sutton elbert griggs--life's or according to law (c1916)

8/3/2019 Sutton Elbert Griggs--Life's or According to Law (c1916)

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THE LIBRARYOFTHE UNIVERSITYOF CALIFORNIALOS ANGELES


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LIFE'S DEMANDSORAccording to LawBy SUTTON E. GRIGGS


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Life's DemandsOR-According to LawBYSUTTON E. GRIGGS

Author of Wisdom's Call, etc.

Issued by theNational Public Welfare League

Memphis, Tenn.


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Copyrighted byBUTTON E. GRIGG3

Memphis, Tenn.1916


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GCONTENTS

PAGEIntroduction .................................. 5

^ The Laws of Individual Success .................. 9ii.

i The Laws of Racial Success ...................... 29C*T-III.

The Laws of Race Adjustment ................... 62IV.

The Law of the Development of the Spirit ofPatriotism ................................. 94

V.The Law of the Making of Great Men ............. 99

VI.The Law of Universal Struggle ................. 110

VII.The Parting Word The Social Specific ......... 119


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Life's Demands; orAccording to Law

Introduction.The architect of the universe, God, the cre-

ator, took infinite pains to establish everywherein the realm of matter the reign of law, andwhatever exists in that realm bows its head tothe law of tts existence. How universal is thisreign of law in the physical world is indicatedby the fact that there are definite rules differ-ent in character governing such varied objectsas a grain of sand, a drop of water, an humbleherb, a giant oak, the sun, and the most distantstar.As in the realm of matter, likewise in therealm of mind do we find the reign of law. The

first man that ever reasoned correctly andwrote out his reasoning, will find his conclu-sions carrying weight with the very last manwith a normal mind that shall ever live andread what he wrote; for there is one set oflaws governing all human thought, for all racesof mankind, and for all ages. Not all the laws


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6 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.of the human mind are fully understood, butthey exist nevertheless.Man, by creation, is a social being, his nature

demanding association with his fellowman.Knowing that the fabric of human society wassure to rise, it would have been strange in-deed, if the law-loving architect of the universewho took such infinite pains to establish lawsin the realm of matter and of mind, who al-lowed nothing whatever in those fields, how-ever small, however remote, or however ob-scure, to escape his regulating hand, had sud-denly changed his nature to such an extentthat he would leave the crowning work ofcreation, human society the social fabric,without a law of existence, and thereforewithout chart, or compass, or rudder. Norhas He done this. Like the other depart-ments of the universe, human society is subjectto the operation of laws. The individual whorises in the esteem of others does so accordingto law. His rise is not of a haphazard nature.There were certain things that caused him torise, if he arose, and without them he wouldhave arisen never. What is true of the indi-vidual is likewise true of human society. Thepath of true success for bodies of men has beencarved out with as much precision by nature,


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law.and nature's God, as has been the pathway ofthe earth around the sun.As the Negroes of the present day lookabroad in the earth and compare the condition

of their race as seen almost everywhere, withthat of the advanced races of this period, theyare compelled to note the existence of a widegulf separating their unfortunate position fromthe exalted station occupied by the highly suc-cessful races. Other races are seen standingupon the mountain top of success, reaching forhigher worlds, while the Negro race is partlyin the valley of deepest trouble, and partlyplodding its way wearily amid the bushes,briars, and jagged stones of steep mountainsides, casting upward many an anxious enquir-ing look, searching for the path, the travelingof which will bring it to the desired heights.

This condition of affairs, so grievous to theNegro's heart, is not the result of an accident.It has come to pass because there are certaindefinite laws of social growth which the Godof the universe has laid down, which have notbeen obeyed, and without obedience to which,social success will never come, despite all theyearnings of ambitious hearts. Laws arestern. They are unyielding. The penalty forthe violation of the laws of the universe is de-


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8 Lt/e' Demands; or, According to Law.

struction, no less for the social body than forthe physical body.These laws of God framed for human society

never cease to operate. If groups of men obeythem and rise as a social group, their successlasts no longer than they adhere to these laws.If, for a period, they observe these laws, andrise, yet their success turns to failure and theyfall when they forget, ignore or depart fromthem.

If men would acquire and retain success asindividuals or as groups they must make it upin their minds to bring themselves into sub-jection to the laws of God. Failure to conformto the laws of enduring success, whether bornof ignorance, weakness of will, or choice ofother ways, means, and can only mean, abidingin the dust of defeat and dishonor. If there isnot a resolute purpose to fulfil the laws of suc-cess, to obey the demands of social growth, thencease the whine and put out the light of hope.Enduring success, whether individual or so-

cial, is forever, and without variation, "Accord-ing to Law,"


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law.

The Laws of Individual SuccessNo man anywhere in any age of the world's

history has been able to attain large resultsand rise in the scale of life without the aid ofsome other man or men. Sacred and profanehistory abound in illustrations of this fact.Joseph rose to eminence in Egypt through theaid of a liberated companion of his days in jail.Great in head and heart, yet he needed someone to make this fact known where it would dogood. Moses had the.help of Aaron, and Elijahthat of Elisha.Napoleon Bonaparte, a man of wonder-

ful intellectual power, began his sudden up-ward journey through the aid of Josephine,whose influence secured for him the assignmentthat gave him the opportunity to draw men'sminds toward him by the character of hisachievements. A factor in his final loss ofpower was his failure to get expected help fromone of his generals upon the occasion of thebattle of Waterloo.We have in the careers of the late Presidentof the United States, Win. McKinley, and the


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10 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.late United States Senator M. A. Hanna, a no-table example of the surpassing value of co-operation. Mr. McKinley was a very popularman, but was not rich. He desired the Bepub-lican party's nomination for the presidency ofthe United States, but he did not have suffi^cient money with which to perfect a strong or-ganization and to conduct a vigorous and ex-tensive campaign, and there was danger thathis popularity might avail him nothing. Mr.Hanna was comparatively unknown, and waswholly lacking in popularity. He had neverbeen chosen by the people to fill any office.But Mr. Hanna was very rich. He took hismoney and linked it to Mr. McKinley 's popu-larity, and this secured for Mr. McKinley thedesired nomination, and subsequent election tothe presidency of the United States. The pres-tige and the power which came to Mr. McKin-ley after he became President enabled him toinfluence the legislature of the State of Ohioto send Mr. Hanna to the United States Sen-ate. These men, the one in the President'sseat and the other in the United States Senate,for a number of years, exercised a dominatinginfluence in the affairs of the nation. All ofthis was made possible because of co-operation.Mr. McKinley, left alone, perhaps would neverhave attained the presidency; and Mr. Hanna,


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 11

without the aid of Mr. McKinley's influence,would perhaps have remained to the end of hisdays a private citizen.

In order that we may the more fully em-phasize the value of co-operation we wish nowto cite the case of three helpless individuals,who by combining were able to sustain them-selves. One was a boy, too small and tooyoung to be able to take care of himself; onewas blind, and one was so lame that he couldnot walk. These individuals were forced tobeg for a livelihood. The boy did not havesufficient judgment to conduct a campaign ofbegging. The blind man could not see how toreach the people from whom he desired to so-licit help. The lame man could not get to thepeople that would be inclined to help him. Thethree formed a combination. The lame mangot into a chair that had wheels, the blind manpushed the chair, and the little boy walkedalong guiding the procession. The lame manhad the judgment that the little boy did nothave, and could select groups of people thatwere able and inclined to help. He had thesight which his blind partner did not have. Theblind man had the strength to poish, which theboy did not have, and the power to go forwardthat the lame man did not have. The boy hadthe ability to pass from person to person the cup


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12 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.for donations, a thing which neither the lamenor the blind man could do. Here we have anexample of the formation out of three deficientcreatures, by means of co-operation, of an effi-cient force able to maintain a place in life.The man that cannot inspire someone to helphim, that cannot grir> somebody by his quali-ties, cannot rise. And success will come inproportion to the number and kind of peoplea man can inspire to lend him their aid. Suc-cess, then, in a sense, may be termed the art ofwinning and holding co-operation. Each indi-vidual therefore should seek co-operation inone form or another in whatever he under-takes, and should live such a life and be ac-tuated by such motives as will bring co-opera-tion instantly to his side.The successful school teacher must be ableto win and hold the affections of his pupils;the successful merchant, those of his patrons;the successful statesman, those of his consti-tuents. A survey of life in general will revealthe fact that winning and holding co-operationis the great essential. The acceptance of thisview reduces our discussion to the unfoldingof the qualities needed to beget the co-operationso necessary for success in life.

Self-Reliance.We place at the bottom of the foundation


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Life's Demands; or, According to Lav). 13

which we are about to lay, self reliance. Menare willing to help a man who is seen tryingbravely to help himself. While a man is tohope and look for co-operation, and shouldrealize that his life will fall far short of itspossibilities without it, still let him bear inmind that he will sooner get that co-operationby showing that he is relying upon himself

forthe accomplishment of the main portion of hischosen life's work.

Truthfulness.There is implanted in every bosom an in-

stinctive love of the truth. A tendency towardfalsehood is not nature's original creation, buta perversion thereof.An untruthful man can, through other quali-ties, attain a certain measure of success, butas he seeks to enter the larger spheres of lifehe will find the great men there opposing hisprogress and beating him back because of theircontempt for him as one who will not respectthe truth. Moreover, whatever success is hison a small scale, is likely at any time to crum-ble, as men will fall away from him as his truenature more and more reveals itself.

Shrewdness cannot take the place of truthfulness, for a falsehood, however cunningly de-vised, has in it a fatal weakness which is likelyto be revealed at any time, and in an unex-


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14 Life's Demand*; of, According to Law.

pected manner. Moreover, it is exceedinglydifficult to remember a lie, and in the processof time the liar will contradict himself. He.then, who would have the respect, the perma-nent and unlimited support of his fellows, mustbe truthful.

Respect for the Possessions of Others.Men everywhere gather about themselvesthat which they call their own, and to which

they attach a value. A man who fails to recog-nize the rights of ownership on the part of hisfellows, and seeks to appropriate to himselfthat which belongs to them, is regarded as adangerous character, and men draw back fromhim. With reference to the possessions ofother men, one should be strictly honest inevery way, whether watched or unwatched,whether it is easy or hard to escape detection.A thief is shunned as a dangerous character.When found out men will not extend him co-operation.

Reliability.A very desirable quality is reliability. Menlike to feel that they can rest securely uponwhat a man says he is going to do. The failureof a man to perform as he promises often up-sets the affairs of many others. An uncertainman is tolerated only so long as a man morecertain cannot be found. If a man would sue-


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Life's Fernanda; of, According to Law. 15

ceed in life, let him be reliable. Let him weighhis words carefully, consider all of the circum-stances likely to arise, and when a promise ismade, keep it at all hazards.An uncertain man, a man upon whose wordyou cannot depend as to the keeping of a pledgeor an appointment, is a double abomination.First, there is a contempt for him because ofhis untruthfulness ; next, there is a feeling ofvexation because of his carelessness as to theamount of time and trouble he may put othersto. Thus an unreliable man goes about a com-munity with a double load of the contempt ofhis fellows. Men should be reliable, should putforth every possible effort to carry out theirword.

Thoroughness.A man who lacks thoroughness in his workcannot secure the warm endorsement of hisfellowmen. It is a source of irritation to anemployer to find a task poorly done. Men havea feeling of being cheated when they have topay out their money for work that is lackingin thoroughness.The thorough man has every advantage ofthe man who is not thorough, and is likely todisplace him at any time. A man who is notthorough is never secure in his position, norneed he entertain great hopes of rising. Lack


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16 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.of thoroughness will cause men to try to pushhim back rather than forward.The point of beginning of one of the mostremarkable careers known to history, that of

the late Prof. Booker T. Washington, may bosaid to be where, at a critical moment, he mani-fested thoroughness as a trait of his charac-ter. Having as a youth heard of Hampton In-stitute, he desired to enter the school to pre-pare himself for life's work. He was father-less, homeless, penniless and friendless. If hewas to be educated, and thus started upon hisnotable career, he stood in need of co-operation.A teacher in Hampton Institute as a sort of testassigned him the task of cleaning a room.This he did with the utmost thoroughness, go-ing over his task again and again. This mani-festation of the trait of thoroughness won theco-operation of the teacher, who made a placefor him in the school, and thereby started himupon the road toward international fame.

Promptness.Lack of regard for time is a great evil, and op-erates against the interests of any man thuaguilty. Men of power usually are concerned inmany affairs, and can only properly attend tothem by having a strict regard for time. A manwho has no regard for time is therefore unfitto deal with the men who do the large things


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Life*a Demands; or, According to Law. 17

of life. The strong men of the world, the "ontime" men, will be found opposing ever therise of a man who has no regard for time. Itis well to be on time to every engagement,whether of a private or public character.v Politeness.

Politeness is an invitation to people to drawnear and have more to do with one, whereas,gruffness is a warning for people to standtheir distance. The polite person thereforewins friends and co-operation, whereas thegruff man repels men and begets opposition.Politeness, then, is a needed quality.

Cheerfulness.He who has a cheerful disposition has thatwhich causes his company to be agreeable. A

man lacking in cheerfulness is sought onlywhen badly needed. Whatever your burdens,whatever your difficulties or disappointments,keep a cheerful spirit and it will in the enddraw to you those who can help you.

Control of the Appetites.Nature has endowed men with appetites thatare needed for nature's purposes. Unwisemen feed these appetites for the animal

pleasure found therein, regardless of the higherpurposes of nature. The appetites growstronger and stronger as they are fed, and


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18 Life't Demand*; or, According to Lav).

finally become the masters of those to whomthey were given to serve. Blind and unreason-ing, they trample under foot all of the noblerthings of life, and work toward the ruin of theminds and bodies of those that indulge them.Men who cannot control their appetites areunworthy of trust. They are watched sus-piciously, and the world is on the alert to cir-cumvent them, rather than to advance their in-terests.

Control of the Temper.Anger is a sort of mental magnifying glass.

It makes things larger than what they are inreality and this provokes men to do things thatare wholly unwarranted in vie*r of the realfacts involved. Anger leads to extremes oflanguage as well as of action and in this wayloses friends. The man who gives way toanger is an unsafe leader, in that under theinfluence of anger he is liable to take steps thatmen in their cool moments cannot follow.Moreover giving way to anger establishes areputation for a man of being dangerous, a factthat will prevent him from having the co-opera-tion of his fellows to an unlimited degree.A man should be careful not to act upon theinpulse of anger. He should adopt a set ofprinciples for every emergency in life whilecool, and in the time of anger he should be


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Life't Demands; or, According to Law. 19careful to act in accord therewith, remember-ing that angry impulses are not gods to beobeyed, but beasts to be conquered because oftheir great power to drive away co-operation.

Humility.Why should mortal man be proud? TVrichest man in the world possesses but a pennywhen what he owns is put into comparison withwhat he does not own. The most learned ofmen seems to be but a babe in knowledge whenwhat he knows is put into comparison withwhat he does not know. There are more peo-ple who do not know the most popular man inthe world than there are that do know him.Since in riches, knowledge and fame every manis overshadowed by that which is beyond hisrealm there is no just ground for pride in theheart of man. The people of the world knowthat no man is entitled to the feeling of prideand men instinctively draw back from theproud man; and by withholding co-operationthey limit his sphere of usefulness. The greatmen of the world have been meek men. Hewho is humble keeps open the avenues of ap-proach so that the people as a whole can drawnear to him and add their strength to his. Ifthe truly great are meek, how much less groundhave others for being proud? While a manshould ever maintain self-respect and rise


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20 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.

above whatever is debasing, yet it will be agreat addition to carry along with his strongfeeling of self-respect, a feeling of humility, aknowledge of the fact that he is, after all, amere mortal with an allotted time on eartn andwith the dissolution of his body awaiting himiii the uncertain future. This feeling of hu-mility mil bring co-operation.

Industry.The disposition to apply one's self procures

co-operation, the basis of all success on a largescale, in a two-fold way. Industry la what 13needed in every walk of life, and the man whopossesses the quality attracts people to him.Men of consequence themselves are industrious,and like their kind and their kind only. In ad-dition to attracting strength of itself, industrybrings financial resources which can also Deused to invite co-operation. The man who hasmoney can get help, and the man who is indus-trious can get money.

Persistence.Success in life is not easily won. Defeat

after defeat, disappointment after disappoint-ment, is likely to overtake anyone in pursuitof success. Whoever does not know how toignore defeat and rise above disaster will hard-ly succeed, for the world hesitates to reward


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Life's Demands; or, According to Laio. 21

such a character. But every one admires per-sistence, and when directed in the right wayit is sure to bring to one's side those who canhelp greatly in the battle of life.When the late Prof. Booker T. Washingtonwas trying to begin the making of brick in con-nection with his work at Tuskegee, he madeseveral failures. At length his funds were ex-hausted and that which he desired to accom-plish was yet unattained. But he was persis-tent. Having no other way of raising the neces-sary money for carrying on the experiment, hepawned his watch and thus secured the neededfunds. His next attempt was successful, andit was thus that the great brick making depart-ment of Tuskegee Institute became a monu-ment testifying to the value of the trait of per-sistence. It is to be noted that it was Mr.Washington's trait of persistence that enabledhim to develop brick making at the school tothe point where it attracted the co-operation ofmen with large sums of money, thus exempli-fying the fact that persistence wins co-opera-tion.

Habit of Saving.There is to every life a sure period of de

cline, a time when one's productive powers fail.During the period of strength there should bea careful preparation for the on coming period


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22 Life' Demands; or, According to Law.of decline. This should be done through sys-tematic saving.Disease also makes its appearance at sometime in almost every home and every life. Thehabit of saving will prepare for this unfortu-nate period.The possession of some of this world's goodsis an evidence of industry, foresight and selfcontrol, and makes a direct and irresistibleappeal for the respect of men.

Economy.A practice that should go hand in hand withthat of systematically laying by a portion ofone's earnings is that of economy. The manwho economizes, who does not make extrava-gant purchases, who does not buy uselessthings, will have all the more to save.Modesty in dress, the eating of wholesomeyet simple meals, and the avoidance of need-

less pleasure jaunts are necessary to a life ofeconomy. Men respect a spirit of self-denial,and will go to the aid of those who practice it.

Proper Behavior Toward the Other Sex.The greatest form of co-operation that cancome to a man in the course of a whole lifetimeis that that comes from some good woman. Shecan aid a man by means of her power to in-spire, by her intuition that enables her to grasp


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law.

clearly a situation that man's reasoning powersfail to grasp, by her sharpened sense of dan-ger, and by the sustaining fortitude which sheexhibits in the almost inevitable hours of dark-ness that at some time overtake almost everylife. The right kind of woman will rear theright kind of children, who in turn will co-oper-ate with the father to crown his life with suc-cess.A proper attitude on the part of a mantoward the female sex will go far toward bring-ing to his side the helpmeet that will give himthe most valuable form of co-operation that hecan secure. On the other hand, the youngwoman who is circumspect in her conducttoward men has the best chance of drawing toherself the devotion of the man of mentalstrength and moral character that will aid insecuring for her a place in life to be coveted.Through virtuous conduct she will win co-opera-tion.

Sacred Care of the Human Body.The soul of a man is the man. The body is

but the instrument by means of which the soulgives expression to itself. He who mistreatsthe body is doing a real injury to the soul inthat he is injuring the only means that the soulhas for playing its part in the world. The co-operation of the soul and body is a primary


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24 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.form of co-operation and may be said to lie atthe base of all other forms of co-operation. For,the soul that cannot induce its own body to co-operate with it, can not get around to secureother co-operation. He who mistreats his bodywill some day, in the time of dire need, callupon it for assistance, only to be denied.

Mind Improvement.Man is not given his mind in a fully developed

state. It is capable of being improved. Thegreater the improvement of the mind, thegreater its range, and the greater its power todraw to its possessor co-operation. One manhas a mind of sufficient range to tie to himselfthe people of a county, and another the peopleof a state, and another the people of a nation,another the people of all civilized lands. He,then, who would have co-operation upon thelargest possible scale should give to his mindthe largest possible degree of improvement. Aman should seize, therefore, every possible op-portunity for the broadening and strengtheningof the mind. Lectures, newspapers, magazinesand books should be utilized upon every possibleoccasion for the purpose of strengthening themind as a preparation for its task of winningco-operation on as broad a scale as possible.


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 25The Habit of Reading.

In the beginning of this discussion as to howto rise in life, we set forth the absolute neces-sity of securing co-operation if one's life is tobear large fruit, and it has been evident thatthe securing of this co-operation has been theguiding star of this production thus far. Wenow come to the climax of the qualities neededto secure the very highest and best form of co-operation. This climax is the habit of reading.The individual that has developed the habitof reading to the point where the mind thirsts

for that sort of employment, has developedthat which can bring to him the co-operationof the great men of all the climes, of all the ages,of all the races. Pericles, whose dust is tossedabout in the land of Greece; Julius Caesar, ofancient Rome; Confucius, the long departedguide of the Chinese; Sir Francis Bacon, thegreat English philosopher, and other notedcharacters of antiquity can lend the powers oftheir great minds to those that have the habitof reading. Through reading one can have theco-operation of the meekness and wisdom ofMoses, the candor and trust and sweetness ofDavid. All that men have ever thought, felt ordone that is recorded can become the help of him


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26 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.who has the habit of reading, can become a partof his life 's equipment.Not only is one able to enlist the co-operation

of the past through the habit of reading, buthe is also able to make use of living forces thatwould not be reached without the habit. Theremay be living in the same age, or country, orvillage with a person an individual with greatmental, moral and spiritual strength that is farremoved, for one reason or another, from thepossibility of direct personal contact, yetthrough what may be written of or by the indi-vidual who cannot be reached personally, thelife and mind of this individual may be utilizedas an aid through the habit of reading. Theabove mentioned facts go to show that the op-portunities for securing co-operation are bound-less for those who have the habit of reading.Bearing in mind the great, indispensable needof co-operation, and noting the great aid of the

habit of reading in securing co-operation fromthe master minds, there should be a diligent,unfaltering cultivation of the habit. Let thisbe done throughout all the years of one's life,and let it not be neglected, it matters not howbusy, how very busy, that life may be.The individual who will take himself in handand cultivate and steadily practice the thingswhich have been set forth herein is sure to rise


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 27in life. And should success not show up inthe form of material prosperity it will be inevidence in the esteem in which one is held byhis fellowman and the good wrought in thelives of others.

It may at times seem that men are success-ful who do not possess all of the traits whichwe have set forth, but if any one of these traitsis missing from a man's life there is grave dan-ger that its absence may wreck his whole ca-reer or greatly narrow his field of usefulness.For example, a man may be industrious, thriftyand polite, and may thus win his way to thepoint where he may become the cashier of abank. But if he is not honest he may wreck thebank and destroy his own usefulness. In sucha case it will be seen that a lack of honesty ren-dered of no avail the industry, thrift and polite-ness possessed by the individual. Those quali-ties won for him the co-operation that elevatedhim, but his lack of honesty will put organizedsociety against him, and he will be cast intoprison and given a badge of disgrace so thatfrom that time forward it will be difficult forhim to secure co-operation.

In view of the fact that one defect in a man's


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28 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.character sometimes has the power to workharm to his whole life and render of no availother qualities it behooves one to strive for a,rounded development, to avoid having anytraits whatever that will develop men's antag-onism rather than their co-operation.


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The Laws of Racial SuccessEvery man in the world is affected not only

by his own reputation, but by that of the raceto which he belongs. If a race has an evilname, each member of that race becomes anheir to his portion of this disfavor, which ishanded out to him before he gets a hearing onhis own individual score. Thus his individualcase is handicapped by the evil name of hisrace, and the rising above this evil name is anadditional obstacle that must be overcome.Whenever the regard for a race is very low,woe unto that individual who happens to be

caught in any situation where his action or at-titude is displeasing, and is supposed to repre-sent the attitude of his race. For the contemptfelt for a race, which is the multiplied contemptfor individuals, a highly intensified feeling, willdescend upon his head, and terrible will be hisload. This is the reason for the great differ-ence between the actions of people toward amember of a despised race and a member ofa respected race, even when their respective of-fenses are the same in character.


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SO Life's Demands ; or, According to Law.On the other hand, if a race is held in high

esteem, each member of that race draws a divi-dend of esteem. The member of a respectedrace starts out with a presumption in his favor,and escapes the handicap that always accom-panies the man that belongs to a race that isnot highly esteemed.That individual that has personal success anddraws off from his race, content with what he

has accomplished personally, sins against him-self, for the suspicion will abide that he hasnot wholly escaped the taint regarded as be-longing to his race. His complete salvation asan individual would come only by removing thetaint of suspicion from the race, rather thanby vainly trying to be regarded as wholly be-yond the taint, though of the race regarded astainted.The foregoing truths should lead all to see,

not only the necessity for individual success, butthe great, the crying, the overwhelming need ofracial success as well.

In view of these considerations, it is the partof wisdom for each member of a race to bedeeply concerned, not only about his own per-sonal welfare, but about that of his race as well.With the necessity of racial success deeply

grooved in our minds, we are now prepared to


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 31consider what is required to cause us to rise asa race.

Worthy Individuals.A race is nothing more than an aggregationof individuals. Unless there are worthy indi-viduals to compose it, there will be no worthyrace. It is an idle dream for anyone to hopefor a race to rise as a lump without regard towhat the units of the race are in themselves.If you give a race the outward forms of suc-cess, and have not worthy individuals it willnot be able to hold what it has been given.Each worker for the advancement of the in-terests of a race, who is interested in racial orsocial success, is truly working in that direc-tion whenever he is seeking to have individualspossess the qualities which we have set forth asnecessary for permanent individual success.The person that smooths and gives propershape to a stone that is to form part of a build-ing not only improves the appearance of thestone but also helps forward the buildingproject, in that he prepares the stone for fit-ting into the place in the building. The im-provement of individuals, then, is the propershaping of material for the social structure.As to how individual qualities fit into theracial or national life is well illustrated by atrait in the character of Lord Nelson, the great


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32 Life's Demands; or, According to Lfab.

English sea-captain. He asserted that the se-cret of his success in life was that he alwaysmade it a point to be fifteen minutes ahead oftime. Promptness, then, pushed him forwardin life, and placed him where he was able tocommand the British fleet in such a way as togive to his country the control of the sea. Stu-pendous thought, the fate of a nation dependingin some measure upon fifteen minutes of time !If Lord Nelson had not developed promptnessas an individual he would not have possessedit as an official, and the history of his countrymight have been vastly different.Another quality, set forth as needed for in-dividual success, that plays a vital part in racialsuccess, and demonstrates that it takes worthyindividuals to make a successful race, is thehabit of saving. The various nations engaged inthe prosecution of the European war raging atthe time of this writing have been forced to[raise large sums with which to prosecute thewar. The nations that have developed thriftyindividuals can now appeal to them in the timeof need with the hope of success. If the indi-viduals comprising a nation now at war hadnot saved, had acted as though the nationaltreasury was all that was needed for success,that nation would today be powerless, for thestiuggle has been upon such proportions as to


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Life'8 Demands; or, According to Law. 3exhaust the richest national treasury. Thrift,then, is seen to be a civic or racial virtue aswell as an individual one.Yet another individual virtue may be cited

to show how that virtues in individuals turnout to be racial or national assets. We referto the matter of caring for the body. As thesoldiers of the various countries meet each otherin the shock of battle the care that they havetaken of their bodies as individuals often deter-mines the question as to whether they are to bevictorious or losing soldiers. Mistreated bodiescannot well stand the strain of long marches,the digging of trenches and exposure to thepangs of hunger, the whipping of cold winds,trudging in deep snows and lying in trenchesalmost filled with water.Go over the entire scale of qualities set forthfor individual success and it can be understood

readily that the race that does not have indi-viduals that possess these qualities have nochance to take even the first step toward racialor national success. Let it be taken for grantedthen, at the outset of the discussion of the lawsof racial growth, that the first thing to do is toobserve with all strictness the laws of indi-vidual success.A man who, without proper personal quali-ties, shouts for racial success is like an arm-


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34 Life*a bemands; or, According to Law.less and legless man trying to form a part ofan army. Let every one desiring racial successfeel that his first and most important contribu-tion to that great task is to cause himself topossess the qualities needed for enduring in-dividual success.

Co-operative Effort.The great tasks of life, while requiring

worthy individuals, are not performed by indi-viduals working singly, but in combinations.What the world stands most in need of is co-operation.The overshadowing importance of the co-op-erative trait has been set forth most clearly by

the world's greatest . thinkers. Prince Kro-potkin, the eminent Russian naturalist, in dis-cussing co-operation as found among lower an-imals, says:

''If we * * * ask Nature, 'Who are thefittest, those who are continually at war witheach other, or those who support one another!'we at once see that those animals which acquirehabits of mutual aid are undoubtedly the fittest.They have more chances to survive, and theyattain, in their respective classes, the highestdevelopment of intelligence and bodily organi-zation."

Charles Parwin, the great expounder of thedoctrine of evolution, one of the master minds


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 35of all the ages, speaks as follows of the effectsof the spirit of co-operation as observed byhim in the course of his intimate studies of ani-mal life: " Those communities (of animals)which included the greatest number of the mostsympathetic members would flourish best."The great religious philosopher, the lateProf. Henry Drummond, says: "To create

units in indefinite quantities and scatter themover the world is not even to take one singlestep in progress. Before any higher evolutioncan take place these units must by some meansbe brought into relation so as not only to acttogether, but to react upon each other. Accord-ing to well-knwn boiological laws, it is only incombinations, whether of atoms, cells, animals,or human beings that individual units canmake any progress, and to create such combi-nations is in every case the first condition ofdevelopment. Hence the first commandment ofevolution everywhere is: "Thou shalt mass,segregate, combine, grow large.' "Another writer has expressed the thought

that "neither material prosperity, nor happi-ness, nor physical vigor, nor high intelligence,"constitute the difference between the ' ' higher ' 'and "lower" races, but that "those are higherin which broad social instincts and the habit ofco-operation exist."


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36 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.From out of the life of lowly insects and ani-

mals, and from the records of the doings ofmen in all the ages of human existence underall known conditions, comes the great outstand-ing lesson that the richest rewards of life aredenied to all men and things that do not acquirethe high art of working in unison for the at-tainment of the purposes of life. They whowill not or cannot acquire the art of workingtogether will be forever shut out from thehigher joys of life; must forever move upon thelower planes of existence; must stand doomedto gaze in hopeless sorrow at the heights at-tained by others yet firmly denied to them.Every group has its unfortunates, its sick, its

poor, its criminals, its morally delinquent ones.In the very nature of things these people can-not save themselves. Nor is it to be expectedthat individuals will be found to bear singlythese burdens. Such problems can be solvedonly by collective effort, and wherever co-op-eration is ineffective these problems go un-solved to breed myriads of attendant evils. Inthe case of the Negroes of the United Statesthere is the further problem of providing anoutlet for the individuals of special talents whoare granted unto groups by nature to keep heartand hope in the bosoms of the masses of men.


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These needed places of distinction must come,can only come, through co-operative effort.Those who hope that in some way or anothertime or accident may grant the blessings en-joyed by the groups that obey the laws of co-operative life are but chasing a ghost. Time,instead of being the friend of non-co-operatinggroups, will simply pile up evidence of the su-periority of co-operating groups over those thatfail to heed the very first law of national orracial success.In view of the vast, and vital, the absolutely

inescapable need of co-operation, the working ofmen together, we know of no greater servicethat can be rendered mankind than that of try-ing to reveal the exact nature of the require-ments for effective co-operation. We thereforeoffer our conception of the qualities needed.

Possession of Firmness Amid UnfavorableSurroundings.

Co-operative effort along any line and forany purpose will find great lethargy, greatdoubt, and sometimes tremendous opposition inits way. Sometimes it may suffer what seemsto be crushing, overwhelming and final defeat.Men with timid hearts, who do not know howto possess their souls in patience while pass-ing through the dark periods of life interferegreatly with the development of co-operative


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effort, as men of vision, men who see successafter struggle, hesitate about embarking uponenterprises with men whose spirits wither inthe face of obstacles. Yet co-operative effortcan hardly come unless leaders arise with thepower to face this timidity, and with the pa-tience to overcome it.

Freedom From Excessive Emotionalism.There is a tendency on the part of some men

to act only when their emotions are aroused.They seem to give themselves up to that modeof life- In great co-operative enterprises mencannot be spared for the mere purpose of keep-ing spirit pumped into the hearts of the va-rious co-operating units. Men who resolveupon a course, and then allow their interest tocool off and die down merely because there isnot a personal agent to keep it alive are greathindrances to co-operative life. That is whatmay be termed excessive emotionalism. It isa weakness in temperament which causes mento be enthusiastic over a matter one day, andcool the next, with no change whatever in thesurrounding conditions. This embarrasses lead-ership, as men, led on by the outbursts of en-thusiasm, soon find themselves unsupportedby the excessively emotional people upon whosepromised co-operation they had relied for suc-cess,


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 39To be worthy factors in co-operative under-

takings men should weigh well whatever is putbefore them, and when a course is entered uponshould not allow a mere lapse of time or theabsence of the arousing influence to cause themto lose their zeal. They should have an internalbattery to keep themselves awake in their en-thusiasm. Individuals who do not flare up to-day and die down in enthusiasm tomorrow, thatare moved by the steady pull of conviction, havea quality essential for co-operation.

Courage.It is sometimes the case that a multitude is

wrong and is headed in a direction that will re-sult in serious misfortune. Some one personstanding apart in mind from the popular driftmay see the error that the multitude is making.Such a man, if lacking in courage, will fail toproclaim his views, fearing to fly in the face ofthe multitude. Yet, since large bodies canmake such large mistakes, they should havethe full benefit of the thoughts of all. It is onlythus that they can be saved from great blundersor rescued from dangerous positions. A groupcomposed of cowardly men, fearing to expresstheir sober thoughts, regardless as to the viewsheld by others, may expect to commit blunderafter blunder.Whenever a course is decided upon that one


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40 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.feels sure is wrong he should unhesitatinglystate his views. Good co-operating units standready to lend their judgment to their respec-tive groups, however much they may excite thedispleasure of those that disagree with them.Minds Open to Conviction.While a man must have the courage to pro-claim his own views, he must likewise keep anopen mind, ready to accept the truth when itcomes from another. It is indeed harmful to thecause of co-operation to have men with closedminds, indisposed to listen, unmindful of thefact that we rarely know when we have reachedthe true bottom of a thing. While it is a man'sduty to act in keeping with whatever light hehas, it is also his duty to move along ready to re-ceive all the new light possible. An army of meneach with a closed mind cannot be brought intothat state of unity of thought that is absolutelyessential for co-operative effort. Open-mind-edness is a great virtue when found in thosedue to co-operate. The narrow closed mindthat does not bear in mind that it may be wrong,is a menace to co-operation, and should be dis-carded.The Placing of Right Above Courtesy or

Friendship.In order that men may work together in com-

binations they should be uniformly courteous


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 41toward each other, thoroughly honest in theirdealings with each other, and firmly wedded tothe principle of choosing for service only suchindividuals as can best perform the tasks be-fore them. While there must be courtesy andkindliness always, yet this must not be stretchedto the point of favoring persons for positionswho are not the best qualified for the servicedemanded.Nor must courtesy, nor friendship, be allowedto influence a man to take any position in anymatter that is not in keeping with what is best.Co-operative effort, in order to be a success,must have the benefit of the best thought ofthe minds interested, and nothing should be al-lowed to sway or keep back that best thought.Each member of a body of any kind should con-cede to every other member the right to haveand freely and vigorously express any opinionthat he may have, without the loss of any meas-ure whatsoever of kindly feeling.Honesty That Can Withstand a Temptation ofAny Strength.The essence of co-operation is a concentra-tion of strength, and in order to have concen-tration, the resources of all must sometimes beplaced in the hands of one. It is hard to haveco-operation wherever it is hard to find a manwho is so firmly honest that nothing can tempt


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42 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.him to betray his trust. M$n who desire to seeco-operative effort succeed should resolve tobe honest at all hazards, honest in every way,honest when there seems to be no likelihood ofthe detection of dishonesty. Whoever is dis-honest with entrusted power commits a highcrime of treason against co-operative effort,sins against the deepest need of humanity.Unless a race has developed men of the

strength of character here indicated, even whatappears to be great progress, in the end, willprove to have been the mere assembling of ma-terial for a great and disastrous conflagration,more disastrous than if the seeming progresshad not been made. A few years ago the newswas heralded far and wide that the Negroes ofMississippi were making great strides alongthe line of collective endeavor. As proof of thisthe presence of seemingly strong fraternal or-ganizations and the existence of twelve Negrobanks were cited. There was much rejoicingover this showing of the race, many exchangesof congratulations upon what appeared to bethe progress in the matter of collective en-deavor. The bosoms of Negroes swelled withpride, and visions of the race at last upon itsfeet cheered hearts that long had sighed forracial greatness. But alas, the progress wasonly seeming progress. One by one the fra-


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 43ternal organizations collapsed until nearly allhad failed. The Negro banks were overtakenby failure until all save one had closed theirdoors. Not all of these failures were caused bydishonesty, but that played an important partin the general collapse. It is a law of socialprogress that honesty of 'the most unyieldingkind must precede all efforts on the part ofpeople to work together in collective enter-prises, and the one great question to be askedover and over again is: Have we the charac-ter as a race to stand the strain of the greatertemptations that come with all efforts at col-lective endeavor?The experiences of Russia in the great Eu-

ropean war have written in blood the lesson ofthe utter foolishness of trying to get forwardas a race without honesty as a basic principle.It is said that men whose duty it was to provideammunition for the soldiers at the front weredishonest. It is charged that they stole thefunds entrusted to their care, and filled the am-munition boxes full of rubbish and shipped themto the scene of battle. The Austro-Germanforces came bearing down upon the Russianswho sought to stem the tide. Russian generalsplanned well. Russian soldiers fought bravely.But the Russian armies were driven back, back,back in bitter and overwhelming defeat. And


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44 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.this was due to the fact that dishonesty hadcrept into the life of the nation. Skill and cour-age could not take the place of honesty. Everyadvance of a Eussian soldier with dishonestofficials at his back only meant just that muchprogress toward a grave.

Let all who would build racial life bear inmind constantly the fact of 'the increase of thestrength of temptation that comes with the con-centration necessary for collective endeavor,and let them not imagine that a race has madeone inch of progress as a race, or that it canmake one inch of progress until it has developedmen and women whom the flames of hell can-not drive, and the glitter of boundless fields ofgold cannot tempt into dishonesty. Let all ofthe forces of the race be set to the task of de-veloping character. From the fireside, fromthe sabbath school, from the public school, fromthe lecture platform and from the pulpit letthe message go forth with burning zealthat we must all be honest. Let it be taughtthat >to be poor is simply a misfortune, but thatdishonesty is an unmitigated shame. Let thepeople be firm of heart, and honor the honestbeggar, with his bare feet upon the ground, overthe man who has accumulated wealth in a dis-honest way.


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Discriminating Trust.There are two courses of action, either ofwhich will break down absolutely co-operative

endeavors. One of these is universal distrust,and the other is universal trust. It is to benoted that co-operative effort is far less devel-oped in Africa than in either of the other con-tinents. It bears the reputation of being theland of universal distrust. Missionaries reportthat distrust reaches even to the matter of din-ing. It is said that a man who offers food toanother is expected to eat first of it himself asevidence that it does not contain poison. A landso permeated with ithe spirit of distrust hardlycould be expected to develop along co-operativelines.The value of faith as a factor in the upbuild-

ing of a race is set forth tersely in the followingsentence from the eminent writer and scientist,the late Professor Nathaniel S. Shaler: "Inour own Aryan race, as well as in the Semitic,there is an element of confidence of man in hisfellows that leads to the association of endeavorin business."

If the Negroes are to succeed they must de-stroy the tendency toward universal distrust.But care must be taken not to go to the other

extreme, a policy of universal trust. Not every-one is worthy of trust. Promiscuous trusting


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46 Life'a Demands; or, According to Lau).will have no effect other than to break down alltrust, and hurl the race back into the banefulslough of universal distrust. The proper thingto do is to trust discriminatingly. A man withan evil heart usually hangs out somewhere veryplain signs of the state of his heart. Whereverthere is evidence that a man is dishonest, with-hold from him your confidence.But judge not all men by ;the dishonest ones.Be vigilant, keep ears and eyes open, and solong as men give evidence of worthiness oftrust, then trust them. Without discriminatingtrust there can be no success on a large scale.

Fidelity Toward Representatives.There come times when races cannot, as a

whole, perform certain tasks, but stand in needof agents or representatives to act for them.Whenever a man serves in a representative ca-pacity, labors in the interest of the commongood, he should not fail of support on the partof all the people. It is as dishonorable in a raceto accept the services of a representative andneglect the representative as it is for an indi-vidual to neglect one who renders personalservice. If there is no spirit in the people itostand by the man that serves in a representa-tive capacity, there will come to be a dearth ofthose willing to labor and sacrifice for the com-mon good.


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I/t/e' Demands; or, According to Law. 4?

A Disposition to Follow.It is the possession of great followers thatmakes a great race. Unless a race has men who

in their respective spheres will put into opera-tion good ideas that are offered, there can beno great measure of racial success. Find arace where men who have acquired influence sitstill and push only such ideas as they, per-chance, may father, there failure is inevitable.And in such a case ithe failure will come, notfrom bad leadership, but from bad following.If great men are needed to make motions, thereis also needed greatness of soul on the part ofthe people to second motions.No man should become so great in his owneyes that he feels that he is above being a fol-lower. Good following is as much a necessityas wise leadership, and all members of a raceshould strive to lead wisely where they areleaders, and to follow faithfully where they aredue to follow.

Subordination of Personal Feelings.It is to be expected that men will differ, and

so long as men are imperfect, differences maydevelop of a personal nature. But whatevermay be men's personal relations toward eachother, they must have the ability to put thosethings aside and work harmoniously togetherfor the common good. Under no circumstances


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48 Life's Demands; or, According to Lav).should personal differences be dragged intopublic affairs. In considering things pertain-ing to the common good, men should be carefulto prune their hearts to see that personal feel-ings are not swaying their judgment.The Elimination of Opposition Born of Jealousy.Wherever you have a race permeated with a

spirit of jealousy great loss is sustained intwo ways. There are natural obstacles -to beovercome in every undertaking, obstacles dueto the very nature of things. But jealousy be-gets artificial obstacles, adds new and unneces-sary burdens. Wherever the jealous spirit ex-ists, a great deal of energy must be expended inovercoming the hindrances which it has thrownup. Thus the person anxious to accomplishgood must utilize precious time and energythat could be employed in a productive way,in clearing away the artificial obstructionsthrown up by jealous opponents.In the second place, the jealous individualswho spend time and energy trying ,to impedethe progress of others subtract that much timeand energy needed to more fully develop theirown affairs.

Fill a race with the -spirit of jealousy, havethis double waste on a widespread scale, and itis at once apparent how much is lost, how mucha race is kept back.


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 49Kaces composed of members guilty of the sin

of jealousy toward each other, anxious to pre-vent each other from succeeding, need no out-side forces to hold them down. They may berelied upon to hold themselves down.Let each man view his neighbor's successwith feelings of delight. If there is a desire to

shine brighter, let it be done by superior meriton the part of the desiring one, and not by try-ing to prevent someone else from having thelargest possible measure of success when ob-tained in the right way.So long as men are serving the common in-

terests in the highest and broadest way pos-sible, they should be allowed to continue theirservice. Jealousy, or the mere desire for per-sonal preferment at the expense of the publicshould not be allowed -to arise in the heart. Theeye should be kept fixed upon the common good.Jealousy should be slain and no personal ambi-tion should be gratified except such ambitionas finds its chief satisfaction in the good donefor the co-operative group or body.That person is worthy of elevation who per-

forms a wedding between his ambition and 'thebest good of the group of which he forms a part.Such an individual will not disturb needlesslygood men rendering service, nor will he injecthis personal ambition when and where he sees


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60 Life'* Demands; or, According to Law.it will be a disturbing factor for the group ofbody, even though it might advance his ownpersonal interests.But care must be taken not to confound right-ful opposition to those who are not serving thepublic interest in the highest and best way withthe feeling of jealousy. The one attitude is ashigh as the other attitude is low.A Spirit of Universal Helpfulness.A thing that will add zest and power to grouplife or co-operative endeavor is for the variousunits to have proof that the other units areconcerned about their welfare and are anxiousto help them. If a man is made to feel that heis alone in the world, that no one cares for him,this is calculated to breed selfishness and de-stroy patriotism. But love for the group and adisposition to sacrifice for it are begotten whereone is made to feel the warm co-operation ofhis fellows. Let no man tread the wine pressalone if he is doing a good work. Let all throwtheir strength behind him and help him for-ward. "Let all help each" should be the mottoof every community, of every group. Develop-ment will be marvelous when men learn to seekearnestly the good of their fellows.Capability of Being Influenced to Act by OtherThan Direct Appeals Made in Person.A race of people composed of individuals


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Demands; of, According to Law. Sithat are not capable of being influenced to ac-tion by printed or written matter is woefullyhandicapped. Wherever a human messengermust be sent to perform that which ought to beperformed by a piece of paper on which typehas placed a message, there is just that muchof needless waste of energy and added expense.The obtaining of results under such conditionsis so very expensive as greatly to hinder rapiddevelopment. Exhibit a race composed of in-dividuals that are moved only when a humanbeing comes along, and you will behold a peopledoomed to lag behind other races of men thatcan feel and respond to matters not thusbrought. Such a state of affairs reduces thepossibilities of leadership, begets an air of un-certainty, and a total lack of knowledge of thestate of men's minds.Corresponding races, or races moved by writ-ten or printed appeals, are more than a thou-sand times more efficient than those thatcan absorb what is written or printed with-out being moved to action. To succeed as arace we must move up out of the age of the

voice, the age of the direct personal appeal, andlive in an age where an idea can influence toaction by whatever route it drifts one's way.When the time arrives that the Negroes arecapable of being moved to action on a large


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62 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.scale by what they read, a marked change inthe condition of the race will begin instantlyand will be marvelous in its proportions.Ability to Feel Keen Personal ResponsibilityWhere Large Numbers Are Involved.Every organization, group or combination of

men has its opportunities, its possibilities, itsresponsibilities. These exist in proportion toits size. The larger it is, the more are the op-portunities that knock at its door, the greaterare its possibilities, and the heavier its respon-sibilities. Before whom are these things to beplaced! Before -the membership? And if thevarious members cannot feel a keen personalresponsibility simply because so many are in-volved they make poor members of a group,and are sorry material for co-operative life. Amember should do all in his power to take careof the honor of a body of which he forms a part.A large group composed of men who are lack-ing in what may be termed community shame,who do not feel personally the sting of a group 'sdisgrace will but invite the disgust of men. Oneshould cultivate the power to feel personallyashamed of all remissness of duty on the partof organizations in which he claims member-ship.Every unit of a race should feel a personal

responsibility for the good name and welfare of


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the race. That which concerns the welfare ofall should not be allowed by any individual torest lightly on his shoulders merely because oth-ers are involved to an equal degree. The mottoof each individual should be : * ' Let me feel inthis matter, and let me act, as I would if thewhole responsibility of this affair rested uponme alone." Such a feeling should possess all,and all should act accordingly. But while do-ing his utmost to help take care of the interestsof the race, let no one fail to do what he hon-orably can for the protection of himself andthose immediately depending on him. How-ever, if the time comes when a man must makechoice between his own personal welfare andthe welfare of his kind, let him not hesitate tosacrifice himself in the interest of the commongood.A Proper Attitude on the Part of the StrongToward the Weak.

All weakness is a source of some kind of dan-ger, not only to the persons possessing theweakness, but also to the most remote parts ofany system with which the weak are in any de-gree connected. Because of this close, but oftenunappreciated, connection between the strongand the weak, wherever you find the strong in-different to the welfare of the weak, or find thestrong believing that weakness is a thing to be


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54 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.taken advantage of by strength, there you willfind a situation doomed to grow worse for allconcerned. An illustration of the manner inwhich the fate of


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Regard For the Welfare of Coming Generations.It has been clearly demonstrated that those

nations are the most successful that mostlargely include future generations in their plan-nings. Those who look far ahead, and plan forthe welfare of the distant future, develop asoberness of spirit, a soundness of judgment, ahabitual cautiousness, and an ability for self-denial that unite to cause them to plan well forthemselves, along with their wise plannings forthe future. A nation can do nothing better foritself than to include the unborn in all of itscalculations. Those who plan only for theirown day live to learn that in making their plansshort, they made them too short, and they someday find themselves called upon to eat of thebitter fruit which their short-sightedness hadplanned for future generations.Men and women enrich the life of a nationwhen they live with a view to giving their ownuntarnished names as inspiring forces for theboys and girls of the future. They likewise de-velop powers that help their own day and gen-eration when they nurture institutions designedto take care of the interests of the future.

Due Regard For Womankind.Inasmuch as the shaping of the destiny ofchildren is in the hands of mothers to such alarge extent, a due regard for the welfare of


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coming generations demands that the womenof the race shall be surrounded with an atmos-phere of protection, respect, deference andkindliness. Out of hearts made strong andlifted up by the homage of mankind, the womenwill impart to their children the qualities ofmanliness and womanliness that should be in-bred in the individuals if they are expected tohave the spirit and character needed for thestern issues of life. Therefore every man whotreats well his wife, every man who acts hon-orably and nobly toward any woman, is aidingthe life of the race just that much. Likewisethe mistreatment of any woman is just thatmuch of a load weighting down a race.

Morality.It is universally conceded that the home isthe foundation upon which the greatness of a

nation is builded. In the home the father hasthe strength, and the mother the love neededfor the successful rearing of children so thatthey will prove to be good citizens. This formof co-operation known as marriage is made pos-sible only by belief in the possibility of exclu-sive devotion of men and women to each other.Destroy faith in the possibility of the existenceof such devotion, and you destroy the veryfoundation of the home, which, in turn, is thefoundation of national or racial greatness.


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Every act of immorality is an attack on thisfaith, tends toward the loosening of family ties,the disruption of homes, and the casting adriftof children, so that they will fail of the jointcare of their parents. The man or woman wholives a moral life and sets an example of puritycan have the satisfaction of knowing that heor she is not only doing that which is right andbest for himself or herself, but that which isnecessary for the welfare of humankind. Onthe other hand, let everyone lacking moralityregard himself as one of an army attackingwith might and main the very foundations ofsociety.

It has been said that there are three greatcauses of war as revealed in the history of theworld, commerce, women and religion. Womennot only have been the cause of wars betweennations, but have been the occasion of muchfriction within the nation. Men that shouldhave worked together for the common goodhave become estranged on account of women,have failed to give their nations the benefit oftheir combined efforts, have weakened the na-tional life by efforts directed toward the de-struction of the influence of each other. Menbecause of improper relations with women haveprovoked antagonisms from people, not movedby jealousy, but wedded to nobler ideas of life.


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58 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.It is thus that a race of moral men has a greateropportunity to develop a harmonious workingbody than a race of immoral men, in that agreat cause of friction, clashes and heart-burn-ings over women, is largely eliminated. It isthus also that morality contributes to the suc-cess of co-operative endeavor.

We have laid down the rules for the makingof a strong collective force, and we would nowset forth the uses to which this collectivestrength must be applied when developed.In view of accidents and the improvident

habits of many people, poor orphans may be re-garded as an assured part of human societyunder existing conditions. Provisions shouldbe made to take care of these orphans to pre-vent them from drifting into lives of crime andfor the purpose of utilizing such talents as theymay possess.There will be youths that will develop crim-

inal tendencies. Eeform schools should aboundto care for such.Husbands will be found dying without hav-

ing made ample provisions for their widows,and institutions of a fraternal character should


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 59be conducted efficiently to help make the roadof life as easy as possible for the destitutewidows of those who placed their reliance insuch institutions.There will appear within the race hordes ofambitious young men and young women whoare anxious to distinguish themselves by their

good works, and there is dire need of institu-tions that afford outlets for the aspirations- ofsuch.The Negro race stands in need of men of ed-

ucation of a high order to lead properly thepeople. More and more the Negro race willbe expected to foster institutions of learningthat will furnish this intellectual leadership forthe race.Here stand five great needs for social effi-ciency. They will not vanish. The passing

years do not reduce their importance. Theircry unto the race does not grow less insistentas time rolls by.

Beyond a doubt, wrapped in the minds ofneglected orphans will be powers which, devel-oped, would add strength and glory to the race.Neglected criminal youths will grow into giantsof evil, and in their criminal blindness will pulldown the pillars of the temple upon themselves


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60 Life's Demands; or, According to Law.and upon their race. The struggles of widowsto maintain themselves in conditions of comfortand respectability will be painfully intense. Theflower of the youth of the race will be allowedto flounder in the mire of bitter despair. Mindsneeded for the uplift of the race will be allowedto grope in the blindness of ignorance throughthe lack of facilities for giving them the lightthese conditions are absolutely inevitable un-less there is developed within the race social ef-ficiency. We plead therefore that every mem-ber of the Negro race shall ponder what is saidherein concerning social efficiency. We callupon every one to make a study of himself andto resolve to lay aside everything in himselfthat will not contribute toward social efficiency,that will cause him to be any sort of a weakspot in the racial aggregation.The time has been and the time may be againwhen nations will issue calls upon their citizens

to lay their all upon the altar for the sake ofcountry. Wealth, comforts, home ties, lifeall, all are sometimes demanded, and are freelygiven. But our call here for the sake of theNegro race is not unto a field of blood. No oneis asked to die for his race. But what is askedis that men shall live for their race, that theyshall so live that they can and will work to-gether faithfully, successfully, forever, trans-


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 6l

mitting collective power from one generationto another. Unless the Negro race can developthis social efficiency, can develop the virtuesnecessary for the successful working togetherof large bodies or groups of people, the race isdoomed to a life of continued sorrow and shame.


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62 //t/e' tocmAnds; of, According to Law.

The Laws of Race AdjustmentAt the present time the Negroes of the United

States are outnumbered by other races in thiscountry in the ratio of 9 to 1, approximately.Intelligence, wealth and other things that go toconstitute power are vastly superior in therest of the population to what may be creditedto the Negroes. In addition to the gulf of dif-fering conditions separating the Negroes fromthe rest of the population, they are of widelydifferent race with physical features thatprominently mark the fact of difference as torace. In view of these considerations, it is ofthe utmost importance to the Negroes that theyenjoy the esteem and good will of the rest ofthe population. The peaceful enjoyment of thecomforts of life and the privileges incident tocitizenship depend almost wholly upon the es-teem in which the race is held.

Reliance cannot be solely placed uponstatutes, constitutions and court decisions.Statutes can be changed, sections of constitu-tions can remain unenforced, and courts willbe found to be very slow to hold governments,


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Lifers bemanda; or, According to Law. 63state or national, to laws that are not sustainedby an enlightened public sentiment.The fact that the welfare of the Negro racemust rely upon the good will of the people of

the nation, is illustrated clearly by experiencessince the close of the Civil War. The first re-liance of the Negroes was upon the militarypower of the North. Northern soldiers werequartered in the South to give protection tothem. But in the very nature of things, thissort of protection could not be of long duration,as our government is not military in character.It was only a matter of time before the soldierswere to be withdrawn. The Negroes thereforesoon found that such a reliance, from the stand-point of permanent protection, was vain indeed.As a means of defense, the Negroes weregiven the ballot, but it was not long before that,in large measure, was wrested from them. TheNegroes allied themselves en masse with onepolitical party, and pinned their faith to it, butthis party finally grew quiet concerning the giv-ing of political privileges to the race, so faras an active forward programme is concerned.This party, avowedly friendly toward the Ne-groes, was given control of Congress for a longperiod of years, but failed to meet their ex-pectations. Men who protested their greatfriendship for the Negro race have been ele-


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(54 I/i/e's fiemands; or, According to Law.

vated to the presidency of the United States,but no marked results have followed from thissource. The Supreme Court of the UnitedStates has been appealed to, time and again,but in some way has left matters about as theywere before the appeals were made.

This brief review shows the Negroes as hav-ing relied upon the military, legislative, execu-tive and judicial departments of the nationalgovernment, but largely in vain. The problemsare all back in the hands of the people for ad-justment. It cannot be insisted too strongly,therefore, that a great problem before theNegro race is that of growing up in the esteemof the American people, of winning the goodwill of their neighbors.The fact that the logic of the situation de-mands that the Negroes of Almerica have astheir policy the cultivation of a friendly rela-tionship with their white neighbors whereverthis can be done honorably should not be asource of discouragement to the Negroes of theSouth, as no limit can be set as to the degreeof devoted interest the heart of a Southernermay be led to hold for a worthy member of theNegro race, or for the race itself. There iascarcely a Negro man of worth in all of theSouth who has had contact with white peoplebut can point to some white man who is his


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 65devoted and unvarying friend. Some of thevery greatest boons that have ever come to theNegro race in the United States have come outof the heart of some Southerner. When in1818 the State of Illinois was admitted to theUnion an effort was made to introduce slaveryby law into that State. A majority of the peo-ple of the state at the time were Southernpeople, but the movement to give legal recog-nition to slavery was defeated, the Governor,Edward Coles, a Southerner, leading the fightagainst its recognition. The first man evernominated for the presidency of the UnitedStates on a platform of opposition to slaverywas a Southerner, James G. Birney, who wasborn in Kentucky and later lived in the stateof Alabama. The first nominee of the repub-lican party for the presidency of the UnitedStates was a Southerner, John C. Fremont, ofCalifornia, who was born in Savannah, Ga.The man who issued the emancipation procla-mation, Abraham Lincoln, of Illinois, was aSoutherner, born in Virginia. The opinion ofthe Supreme Court of the United States,handed down upholding the validity of the fif-teenth amendment to the Constitution of theUnited States, which amendment has been re-garded as the bulwark of the Negro's citizen-ship, was prepared and delivered by a South-


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erner, an ex-confederate soldier, Chief JusticeWhite of Louisiana.Throughout the entire South white men intown and city councils, in legislatures, and

upon boards of education annually votehundreds of thousands of dollars more forNegro education than would be thus applied ifmoney derived from the taxing of Negro prop-erty only were used for this purpose. It is truethat so long as the Negro is industrious headds to the wealth of the South, and is, inequity, entitled to the education of his childrenout of it, whether the wealth created by hislabor is listed in his name or not, but what wecomment upon in this connection is the will-ingness of Southern white men to take thisview of the matter.The career of the late Booker T. Washing-

ton was a striking illustration to all the worldof the possibilities of the hearts of Southernwhite people toward acceptable members of theNegro race. He recognized their fundamentalgoodness of heart, always appealed to it, andthroughout his life and in his death he receivedoverwhelming testimony of their respect andgood will. There is therefore, no ground fordespair over the fact that in the last analysisthe sentiment of the people very largely willaffect the status of the Negro race. The heart


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 67of the white South is splendid soil upon whicha great tree of friendship for the Negro racecan be grown.In the South a golden opportunity knocks atthe door of the Negro race, because so many ofits members are engaged in domestic service inthe homes of white people. If the Negroes inthe homes of the white people of the South aremoral, industrious, thoroughly efficient andsensible, they will make a good impression forthe race. The Negro who is engaged in serviceamong the white people should regard himselfor herself in the light of a keyhole throughwhich others feel that they are looking into thereal inner life of the race.An example of what a true man can do for hisown race while serving another race is foundin the labors of Nehemiah, the Jew. He wascup-bearer to the king. His life was circum-spect. He won the full confidence of the manhe served. The faith which the king had inhim, and the affection that accompanied thatfaith, enabled Nehemiah to rebuild the walls ofhis native city, Jerusalem, at that time a con-quered province.The forces that are at work for the advance-ment of the Negro race hardly can find a moreimportant field than that of trying to aid theNegroes who are to serve, to do their work well,


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Life's ttemandsj of, According to

and to demean themselves properly. Just asa country takes great pains to train its diplo-mats for service in foreign lands, leading Negromen and women should show a like interest inincreasing the efficiency of the Negroes who areto serve the white people and help shape theirattitude toward the Negro race.

It is said that on one occasion the presidentof one of the great Northern colleges for youngwomen visited the South and was asked to ad-dress one of the best Negro colleges in this sec-tion. His discourse was said to be concerningthe efficiency of the Negro servant class in theSouth. The students in this particular schoolwere all planning for careers more profitablethan that of domestic service, and for that rea-son may have regarded the talk as being outof place. How lacking in thought is such an at-titude. The opinion of the Negro race, fash-ioned by the servant class, will have an effectupon the destinies of all. Whatever one's sta-tion in life or field of labor, let there be deepconcern about the Negro servant.Domestic service schools should be conducted

in every city, and those who know the ways ofservice that are correct should see that othersalso know. The women of the Negro race who,in the cities, are forming themselves into clubs,would do well to direct the activities of the clubs


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Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 69toward this matter. Homes for working girlsshould be founded into which the young womenwho are- to serve should be gathered and giventhe training needed to enable them to play welltheir part.The complaint has been made that the white

people of the South are not coming in contactwith the better class of Negroes. In view of thesocial separation of the two races, the best wayto get the wliite people in touch with Negroeswho can make a better impression for the race,is to increase the efficiency of such Negroes asthey do come in contact with.In the course of the life of a race certaintraits of that race become more marked thanothers. These traits become a source of greatpride to the race and come to be regardedas the very breath of life by that race. Ifanother race is to be judged, the cardinalvirtues of the race sitting in judgment will beused as the points at which measurements areto be made. The failure of another race tomeasure up well at the points of comparisonchosen will excite deeper disgust than wouldfailures along some other lines. It is well thenfor the Negro race to bear in mind that the whiterace by the law of its being must pass judgmentupon the Negro race at those points which itdeems vital in its own life. For example if the


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white race has cultivated the virtues of prompt-ness, truthfulness, reliability, thoroughness andpersistence to the point where they seem to bea second nature, and if at these very points theNegroes on the whole are lacking, it is apparentthat they cannot stand very high in the estima-tion of the whites, despite other virtues whichthey may possess. It is therefore urged withall the force at our command that the Negroesin all of their relations with the white peopleshall take pains to come up fully to the stand-ards of that race.Keeping in mind these things, we now shallname the things that will pave the way for ris-

ing in the esteem of others. The qualities whichwe set forth as necessary for the rising of in-dividuals and those which we named as consti-tuting the foundation stones for rising as arace, are now cited again as necessary for risingin the esteem of others. In addition to thosethings named, which in safety cannot be ignored,we wish now to discuss other needed virtues.There are two directions in which rising inthe esteem of others should be considered. Let

us consider how, as individuals, to rise in theesteem of others, and how to rise in their es-teem as a race.Thoughtfulness of Others.He who would have the esteem of others must


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give careful thought to others, must study theirtraits, tastes, opinions, and must try to under-stand their viewpoint, the angle from which theyare looking at things.Persons who are in the employ of othersshould take pains to see to it that their interestis not confined to the mere drawing of pay. Agenuine interest in the service rendered will, asa rule, draw appreciation in return. Acts ofthoughtfulness extending beyond the range ofduties definitely assigned will not long passwithout their reward. Little acts of kindnessthus performed may not involve much labor butwill bring profitable dividends in the way of in-creased esteem.

Cleanliness.The Anglo-Saxon race is a great believer in

the bath, in the power of soap and water. Thebath removes imp

sutton elbert griggs--life's or according to law (c1916)

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