ge to bear upon the physical conditions in the South which
I have tried to emphasise.

Frederick Douglass, of sainted memory, once, in addressing his race,
used these words: "We are to prove that we can better our own
condition. One way to do this is to accumulate property. This may
sound to you like a new gospel. You have been accustomed to hear
that money is the root of all evil, etc. On the other hand,
property--money, if you please--will purchase for us the only
condition by which any people can rise to the dignity of genuine
manhood; for without property there can be no leisure, without leisure
there can be no thought, without thought there can be no invention,
without invention there can be no progress."

The Negro should be taught that material development is not an end,
but simply a means to an end. As Professor W. E. B. DuBois puts it,
"The idea should not be simply to make men carpenters, but to make
carpenters men." The Negro has a highly religious temperament; but
what he needs more and more is to be convinced of the importance of
weaving his religion and morality into the practical affairs of daily
life. Equally as much does he need to be taught to put so much
intelligence into his labour that he will see dignity and beauty in
the occupation, and love it for its own sake. The Negro needs to be
taught that more of the religion that manifests itself in his
happiness in the prayer-meeting should be made practical in the
performance of his daily task. The man who owns a home and is in the
possession of the elements by which he is sure of making a daily
living has a great aid to a moral and religious life. What bearing
will all this have upon the Negro's place in the South as a citizen
and in the enjoyment of the privileges which our government confers?

To state in detail just what place the black man will occupy in the
South as a citizen, when he has developed in the direction named, is
beyond the wisdom of any one. Much will depend upon the sense of
justice which can be kept alive in the breast of the American people.
Almost as much will depend upon the good sense of the Negro himself.
That question, I confess, does not give me the most concern just now.
The important and pressing question is, Will the Negro with his own
help and that of his friends take advantage of the opportunities that
now surround him? When he has done this, I believe that, speaking of
his future in general terms, he will be treated w