achers, who have
their confidence and trust, are the ones to take this gospel to them and
show them how to take it to others. The schools reach parents, the
schools reach pastors, the schools reach the people, the schools are
intertwined with all the church life that has any hope in it. This is
the missionary view. When this people in the wilderness cried out in
their distresses, "Who will speak for us?" the Association spoke for
them. When they needed sympathy, sympathy it gave. When they needed
instruction, it went to them in the name of Christ. In his name it stood
for the Negro. In his name it stood by the Negro. In his name it stood
with him. It stands there to-day. It is his friend and counselor. When
the Negro is cast down, the churches will hear one voice and they will
wish their own society to be found faithful in this.

With this charter as a missionary society for schools and churches, we
present to the Negro race continually the personal hope of souls not
only, but the hope of the race. When they think that the progress is
slow we tell them that Christianity is sure. When they tell us that they
can not wait, but must organize and retaliate, we tell them to wait upon
God. "Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord." We ask them to remember that a
quarter of a century, or a century, is a short time in the history of a
people. We point to a million--a round million--of Negro children in the
schools to-day. We are teaching them to be men. We are saving them to be
Christians. We teach them not to remain down and not to be put down.
Being men, they are to stand like men, but like Christian men, to
conquer prejudices by worthiness, to meet race hatred with only a
stronger purpose to command respect, not to render evil for evil, but
contrariwise, blessing; not blow for blow, but to go on upbuilding
themselves, deserving their rights, and remembering that a great element
in the solution of this problem must be an intelligent faith in God.
With this missionary view we stand firm. We have learned that the
Southerners of our own race, even when they hold their prejudices
against our principles, respect those who stand in a Christian way for
their principles; and that these principles will never be accepted in
the South by our holding them loosely, or in suspense, or in any sort of
abeyance. They respect us when we teach our people that they have all
the rights of manhood and womanhood; that they are to respect themselves
and to