was she pale and feeble from the ravages of the cancer of negro slavery, but now a New South, lovely in her transformation, worthy to be queen of the nations!

Thus to the race of Ham we find,
As to all others of mankind,

In every curse a blessing lies

To raise poor mortals to the skies;
The slaves, in coming to our land,
A naked, wild and 'wretched band,

Are clothed and fed and taught the ways
By which they learn to work God's praise;
And human beings, not beasts are they
Who read and write and sing and pray;
Though now so low we may yet find

In Afric's land they'll bless their kind.

CHAPTER XII.

Negroes during the war-Emancipation-Condition at the close of the war-Antebellum colleges-Other colleges and universities-Negro graduates-Comparative scholarship whites and negroes-Occupations of negro graduatesDonations for negro education-Property owned by negroes.

As we said, a very large majority of the negroes remained at home during the Civil War. There were about four million, very few of whom had been brought from Africa, as the slave trade had stopped. Many showed amalgamation with the whites; some were mulattoes, and some nearly white. There is now less amalgamation than at that time, as the race line is sharply drawn in the South, and Southern men feel a greater dislike for the negro than they did in time of slavery. Then the white children and the black children played together, raced together, wrestled, and fought; now such things are no longer seen in the Southern States.

Of these four million slaves, while very few had been taught to read and write, yet they had gained

a great blessing over the negroes in the wilds of Africa. They had learned to speak English, how to work, the ways of the progressive white man and the principles of Christianity. Thus they had already been blessed, but the greater blessing awaited them in the future.

For the most part the Southern women and children were left, during the war, to be provided for by negro labor; so also did the Southern men in the army, to a great extent, depend upon the same resource for their supplies; nor were any disappointed, although the question of their liberty was being worked out in the war by the hand of destiny. However, some left their homes and went to the North and many were captured as "contraband of war;" and, after a time, enlisted in the Northern army. Nearly two hundred thousand negro troops were organized, some as infantry, some as cavalry, and some as light and heavy artillery. They made good soldiers, and it is a mistake to think they did not fight well. It is said "they became very skillful in the manual of arms; learned all the movements of the soldier in companies, regiments, and brigades; kept their clothes, their arms, and their camps in good

condition; stood very well the fatigue and hardships of heavy marches; were patient under wounds and sickness; endured quietly the hunger and other deprivations incident to army life; were obedient to their officers; were very brave in battle; and were thoughtful and kind toward white southern prisoners whom they captured. Although they were not so intelligent and hence not so independent and selfreliant as most of the white soldiers of the Union army, they made a good record for themselves, and negro troops have formed a part of the regular army ever since the close of the Civil War. (The Negro in America.)

Think of four million negroes, unable, for the most part, to read and write, given full citizenship in such a country as the United States of America! Such an atrocity was never heard of in the history of nations. Why was this done, do you ask? For party power; and it was, in this respect, a success. The protection of the government from ruin must be credited to a higher power than any earthly government possessed. God's own hand is plainly seen in the matter.

The United States government provided a "Freedman's Bureau" to look after the welfare of the negroes, and to attend to such things as the ignorance of the negroes disqualified them for; but in many cases these Bureau men cared more for their government salaries than the business of the negroes. They sorely needed guardianship; they had always been accustomed to guidance by their masters, of which they were now in a measure deprived. Although many of them preferred to remain and work. their masters' plantations, and receive the wholesome advice of the Southern planter, many others struck out boldly without rudder or compass. These learned more from experience than from the advice and instruction received at the hands of the "Bureau," even though at a greater cost.

For some time after the war there were no public schools for them, but missionary teachers from the North organized small schools among them, which was their only source of schooling till the advent of the public school system. Now throughout the South free schools are prevalent for negroes as well as for whites. They are not allowed to attend the same schools in the Southern States, but both "colored