£:^ 3 .1 2.7 peRnuliP6« pH8.5 Hon. JOHN MERCER I.ANGSTOX, The Pccrles? Champion of Human Rijj^hts. The Nej^ro's Dcfcmler, Advocate, Leader. I.ale Minister Republic of Haiti, Lawyer, President of Howard University, Congressman. Born in Louisa County Va., December 14, 1829. Died at Washington, D. C, November 15, 1S97. Emancipation Day at Culpeper, Va. i]^bursdciL], SepbEmber 22, 1395. The 35th anniversary of the issuing of the Proclamation — The John M. Langston Monument movement endorsed — Observed under the auspices of the Lanijston Monument, Historical and .Emancipation Association of Virginia. Alexandria, \a., selected as the place for the celebration next year — Septem- ber 22, 1899. Largest gathering Afro-Americans ever held in northern Virginia. The city of Culpeper crowded with over 10,000 visitors. A GREAT DAY. Culpeper, Va., one of the historic places of Virginia was alive with people on the morning of September 22, 1898. The city commence fillmg up with viyitors, clubs, military organizations, as early as 8 o'clock on the morning of the 22d of September, and at 10 o'clock excursions began to arrive from Washington and the South, bringing tliousands of people, representatives of the race from tlie capital of the nation, Baltimore. New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and elsewhere. Virginia was rej^n sented by delegates from all the leading towns and (;ountits. At 12 o'clock it was estimated 15,000 peo- ple were wending their way to Cedar Hill Park to hear the emancipation orators and give their endors^ement to the John M. Langston Monument Association. At 12 o'clock the Emancipation Program commenced with a great street parade, headed by Mr. Henry Lightfoot of Culpeper as Grand Chief Marsh;ill, assisted by General B. Hughes, Chief of Statf, and over 100 Assistant Marshalls. The parade was headed by the Warrenton Brass Band, handsomely uniformed. At Dayis street Vice-President of the Emancipation. W. A. Jackson of Culpeper entered the line amid applause. At Roberts Hotel Prof. J. W. Coles, Secretary of the Emancipation was received with an ovation and his carriage entered the line. The parade was reviewed at the Altament Hotel by the President of the day, Editor Magnus L. Robinson and his executive staff, after which the march was taken up for Cedar Hill Park. The Park is situated on one of the high hills of Culpeper with a magnificent view of the country for miles away. At 3 o'clock the exercise at the Park began in the presence of over 15,000 people. The grand stand was decorated with "Old 'ilory," portraits of I^incoln, Lang- ston, and other noted emancipators. On the platform sat many leading men of the race, amoTig them — Prof. Jesse Lawson of New Jersey; J>awyer Richard R. Horner of Warrenton, Va.; Prof. J. W. Coles of Virginia; W. A. Jackson, Vice-President of the day; Chief Marshall Henry Lightfoot; Rev. Robert B, Robinson, President of the John Hay Normal and Industrial School of Alex- andria, Va.; Editor Matrnus L. Robinson of Virginia; Prof. Ilobt. Kelso of Charlottsviile, and in tlie vast assenibUi celebralion, to take place at Alexandria, a greater succes.s. The orators of the day and officers of the As.sociation rode in carriages, and the Butler Zouaves acted as special escort. Introductory Remarks of President of the Day. Mags IS L. Robinson, President of the Langston National Monument, His- torical, and Emancipation Association of Virginia, and Editor of the Alexandria, \a Leader, who presided, spoke as follows: Fricnd.i and Fdlow Ciliztiis: Tinier the auspices of the Langston National Memorial, Historical and Emancipation Association of Virginia, we have assembled here toilay in this beautiful city of Culpeper, to celebrate and expatiate an occasion of great interi'st, perhaps more |>lea.sing in its reahzafiive honest, sober, upright lives. Teach and practice morality. Emancipate our^selves from the bad. Live in the sunlight of cleanliness. Live in peace with yonr neighbors. Respect yourselves. Protect the honor of your wjmen. Study the interest of the white people where you live as well as your own for the upbuilding of your several communities. Study and practice politics as the white man does, and when you vote, vote for your own interests as a white man does for his own. I now ask you to hear Prof. J. W. Coles, who will welcome you to Cul- peper. WELCOME ADDRESS. [HV I'ltoK. J. VV. CoI.ES UK dl.l'Kl'EK. \'A.J Mr. Pri's-ident and Fellow-cilizcns: We have assembled here today under the brigiit canopy of heaven to cel- ebrate the thirty-fifth anniversary of the emancipation oftlie slave.softhe United States. If any people uiwler God's glorious .sun, have a right to hold a day sacred annin fnr nil we have to-dav. Mr. President, this is a great outpouring of the people, aud we will return to our homes with a lasting impression of the good people of Culpeper. May you go on in your good way to do those things that are up-building to our race. May God prosper you in the future as he has in the past, and may Vir- ginia, one of the brightest stars in our flag, forever keep the latch string on the Outside of her door. JOHN n. LANGSTON. [ADDRESS BY PUOF. JESSK LaWSON OI' NEW .lEKSEY.l Mr. President, Friends and Fellow-citizens: We meet to-tlay to do homage to the memory of a departed hero. To honor him who for half a century played an important part in our national development, and was a conspicuous li^nire among tlie great men proiluced on American soil. One who always represented the people, and who devoted his great talents and best energies to the uplipting of the down trodden and op- pressed of every land. A man who loved his fellow-men, and whom the masses loved in return. I refer to John Mercer Langston, late a member of Congress from Virginia. I congratulate you, Mr. President, upon the inauguration of a movement to erect a monument to the memory of such a man as John ]M. Langston, and I feel proud of the fact that the young men and women of our race, for whom l\Ir. Langston did so much, are taking an earnest part in the work of com- mem •rating his memory. It was here, in old \'irginia, "the mother of Presi- dents," that Mr. Langston's eyes were fir.st opened to the light, and it was as a Representative in Congress from "the Old Dominii n" that he ended his pub- lic career. Here then should his ashes be permitted to mingle with mother earth, and his bones be consigned to her keeping. Thirty-six years ago to-day Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation pre- liminary to the emancipation of the slaves that was to follow a hundred days thereafter. Mr. Langston was at that time about thirty-three years of age, having been born at Louisa Court House, Virginia, December 14th, 1S29, and was m the fall vigor of physical and intellectual manhood. Much of his child- hood days had been spent in the State of Ohio, and the fijundation for his future action had been laid in the education he received at C)berlin College, at the feet of Charles G. Finney. Here then, at the threshold of freedom, we find John M. Langston step- ping upon the stage of action, and one who had been summoned to take com- mand of an army gomg into battle. Langston was fitted for the work he was called to do, and his long and eventful career demonstrate!! the fact that he was the real leader of his people. Others followed public sentiment, and catered to it, but John M. Langston would always rai.se his voice in the defense of right though he stood alone. It was his sturdy manhood, his self-assertion not on account of self, but for the sake of the race he rei>resented, and whose chosen advocate he was, that marked him as a civil hero of his thnes, and the Jo.shua of his people. Not leaving them in the valley of humiliation and despair to forget (ioeople, and if we follow in his footsteps we need have no concern for our de.stiny in this or any other land. A happy optimism pervaded his whole life and made him cheerful under the most adverse circumstances and trying ordeals. He had abiding faith in God, and believed in the final triumph of right, and his whole life wa.s an inspira- tion to aspiring youth. It was his faith in God, and in the Divinity of Jesus Christ whom He had sent that illumed Mr. Langston's life and caused him to inspire those with whom he came in contact. The infidel can never inspire anybody; for he is dead in belief and imparts disease and putrification to everything and everybody he touches. Not so with the believer. He has hope beyond, and that hope stimulates to action, and urges on to lofty en- deavor the man who possesses it. There is scarcely a man of our race to-day who will not tell you that he took his inspiration for public life from John M. Langston. The influence of Mr. Langston's life was not exerted upon the members of his own race alone, but it transcended the limits of race lines and made its impress upon the life of the proud Anglo Saxon. His eloquence thrilled the nation, from ocean to ocean, and all who came in contact with him were moved by the magnetism of his touch. Even Presidents of the United States admit that they took their ins])iration for public lite from the eloquence of Prof. Langston. Thus it is though dead, in the flesh, Langston speaks to the multitudes who move upon the earth. His influence still lives and will continue through the ages yet to come. What greater monument than that can be erected to any man ? What I say here is peculiarly apropos to the life of John M. Laneston and cannot be applied to our so-called great men in general. Most of them have their day : " They have their day and cease to be.'' but not so with the man whose memory you honor to-day. Let the young men of the race speak out and declare themselves, and they will tell you that, almost to man, they have been urged on to activity and success by the inspir- ing words and manly bearing of John M. Langston. It is said that in ancient times when Cicero spoke the people would clap their hands and say, "good, good, fine, eloquent, magnificent,' ' but when Demosthenes spoke the people would say, "come, let us fight PhiUip." The oratory of Prof. Langston was such as nev( r dissipated itself in a dis- play of pyrotechnics, nor lost its force in nauseating sycophancy, or became disgusting by cringing apologetics. Langston was always a man, although he knew that it cost something for a Negro to be a man in the United States. | (^Xet a colored man make a monkey of himself, and he is considered a clever J \ fellow, but the moment he aspires to attain to the full statue of manhood and / citizenship, he is considered an impudent Negro who does not know his place. I ^^^r. Langston found that condition of affairs to exist in quarters where he had—*/ no right to expect it, and among men who had made great protestations of their love for the colored brother, and what to his proud and manly spirit seemed the most humiliating and pitiable aspect of the situation was the fact that colored men, regarded as leaders of their people, were too ready and will- ing to either pass over in silence altogether, or to apologize for the insults offered to the race. And thus it was he often found himself fighting the bat- tles of the Negro single handed and alone, as it were, save the masses of the people who always stood behind him. Mi-. Langston had great faith in the common people, socalled, and he was never afraid to take them into his con- fidence. He made his mark as an orator in a great oration delivered on "The World's Anti-Slavery Movement." That, ofcour.se, was before the war, but his life work lay in the shaping of things brought about by the war between the States, and in defending the rights of his people. AS I'KKSIDENT OK HOWARD UNIVERSITY. The war for the maintenance of the Union wrought a revolution upon the American continent, and we were confronted with the work of firmly cement- ing, and delicately adjusting a situation that had been drivtn far apart by the bellowing of cannons upon a thousand battle-fields of the republic. A new element was to be injected into the boily politic. Four millions of slaves had become as many miUions of freemen. They were uneducated, as far as the letter goes, and had no theoretical knowledge of the science of government. They needed a leader and a teacher, and the work of furnishing the one, and of producing the other was assigneance. What a perfect pal tern of manliness, what a grand ideal of capabilities, and a suggestion of possibilities for a people just emerging from slavery were represented in the person of John M. Lang- ston, as the chief executive officer of a great institution of learning situated at the National Capital. Professor Langston stood upon the principle that equal capacity, and Uke ability demanded equal opportunities, and equal recognition for black and white, and he demanded the enforcement of that principle ; but the friends, who, facing sword and bayonet, shell and battle-axe upon the field of glory in the cause of freedom, were not prepared to stand upon any such platform, or accord to the newly made American citizen any such consid- eration in practical aflfairs. It was all good enough in theory, but in pratrtice it would never do. The South said so, and the North acted so, and Professor Langston soon became a persona non grata to the friends who had a different course of study, and code of conduct mapped out for the education and work of the Negro. Many of our leaders never really appreciated the value of the principles advocated by Professor Langston, and if they did appreciate such principles they had not sufficient manly courage to proclaim their belief. Per- haps they did not realize the fact that principles once yielded are seldom ever regained, and that nothing can compensate to a people the loss of their man- hood ; that courage is an index of greatness, and that "They who would be free, themselves must strike the blow," Langston comprehended the situation from the beginning, and when cer- tain institutions of learning "founded' {"or the education of the Negro, made a right-about face, and undertook to instil into colored youth the idea of being an inferior people, who are not competent to conduct even their own institu- tions of learning, Mr. Langston was not at all surprised, but accepted the con- clusion as the logical deduction from a fatal premisis. He was too much of a logician not to see that a false premisis must lead to an erroneous conclusion, and he was philosopher enough to understand that right actions nmst proceed from right principles. His aim was to educate the Negro for the duties of life—all the duties of life, and he made an ideal President of Howard Univer- sity. I say with hundreds ofi young men and women throughout the length and breadth of the United Stales: ''Thank God that 1 attended Howard University in the days of John M- Langston." IN THK DIPLOMATIC SERVICE. Professor Langston represented this Government for eight years as Minister Resident and Consul General at Port-Au Prince, Haiti, and dur- ing the last three years of his service in that capacity, he was dean of the Diplomatic Corps at Port-Au-Prince. The English Minister was there the French Minister was there, the German Minister there, and repre- sentatives from the nations of the earth were assembled at Port Au- Prince, but the ranking man of them all was the representative of the I'nited Slates in the person of Mr. Langston. With what becoming dignity he bore his honors, moving among the diplomats of the world as the peer of any man in character, in learning and scholarly attain- ments, in native ability, in the science of government and international law, having a consummate knowledge of public affairs, so necessary to a successful diplomatic career. It was reserved for John M. Langston to demonstrate the fact that we have produced among our own people, right here in the United States, men skilled in the art of diplomacy. Mr. Langston was the American Representative to a Negro government, but he never lost sight of the fact that he represented the American people, the whole people without regard to race or color, and he always acted on that principle, and the only mistake he made, he did not live long enough to become a member of the Peace Commission, now assem- bled in Paris. THE K.ACE I'OR CONGRESS. I come now, fellow citizens, to a chapter in the life of John M. Lang- ston that deeply concerns us all as citizens of the United States; for it marks an epoch in the political development of this nation. Had not that chapter been written as it is written, and read by all men, I am free to venture the opinion that you would not be gathered here to day to commemorate the memory of a man, illustrious on account of his learn- ing and his eloquence, had he failed to perform his duty as a citizen and a patriot. It was "a condition, and not a theory that confronted" ^Mr. Langston when he stood face to face to the situation in the State of Vir- ginia, in 18S.S. He had been a Republican all the days of his life. Having taken the stump for Salmon P. Chase, a candidate for Governor of Ohio in the year iSs.S. his voice had been heard in every campaign from '55 to 'SS. His fame had encircled the globe, and he was regarded as a positive factor in American politics. Planting himself upon the Constitution, as amended, he thought that there was nc position in the Government to which a colored American might not aspire. Acting upon that principle, and yielding to the wishes of the electors of the Fourth Congressional district of Virginia, Mr. Langston announced himself as a candidate for Congress on the Republican ticket. Although it was demonstrated almost from the very beginning that Professor Lang- ston was the choice of the majority of the voters of the district, still he had fearful odds to contend against. He had not only to meet and conquer the enemy fightiug imder the Democratic banner, but he had a sharper and more subtle foe with whom to try conclusions within his own party. The machine was against him. Men who are in politics know what a fearful thing it is to have, the party machine against one. The machine against which Professor Langston had to contend had plenty of money, a very important adjunct to politics, and it was wielded by men of brain, courage and consummate cunning. The issue was joined, and Professor Langston began the work of canvassing the district for delegates to the nominating convention. "Wherever he went large crowds attended his meetings, and were swayed by the magic of his eloquence. Men shouted for Langston, and women petitioned the Throne of Grace in his behalf. Children strewed flowers in his path to make his march tri- umphant. The more the people appeared in his favor the greater was the opposition of the bosses; for they recognized in Mr. Langston a new leader in Virginia politics who was bound to be popular with the masses, and who was destined, ere long, to wrest from their hands the sceptre of power which they had regarded as their own peculiar preserve. Long and patiently did Langston plead for justice and fair play, but he pleaded in vain, the machine was obdurate, and turned a deaf ear to his pleadings. Finally imitating the action of the tiger, with one leap he bounded right into the centre of the ring, bidding defiance to all comers. The challenge had been thrown down; it was accepted by Pro- fessor Langston, and there was war to the finish. The watchword of the machine was: '"The time has not yet come when a Negro should repre- sent Virginia in the halls of Congress." The country was right in the midst of a great National Campaign, with the issues sharply drawn between the opposing parties. Senator Matthew S. Quay, the greatest political manager this country has ever produced, was at the head of the Republican National Committee. Ex-Congressman James D. Brady represented Virginia on the Committee. He was Mr. Langston's friend, tried and true, and he stood by him as one gallant leader should stand by another. Colonel Brady had represented the district in Congress, and he knew the people, and had no desire to stand in the way of a free exercise of their will in the selection of a candidate for Congress. He made a fair and impartial presentation of the case before the National Committee, and Chairman Quay, be it said to his credit, was disposed to do the fair thing in the Langston case, but the machine in Virginia would listen to no proposition that did not have as its ultimatum the withdrawal of Langston from the contest. Mr. Langston was not dis- posed to withdraw, and hence the negotiations were at an end. The machine had drawn the color-line by declaring that no colored man should represent Virginia in Congress, and when Professor Langston joined issue with them on that proposition, and was getting the better of them before the people, they had the audacity to accuse him of exciting race against race by drawing the color-line in politics. The colored ma- jority in the district was larger than the combined white voting strength of both parties. They wanted a representative man of their own race to speak for them in Congress, and they found such a man in the person of John M. Langston. Race lines were sharply drawn with, of course, a few white men like Colonel Brady and other loyal Republicans on the side of Langston, and a few colored hirelings, in and out of the district, working for the machine. The act wa'= played with dramatic effect, stage settings and all, and when ithe curtains were wrung down on the evening of November tjie 2nd, 18S8, Langston had w-on with a clear majority over all contestants. But he was not allowed to enjoy the vic- tory thus achieved without further struggle. What the machine had lost in the open it proposed to accomplish in secret, far in behind closed doors. While the people did the voting the machine did the counting, adding when it should have subtracted, and subtracting when it should have added. The votes failed to show that the machine candidate had been running at all, and hence a small plurality was given to the nomi- nee of the Democratic party. If Langston was seated at all, it must be through contest, in which there is always an element of uncertainty with plenty of anxiety. The final outcome of the National Campaign restored the Republicans to power in every brancli of the Government. The machine expected to control the patronage at Washington, and it did not want any Republican members of Congress to help it distribute that patronage, especially if the members were not of its own making, and ready to do its bidding. The Virginia machine removed to \Vash- ington, and put itself at once in touch with the National Administration, augmenting its powers to crush the black man. But honor was not dead, and that sense of fair play ever present in the bosom of the American people made itself manifest in the scenes that followed. There were McKinley and Allison to counsel, Grosvenor and Haugon to speak, and Reed to direct the move in the interest of justice and fair play. "A (rood c^use stands and will abide, hesjions of angels will tlKht upon its side." It was near the closing days of the first session of the Fifty-first Congress when the Langston case was called. The Republicans had a very small majority in the House of Representatives. Many of the members wer absent looking after their fenses, and attending to other business interests, and it was very hard to get a quorum of Republicans, and the Democrats had resolved that if Mr. Langston was seated at ail he must be seated by a quorum of Republican members. Reed was at the helm. The Committee reported that Langston had been duly elected, and was justly entitled to a seat in the House of Representa- tives, then was re-enacted that scene spoken of in the liible, where we are told the "Wicked flee when no man pursueth."' For nineteen days the Democrats deliberately walked out of the House of Representatives, thus breaking the quorum, and ficeing, as it were, before the face of the conquering and invincible Langston. The scene attracted the 13 attention of the nation, and the interest of the race was centred on the seating of the Representative from the Fourth District of Virginia. Speaker Reed rallied his forces, and again triumph in the seating of John M. Langston. The charge has often been made that, politically speaking, the Negro has made no progress since the days of reconstruction, but the election and seating of John M. Langston was a veritable refutation of that charge. It shows that the Negro has organizing ability, and that there is race cohesiveness among our people when the necessities of the situation demand it. The colored people throughout the United States were deeply interested in the seating of Professor Langston, and they had spoken in unmistakable language in their respective localities. The race issue had been forced upon the voters of the Fourth District, and, accepting the challenge, they had gone to work to win. There were powerful forces operating to thwart the will of the people and prevent the seating of Langston, but those who were for him were "mightier than those who were against him." The race had been struck in a tender spot, and its pride had been wounded to the core, but all was not lost since self-respect remained. Aroused by the burn- ing eloquence of Langston, and spurred to action by the scourge of the opposition, the colored voters of this country rallied as they had never rallied before. It was just the tonic that our people needed to bring out their best powers, and it was administered at the right time. "Great are the lessons of adversity," and opposition is often necessary to prove the metal of a people. There were several Republican members of Congress from Virginia when the Langston contest was going on, and although they had been elected principally by the votes of colored men, they had neither the political foresight, nor sense of gratitude for their providence to vote for the seating of him, notwithstanding the fact that the Committee on Elections, after a full and thorough investigation of the whole matter, had reported in his favor. This, I say, was the attitude of the so-called Republican delegation in Congress from Virginia, with the single excep- tion of the gallant Colonel Bowden from the Secondi District. Bowden stood out for Langston, and it was due largely to his attitude on the question that Mr. Langston was seated. But Bowden had to pay a penalty for his courage and daring independence in defying the ma- chine. He broke with the boss and fell outside of the breastworks, but the people rallied to his support, and Colonel Bowden is now a pow- er in both State and National politics. I have given you, Mr. President, as briefly as possible, the prom- inent features in the public career of John M. Langston, but were I to stop right here I feel that my remarks would fall far short of the pur- pose of the occasion which called us together to-day. "When we paaS in review the lives of the men who have gone to join the majority, analyze their deeds, and compare them with the deeds of other men it 14 is for the purpose of pointing out a lesson that will be of service to the men now upon the stage of action, and a guide-post to the generations yet to follow. What are the lessons that we learn from the life of John M. Langston? First. To be a great leader of any people a man must have pecu- liar fitness for the wurk, and his life must be of such a character as to gain and hold the confidence of the masses. Second Aggressiveness is an indispensable attribute to true lead- ership. Without it no man will have followers who will stick to him through thick and thin, and who are willing to sacrifice their lives, if need be, in the defence of his cause. Third. He must show earnestjess of purpose, and ability to grasp the situation, and to turn it to good account. Fourth. He must make the people feel that he is in sympathy with them, weeping when they weep, and rejoicing when they rejoice. Fifth. He must have brains enough to formulate plans, and cour- age enough to put them into execution. If there is one thing that the American people admire above another in a man it is what the Romans called valor, but what we designate as courage ! Real, genuine, manly courage ! That is the stamp that marks the hero, and separates the real man from the common clay. It was courage that caused Hobson, though threatened by death and destruction, amid the bellowing of cannons belching forth fire and molten lead, to lead the Merrimac into Santiago harbor, and to scuttle her athwart the channel of that narrow pass, making impossible the escape of the Spanish fleet, and marking Hobson as the real hero of the war ! That was physical courage, but it required both physical and moral coinage, and a great deal of both, for Professor Langston to undertake to run for Congress in the State of Virginia. His campaign was a kind of opening wedge, a forerunner of things to come. Throughout the Southland to day colored men are running for Con- gress, and it will not be long before the same condition will obtain at the North. We are beginning to see that where we have Representa- tives of our own race in Congress we generally fare better. Take for instance the State of North Carolina, where Hon. George H.White rep- resents the vSecond district in Congress, and we find that from that same district we have a colored man as Recorder of Deeds for the District of Columbia; the United States Minister to Liberia is a colored man from North Carolina appointed at the request of Congressman White; there are colored men as collectors of customs, internal revenue collectors and postmasters throughout the State of North Carolina. What have you in Virginia? Let him answer who can. but when Langston repre- sented Virginia in Congress the colored brother fared much better than he does now. And now, Mr. President, as the situation of the colored people passes in review before my eyes to-day, I discern that llure is something lack- IS ing, a void that has not been filled up. Ten millions of people are standing on the banks of the Rubicon doubting whether to cross over or to remain where the are. T he sentiment for _ politii:al pinancipatioa- is struggling_for the mastery. __Ajiil)iti oti spurs them on . but__povertv_ h crraTTSeni^ bacE^-anxl^ounseT^^giindprn^^ Advice coiTiesTbut it is conflicting; and there are doubts and misgivings about every step that the Negro takes in this country. Under the inspiring leadership of John M. Langston the colored people of Virginia crossed over the Rubi- con, and though dead, his voice still urges them onward, and his hand beckons them forward to liberty and an enlightened citizenship. Your gathering on this occasion is but an answer to a summons from the dead to meet and declare yourselves as men proud of your citizenship and worthy of the responsibilities it imposes. I pray you take no step back- ward. The only command I know is— Forward march! Emancipation Oration. Lawver KICHARD K. HORNEK, of the ^Varrenton, Va., Bar, was then introduced and delivered the following oration : Mr. President, and Members of the John M. Langston National Memor- ial, Historical and Emancipation Association, of Virginia. Ladies and Gentlemen: The universe itself gives plitce to the vast changes and conditions con- stantly rolling into existence on the wings of time. The country whose civil- ization and pristine splendor illuminates the onward march of the centurv's progress, must naturally be judged by the brilliancy of the succeeding century. Each revolution in the great drama of Nations ushers into existence the great questions of Nation and State, from which the intelligence and progiessof that century is judged. So it is, my dear friends, through the providence of Almighty God, and in accordance with the trend of human events, we are permitted here to-day, in the historic town of Culpeper, to commemorate the thirty fifth anniversary of our Proclamation of Independencp, promulgated to the world by the im- mortal Lincoln, January 1st, IStii. This proclamation virtually gave to four million Negroes their independence, and with one philanthropic s'roke of the pen carried the name of Lincoln thundering down tlie ages ot posterity, as one of the greatest benefactors the world has ever known. To those who wii-h to know^ the animation and zeal that propels us for- ward to this place to-day, we a.sk the question— Can the patriotism and chiv- alry of a nation be nmre fully demonstrated than to celebrate its National Independence? Liberty, the virgin of our national pride; that great stimulous which moves nations to higher motives and nobler deeds; that great boon for which our noble heroes poured out their blood in torrents, on the fields of Bunker Hill and Lexington; that sacred right for which ancient and modern i6 nations have fought, bled and died, and with their martyred blood ransomed this holy privilege we now enjoy. Then to-day, as free men, we come to illustrate our appreciation for the great Lincoln, and his immortal cause; though the great man has pas«!ed,to that wo'"ld beyond the stars, nevertheless his name will add luster to the pages of history, so long as tlie deeds of great men and events are read and admired by the civiHzed people of the world. The Negroes, as we see thtm in history to-day, were undojhtedly a highly cultured people at one period of their Listory. It must be admitted that E/ypt received her civilation from the colored people; it was from the Ethio- pians that the builders of the pyramid*" and obelisks of Egypt learned their architectural philosophy, religion and letters. Modern travelers m Africa have discovered vast ruins of palaces and cities, whose architecture represents a very high lype of civilization. Those same people built great cities and palaces; invaded l\gypt and Nubia with their armies many centuries before the dawn of the Christian iOra. Taeir institutions and monuments, at their earliest discovery, showed signs of decay, thus demonstrating the mighty an- tiquity of this race. In the light of true historic facts, we must conclude that the future study of their arts and literature wiU undoubtedly develop the fact of a great anti(iuity, and will fully convince the most skeptical observer that it was the sons of Ham who first lead otf in the great march of civilization. What hardships, and what fierce and bloody contiicts these ancient people passed through, which have reduced them to their present condition, we do not know, but Judging from the ancient history of this people, we must admit tliat they will be in the future as they have been in the past — a great and cul- tured people, and will ag in overrun the land of Africa, and plant the stand- ard of civilization once more in Ethiopia, and the ancient land of the Pharos. The first direct importation of negroes to this country from Africa was August, lt)19, one year before the landing of the pilgrim fathers on Plymouth Rock. The institution of slavery went on about 240 years, without serious interruption, but at last the dim star of liberty dawned upon the national hor- izon of our great country, at first very small, but gradually growing brighter, and brighter, until January 1st, lyiJ.'-J, when it assumed the gigantic i'roj)or- tioDS of a national decree, and loosened the shackels of four milliun Ntgroes. But let it be said to the glory and honor of the Negro race in America that they bore, the yoke of slavery and thaldrom, with that same love and christ- ian fortitude, which has ever characterized him as a law abiding and God- fearing citizen, through a period of bondage of many centuries, we only have evidence of two slight insurrections. This is without parallel in the history of slavery. The fact is more significant still, when we take into consideration that it was this same people who planted civilization in I'^gvpt; that mighty civiliza- tion which has reached to the remotest parts of our glorious country; civilized and heathen countries of the world, and breathed into man's soul the inspir- ation of intelligence and moral progress. That mighty civilization which the Negroes of this country are to-day slowly, but gradually, attaining. MAGNUS L. ROBINSON, 33°, Editor Alexandria, YA. LEAdKr. President of the Langston National Monument, Historical and Emancipation Association of Virginia (Incorporated). Headquarters at Alexandria, Va. 17 Of course, we must condemn slavery under all condititons, as moraity wrong. There are no mitigating circumstances, however strong the^. jnay be, that would warrant the existence of an institution so cruel, at best: Yet I believe God used African slavery as an instrument to accomplish a specific purpose; and when that object had been accomplished He consigned the in- stitution to oblivion. That purpose, 1 believe, wtis none other than to restore the Negro to his former greatness, in the intelectual world. Like classic Greece and imperial Rome, we reached the zenith of our civilization, and following: in the wake of other great nations our downward march commenced. Even- tually, it ended in barbarism and ignorance. But God decreed in His Holy word that Ethiopia should agam stretch forth her hands and becouie a great power; and slavery was the great instrument in the hand of God to play the first act in the great drama oi Negro reformation. Had it not been for slavery, where would the American Negro be to day? Would he not be roaming over the sandy deserts of Africa, preying on the vitals of his fellow man? Falling down and worshipping at the feet of the heathen's God? Our women dedicating their sucking babes to the rushing torrents of the angry Nile? Would we not be gradually driven back by the advance guard of civilization, which is triumphantly planting the great stand- ards of civilization over the ancient citadels of the once- power; ul Ethiopians. But God, in His infinite wisdom, foresaw the trend of humkn progress! Ethiopia had now reached the bottom of her mighty decline, and she must again ascend on the wings of progress. Her people must become great and cultured; her philosophy, architecture, religion and arts must be revived; and so we find the negro imported to the shores of America, where they were cared for and utilized as slaves. The people amongst whom they lived being cultured, it was natural that the negro, through daily contact with these peo- ple, daily grew in intelligence. And soon we find the seed of culture taking root in the black man's soul; and we find him inventing every means known. to man to acquire knowledge, in spite of his surroundings. These people destined by God Almighty to be a great race, there has not been, nor is there now, a power in the universe that can impede the swelling tide of progress. Though a stranger in a foreign land, without friends, and without food and raiment, with nothing but the canopy oi the "golden clouds of heaven" for his cover, and the cold mothej earth for his bed, the Negro believed deep down within his humiliated heart that God in His own time would bring him safely through all the miseries and hardships that poverty and bondage could indict. The midnight prayers of our dear old sainted mothers and fathers broke the somber-silence of the morning's air, as they ascended to the throne of God. Tliose prayers did more for the abolition of slavery than the combined power and intiuence of the Northern Abolitionist and Union Armies. However, it matters not from what source it came, free- dom is ours; we have started a second time to plant on the fallen ruins. of a once-powerful and cultured people, that glorious star of national progr.ess, which, like the star of Bethlehem was seen twinkling o'er the manger of a fair len people. Gradually this star, the emblem of Negro progress, is growing i8 brighter and brighter, and the day is not far distant when the pagtS of history "will give full credit to Negro courage and genius. The Negro has fully contributed to the history of his country from the beginning of the Revolutionary War, when the martyred blood of a Xegro was the first to cement the corner stone of this great repul)lic, down to the present time. Thirty-five years of freedom has wrought wonders for the Negro race. From the slave States of the Union has come Negro giants of intellect, whose eloquence and learning have more than once been heard and admired in the legislative halls of tbe nation. Revels and Bruce of Mississippi have repre- sented the State of Mississippi, in part, as United States Senators, with credit to therriselves, and honor to their race and nation. Hon. P. S. B. Pinchback, as Governor of Louisiana; Douglass, Langston, lOUiot and Washington as great orators; Lynch Benjamin, Straken and others, as great politicians and Negro lawyers have argued and won distinction at the bar. Dr. C. B. Purvis and other Negro doctors have performed great surgical operations. Negro authors have written great text- books, adopted and used in such great schools as Yale. Negro capitalists figure conspicuously in the syndi- cates of the country. Negro importers and merchants hold their ownm the great commercial center of the world: Negro artists and musicians success- fully play their role incivilization; and thus it is we find the Negro represent- ing, with honor and credit, every vocation of life. Our vast numbfr of colored teachers and divines are doing a great work in educating the colored youth of the country; these teachers, some of whom are graduates of some of the best white and colored universities in the land, are well equipped for their great work, and are doing much for their race. The one-hundred and fifty newspapers owned and controlled by the race are doing great work in assimilating race literature, and teaching the great principles of race dignity, hohor and enterprise. But as glorious as the past history of the race has been, we must not be un- mindful of the fact that we have a more glorious history to make. We must remember that we are living amongst tlie highest civilized people on the face of irod's earth; and our future, as a race, depends solely upon our ability to hold our own with this powerful and cultured people. Before we can justly com- mand the respect and confidence of these people, we must demonstrate by actual facts our general worth and importance. We must show them that we are in- tellectually fitted, and financially j)repared, to give value received every time. In order to do this we must learn that one dollar represents a hundred cents, and that ninety-nine cents does not make a dollar. Take care of the pennies, and the dollars will take care of themselves. Acquire property; go in business, learn the trade, and master them; whatever you are, let your aim be to be an artist in your line; don't bother about the race problem; do your duty as citi- zens, and the race problem will solve itself. If you are not qualified to fill a position, do not ask for it; we are not ready for social equality, nor do we advo- cate it; that must be solved, as well as other great questions, by time and con- ditions. For the present, we are not in need of social equality; it would not be honorable to buy a man's goods and not pay for them; neither would it 19 be wise to invite hospitRlities which we are unable to return. Therefore, pular and conservative writer, now the senior editor in service; to John Mitci'eil, Jr., the bold and fearless molder of public opinion, the pol- ished John H. Sniythe, the brilHant Matt N. Lewis of Norfolk, ^'irginia * riaiiet at Kic-hmond, Recorder at Norfolk and The Leader at Alexandria are doing Yeoman's service for the race. It is the duty of colored Virginians to subscribe and support their state journals. The Negro editors are self sacri- ficing lem:lers of the people. Foitune at New York, Chase and Cooper at Washington, Henderson at Boston, Adams at Chicago, Scott at New Orleans, Dancy at Wihnington, .