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The News and Observe!*. VOL. XLVI. NO. ill. UEMOII NOKIN CMIOLIIM HUES ■ HER SID CIRCULATION. THE ORPHAN'S FRIEND The Enduring Beneficence of the Late J. H. Mills. TRIBUTE BY GEN. COX THEI MASONS WKKH PIONEERS IX MEPHANICAL EDIT’ATK)X. SOME REO AND BLOODY WAR TIGURES "IhePftnce Conference at the Hague is in itself a Protest of Christianity ard Civili* zttion Against War and Bloodshed. At St. John's Day celebration at tli«* Oxford Orphan Asylum yesterday. Dim. W. U. Cox, former Grand Master whose early efforts to hold up the nands of Mr. .1. If. .Mills, has home lasting fruit, pa id a handsome tribute to .dr. Mills, and {rave some facts in connection with the’early history of that noble charity that ought to be widely kn »wn. Gen. I’ox said: Most Worshipful Grand. Master, Ladies and Gentlemen: It always gives me pleasure to address the intelligent and discriminating audi ences 1 meet at this place, who have ever proved to l>e nty sincere and loyal friends. lam happy to greet you. On St. John's nay, torty-four years ago to-day, with appropriate and impos ing ceremonies the 1* ree Masons ol INotth Carolina laid the corner-stone of the building (St. John's Chapelt in which we are now assembled. A single structure amidst Arcadian environment originally comprised St. John's College—a college designed to give as thorough and com plete an edtuatioy. practical in its char acter,. to young men who might patronize it. as might be obtained in any similar . institution in our country. The St. John's College, with its solitary building of the past, is the Oxford Orphan asylum of to-day, with its two hundred and fifty bright and well-eared for orphans, its huuiefous and well-appunU-d buildings, its kept grounds, and excellent corps of capable and efficient officers and teachers. While the work originated with and was carried on for some years through Masonic agencies, now its success is due to contributions from the Grand Lodge of Masons, appropriations by the State, and liberal contributions from licnevolent individuals. At the meeting of the Grand Lodge of Masons in ISol the Grand 'Master appointed a committee, consisting erf John Gray Bynum. John A. Lillington, and I*. 11. W inston from among our leading .men and zealous Ma sons. to procure from the General As sembly a charter for this college, and to prepare and publish an address setting forth the system or education and course of instruction proposed to prepare the students for the practical duties of life. At this imint I invite especial atten tion to a most significant fact, which re flect* great credit upon the order, as it shows they went the pioneers in prae tical education. Us teen recommenda tions. near a quartet >1 a century after wards, were adopted by the Congress «>t the United States in tin* establishment of Agricultural am! Me ( haiiical Colleges in every State of tin Union. ! In their address the committee says: “Masonry is eminently practical in its character—and a college established by Masons and supported by them should furnish a practical education. It should particularly acquaint the student with the art's and sciences, the results of modern invention and modern discov eries." This address arraigned the course of studies an the colleges of that day as being too devoted to the dead languages, whh h was proper enough when all banning was contained in the 1 moles written in those languages, and when no gentleman could be considered as educated who had not devoted a greater portion of Iris collegiate course to such studies, who could not translate and construe Latin and Greek sen tences and illustrate his ideas by :fc>t classical quotations, and thus necessarily led to the neglect of the arts and sciences. In consequence, it was con tended. it threw discredit upon mere mc ctranical arts and led the young man of talents to the pursuit of those professions which were believed to lead most direct ly to honors and preferment. As was natural, tin* college when es tablished did not meet with the patron age its founder anticipated. The changes suggested wire believed to be too novel and even radical, if not revolutionary, for this was the crowning period of that indt pendent, self-reliant, conscrvative rural life which looked with disfavor upon everything UMl'iug to disturb or disorganize the fin it existing state of society. '! he noeblesse oblige, as it were This period may he termed as an ap proach to tin* parting of the ways oe -1 ween the repressive conservatism then existing and tin* aggressive iccnociism that was soon to revolutionize our country. At this time, steam naviga tion. as compared to the present, was most primitive, railroad traVel and traf fic expensive and unreliable, for the line* of traffic were often broken and discon tinued through Stale jealousies ami local prejudices. Maury had just promulgated his theories of the currents of the sea which revolutionized inter-oceanic travel, while Morse was still experimenting with the telegrapn. which, with its weird winged whispering w ire, was to bring all civilized nations, and even the isles of the sea; in daily contact. Under ‘the Constitution the North and the South were fellow slave-holders and no .man bail ever been or could then be elected President of tile United States who was even a free soiler. In other words. Northern States, which owing to climate and pursuit, had found slavery unprofitable, had wisely shifted the White Man's burden upon the South, where the slave labor could pro duce the raw material to great profit. With the proceeds of such sales of slaves they braided cities, maimfactories, and developed many industries, which the South greatly preferred should be kept out of her borders, from fear of labor agitations. The men of the North addressed them selves chiefly to their business pursuits and generally such legislation as they proposed was practical in its character. Southern men and promiiincnt Northern men w ho made their homes among them, devoted a great part of their time to piu.de affairs, and the management of their large estates and independent indi vidual life qualified them as rulers. They familiarized themselves by study and practice with the governments of the world. Their idea of the proper govern ment of their country was that is the liest government which governs least: that honor was dearer than life itself and patriotism than "gold." Koine, especially in the days of the Camhilli. Cincinnati, I'abii and the elder Scipios. and whose dictators came from the hon est labor of the plough-shares and the self-denial of the farm, commanded their admiration. The consequence was South ern councils dictated and dominated the politics of this country, even up to the time of our Civil War. And notwithstanding the impatience of the younger and aider statesmen of the North, they were unable to escape from this domination, until too conscious of rlieir overwhlemiiug strength, the South by its party and personal dissensions and impatience for needful concessions made possible the election of TIIK LATE -I. II MILLS. Founder-and Long Manager of The Oxford rphan Asylum. President Lincoln by tin* votes of Northern States alone. And though in his inaugural address he dis claimed any intention of interfering with tin* institution of slavery, our great Civil War followed I s innug iraiion with its m; h'l'oLl hardships ami gnat sacrifices, let "1 ehind a frowning pro deuce” fn lowed progress and blessings. In the centennial celebration of the Idrthday <rf George Washington which birthday of George Washington which took place in the < ity of Washington in 1N32. Mr. ed niton the occasion, in part said: "We are at the point of a century from the birthday of Washington, and what a cen tury it has been! During its course ihe human mind lias seemed to progress w.tli a sort of geometric velocity, accomplish ing more than had been done in five or ten centuries preceding. ... A century ,rom tin* birth of Washington has changed the world.” And yet in standing upon, as it were, the dawn ol the twentieth century, we have seen more than all the past had accomplished. We have seen this count ry press,, triumphantly through the great Civil War, the magnitudes of whose bat tles, the fortitude ex'hih'ted, the hard ships endured, tile .-< biovement s aecoie plishid, have exeiteu tin* admiration and i onvraulcd the rospe -t of the «‘* i'Hzpd world. We have seen the slave, which was the occasion hut not the cause of tie* war. set free! We have seen at the close of that cruel, unrelenting struggle, all port nuns of the country d awn nearer together, without one hostile shot tired after the surrender of the South. We have seen this nation since engaged in a foreign war. an I a> the guns of our great naval commander were tired in Manila Bay. they ’-e-crlmed at Santiago, and tin* Heels of a gn at European power was swept from the mighty ocean: We have seen the grim and the wrinkled veterans who wore the blue and gray, volunteering and lighting side by side* at El ('•aney. with tin* sole emulation as to who should go farthest and Ik* fore most mi striking the foe of our common country: We have seen the Union and Com federate soldiers decorating tin* graves of their w'biiom foes: We have si i n file mongrel tribes of the Sandwich Islands gathered, without the firing of a gun, beneath the folds of our starry RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA, SUNDAY MORNING. JUNE •>'», 1899. banner. But time fails me even to men tion what has been accomplished in science, in letters, in material resources, during the half century since Webster's address. Suffice it. great wisdom, great ability and great moderation is neces sary to prevent our over-confidence as suming greater responsibilities than any one nation can surmount. Yet in view i). the past, who can forecast tile future of such a nation as ours, when command ing the admiration and support of all sections'; Claiming as we do as our just meed that "ours are the plans of fair delight ful peace,” and that men should be su perior to wealth, we should see to -it that tin 1 great resources of our country do not fall into ton few hands. Our safety has hitherto been in the fact that we have had no hereditary rights or privileged classes, but greed and man's ingenuity are ever seeking to nul lify t-.is wise provision of our organic la w. It would seem as if in our brief his tory wo have had war enough; but so long as "they who make tin* quarrels are not the men who light.” and with a brave, fearless, patriotic home people to hold in control, should wo not pause and consider deeply before we yield to the temptation of seeking glory in war? The great peace congress now in ses sion at The Hague is in itself a protest of Christianity and civilization against war. It is wise and practical to look at its awl'ul cost before we hasten to it. It has occurred to me. therefore, that a few very red blood-stained figures may in struct us all, if we look at them right, and may help to curb a too ambitious national martial spirit. l)o you know how many American soldiers served in the seven year's war for independence? There were, accord ing to the highest authority, that of the distinguished Adjutant General of the Army, from whose well-digested article 1 draw my figures. two hundred dred and fifty thousand. llnw many of and fifty thousand. llow many • of these were lost? The rec ords said twelve thousand. In our war of INK.’ for sailors’ rights four hundred and seventy-one thousand men were on tin* muster rolls, and tift.v tive hundred of them never answered tin* roll-call when the veterans of those who years were mustered out. In the Mexican War, our first war of aggression, the death-roll reached live thousand out of a total of one hundred and sixteen thousand men. Li the Spanish war two hundred and seventy-live thousand men were under arms ready to serve our common country, three thousand of these sleep the sleep of hero* s.* In the great struggle of the century, the struggle between giants, there were all fold two million three hundred and twenty-five thousand men in the Federal army. Os this mighty lmst one hundred and ten thousand were lost in action, and two hundred thousand died of disease. In the Confederate ar my there were six hundred and fifty thousand men, and of these one hundred and twenty-live thousand perished in battle, twenty seven thousand died in prison, and two hundred thousand were made prisoners of war, and were not exchanged. These figures speak far more eloquent ly than can mere words the cruel ami unrelenting nature of the struggle. North Carolina was the last of ;lie States l«i join the Confederacy, and only gave her consent to do so when the hour for neutrality had passed. When by proclamation Mr. Lincoln called on her for troops to coerce those allied to her by blood, by association and kindred institutions, she no longer hesitated as to her duty, but promptly joined her Southern sisters, for war con hi m.i longer lie averted, and sin* sought not to escape her due responsibility. In view oil’ all the facts, who can now truthfully say she chose imwisely? At all events, hav ing joined her fortune with her South ern sisters, sin* with a fidelity and stead fastness worthy of all praise, stood true to her profession until the very end. The first bleed shed in flu* war was that of a North Carolinian, and the fast charge made at Appomattox was by North Carolinians, and in that devoted hand were sons of Granville county. On (lie return of the Confederate to their homes at the close of the war, you will remember that they were without the means of renewing the struggle for Dread —without horses or proper farming utensils, their fields neglected and grown | up. often w ithout seed to plant—-they ad dressed themselves to the duties of pro ' viding for their families without a mur ■ miir. Frequently an ox. or tin old war horse, was their only resource. All were poor alike. But the soil was generous, the climate was mild, and they were used to hardships. They made their struggle, and today you know that it was successful. Os the provision in part made for them 1 will recount the efforts put forth by a big-hearted philanthropist who came to their aid. There is a legend of St. Brindan, that as he journey Nortii in* saw a man sitting on an icelmrg, and was horrified to find it was Judas Isca riot. Judas told him at Christmas time an angel descended into the lurmiug lake, touched his arm, and told him for an hour to cool himself upon an iceberg in the Arctic sea. And when he inquired the cause of his mercy, the angel replied once he was a leper, and in tin* streets of .lappa he had given him a cloak to shelter from tlit* weather. And for this one good deed this act of mercy was show n him. Let us accept the legend for the moral it teaches. The good deeds done in this life, however seemingly insignificant, have their reward. A cup of water to the wounded upon the battlefield, a brush to shield the glazing eyes of a soldier from tin* sun, slight consideration shown to prisoners when taken amidst the hot conflict of tin* battle, always bring the sweetest memories and lead to closest friendships after the war is over. And now let u* talk about a man of peace. How many kind deeds gather to is a pleasing duty to me to place a sprig of myrtle in loving memory upon his grave. Figuratively, J. 11. Mills was a rough ashler, taken from tin* quarry, and though for a season tost amidst tin* rubbisn of the temple, in the end he be came the Ivey -stone of the arch that spans this noble Masonic orphan char ity. His life was an exemplification of what speculative Masonry was designed to Im*- good works. For it has been tru ly said, "kind hearts are more than coronets, and simple faith than Norman blood." Tin* deceased was of large mould, rough exterior, strong will ami big heart, and ever faithful in the pursuit of the right us understood by him. The cry ot distress ever found in him a sympathetic heart, and tin* poor and distressed a friend and benefactor. In an age of grasping monopoly and mammon wor ship it is pleasing to contemplate a char acter so unselfish, so self-abnegating, and so true and philanthropic as that of Mr. At ills. My attention was first directed to him soon after the close of the war. Proclaiming tin* doctrines of salvation to those who seldom, if ever, entered a church, he, instead of settling in Lie midst of comfortable surroundings, fixed liis abode and little printing press among the slums of our capital, and there by precept, example and daiiy con tact. brought many who were in dark ness to embrace the light of a higher life. Yet he was too aboutnd'ing in' good works, too broad in his charities to con tinue for long to occupy so circumscribed a field. According to her population North < ’.urolina during the war had equipped and sent to the front more men than any other State. Her soldiers wen* true, steadfast and brave and more of them wVnt down amidst tin* unrelenting car nival of death than those of any other State. The great majority of her sold iers were small fanners with limited means, and their property, if not de stroy* d during the war. was insufficient for flu* support of their families. The death of the father was frequently fol lowed by that of the mother, and thus .many children in their tender years were left doubly orphaned. A protraet**d war with its resultant evils tends to deaden the liner sensibilities of our nature. Therefore many of these orphans found shelter, but not homes, in the abodes of poverty, and even negro hovels, where they were mere drudges, without affec tion. Badly clad, poorly fed. they soon bore upon their persons marks of cruel treatment. Here was a broad field for the work of charity. The eyes of the Northern Philanthropist towards whose doors the devastation of war had never approached, had naturally learned to look upon the "colored man and brother" as the outcast and downtrodden, and their sympathies went out to him. From, whence, then, was relief to come? Even many of tin* hitherto more prosjier oils of our people were without auom y and of crippled resources. But a deliver er was raised rp in our midst. M’* .Mills, la sides being a Christian, was a Master Mason, and charity in its broad est ami most ge.uine sense is the “Cor inthian l ilinr" of the ( rder. St. John’* College was unoccupied and here was Mr. .Mills' opportunity: I It* went be fore Mu* Grind Ledge and in the name of blessed (harity requested its use for the wop; he was about to undertake. The appeal was a strong om* to true Ma sons. and though then* was opposition, and som * doubting Thomases, all oppo sition was brushed aside, and refusing even the suggestion of a salary, with a few hundred dollars, he. with the assist ance of members of the Blue Lodges, commenced gathering these little waifs together. It was a curious and pathetic sight to see this rough man, simply clad, with lit tle* groups of orphaned boys and girls, sacks of fiuor, hams of .meat, a few po tatoes. and eiist-olf garments, plodding their way toward Oxford. The people, ever responsive to deeds of charity, soon recognized in him one of God’s noblemen, and aided and sustained him. No part or the State responded more generousij than the jieople of Granville county, who were the daily witnesses of his work. Noble women soon became the guardians t and teachers of .these little orphans. The J Grand Lodge made an annual appropria tion of two thousand dollars, hut still ! this grand old pioneer in the cause of j humanity refused any salary whatever. When elected and installed as Grand Master of tin* Grand Lodge, it became my duty and pleasure to render him a4l , the assistance in my power. The Bap tists soon met in convention at Oxford and witnessed the work, and as Mr. Mills was a Baptist, l presume it was in part through his influence that Ox ford was chosen, in order to enlist their powerful church in his work. At all events 1 went before this body, and in addition to making a personal appeal for aid. which was promptly responded, to. 1 was granted one Sunday in each year, in every congregation, when collections were to he taken up for this orphanage. Then I attended the Methodist Confer ence at Wilson and met with like suc cess. and otner churches followed. AViien the Legislature met 1 secured from that body an annual contribution of like amount to that given by the Grand Lodge of .Masons. Suffice it this noble charity had its inception in the warm heart and big brain of oftr deceased friend and brother. For years it was literally carried in his arms. 11 is work is done, the institution is not only firmly established, hut grows in usefulness daily and ivopularity. In Walter Scott’s ballad of Bonnie Dundee, when Olaverhou.se is asked where lie is going, ho replied, “I gJ whither leads the ghost of Montrose." So in the days to come, when there shall be temptations and trials for those who may have tins work in charge, when they shall need brave champions to aid. and the call to duty may la* imperfectly dis charged. let the memory of J. 11. Mills still lead on. May his voiceless lips still speak and his example inspire to greater courage and loftier ideals! And may the grateful heart of those who have enjoyed its benefits ever cheerfully respond to its appeals for aid and susten tation. , THE RACE PROBLEM. to the Fiji tor: It is the behoof and duty ot the white people of the country to give this question a fair, dispassion ate. earnest and jmsitive consideration, and decisive action. Volumes of theories and suggestions have been superabun dant and will la* profitless without ac tion. i think it was Andrew Jackson who said “weigh well a question- then gu on," or words to that effect. < Vmiinal assaults have in the last year multiplied so rapidly and so agitat ed the public mind that the hour of de finite conclnstion and action confronts us. With the Northerner it is a theory, with the South it i> a condition with all its harrowing, sickening details—but it is a condition which has to Dc met decisively. It would la* a profitless review to go back and narrate how through the insatiate cupidity of the lustful I’urilan the negro was torn from his na tive jungles and furtively sandwiched in to onr classic civilization where for half a century In* has been its most potent and disturbing factor, and unwittingly tile cause of a conflict of unparalleled severity and dimensions—destructive of million of lives and billions of treasure, but the order now is to face present conditions. The North having sown the wind leave ns to reap the whirlwind wrapt in the panoply of its blinded egot ism and vague theories, descants lustily upon the duties of the Southern Caval ier upon whom In* has imposed burdens which is beyond Yankee capacity to com prehend. or his ability to eradicate — therefore let tin* South and the negro arrange their own autonomy—too num erous row to make expatriation practi cable or desirable let us help to develop him mentally, morally and in material progress—as a race they are docile, tractable and useful. Keep him out of the clutches of unprincipled adventurers and he will hound forward to a perma nent prosperity. Make them valuable adjuncts to our heterogenous civiliza tion? Certainly and tentatively by lift ing them to a higher plane through cor rect education and moral suasion—teach them it is their behoof and bounded duty to co-operate with the white man to ex terpate the Kariahs amongst them, to as sist in bringing them to speedy justice— not to mob violence for lynch law will debase and demoralize any people who practice it familiarizing the plastic, ini- I'clous youths of the country with scenes of cruelty which will ultimately produce a race of heartless bandits—antagonistic to common sense and divine mandate—a Mot upon, and bar to the success of any Christian nation. For as we all well know scenes have been enacted under tile blazing light of our boasted Christian civilization which would almost cause the blush of shame to mantle the cheeks of a Comanche In dian—if the powers that he are ordain ed of God. it is proper to them we should refer it. only demanding these powers . should make the work short, sharp and decisive through courts of immediate proceedurc---but. once break down respect J for constituted authority you at once j relegate us to barbaric conditions and j annihilate every vestige of true man-j hood. When the negro comprehends that ( politics is to him more of a curse than j a blessing—that In* is only tin* tool of tin* I white I’ariahs—that material progress , is infinitely more desirable than political ! supremacy, then the reign of self-respect and happiness will lie inaugurated with him. JNO. D. THORNE. IIE COX (’UK BED. (Harlem Life.) Miss Vassal*: Don’t yon think Mises Springglove is a charming ]MM*tessV | Uncle So lemon: Oh. yes. a very sweet poetess, and her cousin. Miss Chalmers, is a charming pa in tress, and her Aunt Luerere is an excellent sculptress, and her mother used to be an excellent dish wash,t ress. A physician practices on his own pa tients; an amateur musician practices on the patience of others. No man is to he praised for giving away the tilings he’s unable to use. SECTION ONE—Pages 1 to 4. THOMAS JEFFERSON High Priest in the Temple ot Goddess of Liberty. VEST’S HIGH ESTIMATE GREATEST STATESMAN THE WORLD HAS KNOWN. COVf IDENCE M POPULAR GOVERNMENI An Eloquent and Glowing Eulogy of the Man Who Saved the Republic from Being an Imitation of Monarchy furn Which We had Separated. The best speech ever made on Jeffer son was delivered by Senator George G. Vest, of Missouri, himself a great Democrat after the Iy| x* of Jefferson. It was delivered before tin* Jefferson Club, <d' St. Louis. Mo., October "Ist. IS!'.", on the occasion of unveiling a bus! in bronze of Thomas Jefferson, the work of Benjamin Harney, Esq., a member of the club. . Ir was as fol lows: Gentlemen of tin* Jefferson Club: 1 have discharged with pleasure the duty which your kindness assigned me, and we now look upon the bust of him whose genius and prophetic foresigt gave to our country the soil upon which this great city stands. Thomas Jefferson wrote his own epitaph. Amongst his papers, after death, was found a rough sketch in ink of an obelisk to lie made in granite, eight feet in height, with the Inscrip tion: It is :i sigoilicant epitaph, ami worthy «>f •him, wlio wrote it. .1 efferson had been a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses and of the Continental Don gross, Hoveruor of Virginia, Minister to France, Secretary of State, Vice-Presi dent and President of the United States, hut none of these honors nor titles are upon the stone which marked his grave. True to his convictions, shown by every public and private act, the sworn enemy of parade, sham and ostentation, the stern old Democrat wanted, living or dead, none of the tinsel and trappings of heraldic pomp or titular glory. He named for himself his passports to im mortality—the rights of man, religious liberty, and universal education. Jefferson was charged by the enemies who pusued him during life, and assail ed his memory after death, with being a communist who appealed to the ignor ant and the poor against the educated and wealthy. He was by birth, lineage, education and association, an aristocrat. He had in his veins the blue blood of the Randolphs. who. as Jefferson tells us in his autobiography, "trace their pedi gree far back in ldngland and Scotland, to which let every one ascribe the faith and merit he chooses.” Besides, he was born a land and slave owner, educated at the College of Wiliam and Mary, an institution established and endowed by royalty, and when a student in the old town of Williamsburg, the first capital of Virginia, was the favorite protege of Francis Fauquier, the royal governor, at wnose table lie was a constant guest. Passionately devoted to music, sculp ture and painting, an accomplished Creek. I.atiu and French scholar, whilst in the higher •mathematics, philosophy and sciences, he was without an equal amongst public men, Jefferson was na turally drawn by such tastes and pur suits away •from the people, as they were then contemptuously called, and to the privileged classes who claimed by in heritance a monopoly of wealth, educa tion and culture. From 'Monticollo, Jefferson went forth to make untiring and relentless war upon tyranny and oppression in every shape. For nearly fifty years his'form towered in the front of every battle for civil and religious liberty, and there was not one single moment in which he ceas ed to struggle for ihtWnnn rights. It is almost impossible after so many years, and under circumstances so changed, to realize the annulling difficulties which confronted the advocates of civil and re ligious freedom in the last century, and especially in Virginia. New Virginia was then but the gross caricature of old England. The Rakehel ly cavaliers who fought under Prince Ilnpcrt were reproduced in an exagger ated form in the young planters of the province. To primogeniture, entail and the union of Uhnrch and State, had been added the curse of African slavery: and to raise tobacco, dear more land and buy more slaves, all to he at last squan dered in riotous living, seemed to he tit* PRjL, FIVE GENTS. I 1 Here was buried | I THOMAS JEFFERSON, | | I ( Author of the Declaration of j I American Independence, of I The Si ante of Virginia for Reli gious Freedom, and i Father of the University of j Virginia.
The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.)
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June 25, 1899, edition 1
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