man do?" (John 21.)

Man is a relative being and should be thus considered. The status of my
brother then will always serve as a standard of value by which my own
conduct can be measured; by his standard mine may become either high or
low, broad or narrow, deep or shallow. This is the theory that underlies
all humanitarian work. This is the great dynamic force of the Christian
life.

No question is being asked by the American people more earnestly today
than this one: "Lord, What shall this man, the Negro, do,--this black
man upon whom centuries of ignorance have left their marks?" He has made
a faithful slave, a courageous soldier, and when trained and educated,
an industrious and law-abiding citizen, yet he is troubled on every
side. What shall he do? Uneducated, undisciplined, untrained, he is
often ferocious or dangerous; he makes a criminal of the lowest type for
he is the product of ignorance.

Crime has increased in proportion as educational privileges have been
withdrawn. This brings the Negro face to face with a most dangerous
criminal force. What shall this man do? It is true that the white man is
further up on the ladder of civilization than the Negro, but the Negro
desires to climb and has made rapid strides, according to his chances.

Christ's answer to Peter was, "What is that to thee, follow thou Me."
John's future welfare evidently depended upon Peter's ability to follow
Christ. So the future work and welfare of the Negro in the Black-Belt of
the South depend largely upon the Christian work of the southern white
man. The Negro needs justice and mercy from the courts of the land and
asks for equal rights in educational opportunities.

We admit that there is a difference between the white man and the Negro,
but the difference is not as great as was the difference between Christ
and His disciples. We admit that the white man is above the Negro, but
not so high as was Christ above His disciples. The very fact that Christ
was superior to His disciples served to Him as a reason why He should
minister unto them. The superiority of the white man to his black
brother can only be shown by the white man's willingness to minister
unto him. Lord, what shall this black man do?

Many great problems confront the people of the rural South, namely, this
Negro Problem and the problem of sufficient labor supply. In a practical
way I wish to consider the relation of the Negro to the labor problem of
the rural South. It