfection. We have learned to reflect and to form conception of right and to determine our vocation in life. We have learned not to depend entirely upon public opinion, but also to help make it. We have learned that self must be overcome. We are studying self and we know by evolution great improvements have been made mentally, morally and materially. We believe that man fashioned in God's image and endowed with mental faculties which are capable of development was not sent into the world to serve, in order that other men may revel in luxuries and wasteful living.
History teaches that every victorious race has had its struggles, and certainly we are no exception. There are great hindrances in our pathway and unjust prejudice against us. But prejudice is not as great as it has been, and in the face of opposition we know there is a place for us. We would dethrone Judge Lynch who stains the ermine of the bench and invades the halls of justice, but after all, his slaughters pale into insignificance when compared with those committed by ignorance and intemperance. Industry and frugality and self-control have been partly diffused among us, and these irresistible forces will revolutionize the wrong, destroy the evils and bring the consummation of our hopes for which we seriously plead. We are learning to think and by the power of thought we are to take the place in American life vouchsafed to every American citizen without regard to "race, color or previous condition of servitude."
Our development has been and must be gradual in order to be permanent. There has been no spasmodic growth in the oak of the forest. A few years ago it was only a tiny twig, but silently, imperceptibly, and daily, it has increased in strength and greatness, until now it stands forth the giant of the forest with its large and manifold parts extending far and wide, sheltering the cattle of the hills and the fowl of the air. We do not demand the commanding position which the Anglo Saxon occupies by reason of centuries of struggle, but as humble citizens bringing to the government, which we love and honor, our tribute we ask that our country may give us the assurance of equal opportunity and protection. When a responsible duty in state is assigned us, we ask the privilege of discharging the same unharmed.
The rail-splitter upon the sparsely settled lands of Kentucky was fired with a purpose and a recognition of his place among men. He toiled on against hindrances and adversities until he had cut his way to the Capitol of the nation and had become the President of the nation and the emancipator of four millions of slaves. The colored lad upon Colonel Lloyd's plantation who heard the barking of the blood hounds and felt the lash of the task master, likewise he realized that such was not his place. He sought his place, and to-day America holds in sacred memory that eloquent and matchless orator Frederick Douglass.
Fellow-students, despair not, there is hope for us. Our pathway has been rough, but our privileges have been likewise great. Our souls have been touched, our thoughts directed and our visions enlarged. We are standing here upon the base swell of the mount of prosperity, viewing its lofty summit which towers above prejudice and contempt into the atmosphere of recognition and respectability. Enemies may assail us on our ascent, but will climb on: men have reached the top and we can reach it. Though our ideal is high, if we have the patience of our fathers and the courage demanded; if with unselfish devotion we act well our part upon the stage of life, everywhere promoting to the best of our ability those virtues indispensable in the welfare of a people, our banner of intellectual and moral power will wave upon the mountain heights, and its glory will bless our homes, our race, and our nation.
LOUISIANA CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION.
BY PROF. GEORGE W. HENDERSON, D.D., STRAIGHT UNIVERSITY, NEW ORLEANS.