New era. [volume], January 13, 1870, Image 1

About New era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1870

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| ? j VOL. I.?NO. 1.} WASHINGTON, D. C., THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 1870 ' *?-<w?y??- inu.iv..,..-..: S:ht^""' '"
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NATION A I,
COLORED LABOR 10AVEATI0V
CONVKN KI? ANIt HKI.I> IV
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Washington, l>. C.. Urrrmbrr ftlli, 7th. mI><
Wlh. anil lot Si, 1
FIRST DA\'s rRrtOFFIUXCIS.
Arcordinir to a resolution by a Safe
Labor Convention of Maryland, bold Jnlv-'h
lyii'.i. failing a ioiuil Colored Labor t ?nvention,
to be holden in Washington, lb-con ?er
6. lStdb a large number of'the in?mt promii nt
colored men of the country assembled at Urion
league Hall at noon oil thai day.
The Convention Has called t<? order by biao
Myers, Km|.. I'resident ol" the Mary land Sale
Labor I nion, who read the rail. In a few ertinent
and tiineiv remarks he stated the obert
oTtlie t'on venison. advising, the delegate to
lay aside prejudice aud act in harmony md
motion of Mr. Mycrs.GeorgeT. Downng.
, was elected temporary Chairman, iho.
up 'U taking the chair, thanked the a-seml ige
fur the honor conferred in a few well-cli^en
\ords. After which Kev. J. Sella Martii invoked
the hivine blessing to rest upon the ?roceedings
in an appropriate prayer.
Ou motion of lion. John It. Scott.of Horda,
Son. Henry S. Harman, of Florida, was eh sen
temporary Secretary.
On motion of N\ illiam U. Saunders. ofSei
vada, a committee on credentials, consising
of one from eaeli State and Territory represented,
was* appointed, and ordered to retir.
hurinr the abMence of the committee hm.
James II. Harris. John M. Langstoii, and l.ehard
Trevellick. Ksip, addressed the asseiublge.
The Committee on Credentials reported the
number of accredited delegates as folhws:
.Massachusetts. 4: Connecticut, 1: llhode lsltnd.
4': New York. 10; New Jersey, 2: IVneylvania.
8; Delaware, 28; M arylatid, 22 : Disricfc
of Columbia, r?7; Noith Carolina. 14: Geogia,
3 ; Alabama. 1 : Florida, 8 ; Louisiana, 0 ; ennessee,
; Ohio, 8 : Michigan, 2 : Nevada 1 :
California. 1 : Texas, 2 ; Missouri. 1 ; Virgnia,
10; West Virginia. 2; South Carolina, ?
twenty-three States and the District of Colimhia.
represented by 203 delegates.
The report of the committee was roeaved
and adopted.
it wa> moved that the report of the (ommit
tee on Credentials stand as the roll o the
Couvention. Adopted.On
motion of Abraiu Smith, of Tenneiee. a
coin m it tee composed of one from each "date
and Territory represented, as Coiniuitte- on
Permanent Organization, was appointed and
During its absence Aaron M. INwell,
ot the Anti Slavery Standard, addressee the
assemblage at some length.
The Committee on Permanent Organization
^ reported Hon. J aim's H. Harris, ol North t.'arotua.
to be President of the Convention.
Vick 1 *resi ok> ts?Alabama, James T. Ha
per: Connecticut. Charles McLynn; California,
r G. Barhadoes; Delaware. Caleb Milbnrn ;
1.strict of Columbia, Colin Crusoe: Florida.
I S. Francis: Georgia, James M. Simuis ;
Michigan. G. B. Stebbins; Missouri, J. Milton
'|jrtier-v North Carolina. William T.J. Hays ;
Jew Jersey, Bishop J. 1'. Carapbell; Olio.
Ames Poindexter: South Carolina. T. J.
lackey; Texas. Thoina* Powell; Virgicia.
Villiaui II. Lester : Louisiana..!. M. Menup.l ;
larvlend, A. Murd i!nc<ivj 1!nn-.ulewjt-.
J Sella Martin : New York. William T. ButPr:
levada. William L'. Saunders: Pennsvlvai.ia.
C L. C. Hughes: Tennessee, Ahram Smith;
lest Virginia, Peter Hodge : Rhode .sland,
Ahu T. Waugh.
Secretakics? William l:. Saunders. Nevada:
L 14. Douglass. District of Columbia,
j Assistant Secretaries?Henry S. Harman,
lorida; C. S. Woodson, Pennsylvania.
The report t?f the Con'iniittee on Permanent
('ganizatioji was unanimously adopted: and.
0 motion of William U. Saunders, cf Nevada,
1 ouimittee of three was appointed to conduct
.V. Harris to the chair. The President elect
iHivorpd a few appropriate remarks, thanking
te Convention for the honor conferred. After
wich. on motion, the Convention adjourned
ti 74 o'clock to meet at Fifteenth Street
fesbyterian Church.
KVKNIXO SESSION.
At 71 o'clock the Convention was called to
(der by the President.
The Committee on Credentials presented the
Lines of additional delegates: which, upon
ntion. were added to the roll.
A resolution was offered and adopted proding
for the appointment of committees on
mcat on, finance, business, address, platform.
Lmesteads. labor, national organ, railroads
ml travel, and constitution and organization.
Hon. SaylesJ. Rowen and Hon. A. M. Clapp
udressed the Convention.
Prof. A. M Creene. of the District of Coliabia,
offered a resolution tendering a vote of
Uuk* to President Crunt for bis recognition
? * i it r 1
othe claims ol colored men. iveierreu.
?fr. Allen Coffin offered n series of resoluUis
of a general character; which were also
nerred.
The Convention then adjourned to Id o'clock
AM. T ucsday* December 7.
bikCovn day'S puoccsdi.vos.
'he Convention assembled, pursuant to adjornuient,
at 10 o'clock A.M., and proceedings
J|ned with prayer by Kev. M. I?. Derrick ;
Uliop J. P. Campbell in the chair.
Ir. William I'erkiiis. chairman of the Coin
w-.ee on Finance, presented a report recotnIlliding
the levying of a tax of two dollars
uln delegates to defray the expenses of the
t-'vent ion which was amended by striking
??tw.? dollars and inserting one dollar, and
t Cms i . ure a telegram was received,
da,| J -a .1, Mississippi, am! addressed tf?
thPre tdent of the Convention :
Seventy thousand Radicals send greeting.'*
Wcb was'read ainid applau-e.
r. William T. J. Ilayea, of North Carolina,
ofled a preamble and resolutions s ailing on
C'igress for the immediate recognition of the
l'&iot army of Cuba as a belligerent power.
R?rred under the rules.
r. L. 11. Douglass, of the District of Co'u
>ia, presented a petition from the Kngineer's
Piective Union of Brooklyn, New York.
H?rred under the rules.
r. Greene offered a resolution providing I >r
tbippointineut of a coiuniittee of live, which,
^i the secretaries, -IjouM compose a Oom?ije
on Printing, to secure the authentic
Plication of the proceedings of the Conveu ioiu
one or more of the daily journals, and
thtsaid committee be authorized to negotiate
witHUeh publishers to retain such matter and
trafer it into pamphlet form. Rules mis
peted, and adopted.
I Hayes offered a resolution calling on
^O'resii to csta'olish a national school system
UP* the fund erected by dues to colored solreferred.
e Chair announced Standing Committees,
48 lows: Education, labor, address, women's
j*h business, platform, organization, print{^temperance,
co-operative labor, public
'ati. railroads ami travel, and bank savings.
. \ Simms, of Georgia, submitted a resolut,0Kpproving
that portion of the President's
me\ge which relates to the political condition
aQtlinission of that State, ltules suspended,
^^dopted.
* motion, the Chair appointed a Committee
00 jriculture.
J llayes offered a tabulation endorsing the
?Ls of'tUi National Executive Committee
dored Men thus far made to establish n
?*^ttal journal in the interest of tlie colored
P?Qe of the United States ; referred under the
mi< /
i. Isaac Myers, Chairman of the CommitPlatform,
reported the platform; which
**%ad, adopted, and ordered to be printed :
PLATFORM. %
tr. mi ll^ rnmraill^l^^r
... . v n
of the Convention, and it was read; after which
the Convention adjourned to 7 \ P.'M.
Whereas labor has its privileges no less than
its duties, one of whioh is to organize, and, if
need he, to furnish reasons for its organization ;
therefore,
lie solved, That labor was instituted by Almighty
(iod, as a meaus of revealing the rich
endowments of inanimate creation to be understood
and used by man, and that labor is a duty
common to, and the natural heritage of. the
human family; each person having a natural
right to labor in any field of industry for which
he or she is capacitated, the right to be governed
and restricted only by the laws of political
economy.
Resolved, That capital is an agent or means
i used by labor for its development and support.
J and labor is an agent or means used by capital
lor us development and ger.eraJ enhancement,
and that, ior the well being and productiveness of
capital and labor the best harmony and fellowship
of action should at all times prevail, that
"strikes" may be avoided and the workingmau
convinced that justice is doiie him, and that he
is receiving an equivalent for the labor performed.
Resolved, That there should be a frequent
interchange of opinions upon all questions
affecting alike the employer and employed, and
that co-operation for the purpose of protection
and the better remuneration of labor, is a sure
and safe method, invading no specific rights,
but is alike L .ieial to the whole community,
and tends to lift the wwrkilg classes to higher
achievement and positions in society, presents
the locessitv of, and increases the desire to give
their children a more liberal education, induces
the practice of economy in the distribution of
their earnings, and accelerates tin1 accumulation
of wealth, with all the happiness that must
necessarily ensue therefrom.
Resolved, That the (lovernment of the United
States, republican in form, is a Government of
the people, for the people, and by the people,
ami that all men are equal in political rights and '
entitled to the largest political and religious
liberty compatible with the good order of society
: a>, also, the use and enjoyment of the fruits
of their labor and talents ; and that no laws
should be made by any legislative body to the
advantage of one eiass and against the interest j
and advantage of the other, but that all legislation
should be for the benefit of all the people
of any particular State, and of the I nited States,
to the end that loyalty to and love ior the institutions
and the Government of the United States
should be a paramount, consideration with all the
citizens thereof.
Resolved, That we return our thanks to Divine
Providence for the immense natural resources
that are within the geographical limits of the
United States of America, whereby the application
of diligent and patient labor is capable of
producing from our earth all the necessities for
numan existence and the comfort of man, and,
from its vast and unbounded supply, has become
the greatest moral agent known to man, in that
it affords a refuge for the oppressed of all l^nds.
to improve their condition, and, by the influence
of our institutions, elevate them to their proper
standard of manhood, its rebounding influence is
to destrov the tyranny and despotism of the Old
World.
Resolved, That we feel it to be a duty that we
owe to ourselves, to society, and to our country
to encourage, by all the means within our reach, j
industrial habits among our people, the learning \
of trades and professions by our children without i
regard to sex : to educate and impress them with
the fact that all labor is honorable and a sure road
to wealth: that habits of economy ant^ temperance
combined with industry and education are the
great safeguards of tree republican institutions,.
the k< elevators of the condition of man. the
motive-power to increase trade and commerce,
and to make the whole people of this land the
wealthiest and happiest on the face of the globe." I
Resolved, That regarding the labor oft lie coun- j
try as the common property of the people, that no
portion should be excluded therefrom, because
of a geographical division of the globe, in which
they or then forefaTners were born, or on ac- j
count of statutes or color, but that every man or
woman should receive employment according to
his ability to perform the labor required, without
any other test; that the exclusion of colored men
and apprentices from the right to labor in any
department of industry or workshops in any of;
the States and Territories of the United States, i
by what is known as i' Trades Unions," is an
insult to God and injury to us and disgrace to
humanity; while we extend a free and welcome
hand to the free immigration of labor of all nationalities,
we emphatically deem imported contract
Coolie labor to be a positive injury to the j
working people of the United States, it is but the
system of slavery in a new form, and we appeal
to the Congress of the United States to rigidly
enforce the act of 18ti2, prohibiting Coolie importation,
and to enact such other laws as will
best protect free American labor against this or
any similar form of slavery.
Resolved, That we recommend the establishment
of co-operative workshops, land, building,
and loan associations among our people as a
remedy against their exclusion front other workshops
on account of color and as a means of furnishing
employment, as well as a protection
j against theaggression of capital, and as the easiest
andshortest method of enabling every man to
procurea homestead for his family: and to acconi:
plish this end \ye would particularly impress the
greatest importance of the observance of diligence
in business, and the practice of rigid
economy in our social and domestic arrangements.
.
Resolved, Tlwfjwe regard the use of intoxicating
liquors as th^JAi^st damaging and damnable
habits practiced by the human family: that
w e denounce the infamous practice planters have
of drenching their employees with this poisonous
drug, (with or without cost,) intended to stupify
their brain and incapacitate them to know the
condition of their accounts, the value of their
labor, and to rob them of their sense and feelings
of humanity : that we appeal to our people
to discountenance the use of intoxicating liquors i
I O.I n- , 1 1 1 ?#. 1 i I
j because oi tueir enecnn snoriening me, ami uei
cause they are tin* great cause of so much misery
i and poverty among the working classes of the
country. We advise the organization of tempe!
ranee associations as a necessary instrument for
the speedy and permanent elevation of our peoJ'enolred,
I hat we regard education as one of
the greatest blessingslhat the human family enjoys,
and that we earnestly appeal to our fellowcitizens
to allow no opportunity, no matter how j
limited or remote, to pass unimproved ; that the '
; thanks of the colored people of this country arc J
! due the Congress of the Inited States for the es- j
: tahlishment and maintenance of the Freedracu's]
! liureau. and to Major General (J. O. Howard,
! Commissioner, Kev. .1. W. Alvord. and John M.
1 Langston, Esq., General Inspectors, for their
co-operative labors in the establishment and
good government of hundreds of schools ill the i
Southern States, whereby thousands of men, i
' women, and children have been, and are now,
j being taught the rudiments of an English educa- I
tiou.> The thanks of the whole people are due
j to thest? philanthropists and friends to the be!
nevolent institutions of this and other countries
| for the means and efforts in money and teachers
1 furnished, whereby our race us being elevated to
tvmiiup utmuliird nf intelligent American
I mr ? ?o _
; citizens, and we appeal to the friends of progress [
I und to the citizens of the several States to con- \
, tinue their efforts to the various Legislatures !
' until every State can boast of having a free- j
! school system that knows no distinction in dissemination
of knowledge to its inhabitants on 1
account of race, color, se.v, creed, or previous
; condition ; and
* Ji'esolval. That we recommend a faithful obei
dience to the laws of the United States, and of
the several States in which we may reside; that 1
the Congress and the courts of the United States j
have ample power to protect its citizens. AH
greviances, whether personal or public, should
j be carried to the proper tribunal, and from the '
lowest to the highest, until justice is granted; j
that armed resistance against the laws is treason
against the Tinted States, and ought to be summarily
punished. We further appeal to the col- 1
I ored workingmento form organizations throughout
every State and Territory? that they may be
able in those districts far removed from courts of
justice to communicate with the Bureau of Labor
to be established by the National Labor Union,
and that justice may be meted out to them as
i though they lived in the large cities, where jus- I
tice is more liberally distributed : thut loyalty
I and love for the Government may be fostered and
encouraged, and prosperity and peace may pervade
the entire land.
Isaac Myers,
Henry Lee,
Harry S. IIarmon,
Rev. Jos. P. Evans.
evenino session.
At\7| o'clock the Convention assembled, and
Rapier, and others; after which it adjourned
to reassemble at 10 o'clock A. M. on Wednesday,
December 8.
tuird day's proceedings.
Convention met at 10 o'clock A. M.: prayer i
by Rishop Campbell; J. H. Harris in the chair.
The Finance Committee announced amount
collected from delegates under the contribution
resolution, $14:>; expenses. $'271 ; deficit, $12H.
(i. S. Woodson, of Pennsylvania, introduced r
a resolution requesting the Governors of States
having Republican Legislatures to call their
Legislatures together and urge the ratification
of the fifteenth amendment. Rules suspended, i
and passed.
L. 11. Douglass offered a resolution relative,
to the appointment of a committee of five to
draft a plan for the organization of unions
among colored men to secure the recognition
of colored mechanics and laboring men in the 1
workshops of the country. 'Rules suspended, '
and adopted.
J. J. Wright, of South Carolina, from the
Committee on Railroad Travel, made a report
recommending that a bureau be created to j
consider the matter relative to colored persons j
being compelled to purchase first-class tickets,
and then being placed in second-class or smoking
cars; the bureau to have power to devise
ways and means to create a fund sufficient to
prosecute a case to test the virtue of the civil
rights bill. Referred.
Mr. Myers, of Maryland, offered the following,
which was adopted:
Resolved, That the President and Vice President
of this Convention be a delegation to wait
oh the President of the United States and tender
the congratulations of this Convention on behalf ?
of the colored laborers and mechanics of the j
United States.
The Committee on Printing reported that
auaii^ciucuiB iiau uvcii muue u) secure an accurate
report of the proceedings of the Convention
in pamphlet form.
William J. Wilson, of the District of Colum-1
bia, of the Committee on Savings Banks, sub- j
mitted the following report: [The report will
be found on page 3. J
John M. Langston. from the Committee on
Address, submitted the following, which, after
some discussion, was read, adopted, and ordered
to he printed:
ADDRESS.
The Relations of the Colored People to American j
Industry.
The laboring class of any community, educated
and united, constitute its strength. And in
so far forth as the leading men thereof r<%li/.e |
and appreciate this consideration, they will he
able to raise the masses of those identified with
them in condition to rank and influence socially
and legally.
Among the colored men of this country there
is no small amount of industrial capacity, native j
and acquired. All over the South and among ;
the colored people of the North, workmen in
gold, silver, brass, iron, wood, brick, mortar
and the arts, are found doing skillfully and at
usual wages the most ditficult tasks in their several
deparlmerits of labor. Nor are these workmen
generally engaged by white men who, su- I
perintending their work, can claim upon any
just ground that the genius and art displayed belong
to the employers. As illustrating this
statement, it may be appropriately mentioned
that perhaps the most accomplished gunsmith j
among the Americans is a black man, a:i ex- :
slave of North Carolina, who not long since j
received special notice from the Prince of Wales, i
to whom he presented a pistol ot his own make, j
and received in return, as a token of considern- j
tion from the heir apparent of the English
throne, a magnificent medal of rare value. It is |
perhaps true, too, that the most finished cabinet- I
maker and blacksmith of our country is of the j
same class. And it is said to be the fact that i
the most valuable invention given us bv the
South, the cotton plough, ^the patentee of vhieh i
formerly resided in Mississippi,) was the creature
of a slave's genius.
Here, too, it may be mentioned, with no inconsiderable
pride, that one of the finest landscape
painters of our country, and one of the i
finest sculptoresses is of African descent; the
former distinguished especially as giving life
and utterance from canvas to several of Mikon?s ;
matchless poetical creations in the 44 Paradise
Lost,'" and the other as making the spirit of the
noble Andrew of Massachusetts to breathe and
speak through the life-like lips and featuies of
plaster. Individual instances of colored persons J
engaged in commerce as wholesale and retail .
dealers in many of the larger cities of the North
and South might be mentioned ; New Orleans,
Mobile, Charleston, Savannah, Raleigh, Richmond,
Nashville, Austin, Helena, Louisville,
St. Louis, Leavenworth, Chicago, Detroit. Indi
anapolis. Cincinnati, New York, Philadelphia, 1
several of the largest cities of New England, and
the capital of the United States furnish illustrations
in proof of this statement.
Hut if may be claimed that these are isolated
and exceptional cases. Let us, therefore, con- j
aider this matter from a broader standpoint. !
Let us take the case of the freedmen in one of
the States as presenting a fair average of their
condition in this regard?and we name North
Carolina. We offer the words of the general
inspector of the schools for freedmen, under the
Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned
Lands, as especially significant in their bearing
on this point. In one of his reports for 1808, in
speaking of the freed people of North Carolina,
he says:
"More than one-third of the entire colored
population of North Carolina are mechanics.
They are nearly six to one as compared with
white mechanics. The census gives less than
20.000 of the latter, while there are more than
00,000 of the former. All the mechanical occu- !
pations are represented by them ; blacksmiths, j
gunsmiths, wheelwrights, millwrights, ma- ;
chinists, carpenters, cabinetmakers, plasterers, I
painters, shipbuilders, stonemasons and brick- I
layers are found among them in large numbers. I
There are also among them many pilots and ;
engineers. Nor are they behind any class of !
workmen in the skill, taste and ability which are i
usually exhibited in their several trades. Of;
the pilots and engineers running steamboats on
the different rivers of this State, many of the
very best are colored men. It is said that the !
two most trustwort.ilv nilnta in Knrtli Pnrnlinji i
are freedmen ; one of whom is running a steamboat
on Cape Fear river, and the other across
Albermarle sound, and on the Chowan and
Blackwater rivers. The former is paid $lo per
month more than any other pilot on the river,
because of his superior ability. The engineer
on the boat run by this pilot, is also a freed man,
and is said to be one of the best in the State.
"The colored mechanics, when employed,
command the usual wages paid others of like
calling, and are now constantly taking work
upon their own responsibility, and doing it to ;
the satisfaction of their employers. One of the !
most interesting sights which it was my good
fortune to witness while in the State, was the j
building of a steamboat on Cape Fear river by a !
colored shipbuilder, with his gang of colored
workmen."
What is thus said of the freed people of North
Carolina is in greater or less degree true of the
same class in the various States of the South :
for in the general degradation of labor, produced
and fostered by slavery as it formerly existed,
the slave was made to do all kind of work,
mechanical as well as agricultural, and so became
the artisan as well as field-hand of that
region.
The consideration that the freedman is the
field-hand, the agricultural laborer of the South,
is one of no small significance, since the two
great staples which distinguish Southern industry
cannot be grown successfully without his
labor. This is abundantly proved by the fact
that attempts which have been made sincofthe |
war by Northern capitalists to grow cotton and
sugar 011 Southern plantations upon plans sug- j
gested by their Northern experience, and contrary
to the method of culture adopted by the
colored laborers of the Sonth, have proved abortive
and disastrous in well nigh every instance,
as too many men, shipwrecked in means by their
efforts at foftune-making in growing these :
ntauicr oic acaujr it; lcoliij'.
It is not to be inferred from this statement
that the general igporance of the ex-slave is
forgotten, nor is any oho to presume therefrom
that slavery is to be regarded as having been a
school with special claims to consideration by
reason of its peculiar adaptability to impart extraordinary
and valuable instruction in the art
of cotton and sugar culture. All that is intended
is, that an experience of two hundred and
forty-tive years as the laborer in cotton and
sugar?lieids, has given the negro, though denied |
school, church and civilizing and elevating jinfluenees,
such knowledge of the soil and its improvement,
the nature and treatment of the ootton
seed apd plant, the tillage and growthjf.p
sugar-cane: the seasons and their usual and
abnormal efleets upon crops : the agricultural
implements and their proper regulation for use,
as to make him. above all others for the time
being, the successful cultivator of these products.
It will not he denied by any intelligent person
that the rough, unlettered farmer of Ohio
and Illinois, who has had fifty years experience
in the cultivation of corn and wheat in those
States, can furnish better and more valuable
information with regard to the soil, its productiveness.
and the advantageous tillage of these
Western staples, than Greeley or Kmerson,
although the former writes on topics of political
economy, while the latter announces and expounds
theories of philosophy and morals.
<4 With a voting power under our present and
just system of reconstruction of seven hundred
and fifty thousand electors, and an actual laboring
force of three millions, out of four millions
and a quarter of hardy sons and daughters of
toll, native to the soil, inured to the climate,
acquainted with the habits and customs of the-"1
people generally, abd knowing by an experience
more valuable, perhaps, than the learning of the
books, the methods of agriculture, the different
systems of mechanical labor, and the common j
and less complicated affairs of commerce, we
are an element in the industry of the country of
importance, value and power.
But for our own good and the welfare of our
country .in all things bertahnng to her material
and moral well-being? we seek a better and
broader opportunity to gain knowledge in the
fields of agricultural, mechanical, commercial, ;
artistic, and professional labor, and this knowl- 1
edge we would energise, direct, and make more
largely effective through the enlightening and
sanctifying influence of education. Our mottoes
are liberty and labor, enfranchisement and education
! The spelling-book and the hoe, the :
hammer ami the vote, the opportunity to work j
and to rise, a place on which to stand, and to
be and to do, we ask for ourselves and children
as the means in the use of which, under God,
we are to compass these achievements which
furnish the measure, the test, and justification
of our claim to impartial treatment and fair
dealing.
"That this end may he reached, we ask, first
of all, that trades be opened to our children,
and that they be given the benefit of a just and
equitable system of apprenticeship ; in the second
place, that for every day's labor given we
be paid full and fair remuneration, and that no
avenue of honest industry be closed against us :
and thirdly, since we believe that the intelligence,
the elevation, and happiness of all people
dej >ends 111 110 small degree upon the diversity
of their iudusdrial pursuits, we ask that we
may work in the printing ofiice, whether private
or governmental, in the factory, the foundry, the
workshop, upon the railroad, the canal, the
river, the steamboat, in the warehouse, the store,
wherever labor is to be done and an able and '
faithful workman is wanted we conceive that
we may claim a place without distinction as to
our color or former condition, since all that can
be demanded by the employer is ability, faith- ;
ful performances of the contract made, and the
employee reasonable treatment and the compensation
promised. Hence, while we condemn that
spirit which in its proscriptive regulations denies
us industrial opportunity and the fruits of honest
toil, we rejoice in all those evidences of prospective
good which we and other laboring classes
see in the erection of factories and foundries in
Maryland, Virginia, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee,
Georgia, and Alabama, promising that
our strong and labor-hardened hands, our intellectual
powers, quickened by the influences of
education, and our purposes made douhlv earnest
by considerate treatment and the prospect of
just compensation, shall all he given to the development
of the industrial resources of our
several States in the interest of our employers.
44 Recognizing ourselves as native Americans,
and knowing ourselves as members of the great
American body politic, while we ask the recognition
and protection due any and all of like political
condition, as in the past, so in all time to
come, with unfettered limb and manly endeavor
we shall labor with our white fellow-countrymen,
native and naturalized, in mine, on farm, in
workshop, in foundry, in factory, everywhere,
to develop the material and industrial powers
of our laud, making wind, water, and earth to
aid in the accomplishment of its mission of
liberty and law, honor and justice, Christianity
and civilization." i
And while this is our purpose, and feeling, as
all other intelligent and honest citizens must,
the value of national honesty and honor, and the
responsibility of each citizen and every class of
citizens for its sacred maintenance: while we!
demand that all contracts made in the interest
of the Government he liberally and fully met,
according to their terms, we promise, to this end,
more than a tithe, if need be, of the fruits of our
industry, as our influence and votes, that our
national obligations receive no detriment. As
we tolerate no political party which favors repu- !
diatinn. so will we eo-rmeratf? in nn mnvommit.
industrial or other, which proposes or counte- |
nances it. In all laboring men's movements, as
in political organizations, we hold as binding and
inviolable the sentiment that the national honor
and the national faith should be maintained in
all its fullness, being as sacred as the sovereignty
which we have pledged as. its sure guaranty.
Notwithstanding all these things, said with regard
to our purposes of loyalty, the elements of our
strength, as far as labor of an agricultural, mechanical,
commercial, artistic, and other character
is concerned: and notwithstanding, in an important
sense, the freedmen are the laborers and
mechanics of the South, as matters stand, necessarily
so, supplying the bone and muscle of the j
industry of that section, we are not insensible j
of our weakness in our disorganized condition, !
and our utter inability to compel a full and just
recognition of our claims for larger and more
certain compensation for services rendered, and
a larger opportunity to follow those diversified
pursuits of industry which in New England and
our Northern States generally have done so much
to enlighten, elevate, and bless the people.
This brings us to a question of vital moment:
Is it practicable to so organize our industrial
forces and direct our labor as to compel the
wealthy classes, the land-holders and planters,
to recognize and admit our power and respect
our claims accordingly ?
The importance and difficulty of answering
this question every intelligent person friendly to
the laboring masses of the world must appre- j
ciate. h our case, however, it is indeed doub'v
difficult and vexing, by two considerations, which ]
make it j >per for us to ask and expect legisla
tive actio, by Congress in our behalf. In the
fir*t place, >ur people arc not only poor, but they
are the objects in their comparatively new condition
of freedom of a hatred which shows itself
in demonstrations of outrage and bloodshed in
many parts of the South to such an extent as to
require, if our interests, industrial and other,
are to be protected, immediate and positive action
on the part of State and federal officials.
In the second place, by reason of our too long
oppressive and degrading life as slaves we are, as
far as our masses are concerned, ignorant of the
many benefits resulting from co-operative labor.
This latter difficulty will only be overcome as
through education we more thoroughly comprehend
the value of combined effort on the part
of the laborer to secure consideration and wealth.
Of the good purpose of the (lovernment to protect
us, and, as far as need be, put within our
reach the opportunity and means of education,
our treatment since our emancipation affords
reasonable assurance.
We have attempted the solution of this question,
in the organization of our National Bureau
of Industry, with none ether than anxious and
earnest solicitude for the welfare of our working
millmna nnd tVwur nncUrilv
We would unite all these masses upon a principle
of common interest, whose accomplishment
is practicable, and by which their highest
earthly good may be compassed.
We would, therefore, have the laborer understand
that acres, however vast, in plantations,
however immense?uncultivated, are profitless,
liko principles promulgated through party platforms
unaccepted by popular endorsement at the
polls; and besides, that these uncultivated acres
cannot be made profitable without labor, any
more than political principles can be made influential
and effective through party agency,
without the approval of the popular will.
We would teach that labor is the parent of
capital, and that well directed, intelligent and
united industry brings national wealth, as it
brings individual competence and independence.
While our organization is one which springs
out of justice aud self-defence, aiming not at
conflict with capital, but seekiug rather, so to
adjust the relations of labor to capital, as to secure
the just and fair treatment of each by the
other, we found it in reason aud moderation.
Speaking comprehensively, while the interest
; and welfare of labor are cared for fully, no un|
warranted and unfair exactions are made of capi!
tal whether its power be exercised through Qor-POrute^lc^uli]
in^ o U.other words,
still the mutual and dependent relations of labor
and wealth we would neither ignore nor rudely
disturb. The laborer needs and must have the
compensation which service brings. Without it
he cannot secure either the necessaries of life or
the means of support and educate his children,
nor upon the other hand, is the wealth of the
employer of such intrinsic worth as to be valuable
above and beyond its use, in making effective
the muscle and energy of labor.
"The Irishman would starve if not employed
by the railroad company," said a brainless and
heartless agent thereof. 44 But," replied the
sagacious and philosophical son of the Green
Isle, when thus addsessed, "there would have
been no railroad had God not made the Irishman
to dig and shovel.'* Whether the Irishman be
indispensable to railroad building, the principle
here indicated is correct. It is digging and
shoveling which make capital valuable; and the
wealthy of this and other lands, once poor but
now affluent, can testify that this saying is not
altogether figurative.
Such are the interests of capital and labor, so
mutual and intertwined in the great aims to be
reached, the enterprises to be carried forward
for the highest good of mankind, that to disturb
! them by inconsiderate and ill-advised action, on
the part of the people or Government, is to violate
a command written in the necessities of the
race, and which may be fitly interpreted in the
words of the injunction with regard to Wedlock.
44 What God has joined together let no matt put
asunder." Thus married in interest we would
have this bride and groom go forward multiplying
their blessings in the earth, thoirhnmiv
. ~ . o; ?, ?-r'lv
tions in no wise disturbed by contentions or acts
which show the one a tyrannical lord, ot the
other a menial cringing slave.
In our organization we make no discrimination
as to nationality, sex, or color. Any labor
movement based upon such discrimination and
embracing a small part of the great working
masses of the country, while repelling others
because of its partial and sectional character,
will prove to be of very little value. Indeed,
snch a movement, narrow and divisional, will be
suicidal, for it arrays against the classes represented
by it all other laboring classes which
ought to be rather allied in the closest union,
and avoid these dissensions and divisions which
in the past have given wealth the advantage over
labor.
We would have "the poor white man" of the
South born to a heritage of poverty and degradation
like his black compeer in social life, feel
that labor in our organization seeks the elevation
of all its sons and daughters; pledges its
united strength not to advance the interests of a
special class ; but in its spirit of reasonableness
and generous catholicity would promote the welfare
and happiness of all who " earn their bread
in the sweat of their brov."
With us, too, numbers count, and we know
the maxim, "in union there is strengili," has
its, significance in the affairs of labor no less
than in politics. Hence our industrial movement,
emancipating itself from every national
and partial sentiment, brc?adens and deepens
its foundations so as to rear thereon a superstructure
capacious enough to accommodate at
the altar of common interest the Irish, the negro
and the German laborer: to which, so far from
being excluded, the "poor white" native of the
South, struggling out of moral and pecuniary
death into life "real and earnest," the white
mechanic and laborer of the -North. so long ill
taught and advised that his true interest is gained
by hatred and abuse of the laborer of African
descent, as well as the Chinaman, whom designing
persons, partially enslaving, would make in
the plantation serviccrof the South the rival and
competitor of the former slave class of the conn
try, having with us one and the same interest, {
are all invited, earnestly urged, to join us in our j
movement, and thus aid in the protection and
Conservation of their and our interests.
In the cultivation of such spirit of generosity
on our part, and the magnanimous conduct which
it prompts, we hope, by argument and appeal
addressed to the white mechanics, laborers and
trades unions of our country, to our legislators
and countrymen at large, to overcome the j
prejudices now existing against us so far as to
secure a fair opportunity for the display and
remuneration of our industrial capabilities.
We launch our organization, then, in the fullest
confidence, knowing that, if wisely and
judiciously managed, it must bring to all concerned,
strength and advantage, and especially
to the colored American as its earliest fruits 1
that power which conies from competence and
wealth, education and the ballot, made strong j
through a union whosp fundamental principles !
are just, impartial and catholic.
EVENING SESSION
At 7\ o'clock Rev. J. Sella Martin called the j
Convention to order.
A resolution endorsing the National Freed !
man's Savings Bank as a place of deposit was j
adopted.
Hon. William 1>. Kelly, of Pennsylvania;
W. J. White, of Georgia ; and Mrs. M. A. S.
Carey, of Michigan, addressed the Convention:
after which it adjourned.
FOURTH DAY S PROCEEDINGS.
The Convention met pursuant to adjournment.
James H. Harris in the chair. Bishop
Loguen. of New York, opened the proceedings
with prayer.
George Myers, of Maryland, chairman of the
Committee on Constitution and By-Laws presented
a report, which was taken up and adopted
hy'sections.
This committee also reported officers for the
Labor Union, which report was referred to a
committee composed of one from each State j
and Territory represented.
On motion of George T. Downing, of Rhode
Island, the time of the next annual session was
fixed for the second Monday in December, the
place to be fixed by the Bureau of Labor.
At this juncture General 0. 0. Howard appeared
in the Convention, and, upon being
introduced, expressed his sympathy with the
purposes of the Cenvention, and set forth the
necessity of earnest co-operation, especially
with reference to agricultural pursuits in the
South. He said that capital and labor should i
go hand-in hand, and wealth, health, and hap- i
piness would be the gratifying result.
William H. Lester, of Virginia, offered a
j preamble and resolutions calling upon Congress
to apply the test oath to members elect of the
Legislatures of his State, and to award vacant
seats made by ineligibility under this test to
those polling the next highest number of votes
and not disqualified. Rules suspended, and
; adopted.
Mr. Rapier, of Alabama, submitted a report
t'roai the Committee on Homesteads, which
| ii'conimended the organuation of a permanent
; bureau for the purpose of securing homesteads
to the colored people of the South. Adopted.
William P. Powell, of New York, submitted
resolutions setting forth the condition of the
i colored people of his State, with espeeial referj
ence to the laboring classes. He contended
that what they needed most was4'the power
behind the throne"?i. e., the elective franchise.
Rules suspended, ami adopted.
Aaron M. Powell, of the Anti-Slavery Standard
addressed the Convention in eloquent
words of encouragement and sound advice. I
which was acknowledged by marked approbai
tion.
j Bishop Campbell, from the committee ap
pointed to nominate officers for the Labor
Union, announced that the committee was
ready to report through Mr. Saunders, of Nevada.
The following report was submitted and
unanimously adopted:
Presideru?Isaac Myers, Maryland. ,
Vice President?George T. Downing, Rhode
Island.
Treasurer ? Colin Crusoe, District ?f Columbia.
Recording Secretary?William t. Saunders,
Nevada.
Corresponding Secretary?Louis II. Douglass,
District of Columbia.
Executive Committee Hoard of Labor?Isaiah
C. Wier, Pennsylvania; Anthony Bowen, District
of Columbia; George Myers, Maryland;
J. Sella Martin, Massachusetts; G. B. Mabspu,
North Carolina; John H. Butler, Maryland;
Mrs. M. A. S. Carey, Michigan ; C. M. Hamilton,
Florida.
Auxiliary Vice Presidents?Alabama, James
T. Rapier; Connecticut, Charles McLynn ; California,
William H. Hall; Delaware, A. E. Vesey;
District of Columbia, P. H. Donegan;
Florida, E. S. Francis; Georgia, J. F. Long ;
Louisiana, William Bonner; Massachusetts,
Francis H. Fletcher ; Maryland, William Perkins;
Michigan, Samuel C. Watson; Missouri,
J. Milton Turner; Mississippi, W. F. Cumback;
Alabama, J. B. Hutchius : New York, William
P. Powers New Jersey, Joshua Woodliu; Ne
vada. Robert II. Small : Ohio, ,1. A Warren
Pennsylvania, Robert Adger: Rhode Island
John T. Waugh; South Carolina. J. II. iiatnev
Tennessee, Albert Soiuerville: Texas, Williat
T. Clarke: Virginia, William II. Lester; We#
Virginia. J. W. Jones; Wi eonsin, William I1
Brooks.
Mr. J. A. Ware, of Ohio, introduced a reso
lution reeommending economy in the use o
j spirituous liquors and tobacco. Rules sus
pended, and adopted.
EVENING SESSION.
Messrs. J. II. Rainey. of South Carolina
Bishop Campbell, of New Jersey, I>owrv, o
i Tennessee, tl. I*. Rourk, North Carolina
, Bishop J. W. Loguen, of New York, and Join
Watson, of Ohio, addressed the Convention
after which it adjourned to meet at 10 o'clock
A. M.. Friday. I December loth.
nrni day's proceedings.
Convention mot pursuant to adjournment at
10 A. M.. J 11. Harris in the chair.
Rev. J. Sella Martin offered the following
resolutions, which were adopted :
tu.? . i-l " ** *
j i inn, un n liiiuur * onveniion, 11 is
i our boundcn duty and high privilege to express
' the satisfaction we experience in the statesman
' like sentiments of President Grant, as expressed
in his message, with regard to reconstruction in
Georgia. Labor to be successful, needs protection,
opportunity, and just laws. .This success
can be achieved only through laws made by
those who understand the wants and disabilities
of the people for whom they legislate.
Rrxo/red, That the Convention tender to
President Grant its high appreciation of his
fairness of mind, firmness of purpose, and fear
lessuess of utterance in seeking to secure to us,
by appropriate legislation, those legal safeguards
of our right to labor and to the fruits of
our industry, without which the name of freedom
is a mockery.
Mr. F . G Barbadocn, of Cal., offered the
following:
Resolved, That, in the opinion of this Convention,
tha law making eight hours a legal day's
work in all labor performed tor the Government
is wise, just, humane aud economical in character,
and should be interpreted fairly and equitably.
Resolved. That this Convention is unalterably
opposed to any repeal or modification of the
said law, but that, on the contrary, they hope
the Executive will compel Government contractors,
as well as its own officers, to carry out its
provisions fully.
After discussion the resolution was adopted :
Mr. J. H. Harris, of N. C., offered the following,
which was adopted :
Resolved, That the executive officers and the
bureau of labor provided by the Convention of
the National Labor Union, now being formed,
are hereby authorized to appoint one or more
suitable persons to represent this organization
in the International Labor Congress, called to
meet in Paris next September, being the fifth
annual leunion of the representatives of the in- '
dustry of the civilized world.
Rules suspended, and adopted.
Hon. Mr. Hamilton, of Florida, offered the
following resolution :
Resolved by the National Colored Labor Convention.
Thai every possible legitimate measure
be tasen by the laboring masses of the country,
in conjunction with this,convention, to overthrow
that cruel barrier to our r>rogrogs as a race
?me monstrous lan<l monopoly ol the South.
Iluies suspended, and adopted.
Prof. (i. B. Vashon. of 1). C., read a lonjr
report on education, concluding with the following
resolutions:
Unsolved, That under the providence of an
Almighty-loving God, the members of this
Convention will always hold in grateful remembrance
the several educational associations and
their hundreds of auxiliaries throughout the
North and West, that labored in behalf of the
freedmen, together with that noble band of
teacher.-, who, at the cost of many sacrifices and
perils, bore to that suffering class the blessings
of mental and moral culture.
lie&olved, That the system of schools originated
bv all the agencies referred to in this report.
is, to the members of this Convention, the
subject of grateful regard as leading them to
trust that it will continue to be prospered in the
good work until it attains to that perfected state
which will witness the entire South dotted over
with normal schools complete in all needful educational
facilities, from whfrh normal schools,
as central, will radiate other schools of inferior
grade, to light up every nook and corner of the
land with the beams of useful knowledge.
The report was accepted and the resolutions
adopted.
Aaron M. Powell, of New York, offered a
resolution requesting Congress authorize the
appointment by the President of a land commissioner
for the purpose of purchasing eligible
land for homesteads, the title thereof to be held
until by instalment, without interest, it shall
have been paid for, when the money so employed.
not to exceed $2,<XH),000, shall be refunded
to the National Treasury. Passed.
J. Sella Martin, of Massachusetts, offered
the following:
Whereas the American Missionary Associa
tion is the principal national society working in
an educational direction among the colored
laborers of the South, expending at the present
time more than $350,000. and employing more
than 500 teachers mud missionaries among these
people : therefore
lUsohed, That this Convention tender its
hearty thanks to, and express its full confidence
in, this association and other kindred societies,
and calls upon the colored working people of
the country to support these heneToleut labors
by sending their children to school and by contributing
to their funds.
Rules suspended, and adopted
Mr. Martin offered the following;
Iie*olced, That this Convention regards with
great solicitude the efforts which are still being
made to transfer the public domain to the hands
of private speculators through a continuance of
the unfortunate policy of donating the public
lands to railroad and other corporations. We
earnestly call upon Congress to guard the sacred
rights and interests of the people in the public
lands from further encroachments in this direction
: and we especially aud earnestly protest
against any renewal of the lapsed land grants in
the Southern States, or any other appropriation
of these lands except for the occupation of theiu
in limited quantities by actual settlers.
litsolred, That we earnestly invite Congress to
consider whether some measures cannot be adopted
to facilitate the settlement of Southern colored
and other laborers upon the unoccupied
lands, believing that a more independent and
therefore a more intelligent citizenship would he
the Outgrowth of the nation's liberality.
Rule suspended and adopted.
Abratu Smith, of Tennessee, offered the following
:
Hesoli'cd. That this Convention endorse the
Tennessee Manual Labor I'niversity Industrial
I School, devoted to the elevation and improvement
of youth in industry, art. and mental improvement.
Rule suspended and adopted.
Mr. Mackcy, of South Carolina, presented a
! memorial to be sent to Congress, relative to the
, condition of the colored laboring people of the
: South, asking that measures should he taken to
i lessen the labor and increase the wages and demand,
which could be done, giving the colored
people homesteads in the Southern States, of
which there was 42,000,000 acres of public
lands in that section.
The memorial was then adopted.
L. 11. Douglass, of D. C., pfeseuted a communication
from the National Executive Comi
mittee ot C olored Men, expressing satisfaction
with the present National Convention, and
promising co-operation with them in the inter|
est of labor.
Wni. U. Saunders, of Nevada, offered tho following,
which was adopted :
Resolved, That the members of this Convention
cheeifully bear testimony to the untiring
zeal of the National Executive Committee ol
colored men in the performance of its important
trust, and therefore tender to it their heart)
thanks for the great good which it has alread)
accomplished in various matters touching tin
welfare of the colored people of the Luiter
States.
R. M. Adger, of Pa., offered the following
Resole til, That it is the desire of the median
icsaud la borers of Philadelphia that the Con
vetition devise ways and yueans by which me
I chanies and laborers, regaWfess of color, be ad
| mittcd to work-shops on equal terms, that ou
. I in i ft the various brancjpg oftnde
Th. *1* r?- ?f t> ii )iu?'s Itrctiet tv|*? constitute* iin advri
tisiinj in tli;- |>M|x>r
' An\ ' J'ihi* ku tlmu t?'ii 1 h clmr^'i il the r?t?'of;? full
' Si|M*re.
; All *l\<>rtiiii im-nt* occupy in," !<*** than ??|<t nt?r of a rol
U ninn ?r?- "inptttrd l?j tin* ?<jtii?rr.
AtlverUs?'iiit*nt* inwrlwl R*r? ! *" < time* than l?r> m ::'Im
't nr<- t 1?:?r>5f*l IrannirDt rat<-s.
Resolve)?. That this Convention recommend t<
the l\xocutive Committee to elect ft delegate to
' represenClhe interest of the labor movement in
- said Labor Congress.
Adopted.
J. 11. W. Leonard. of New York, read a
communication from twenty-five colored print
1 ers of New York, congratulating the craft
. Mr. Lewis II. Douglass, a member of the craft,
i having secured all his rights in the District ol
: Columbia, in holding :t position in the tJovern:
mcnt printing office.
Mr. d. Woodland, of New Jersey, introduced
the following:
Resolved, That this Convention recommend t?
our people to aba.!*in froin the use of tobacco.
, whisky and dealing in lottery policies, ami flumoney
bt* spent in purchasing homesteads.
Passed.
Mr. Samuel Lowery, of Tennessee, offered
the following :
Resolved. That this is a Convention of the in
dustrial citizens, composed largely of colored
people, in a national council : ami whereas tl?i>
organization is formed tor the education and
elevation of the masses of our countrymen in
the Southern States,
Resolved, That delegates now returning will
call State Conventions and organize industrial
I and literary associations in counties. us fin- n
possible, and act in harmony with the Bureau
through the State organizat inn of labor organized
by the Convention, and fully ratify the objects
and acts of this body, and place their State in
full harmony with the Bureau in its purposes.
Passed.
L. II. Douglass, of the District of Columbia,
introduced a resolution referring all unfinished
business before the Convention to the bureau ;
which was debated, and finally withdrawn by
consent, Mr. Douglass giving notice that at the
hour of 4 P. M. iie would move that the Con
vention adjourn sine die.
The Finance Committee reported that there
had been collected for the use of the Convention
: expended for use of hall, A c., $155.!M);
on hand. $133.74; and pledges unpaid, SlOY
The report was accompanied with a resolution
making an assessment of $5 on each county in
every State and Territory represented in the
Convention. fi he report was accepted, and the
resolution laid over.
A vote of thanks was tendered to the reporters
of the Republican, Star, and Chronicle for their >
full reports, daily, of the proceedings of tli,
Convention.
J. Milton Turner, of Missouri, offered the
following:
Resolved. That thisH'onauntion distinctly di
avow all responsibily foi^lic sentiments ex
pressed here to-day by Senator J. W. D. Biaiui.
apologizing for the negro-hating,jyi reconstructed
rebels of Virginia in the matter of test-oath foi
office-holders in the Sthte of Virginia.
Adopted.
It was ordered that three thousand copies of
the proceedings he printed in pamphlet form
for the use of the Convention.
The unfinished business was then referred to
the labor bureau about to be established in
"this city: and at 5 o'clock P. M. the Convent
tion adjournal sine die.
??
PUBLIC MKKTIXC,.
After the adjournment of the Convention, at
7 o'clock a meeting was called and opened by
Rev. Sella Martin, when Mr. George T. Downing
read a series of resolutions adopted in Philadelphia,
endorsing Wendell Phillips and Charles
Sumner, and expressing contempt for the Ameri
can Colonization Society.
JohnT. Waugh, of Rhode Island, addressed
the meeting, and gave a history of his early life
in this District, aud of his later experience in
Rhode Island and other Northern States, during
which lie paid a glowing tribute to Mr.
Phillips and Mr. Sumner, for their steadfast
endeavors in behalf of the colored race.
Rev. Sella Martin next addressed the meetin^
nri the tonics that claimed the attentinn ?>m!
action of the National Labor Union, hoping
that all (lone by that body may prove suceessful
and redound to the good of the laboring
masses throughout the country.
Major M. K. Uelauey was intro<|uced, and
addressed the meeting on the subject of the
colored race as an element of industry and political
economy, claiming that the tYeedmun,
though without education, had been taught
within the last few'years that labor was the
source of wealth, citing that California, with
untold mines of gold, would have been poor
California to-day, were it not that labor worked
and developed the mines.
The colored people were frugal, economical,
and industrious. He stated that the produetu
of New York in the way of milk, cheese, and
butter were of more value than all the eottcn
produced in the South. Tobacco was a great
production iu a money sense: the tax in Virginia
last year on that article being
Tobacco, cotton, rice, and sugar, the great
staples, were the product of negro labor. Hefore
the war the South produced 4,500.000
bales of cotton a year, but uow about 2,5<X),lHH>
bales is the product; but the enhanced value
and demand of that staple at home and abroad
makes the crop more profitable to the planter
than before the war.
In (ireat Kritain there were l??,000,?H)O persons
(being three-fifths of the population) engaged
in cottou factories, the product of negro
labor. It was the negro, he saul, thatcontrolk d
the wealth of the South, and ruled Wall street
to-day, and the gold marketol'thecountry. All
the coffee in the universe, except Mocca and
Java, is raised by negroes, and the speaker inquired
whether this fact was not. an acknowledgement
ol'the important position for the uc
gro to occupy. In conclusion he advised his
hearers to be united, and be true to themselves
and their race, and he respectful to good men.
U. Wimbush, ol S. (J., followed in a few re
marks, saying that the colored people of the
South are too poorly paid lor their labor in
consideration of the vast wealth that capital
receives at their hand. At the end of the year
the laborer is as poor as at the beginning, so
poorly is he paid. The colored people in the
; South are industrious, and not the lazy vagabonds
as represented by rebels, and they should
be better paid. The speaker then gave u
detailed account of Ku-Klux operations in
South Carolina, saying that the most prominent
men in Charleston were the officers, but
that the colored people were learning how to
Ku-Klux, and he (the speaker) was organizing
a militia regiment that would soon drive them
to the wall.
There were many of the gang endeavoring to
join the Republican party, but it was no use,
and the poor white trash of women in his section
are now running after the meanest and
' blackest of negroes to marry theui, which he
attributed to the fact that these women were
beginning to learn that they are fte \ Concluding,
he said, that at the rext election a
colored man would coiue from South Carolina
as a United States Senator, as the colored people
of his State were becoming tired of letting
| the white men have their own way in every
thing.
Mr. Isaac Myers, of Md., being called on,
said he accepted the position of President of
the national organization with great diffidence
of his ability to discharge the duties of his new
and novel position, but he would bring all his
energies to bear to uiakc the proposed bureau
of industry a success. He told his hearers
that in Baltimore about 2f>0 colored men banded
together, alter being discharged through
white influence from the ship-ynr<N and pur
chased one of their own at a cost of $10,000,
and to-day the yard employs 2f><? colored men
and 55 white men, and is in a prosperous con'
dition.
i Some of the white men employed now iu the
r yard are the same persons who helped to kick
r the colored men out of the yards of Baltimore.
* lie would not endors? the Politi al Workm,
men's Union of tlo> iviimry. I;, mv tin- f *'
Republican party had done too much for his
: ra.-o, and n > colored man in the land should ' ' '
? attack himself to the former organization, a.
its object to break down the great Repn'o ERA,
. lienn party 'hrui .1 l?emoparty. *i?>\ ?
ma' ,h* i washik^..'!":, n '"f> ' ' '
r Myers, M add res
i. meetiug. i f ,
?^ 1 - . J .< , ^