purpose to enter the professions will find a way to get a training which will fit them for their work. But they are the few in any race. In the present stage of their development the colored people need to concern themselves especially about the great multitude among them who can only get, at most, the veriest rudiments of education. The time has not yet come among Negroes for “The Battle of the Books.” In conclusion let me commend your effort to celebrate this day—a day which every man in this country with Negro blood in his veins should bless and hallow. Though September 22, 1862, was only the day of the announcement, yet it is hardly of less importance than the day of the actual issuance of the proclamation of freedom. We reverence the memory of Abraham Lincoln, the great emancipator. For before he gave to the world the great charter of liberty, no Negro in America had rights or privileges worthy of the name. The black man has not been ungrateful for this act, nor for any other consideration which his country has ever shown him. In all of the Nation’s wars his blood has crimsoned every great battle field, from Bunker Hill in Massachusetts to San Juan Hill in Cuba. And nowhere in history is it recorded that he ever dishonored or disgraced the uniform of a United States Soldier. He has been no less faithful in peace than he was brave in war. He has been law-abiding and industrious; “he has been as patient as the earth beneath and as the stars above.” Some day his right to life, liberty and happiness will be granted in all its fullness. Transcriber’s Notes: Missing or obscured punctuation was silently corrected. Typographical errors were silently corrected. Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation were made consistent only when a predominant form was found in this book. Missing or obscured punctuation was silently corrected. Typographical errors were silently corrected. Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation were made consistent only when a predominant form was found in this book.
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