VOLUME FORTY-EIGHT
NUMBER TWB&TV.
CHARLOTTE. NORTH CAROLINA, THURSDAY, MAY 15, 1924
BISHOP.L. W. KYLES APPLAUDED WHILE
DELIVERING SENTIMENT OF BISHOPS
TO DELEGATES,
l
' By W. H. Davenport. '
When Bishop J. S. Caldwell,, the
senior Bishop of the A. M. E. Zion
denomination called the General Con
ference to order Thursday morning it
was crowded from pit to dome to hear
the Quadrennial Address of Bishop
L. W. Kyles of North Carolina. Next
to the election of Bishops and General
Officers this is said to be the most
important event of. the sessions. The
rapturous singing by the chorus of
trained voices had filled the delegates
with the spifit of praise and prayer
and during the delivery of the ad
dress vigorously applauded.
Of America and the Negro the
bishop said, “The African Methodist
Episcopal Zion Church is co-existent
with the great American Republic.
George Washington, the founder of
our country became president of a free
American Republic in T796 which had
revolted from the rule of England.
And in the same year James Varick,
the founder of our Church became the
leader of a great spiritual denomina
tional democracy which hail wrested
itself from the bands of racial caste
and spiritual dependence. •• . . Our
nation has been over-shadowed with
gloom recently, by the passing oi two I
of its great men, the late President!
Warren G. Harding and ex-President
Woodrow Wilson. 'President Harding
, made a profound impression on the
nation and the world by the infusTon
of Christian ideals in his policies for
the conductThe
the wotk of race development and
character building. Lincoln uttered a
maxim when he said 'This nation can
half slave/ It is true today that the
nation can not enjoy the largest pros
perity with one-half free and exercis
ing all the rights of the Constitution
and the other half oppressed and de
nied the fundamental righ'§ of. citi
zenship/’ The Bishop disavowed
any purposes of race amalgamation.
He said, “The position we take on
this subject is not based upon any de
sire on our part for. the amalgamation
of the races. We are 'content to fol
low the divergent trend of the races
in things purely racial. We are the
descendants of a great and noble
race. We are' willing to develop our
distinct racial characteristics and t<>
shape our character after the stand
ards of Christianity. We believe that
in t he maintenance of our racial inden
tity and the development of our char
acter after the true, the beaiutiful and
the good in our Christian system we
lay -the foundation for a great and
prosperous future.* Our contention is
based upon the desiire for the full en
joyment of all the rights of citizen
ship guaranteed by the Constitution.”
The Volstead Act and Prohibition
i “We are pleased with the progress
prohibition is making in this country.
*We take great pride in the contribu
tion which: the Methodist Church has
- . .— -y—•
peoples of earth; have a staunch
friend Who believes in thtejr rights,
• and also, that in*no way should; the
; work of the Church he hindered in
its missionary, endeavor or- its ex
I tension of the Jringdom of Jesus
Christ by legislative enactments that
are dihcrminating «nd unjust.
(Continued to page 5)
-rir
Missionaries Address
' Meeting.
QUADRENNI
•THE WO
ARY SOCI
Mrs. Rosa L.
SESSION OP
MISSION.
*V Reporter..
. The Fifth Quadrennial Convention
of the Woman’s Home and Foreign
Missionary Society of the African
Methodist •Episcopal Zion Church
convened Sunday afternoon. May 4th,
1»24. at three o’clock,, in the New
Jones Tabernacle| A* M. E. Zion
church. Michisanf and. Blackford
streets. Rev. S. 13. Davis, pastor.
Rt. Rev. P. . Wallace, presiding
bishoo. with Mrs. Daisy V. Johnson,
genera? president, presiding.
De?p>ga?es who' registered from all
section of. the United States from
South America. th| West Indies an'd
Africa assembled to be present at
the opening of thereonveption. Prior
to this-service Bishop Geo. C. Cle
ment .had preached'a profound ser
mon in the niorninf from the subject,
“The Great Woman.” 1
The sermon Was k masterpiece and
served well to out: the delegates in
tune with the Ideal Missionary.
A very spirited |nd inspiring song
service was conducted by Mesdames
Lizzie' Evans Pierdjs; Dnyna Clemente
and Anna Weaver. .The SiCriptuit
was read by '-timer i
OPENING DAY OF THE A. M. E. ZlGN
GENERAL CONFERENCE. \, 4,1
'"ij 1
Tuesday night wtlb iMown as Afrin
can night and the program Was sole
ly in charge of Dr. W. W. Mat
thews, general rpissidnary secretary.
Thud closed the. 5th Quadrennial
Convention of the W. p. and F.
Missionary Society, of the A. M. E.
Zion Church . ^ '
A Broader "Y” Policy
The election of Mrs. George E.
'Haynes as a member of the national
board of the Young Women’s Chris
tian Association is indicative of the
broader policy that .has obtained
among the members of this ultra con
servative welfare organization. An
other phase *of this policy was the re
laxing' of the qualification for Mem
bership by vote of the convention,
which no longer requires the appli
cants to be affiliated with one of the
evangelical churches. The fact that
Mrs. Haynes is a member of the New
York branch of the organization and
of,the council on colored wOrk, with
many years experience in such work,
amply qualifies her tfor the honor of
being the first ’tfroman cf the race
to become a member of v^he national
governing body. v
This national body comprises some
twenty New York women as resident,
board members, besides a number" of
non-resident members from other sec
tions of the country divided into t|te
Eastern, Southern, Central, South
western, Pacific . Coast' and Rocky
Mountain regions. Women from Ala
c°n
When the Twenty-seventh Quad
rennial Session of the A.' M. E< Zion
General Conference was called io <pr *
der by Bishop Paris A. Wallace iof
Brooklyn, N. .Y., in ^Tomlinson1 Halb
Wednesday morning, May 7, it wga
beaentifully festooned with military
' decorations. A Choir of three hun
dred voices sang' “And Are We Yet
Alive,” announced by Bishop /. S.
Caldwell *df Philadelphia.' Scripture
lesson was read by Bishop L. W.
Kyles of Nc?Jrth Carolina, followed by
the reading in concert of-the’twenty
seventh Psalm, led by Bishop George
L Blackwell Of Chicago, ill. Prayer
was offered by Bishop George C.
Clement of Lou'sville, Ky. Bishop J*
' W. Wood led in reading the Beatitudes,
1 and the choir, assisted by a thousand 5.
voices in the congregation, sang
• “Zion Stands With Hills Surrounded.”
j The Quadrennial sermon was deliv
ered by Bishop W. L. Lee of Brooklyn,
N. Y., who selected - for his text:
“Walk about. Zion; go about her;
mark well her bulwarks; tell the1*
towers thereof." Psalm 48:18. Among
, other things the Bishop said! “W?
all believe in some sort of fesur
rection, but we are not all agreed oil
the resurrection of the body. We
must either preach Christ as a God
of limited power, something' like our
selves, or a God of the resurrection.
I^have not much sympathy With, a
long white rohl .and gohleh slippers
preaching. I don’t see What wfe are
going to do with long white'robes
and golden slippers. The problem of
human salvation is not a problem of
science and ohiloseDhv. but a hrob
B. G. Shaw, E. D. W. Jones, W. I Walls, J. W. Martin,
G. C. Alleyne Elected Bishops at General Conference.
nation was shocked at his passing.
Hie death of ex-President Woodrow
Wilson saddened the nation also. We
are too near the stirring event's of
his career to give a correct appraisal
of his value ttf the world as a man
and statesman. But that history will
record his as one of the greatest
characters of all times we have no
hesitancy in affirming. The patriotic
soul of Zion shares the nation’s sor
row and grief.
Bishop Kyles declared that the re
cent revelations in Washington, Sep
arate and distinct from their political
aspect, hav‘e shocked thg sensibilities
of mankind and is a moral conse
quence of that general disregard for
law as affecting smaller racial groups
of greed and injustice. Having de
voured the weak they turn now upon
each o'her for blood'and satisfaction.
It is the result of an unchangeable
law written in nature, in history and
in the Holy Scriptures, “Whatsoever
a man soweth, that shall he also
reap.”
Referring to the relations between
-the races Bishop Kyjtes remarked:
“Among the great evils which threaten
the peace of America and endanger
Its future is the growing antipathy
between the races and the indifference
of the national government toward the.
perplexing problAns incident' to race
relations in America. Hie danger
consists not so much in the'possi
bility of any harm the oppressed may
do, for we are law-abiding citizens,
but in fact that the hand of' God is
against the oppressor. ' The questions
affecting race relations in America
and the rights of Negroes as citizens,
is ho lpnger a question to be dealt with
by the south alone. It is rapidly be
* coming a national tissue. A question
involving great interests and affect
ing so vitally the morale of “a ■jrhole
nation cannot be left to the whims' of
the people of any section for adjudi
cation, but must be finally regulated
by the government itself so ' that
the fifteen millions of black people in
, ^America may go on unhindered with
made to the success /of this move
ment. It has stood courageously and
consistently for temperance and prohi
bition. The rum shop for a century
was the bane of our material life.
It came near wrecking ; the nation.
Homes disrupted, reason dethroned,
crimes ^committed, treason and arson
followed the trail of the, rum fiend.
.The victory is not yet complete. We
feel that the contest for sobriety and
Recency should be continued Until
ever bootlegger is run to earth and
every distillery demolished. The A.
M. E. Zion Church sets itself flint
like and immovable on the side of
law enforcement. • We believe in the
regnancy of the law and especially
are we both loyal and obedient to the
Constitution. We-call on our com
munion particulaly to uphold at what
ever cost the Constitution of the gov-j
, ernment of these United S.ates, not
only however one' amendment, hut all
amendments. We here today warn
'our nation that if the 18th amend
ment is ever to be enforced it will
only so be done because equal force ]
and emphasis is placed upon the en
forcement of the 13th, 14th and 15th
amendements* The guarantee of hu
man rights and justice are as neces
sary to the life and perpetuity of a
great nation as the moral corrections
we seek to make by acts of legisla
tion. .
' Denounces the Japanese Exclusion.
•As churchmen we regret the action
of Our representatives in Congress in
the passage of the Japanese exclusion
fry of ours with its large undeyelop
ed territory, with its enormous
wealth, and with its loud exclama
tions of making our shores the land
of the free and the home of the brave,
that no nationality seeking better
^economic advantages should be re
fused admission at our ports. It is
the belief of the Church that even
national sovereignity should not sup
press the spirit And tendency toward
world brotherhood. In the A. M. E.
Zion Church, not only Japan but all
.^
fervent, soul-stiring prayer. The
Joc^l dffoir under the direction oi
Mr. Hr B. Hall as chorister and
Mrs. Mildred King as organist was
nt its best in the rendition of rpusio
for the occasion. The Buds of Prom
ise of St. Mark’s church favored the
audience with a selection. A, piano
solo was rendered by a representa
tive of Campbell’s chapel after which
Mrs * R. N. Davis, of Evansville,
Ind., wafted the convention away as
it were with the rendition of a vocal
solo. • -
The president then fittingly intro
duced to the convention Rev. Mrs.
Florence Randolph, of Jersey City,
an ex-general president and returned
missionary from Africa, who electri
fied the convention with vivid
scriofiong and made a wonderfud ap
peal for the needs of Africa .
Mrs. M. M. Davis, a returned
missionary from Monrovia, Lib-aria,
and Mr. A. A. Adjahoe, a native
African, now studying at the John
son C. Smith University.s Charlotte,
N. C., also brought to the conven
tion wonderful information of the
missionary work and the need of an
enlarged program for, the Father^
land. The 'finance committee called
for and received a collection of
$100.00. The convention then ad
journed . ' ' , x ,,
Monday riiorning the consecration
'service Jed !by the ReV. Mrs. Mary
J. Small and Mrs. Ada Stone was
beneficial. Registration of delegates
eh sudd after which committees were
appointed by the' president and the
reports o ftbe various Episconal Dis
tricts were made by the delegates.
The reception was held on Monday
night, ft was a beautiful sight to
see the choir lead the processional
followed by the general officers and
all delegates present- After addresses
of welcome on behalf of the various
missionary societies of the church
and city which were fittingly re
sponded to by Mrs. Anna Smith, of
Pittsburgh, Pa., the convention was
given a splendid coalition.
The Tuesday morning session
opened at 10:30 o'clock. After the
regular-song service the convention
was opened for business by the pres
ident, Mrs. Daisy Johnson. The - re
ports which were completed showed
progress for the past four years.
The afternoon session was given
ovfer to the reports of the variou
m m —i ■■■ PA a .» • .> v ' f wV
hm ..
ference those from Massachusetts and
Connefcticut in working for the uplift
of womanhood all over the country.
It is eminently fit and proper that
the women of the race should be
represented in all phases of this
work.\
Witli this broadening policy grow
ing in the field of “Y” work among
women, the need for a similar growth
in the direction of the work among
men ig naturally suggested. While
some of the Negro organizations
formed for work' among men and boys
have prospered under intelligent and
actful leadership on the part of the
local management, others have been
hampered by the iack of such qual
ities. In the absence of racial repre
sentation on the* central boards,
which override the decisions' of the
local boards, there has been a failure
to establish a sympathetic under
standing of the needs and gelations
of these branches. Proper represen
tation on the central board might
(Continued.^o page 8.)
More Than $373,000
Raised For Education.
Livingstone College, Salisbury, N<
C.,. is 'the chief school of the de
nomination. Tnis school has 27
teachers, and more than two thou
; sand students have attended It dur
ing the quadrennium. Dr. D. C/
Suggs, the ‘.'President, reported that
these students cultivated a farm of
! 316 aereis to ass^ in the maintenance
! of the institution. The school has
raised for its support 8188,658.78. It
Is maintained very largely by the
support of hard working people Of
color. Dr. J. W. Martin, Secretary
, of Education, said that the * African
1 Metlfodist ■ Episcopal Zion Church
stands for education- is proved be
yond a shadow of & doubt by the fact
that she has established , her schools
and colleges at strategic points in
the south and southwest for the
training of boys
•schools are
mm
ne
lem of love. More and more the
Church is taking God at His Word,
increasing its- financial interest' arid
enlarging its vision. Let us hope
1 that tl^e li tie men. will rise upland
be larger men or lie down mid die”.
The African Methodist Episcopal
, Zion Church is in the one hundred
twenty-eighth year of its existence.
Comnyjnion was administered/after
the sermon to the 500 delegates pres
ent. There are ten Episcopal Dis
tricts, four" bishops having died dur
, ing the quadrennium.
The death of Dr. Marion Lawrence,
International Sunday School Superin
tendent, was announce^ and the Con
ference stood for five minutes in si
lent prayer. Upon motion of J. W.
Eichelberger, General Superintend
ent of the Sunday Schools, the secre
tary was instructed to send a' tele
gram to memjbers of the family, ex
pressing the sympathy of the Gen
eral Conference.
The Conference derided to issue a
daily paper, to be known* as the Daily
Star; of Zion. The Press Cominittee
was announced as follows: W> JEL
Davenpo*rt, chairman; W. J. . Walls,
P. S Cooper, H. C. Weeden, W. J. J.
Byers, E. U. A.' Brooks. /Assistant
secretaries to Dr. F. M. Jacobs, Gen
eral Secretary, aretl iR aR. -BaMl G. M. -
Oliver, W. E. Wpp^yard, J. * W.
Younge, R. J. Crockett, W. A. Stew
rt, R. E. Clement. * Last night’s sejs*
sions were devoted to welcome exer
cises. following persons deliv
ered addresses: On behalf,of the Con
ference, Rev. S. D. Davis; op behalf
of the church, Lawyer R. L. Broken
burr; on behalf of the Ministerial
Alliance, Rev. B. F. Farrell; on be
half of the city, His Honc^ lfayor