185.86 
 G8761
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 rsSJZXtXHSWJ***^ 
 
 LIFE'S DEMANDS 
 
 OR 
 
 According to Law 
 
 By SUTTON E. GRIGGS 

 
 Life's Demands 
 
 OR- 
 
 According to Law 
 
 BY 
 
 SUTTON E. GRIGGS 
 
 Author of Wisdom's Call, etc. 
 
 Issued by the 
 
 National Public Welfare League 
 
 Memphis, Tenn.
 
 Copyrighted by 
 
 BUTTON E. GRIGG3 
 
 Memphis, Tenn. 
 
 1916
 
 G 
 CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Introduction .................................. 5 
 
 ^ The Laws of Individual Success .................. 9 
 
 ii. 
 
 <=>i 
 
 The Laws of Racial Success ...................... 29 
 
 C*T- 
 
 III. 
 
 The Laws of Race Adjustment ................... 62 
 
 IV. 
 
 The Law of the Development of the Spirit of 
 
 Patriotism ................................. 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
 
 Life's Demands; or 
 According to Law 
 
 Introduction. 
 
 The architect of the universe, God, the cre- 
 ator, took infinite pains to establish everywhere 
 in the realm of matter the reign of law, and 
 whatever exists in that realm bows its head to 
 the law of tts existence. How universal is this 
 reign of law in the physical world is indicated 
 by the fact that there are definite rules differ- 
 ent in character governing such varied objects 
 as a grain of sand, a drop of water, an humble 
 herb, a giant oak, the sun, and the most distant 
 star. 
 
 As in the realm of matter, likewise in the 
 realm of mind do we find the reign of law. The 
 first man that ever reasoned correctly and 
 wrote out his reasoning, will find his conclu- 
 sions carrying weight with the very last man 
 with a normal mind that shall ever live and 
 read what he wrote; for there is one set of 
 laws governing all human thought, for all races 
 of mankind, and for all ages. Not all the laws
 
 6 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 of the human mind are fully understood, but 
 they exist nevertheless. 
 
 Man, by creation, is a social being, his nature 
 demanding association with his fellowman. 
 Knowing that the fabric of human society was 
 sure to rise, it would have been strange in- 
 deed, if the law-loving architect of the universe 
 who took such infinite pains to establish laws 
 in 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 extent 
 that he would leave the crowning work of 
 creation, human society the social fabric, 
 without a law of existence, and therefore 
 without chart, or compass, or rudder. Nor 
 has He done this. Like the other depart- 
 ments of the universe, human society is subject 
 to the operation of laws. The individual who 
 rises in the esteem of others does so according 
 to law. His rise is not of a haphazard nature. 
 There were certain things that caused him to 
 rise, if he arose, and without them he would 
 have arisen never. What is true of the indi- 
 vidual is likewise true of human society. The 
 path of true success for bodies of men has been 
 carved out with as much precision by nature,
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 and nature's God, as has been the pathway of 
 the earth around the sun. 
 
 As the Negroes of the present day look 
 abroad in the earth and compare the condition 
 of their race as seen almost everywhere, with 
 that of the advanced races of this period, they 
 are compelled to note the existence of a wide 
 gulf separating their unfortunate position from 
 the exalted station occupied by the highly suc- 
 cessful races. Other races are seen standing 
 upon the mountain top of success, reaching for 
 higher worlds, while the Negro race is partly 
 in the valley of deepest trouble, and partly 
 plodding its way wearily amid the bushes, 
 briars, and jagged stones of steep mountain 
 sides, casting upward many an anxious enquir- 
 ing look, searching for the path, the traveling 
 of which will bring it to the desired heights. 
 
 This condition of affairs, so grievous to the 
 Negro's heart, is not the result of an accident. 
 It has come to pass because there are certain 
 definite laws of social growth which the God 
 of the universe has laid down, which have not 
 been obeyed, and without obedience to which, 
 social success will never come, despite all the 
 yearnings of ambitious hearts. Laws are 
 stern. They are unyielding. The penalty for 
 the violation of the laws of the universe is de-
 
 8 Lt/e' Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 struction, no less for the social body than for 
 the physical body. 
 
 These laws of God framed for human society 
 never cease to operate. If groups of men obey 
 them and rise as a social group, their success 
 lasts no longer than they adhere to these laws. 
 If, for a period, they observe these laws, and 
 rise, yet their success turns to failure and they 
 fall when they forget, ignore or depart from 
 them. 
 
 If men would acquire and retain success as 
 individuals or as groups they must make it up 
 in their minds to bring themselves into sub- 
 jection to the laws of God. Failure to conform 
 to the laws of enduring success, whether born 
 of ignorance, weakness of will, or choice of 
 other ways, means, and can only mean, abiding 
 in the dust of defeat and dishonor. If there is 
 not a resolute purpose to fulfil the laws of suc- 
 cess, to obey the demands of social growth, then 
 cease 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,"
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 The Laws of Individual Success 
 
 No man anywhere in any age of the world's 
 history has been able to attain large results 
 and rise in the scale of life without the aid of 
 some other man or men. Sacred and profane 
 history abound in illustrations of this fact. 
 Joseph rose to eminence in Egypt through the 
 aid of a liberated companion of his days in jail. 
 Great in head and heart, yet he needed some 
 one to make this fact known where it would do 
 good. Moses had the.help of Aaron, and Elijah 
 that 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 assignment 
 that gave him the opportunity to draw men's 
 minds toward him by the character of his 
 achievements. A factor in his final loss of 
 power was his failure to get expected help from 
 one of his generals upon the occasion of the 
 battle of Waterloo. 
 
 We have in the careers of the late President 
 of the United States, Win. McKinley, and the
 
 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 popular 
 man, but was not rich. He desired the Bepub- 
 lican party's nomination for the presidency of 
 the 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 that 
 his popularity might avail him nothing. Mr. 
 Hanna was comparatively unknown, and was 
 wholly lacking in popularity. He had never 
 been chosen by the people to fill any office. 
 But Mr. Hanna was very rich. He took his 
 money and linked it to Mr. McKinley 's popu- 
 larity, and this secured for Mr. McKinley the 
 desired nomination, and subsequent election to 
 the presidency of the United States. The pres- 
 tige and the power which came to Mr. McKin- 
 ley after he became President enabled him to 
 influence the legislature of the State of Ohio 
 to send Mr. Hanna to the United States Sen- 
 ate. These men, the one in the President's 
 seat and the other in the United States Senate, 
 for a number of years, exercised a dominating 
 influence in the affairs of the nation. All of 
 this was made possible because of co-operation. 
 Mr. McKinley, left alone, perhaps would never 
 have attained the presidency; and Mr. Hanna,
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 11 
 
 without the aid of Mr. McKinley's influence, 
 would perhaps have remained to the end of his 
 days a private citizen. 
 
 In order that we may the more fully em- 
 phasize the value of co-operation we wish now 
 to cite the case of three helpless individuals, 
 who by combining were able to sustain them- 
 selves. One was a boy, too small and too 
 young to be able to take care of himself; one 
 was blind, and one was so lame that he could 
 not walk. These individuals were forced to 
 beg for a livelihood. The boy did not have 
 sufficient judgment to conduct a campaign of 
 begging. The blind man could not see how to 
 reach the people from whom he desired to so- 
 licit help. The lame man could not get to the 
 people that would be inclined to help him. The 
 three formed a combination. The lame man 
 got into a chair that had wheels, the blind man 
 pushed the chair, and the little boy walked 
 along guiding the procession. The lame man 
 had the judgment that the little boy did not 
 have, and could select groups of people that 
 were able and inclined to help. He had the 
 sight which his blind partner did not have. The 
 blind man had the strength to poish, which the 
 boy did not have, and the power to go forward 
 that the lame man did not have. The boy had 
 the ability to pass from person to person the cup
 
 12 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 for donations, a thing which neither the lame 
 nor the blind man could do. Here we have an 
 example of the formation out of three deficient 
 creatures, by means of co-operation, of an effi- 
 cient force able to maintain a place in life. 
 
 The man that cannot inspire someone to help 
 him, that cannot grir> somebody by his quali- 
 ties, cannot rise. And success will come in 
 proportion to the number and kind of people 
 a man can inspire to lend him their aid. Suc- 
 cess, then, in a sense, may be termed the art of 
 winning and holding co-operation. Each indi- 
 vidual therefore should seek co-operation in 
 one 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 able 
 to 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 reveal 
 the fact that winning and holding co-operation 
 is the great essential. The acceptance of this 
 view reduces our discussion to the unfolding 
 of the qualities needed to beget the co-operation 
 so necessary for success in life. 
 Self-Reliance. 
 
 We place at the bottom of the foundation
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Lav). 13 
 
 which we are about to lay, self reliance. Men 
 are willing to help a man who is seen trying 
 bravely to help himself. While a man is to 
 hope and look for co-operation, and should 
 realize that his life will fall far short of its 
 possibilities without it, still let him bear in 
 mind that he will sooner get that co-operation 
 by showing that he is relying upon himself for 
 the accomplishment of the main portion of his 
 chosen life's work. 
 
 Truthfulness. 
 
 There is implanted in every bosom an in- 
 stinctive love of the truth. A tendency toward 
 falsehood is not nature's original creation, but 
 a perversion thereof. 
 
 An untruthful man can, through other quali- 
 ties, attain a certain measure of success, but 
 as he seeks to enter the larger spheres of life 
 he will find the great men there opposing his 
 progress and beating him back because of their 
 contempt for him as one who will not respect 
 the truth. Moreover, whatever success is his 
 on a small scale, is likely at any time to crum- 
 ble, as men will fall away from him as his true 
 nature more and more reveals itself. 
 
 Shrewdness cannot take the place of truth 
 fulness, for a falsehood, however cunningly de- 
 vised, has in it a fatal weakness which is likely 
 to be revealed at any time, and in an unex-
 
 14 Life's Demand*; of, According to Law. 
 
 pected manner. Moreover, it is exceedingly 
 difficult to remember a lie, and in the process 
 of time the liar will contradict himself. He. 
 then, who would have the respect, the perma- 
 nent and unlimited support of his fellows, must 
 be truthful. 
 
 Respect for the Possessions of Others. 
 
 Men everywhere gather about themselves 
 that 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 his 
 fellows, and seeks to appropriate to himself 
 that which belongs to them, is regarded as a 
 dangerous character, and men draw back from 
 him. With reference to the possessions of 
 other men, one should be strictly honest in 
 every 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. Men 
 like to feel that they can rest securely upon 
 what a man says he is going to do. The failure 
 of a man to perform as he promises often up- 
 sets the affairs of many others. An uncertain 
 man is tolerated only so long as a man more 
 certain cannot be found. If a man would sue-
 
 Life's Fernanda; of, According to Law. 15 
 
 ceed in life, let him be reliable. Let him weigh 
 his words carefully, consider all of the circum- 
 stances likely to arise, and when a promise is 
 made, keep it at all hazards. 
 
 An uncertain man, a man upon whose word 
 you cannot depend as to the keeping of a pledge 
 or an appointment, is a double abomination. 
 First, there is a contempt for him because of 
 his untruthfulness ; next, there is a feeling of 
 vexation because of his carelessness as to the 
 amount of time and trouble he may put others 
 to. Thus an unreliable man goes about a com- 
 munity with a double load of the contempt of 
 his fellows. Men should be reliable, should put 
 forth every possible effort to carry out their 
 word. 
 
 Thoroughness. 
 
 A man who lacks thoroughness in his work 
 cannot secure the warm endorsement of his 
 fellowmen. It is a source of irritation to an 
 employer to find a task poorly done. Men have 
 a feeling of being cheated when they have to 
 pay out their money for work that is lacking 
 in thoroughness. 
 
 The thorough man has every advantage of 
 the man who is not thorough, and is likely to 
 displace him at any time. A man who is not 
 thorough is never secure in his position, nor 
 need he entertain great hopes of rising. Lack
 
 16 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 of thoroughness will cause men to try to push 
 him back rather than forward. 
 
 The point of beginning of one of the most 
 remarkable careers known to history, that of 
 the late Prof. Booker T. Washington, may bo 
 said 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 he 
 was to be educated, and thus started upon his 
 notable career, he stood in need of co-operation. 
 A teacher in Hampton Institute as a sort of test 
 assigned 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 the 
 co-operation of the teacher, who made a place 
 for him in the school, and thereby started him 
 upon the road toward international fame. 
 
 Promptness. 
 
 Lack of regard for time is a great evil, and op- 
 erates against the interests of any man thua 
 guilty. Men of power usually are concerned in 
 many affairs, and can only properly attend to 
 them by having a strict regard for time. A man 
 who has no regard for time is therefore unfit 
 to deal with the men who do the large things
 
 Life*a Demands; or, According to Law. 17 
 
 of life. The strong men of the world, the "on 
 time" men, will be found opposing ever the 
 rise of a man who has no regard for time. It 
 is well to be on time to every engagement, 
 whether of a private or public character. 
 
 v Politeness. 
 
 Politeness is an invitation to people to draw 
 near and have more to do with one, whereas, 
 gruffness is a warning for people to stand 
 their distance. The polite person therefore 
 wins friends and co-operation, whereas the 
 gruff man repels men and begets opposition. 
 Politeness, then, is a needed quality. 
 
 Cheerfulness. 
 
 He who has a cheerful disposition has that 
 which causes his company to be agreeable. A 
 man lacking in cheerfulness is sought only 
 when badly needed. Whatever your burdens, 
 whatever your difficulties or disappointments, 
 keep a cheerful spirit and it will in the end 
 draw to you those who can help you. 
 Control of the Appetites. 
 
 Nature has endowed men with appetites that 
 are needed for nature's purposes. Unwise 
 men feed these appetites for the animal 
 pleasure found therein, regardless of the higher 
 purposes of nature. The appetites grow 
 stronger and stronger as they are fed, and
 
 18 Life't Demand*; or, According to Lav). 
 
 finally become the masters of those to whom 
 they were given to serve. Blind and unreason- 
 ing, they trample under foot all of the nobler 
 things of life, and work toward the ruin of the 
 minds and bodies of those that indulge them. 
 
 Men who cannot control their appetites are 
 unworthy 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 in 
 reality and this provokes men to do things that 
 are wholly unwarranted in vie*r of the real 
 facts involved. Anger leads to extremes of 
 language as well as of action and in this way 
 loses friends. The man who gives way to 
 anger is an unsafe leader, in that under the 
 influence of anger he is liable to take steps that 
 men in their cool moments cannot follow. 
 Moreover giving way to anger establishes a 
 reputation for a man of being dangerous, a fact 
 that 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 the 
 inpulse of anger. He should adopt a set of 
 principles for every emergency in life while 
 cool, and in the time of anger he should be
 
 Life't Demands; or, According to Law. 19 
 
 careful to act in accord therewith, remember- 
 ing that angry impulses are not gods to be 
 obeyed, but beasts to be conquered because of 
 their great power to drive away co-operation. 
 
 Humility. 
 
 Why should mortal man be proud? TV 
 richest man in the world possesses but a penny 
 when what he owns is put into comparison with 
 what he does not own. The most learned of 
 men seems to be but a babe in knowledge when 
 what he knows is put into comparison with 
 what he does not know. There are more peo- 
 ple who do not know the most popular man in 
 the world than there are that do know him. 
 Since in riches, knowledge and fame every man 
 is overshadowed by that which is beyond his 
 realm there is no just ground for pride in the 
 heart of man. The people of the world know 
 that no man is entitled to the feeling of pride 
 and men instinctively draw back from the 
 proud man; and by withholding co-operation 
 they limit his sphere of usefulness. The great 
 men of the world have been meek men. He 
 who is humble keeps open the avenues of ap- 
 proach so that the people as a whole can draw 
 near to him and add their strength to his. If 
 the truly great are meek, how much less ground 
 have others for being proud? While a man 
 should ever maintain self-respect and rise
 
 20 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 above whatever is debasing, yet it will be a 
 great addition to carry along with his strong 
 feeling of self-respect, a feeling of humility, a 
 knowledge of the fact that he is, after all, a 
 mere mortal with an allotted time on eartn and 
 with the dissolution of his body awaiting him 
 iii 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 large 
 scale, in a two-fold way. Industry la what 13 
 needed in every walk of life, and the man who 
 possesses 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, industry 
 brings financial resources which can also De 
 used to invite co-operation. The man who has 
 money 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 pursuit 
 of success. Whoever does not know how to 
 ignore defeat and rise above disaster will hard- 
 ly succeed, for the world hesitates to reward
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Laio. 21 
 
 such a character. But every one admires per- 
 sistence, and when directed in the right way 
 it is sure to bring to one's side those who can 
 help greatly in the battle of life. 
 
 When the late Prof. Booker T. Washington 
 was trying to begin the making of brick in con- 
 nection with his work at Tuskegee, he made 
 several 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, he 
 pawned his watch and thus secured the needed 
 funds. His next attempt was successful, and 
 it 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 enabled 
 him to develop brick making at the school to 
 the point where it attracted the co-operation of 
 men 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 be 
 a careful preparation for the on coming period
 
 22 Life' Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 of decline. This should be done through sys- 
 tematic saving. 
 
 Disease also makes its appearance at some 
 time in almost every home and every life. The 
 habit of saving will prepare for this unfortu- 
 nate period. 
 
 The possession of some of this world's goods 
 is an evidence of industry, foresight and self 
 control, and makes a direct and irresistible 
 appeal for the respect of men. 
 
 Economy. 
 
 A practice that should go hand in hand with 
 that of systematically laying by a portion of 
 one's earnings is that of economy. The man 
 who economizes, who does not make extrava- 
 gant purchases, who does not buy useless 
 things, will have all the more to save. 
 
 Modesty in dress, the eating of wholesome 
 yet simple meals, and the avoidance of need- 
 less pleasure jaunts are necessary to a life of 
 economy. 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 can 
 come to a man in the course of a whole lifetime 
 is that that comes from some good woman. She 
 can aid a man by means of her power to in- 
 spire, by her intuition that enables her to grasp
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 clearly a situation that man's reasoning powers 
 fail to grasp, by her sharpened sense of dan- 
 ger, and by the sustaining fortitude which she 
 exhibits in the almost inevitable hours of dark- 
 ness that at some time overtake almost every 
 life. The right kind of woman will rear the 
 right 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 man 
 toward the female sex will go far toward bring- 
 ing to his side the helpmeet that will give him 
 the most valuable form of co-operation that he 
 can secure. On the other hand, the young 
 woman who is circumspect in her conduct 
 toward men has the best chance of drawing to 
 herself the devotion of the man of mental 
 strength and moral character that will aid in 
 securing 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 soul 
 gives expression to itself. He who mistreats 
 the body is doing a real injury to the soul in 
 that he is injuring the only means that the soul 
 has for playing its part in the world. The co- 
 operation of the soul and body is a primary
 
 24 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 form of co-operation and may be said to lie at 
 the 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 secure 
 other co-operation. He who mistreats his body 
 will some day, in the time of dire need, call 
 upon 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. The 
 greater the improvement of the mind, the 
 greater its range, and the greater its power to 
 draw to its possessor co-operation. One man 
 has a mind of sufficient range to tie to himself 
 the people of a county, and another the people 
 of a state, and another the people of a nation, 
 another the people of all civilized lands. He, 
 then, who would have co-operation upon the 
 largest possible scale should give to his mind 
 the largest possible degree of improvement. A 
 man should seize, therefore, every possible op- 
 portunity for the broadening and strengthening 
 of the mind. Lectures, newspapers, magazines 
 and books should be utilized upon every possible 
 occasion for the purpose of strengthening the 
 mind as a preparation for its task of winning 
 co-operation on as broad a scale as possible.
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 25 
 
 The Habit of Reading. 
 
 In the beginning of this discussion as to how 
 to rise in life, we set forth the absolute neces- 
 sity of securing co-operation if one's life is to 
 bear large fruit, and it has been evident that 
 the securing of this co-operation has been the 
 guiding star of this production thus far. We 
 now come to the climax of the qualities needed 
 to secure the very highest and best form of co- 
 operation. This climax is the habit of reading. 
 
 The individual that has developed the habit 
 of reading to the point where the mind thirsts 
 for that sort of employment, has developed 
 that which can bring to him the co-operation 
 of the great men of all the climes, of all the ages, 
 of all the races. Pericles, whose dust is tossed 
 about in the land of Greece; Julius Caesar, of 
 ancient Rome; Confucius, the long departed 
 guide of the Chinese; Sir Francis Bacon, the 
 great English philosopher, and other noted 
 characters of antiquity can lend the powers of 
 their great minds to those that have the habit 
 of reading. Through reading one can have the 
 co-operation of the meekness and wisdom of 
 Moses, the candor and trust and sweetness of 
 David. All that men have ever thought, felt or 
 done that is recorded can become the help of him
 
 26 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 who has the habit of reading, can become a part 
 of his life 's equipment. 
 
 Not only is one able to enlist the co-operation 
 of the past through the habit of reading, but 
 he is also able to make use of living forces that 
 would not be reached without the habit. There 
 may be living in the same age, or country, or 
 village with a person an individual with great 
 mental, moral and spiritual strength that is far 
 removed, for one reason or another, from the 
 possibility of direct personal contact, yet 
 through what may be written of or by the indi- 
 vidual who cannot be reached personally, the 
 life and mind of this individual may be utilized 
 as an aid through the habit of reading. The 
 above 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 need 
 of co-operation, and noting the great aid of the 
 habit of reading in securing co-operation from 
 the master minds, there should be a diligent, 
 unfaltering cultivation of the habit. Let this 
 be done throughout all the years of one's life, 
 and let it not be neglected, it matters not how 
 busy, how very busy, that life may be. 
 
 The individual who will take himself in hand 
 and cultivate and steadily practice the things 
 which have been set forth herein is sure to rise
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 27 
 
 in life. And should success not show up in 
 the form of material prosperity it will be in 
 evidence in the esteem in which one is held by 
 his fellowman and the good wrought in the 
 lives of others. 
 
 It may at times seem that men are success- 
 ful who do not possess all of the traits which 
 we have set forth, but if any one of these traits 
 is 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, thrifty 
 and polite, and may thus win his way to the 
 point where he may become the cashier of a 
 bank. But if he is not honest he may wreck the 
 bank and destroy his own usefulness. In such 
 a 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 elevated 
 him, but his lack of honesty will put organized 
 society against him, and he will be cast into 
 prison and given a badge of disgrace so that 
 from that time forward it will be difficult for 
 him to secure co-operation. 
 
 In view of the fact that one defect in a man's
 
 28 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 character sometimes has the power to work 
 harm to his whole life and render of no avail 
 other qualities it behooves one to strive for a, 
 rounded development, to avoid having any 
 traits whatever that will develop men's antag- 
 onism rather than their co-operation.
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 29 
 
 The Laws of Racial Success 
 
 Every man in the world is affected not only 
 by his own reputation, but by that of the race 
 to which he belongs. If a race has an evil 
 name, each member of that race becomes an 
 heir to his portion of this disfavor, which is 
 handed out to him before he gets a hearing on 
 his own individual score. Thus his individual 
 case is handicapped by the evil name of his 
 race, and the rising above this evil name is an 
 additional 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 contempt 
 felt for a race, which is the multiplied contempt 
 for individuals, a highly intensified feeling, will 
 descend upon his head, and terrible will be his 
 load. This is the reason for the great differ- 
 ence between the actions of people toward a 
 member of a despised race and a member of 
 a respected race, even when their respective of- 
 fenses are the same in character.
 
 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 respected 
 race starts out with a presumption in his favor, 
 and escapes the handicap that always accom- 
 panies the man that belongs to a race that is 
 not highly esteemed. 
 
 That individual that has personal success and 
 draws off from his race, content with what he 
 has accomplished personally, sins against him- 
 self, for the suspicion will abide that he has 
 not wholly escaped the taint regarded as be- 
 longing to his race. His complete salvation as 
 an individual would come only by removing the 
 taint of suspicion from the race, rather than 
 by vainly trying to be regarded as wholly be- 
 yond the taint, though of the race regarded as 
 tainted. 
 
 The foregoing truths should lead all to see, 
 not only the necessity for individual success, but 
 the great, the crying, the overwhelming need of 
 racial success as well. 
 
 In view of these considerations, it is the part 
 of wisdom for each member of a race to be 
 deeply 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
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 31 
 
 consider what is required to cause us to rise as 
 a race. 
 
 Worthy Individuals. 
 
 A race is nothing more than an aggregation 
 of individuals. Unless there are worthy indi- 
 viduals to compose it, there will be no worthy 
 race. It is an idle dream for anyone to hope 
 for a race to rise as a lump without regard to 
 what 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 will 
 not 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 or 
 social success, is truly working in that direc- 
 tion whenever he is seeking to have individuals 
 possess the qualities which we have set forth as 
 necessary for permanent individual success. 
 The person that smooths and gives proper 
 shape to a stone that is to form part of a build- 
 ing not only improves the appearance of the 
 stone but also helps forward the building 
 project, in that he prepares the stone for fit- 
 ting into the place in the building. The im- 
 provement of individuals, then, is the proper 
 shaping of material for the social structure. 
 
 As to how individual qualities fit into the 
 racial or national life is well illustrated by a 
 trait in the character of Lord Nelson, the great
 
 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 always 
 made it a point to be fifteen minutes ahead of 
 time. Promptness, then, pushed him forward 
 in life, and placed him where he was able to 
 command the British fleet in such a way as to 
 give to his country the control of the sea. Stu- 
 pendous thought, the fate of a nation depending 
 in some measure upon fifteen minutes of time ! 
 If Lord Nelson had not developed promptness 
 as an individual he would not have possessed 
 it as an official, and the history of his country 
 might have been vastly different. 
 
 Another quality, set forth as needed for in- 
 dividual success, that plays a vital part in racial 
 success, and demonstrates that it takes worthy 
 individuals to make a successful race, is the 
 habit of saving. The various nations engaged in 
 the prosecution of the European war raging at 
 the time of this writing have been forced to 
 [raise large sums with which to prosecute the 
 war. The nations that have developed thrifty 
 individuals can now appeal to them in the time 
 of need with the hope of success. If the indi- 
 viduals comprising a nation now at war had 
 not saved, had acted as though the national 
 treasury was all that was needed for success, 
 that nation would today be powerless, for the 
 stiuggle has been upon such proportions as to
 
 Life' 8 Demands; or, According to Law. 3 
 
 exhaust the richest national treasury. Thrift, 
 then, is seen to be a civic or racial virtue as 
 well as an individual one. 
 
 Yet another individual virtue may be cited 
 to show how that virtues in individuals turn 
 out to be racial or national assets. We refer 
 to the matter of caring for the body. As the 
 soldiers of the various countries meet each other 
 in the shock of battle the care that they have 
 taken of their bodies as individuals often deter- 
 mines the question as to whether they are to be 
 victorious or losing soldiers. Mistreated bodies 
 cannot well stand the strain of long marches, 
 the digging of trenches and exposure to the 
 pangs of hunger, the whipping of cold winds, 
 trudging in deep snows and lying in trenches 
 almost filled with water. 
 
 Go over the entire scale of qualities set forth 
 for individual success and it can be understood 
 readily that the race that does not have indi- 
 viduals that possess these qualities have no 
 chance to take even the first step toward racial 
 or national success. Let it be taken for granted 
 then, at the outset of the discussion of the laws 
 of racial growth, that the first thing to do is to 
 observe 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-
 
 34 Life* a bemands; or, According to Law. 
 
 less and legless man trying to form a part of 
 an army. Let every one desiring racial success 
 feel that his first and most important contribu- 
 tion to that great task is to cause himself to 
 possess 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 the 
 fittest, those who are continually at war with 
 each other, or those who support one another!' 
 we at once see that those animals which acquire 
 habits of mutual aid are undoubtedly the fittest. 
 They have more chances to survive, and they 
 attain, in their respective classes, the highest 
 development of intelligence and bodily organi- 
 zation." 
 
 Charles Parwin, the great expounder of the 
 doctrine of evolution, one of the master minds
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 35 
 
 of all the ages, speaks as follows of the effects 
 of the spirit of co-operation as observed by 
 him in the course of his intimate studies of ani- 
 mal life: " Those communities (of animals) 
 which included the greatest number of the most 
 sympathetic members would flourish best." 
 
 The great religious philosopher, the late 
 Prof. Henry Drummond, says: "To create 
 units in indefinite quantities and scatter them 
 over the world is not even to take one single 
 step in progress. Before any higher evolution 
 can take place these units must by some means 
 be brought into relation so as not only to act 
 together, but to react upon each other. Accord- 
 ing to well-knwn boiological laws, it is only in 
 combinations, whether of atoms, cells, animals, 
 or human beings that individual units can 
 make any progress, and to create such combi- 
 nations is in every case the first condition of 
 development. Hence the first commandment of 
 evolution 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 higher 
 in which broad social instincts and the habit of 
 co-operation exist."
 
 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 of 
 men in all the ages of human existence under 
 all known conditions, comes the great outstand- 
 ing lesson that the richest rewards of life are 
 denied to all men and things that do not acquire 
 the high art of working in unison for the at- 
 tainment of the purposes of life. They who 
 will not or cannot acquire the art of working 
 together will be forever shut out from the 
 higher joys of life; must forever move upon the 
 lower planes of existence; must stand doomed 
 to 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 expected 
 that individuals will be found to bear singly 
 these burdens. Such problems can be solved 
 only by collective effort, and wherever co-op- 
 eration is ineffective these problems go un- 
 solved to breed myriads of attendant evils. In 
 the case of the Negroes of the United States 
 there is the further problem of providing an 
 outlet for the individuals of special talents who 
 are granted unto groups by nature to keep heart 
 and hope in the bosoms of the masses of men.
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 37 
 
 These needed places of distinction must come, 
 can only come, through co-operative effort. 
 
 Those who hope that in some way or another 
 time 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-operating 
 groups, will simply pile up evidence of the su- 
 periority of co-operating groups over those that 
 fail to heed the very first law of national or 
 racial success. 
 
 In view of the vast, and vital, the absolutely 
 inescapable need of co-operation, the working of 
 men together, we know of no greater service 
 that can be rendered mankind than that of try- 
 ing to reveal the exact nature of the require- 
 ments for effective co-operation. We therefore 
 offer our conception of the qualities needed. 
 
 Possession of Firmness Amid Unfavorable 
 Surroundings. 
 
 Co-operative effort along any line and for 
 any purpose will find great lethargy, great 
 doubt, and sometimes tremendous opposition in 
 its way. Sometimes it may suffer what seems 
 to be crushing, overwhelming and final defeat. 
 Men with timid hearts, who do not know how 
 to possess their souls in patience while pass- 
 ing through the dark periods of life interfere 
 greatly with the development of co-operative
 
 38 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 effort, as men of vision, men who see success 
 after struggle, hesitate about embarking upon 
 enterprises with men whose spirits wither in 
 the face of obstacles. Yet co-operative effort 
 can hardly come unless leaders arise with the 
 power 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 mode 
 of life- In great co-operative enterprises men 
 cannot be spared for the mere purpose of keep- 
 ing spirit pumped into the hearts of the va- 
 rious co-operating units. Men who resolve 
 upon a course, and then allow their interest to 
 cool off and die down merely because there is 
 not a personal agent to keep it alive are great 
 hindrances to co-operative life. That is what 
 may be termed excessive emotionalism. It is 
 a weakness in temperament which causes men 
 to be enthusiastic over a matter one day, and 
 cool the next, with no change whatever in the 
 surrounding conditions. This embarrasses lead- 
 ership, as men, led on by the outbursts of en- 
 thusiasm, soon find themselves unsupported 
 by the excessively emotional people upon whose 
 promised co-operation they had relied for suc- 
 cess,
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 39 
 
 To be worthy factors in co-operative under- 
 takings men should weigh well whatever is put 
 before them, and when a course is entered upon 
 should not allow a mere lapse of time or the 
 absence of the arousing influence to cause them 
 to lose their zeal. They should have an internal 
 battery to keep themselves awake in their en- 
 thusiasm. Individuals who do not flare up to- 
 day and die down in enthusiasm tomorrow, that 
 are moved by the steady pull of conviction, have 
 a 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 person 
 standing apart in mind from the popular drift 
 may see the error that the multitude is making. 
 Such a man, if lacking in courage, will fail to 
 proclaim his views, fearing to fly in the face of 
 the multitude. Yet, since large bodies can 
 make such large mistakes, they should have 
 the full benefit of the thoughts of all. It is only 
 thus that they can be saved from great blunders 
 or rescued from dangerous positions. A group 
 composed of cowardly men, fearing to express 
 their sober thoughts, regardless as to the views 
 held by others, may expect to commit blunder 
 after blunder. 
 
 Whenever a course is decided upon that one
 
 40 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 feels sure is wrong he should unhesitatingly 
 state his views. Good co-operating units stand 
 ready to lend their judgment to their respec- 
 tive groups, however much they may excite the 
 displeasure 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 an 
 open mind, ready to accept the truth when it 
 comes from another. It is indeed harmful to the 
 cause of co-operation to have men with closed 
 minds, indisposed to listen, unmindful of the 
 fact that we rarely know when we have reached 
 the true bottom of a thing. While it is a man's 
 duty to act in keeping with whatever light he 
 has, it is also his duty to move along ready to re- 
 ceive all the new light possible. An army of men 
 each with a closed mind cannot be brought into 
 that state of unity of thought that is absolutely 
 essential for co-operative effort. Open-mind- 
 edness is a great virtue when found in those 
 due to co-operate. The narrow closed mind 
 that 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
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 41 
 
 toward each other, thoroughly honest in their 
 dealings with each other, and firmly wedded to 
 the principle of choosing for service only such 
 individuals as can best perform the tasks be- 
 fore them. While there must be courtesy and 
 kindliness always, yet this must not be stretched 
 to the point of favoring persons for positions 
 who are not the best qualified for the service 
 demanded. 
 
 Nor must courtesy, nor friendship, be allowed 
 to influence a man to take any position in any 
 matter 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 of 
 the 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 have 
 and freely and vigorously express any opinion 
 that he may have, without the loss of any meas- 
 ure whatsoever of kindly feeling. 
 
 Honesty That Can Withstand a Temptation of 
 
 Any 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 be 
 placed in the hands of one. It is hard to have 
 co-operation wherever it is hard to find a man 
 who is so firmly honest that nothing can tempt
 
 42 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 him to betray his trust. M$n who desire to see 
 co-operative effort succeed should resolve to 
 be honest at all hazards, honest in every way, 
 honest when there seems to be no likelihood of 
 the detection of dishonesty. Whoever is dis- 
 honest with entrusted power commits a high 
 crime 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 what 
 appears to be great progress, in the end, will 
 prove to have been the mere assembling of ma- 
 terial for a great and disastrous conflagration, 
 more disastrous than if the seeming progress 
 had not been made. A few years ago the news 
 was heralded far and wide that the Negroes of 
 Mississippi were making great strides along 
 the line of collective endeavor. As proof of this 
 the presence of seemingly strong fraternal or- 
 ganizations and the existence of twelve Negro 
 banks were cited. There was much rejoicing 
 over this showing of the race, many exchanges 
 of congratulations upon what appeared to be 
 the progress in the matter of collective en- 
 deavor. The bosoms of Negroes swelled with 
 pride, and visions of the race at last upon its 
 feet cheered hearts that long had sighed for 
 racial greatness. But alas, the progress was 
 only seeming progress. One by one the fra-
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 43 
 
 ternal organizations collapsed until nearly all 
 had failed. The Negro banks were overtaken 
 by failure until all save one had closed their 
 doors. Not all of these failures were caused by 
 dishonesty, but that played an important part 
 in the general collapse. It is a law of social 
 progress that honesty of 'the most unyielding 
 kind must precede all efforts on the part of 
 people to work together in collective enter- 
 prises, and the one great question to be asked 
 over and over again is: Have we the charac- 
 ter as a race to stand the strain of the greater 
 temptations 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 of 
 the utter foolishness of trying to get forward 
 as a race without honesty as a basic principle. 
 It is said that men whose duty it was to provide 
 ammunition for the soldiers at the front were 
 dishonest. It is charged that they stole the 
 funds entrusted to their care, and filled the am- 
 munition boxes full of rubbish and shipped them 
 to the scene of battle. The Austro-German 
 forces came bearing down upon the Russians 
 who sought to stem the tide. Russian generals 
 planned well. Russian soldiers fought bravely. 
 But the Russian armies were driven back, back, 
 back in bitter and overwhelming defeat. And
 
 44 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 this was due to the fact that dishonesty had 
 crept into the life of the nation. Skill and cour- 
 age could not take the place of honesty. Every 
 advance of a Eussian soldier with dishonest 
 officials at his back only meant just that much 
 progress toward a grave. 
 
 Let all who would build racial life bear in 
 mind constantly the fact of 'the increase of the 
 strength of temptation that comes with the con- 
 centration necessary for collective endeavor, 
 and let them not imagine that a race has made 
 one inch of progress as a race, or that it can 
 make one inch of progress until it has developed 
 men and women whom the flames of hell can- 
 not drive, and the glitter of boundless fields of 
 gold cannot tempt into dishonesty. Let all of 
 the forces of the race be set to the task of de- 
 veloping character. From the fireside, from 
 the sabbath school, from the public school, from 
 the lecture platform and from the pulpit let 
 the message go forth with burning zeal 
 that we must all be honest. Let it be taught 
 that >to be poor is simply a misfortune, but that 
 dishonesty is an unmitigated shame. Let the 
 people be firm of heart, and honor the honest 
 beggar, with his bare feet upon the ground, over 
 the man who has accumulated wealth in a dis- 
 honest way. 

 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 45 
 
 Discriminating Trust. 
 
 There are two courses of action, either of 
 which will break down absolutely co-operative 
 endeavors. One of these is universal distrust, 
 and the other is universal trust. It is to be 
 noted 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 the 
 land of universal distrust. Missionaries report 
 that distrust reaches even to the matter of din- 
 ing. It is said that a man who offers food to 
 another is expected to eat first of it himself as 
 evidence that it does not contain poison. A land 
 so permeated with ithe spirit of distrust hardly 
 could be expected to develop along co-operative 
 lines. 
 
 The value of faith as a factor in the upbuild- 
 ing of a race is set forth tersely in the following 
 sentence from the eminent writer and scientist, 
 the late Professor Nathaniel S. Shaler: "In 
 our own Aryan race, as well as in the Semitic, 
 there is an element of confidence of man in his 
 fellows that leads to the association of endeavor 
 in 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
 
 46 Life'a Demands; or, According to Lau). 
 
 will have no effect other than to break down all 
 trust, and hurl the race back into the baneful 
 slough of universal distrust. The proper thing 
 to do is to trust discriminatingly. A man with 
 an evil heart usually hangs out somewhere very 
 plain signs of the state of his heart. Wherever 
 there 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 so 
 long as men give evidence of worthiness of 
 trust, then trust them. Without discriminating 
 trust 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 need 
 of agents or representatives to act for them. 
 Whenever a man serves in a representative ca- 
 pacity, labors in the interest of the common 
 good, he should not fail of support on the part 
 of all the people. It is as dishonorable in a race 
 to accept the services of a representative and 
 neglect the representative as it is for an indi- 
 vidual to neglect one who renders personal 
 service. If there is no spirit in the people ito 
 stand by the man that serves in a representa- 
 tive capacity, there will come to be a dearth of 
 those willing to labor and sacrifice for the com- 
 mon good.
 
 I/t/e' Demands; or, According to Law. 4? 
 
 A Disposition to Follow. 
 
 It is the possession of great followers that 
 makes 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 be 
 no great measure of racial success. Find a 
 race where men who have acquired influence sit 
 still and push only such ideas as they, per- 
 chance, may father, there failure is inevitable. 
 And in such a case ithe failure will come, not 
 from bad leadership, but from bad following. 
 If great men are needed to make motions, there 
 is also needed greatness of soul on the part of 
 the people to second motions. 
 
 No man should become so great in his own 
 eyes that he feels that he is above being a fol- 
 lower. Good following is as much a necessity 
 as wise leadership, and all members of a race 
 should strive to lead wisely where they are 
 leaders, and to follow faithfully where they are 
 due to follow. 
 
 Subordination of Personal Feelings. 
 
 It is to be expected that men will differ, and 
 so long as men are imperfect, differences may 
 develop of a personal nature. But whatever 
 may be men's personal relations toward each 
 other, they must have the ability to put those 
 things aside and work harmoniously together 
 for the common good. Under no circumstances
 
 48 Life's Demands; or, According to Lav). 
 
 should personal differences be dragged into 
 public affairs. In considering things pertain- 
 ing to the common good, men should be careful 
 to 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 in 
 two ways. There are natural obstacles -to be 
 overcome in every undertaking, obstacles due 
 to 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 in 
 overcoming the hindrances which it has thrown 
 up. Thus the person anxious to accomplish 
 good must utilize precious time and energy 
 that could be employed in a productive way, 
 in clearing away the artificial obstructions 
 thrown up by jealous opponents. 
 
 In the second place, the jealous individuals 
 who spend time and energy trying ,to impede 
 the progress of others subtract that much time 
 and energy needed to more fully develop their 
 own affairs. 
 
 Fill a race with the -spirit of jealousy, have 
 this double waste on a widespread scale, and it 
 is at once apparent how much is lost, how much 
 a race is kept back.
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 49 
 
 Kaces 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 be 
 relied upon to hold themselves down. 
 
 Let each man view his neighbor's success 
 with feelings of delight. If there is a desire to 
 shine brighter, let it be done by superior merit 
 on the part of the desiring one, and not by try- 
 ing to prevent someone else from having the 
 largest 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 their 
 service. Jealousy, or the mere desire for per- 
 sonal preferment at the expense of the public 
 should not be allowed -to arise in the heart. The 
 eye should be kept fixed upon the common good. 
 Jealousy should be slain and no personal ambi- 
 tion should be gratified except such ambition 
 as finds its chief satisfaction in the good done 
 for the co-operative group or body. 
 
 That person is worthy of elevation who per- 
 forms a wedding between his ambition and 'the 
 best good of the group of which he forms a part. 
 Such an individual will not disturb needlessly 
 good men rendering service, nor will he inject 
 his personal ambition when and where he sees
 
 60 Life'* Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 it will be a disturbing factor for the group of 
 body, even though it might advance his own 
 personal interests. 
 
 But care must be taken not to confound right- 
 ful opposition to those who are not serving the 
 public interest in the highest and best way with 
 the feeling of jealousy. The one attitude is as 
 high as the other attitude is low. 
 
 A Spirit of Universal Helpfulness. 
 
 A thing that will add zest and power to group 
 life or co-operative endeavor is for the various 
 units to have proof that the other units are 
 concerned about their welfare and are anxious 
 to help them. If a man is made to feel that he 
 is 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 a 
 disposition to sacrifice for it are begotten where 
 one is made to feel the warm co-operation of 
 his fellows. Let no man tread the wine press 
 alone if he is doing a good work. Let all throw 
 their strength behind him and help him for- 
 ward. "Let all help each" should be the motto 
 of every community, of every group. Develop- 
 ment will be marvelous when men learn to seek 
 earnestly the good of their fellows. 
 Capability of Being Influenced to Act by Other 
 Than Direct Appeals Made in Person. 
 
 A race of people composed of individuals
 
 Demands; of, According to Law. Si 
 
 that are not capable of being influenced to ac- 
 tion by printed or written matter is woefully 
 handicapped. Wherever a human messenger 
 must be sent to perform that which ought to be 
 performed by a piece of paper on which type 
 has placed a message, there is just that much 
 of needless waste of energy and added expense. 
 The obtaining of results under such conditions 
 is so very expensive as greatly to hinder rapid 
 development. Exhibit a race composed of in- 
 dividuals that are moved only when a human 
 being comes along, and you will behold a people 
 doomed to lag behind other races of men that 
 can feel and respond to matters not thus 
 brought. Such a state of affairs reduces the 
 possibilities of leadership, begets an air of un- 
 certainty, and a total lack of knowledge of the 
 state 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 that 
 can absorb what is written or printed with- 
 out being moved to action. To succeed as a 
 race we must move up out of the age of the 
 voice, the age of the direct personal appeal, and 
 live in an age where an idea can influence to 
 action by whatever route it drifts one's way. 
 
 When the time arrives that the Negroes are 
 capable of being moved to action on a large
 
 62 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 scale by what they read, a marked change in 
 the condition of the race will begin instantly 
 and will be marvelous in its proportions. 
 
 Ability to Feel Keen Personal Responsibility 
 Where Large Numbers Are Involved. 
 
 Every organization, group or combination of 
 men has its opportunities, its possibilities, its 
 responsibilities. These exist in proportion to 
 its size. The larger it is, the more are the op- 
 portunities that knock at its door, the greater 
 are its possibilities, and the heavier its respon- 
 sibilities. Before whom are these things to be 
 placed! Before -the membership? And if the 
 various members cannot feel a keen personal 
 responsibility simply because so many are in- 
 volved they make poor members of a group, 
 and are sorry material for co-operative life. A 
 member should do all in his power to take care 
 of 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 's 
 disgrace will but invite the disgust of men. One 
 should cultivate the power to feel personally 
 ashamed of all remissness of duty on the part 
 of organizations in which he claims member- 
 ship. 
 
 Every unit of a race should feel a personal 
 responsibility for the good name and welfare of
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 53 
 
 the race. That which concerns the welfare of 
 all should not be allowed by any individual to 
 rest lightly on his shoulders merely because oth- 
 ers are involved to an equal degree. The motto 
 of each individual should be : * ' Let me feel in 
 this matter, and let me act, as I would if the 
 whole responsibility of this affair rested upon 
 me alone." Such a feeling should possess all, 
 and all should act accordingly. But while do- 
 ing his utmost to help take care of the interests 
 of the race, let no one fail to do what he hon- 
 orably can for the protection of himself and 
 those immediately depending on him. How- 
 ever, if the time comes when a man must make 
 choice between his own personal welfare and 
 the welfare of his kind, let him not hesitate to 
 sacrifice himself in the interest of the common 
 good. 
 
 A Proper Attitude on the Part of the Strong 
 
 Toward the Weak. 
 
 All weakness is a source of some kind of dan- 
 ger, not only to the persons possessing the 
 weakness, but also to the most remote parts of 
 any system with which the weak are in any de- 
 gree connected. Because of this close, but often 
 unappreciated, connection between the strong 
 and the weak, wherever you find the strong in- 
 different to the welfare of the weak, or find the 
 strong believing that weakness is a thing to be
 
 54 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 taken advantage of by strength, there you will 
 find a situation doomed to grow worse for all 
 concerned. An illustration of the manner in 
 which the fate of <the strong is bound up with 
 that of the weak may be found in a situation 
 that confronted the English people and their 
 allies at one period during the great modern 
 European war. The drink habit on the part of 
 a minority of English workingmen was said to 
 have endangered the cause of England and her 
 allies, who suffered greatly from the lack of 
 ammunition which the drinking workmen could 
 have supplied easily had they lived soberly. 
 Observe, then, the destiny of the modern world 
 in danger of being decided by the weakness of 
 a very small group! 
 
 There should be no weak. All elements should 
 be made and kept strong. To this end the strong 
 should feel keenly their duty of aiding the weak. 
 If this policy is not pursued, as has been indi- 
 cated, the weak, some day, and in some way, 
 will assuredly cause the loss of much that the 
 strong have built up. 
 
 It is simply indispensable for success as a 
 race that there shall be persistent, organized, 
 systematic, and, at the same time, personal ef- 
 forts to save those who lag 'behind in any sphere 
 of life, whether boys or girls, or men or women. 
 Beware, beware, beware of any other course !
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 55 
 
 Regard For the Welfare of Coming Generations. 
 
 It has been clearly demonstrated that those 
 nations are the most successful that most 
 largely include future generations in their plan- 
 nings. Those who look far ahead, and plan for 
 the welfare of the distant future, develop a 
 soberness of spirit, a soundness of judgment, a 
 habitual cautiousness, and an ability for self- 
 denial that unite to cause them to plan well for 
 themselves, along with their wise plannings for 
 the future. A nation can do nothing better for 
 itself than to include the unborn in all of its 
 calculations. Those who plan only for their 
 own day live to learn that in making their plans 
 short, they made them too short, and they some 
 day find themselves called upon to eat of the 
 bitter fruit which their short-sightedness had 
 planned for future generations. 
 
 Men and women enrich the life of a nation 
 when they live with a view to giving their own 
 untarnished names as inspiring forces for the 
 boys and girls of the future. They likewise de- 
 velop powers that help their own day and gen- 
 eration when they nurture institutions designed 
 to take care of the interests of the future. 
 Due Regard For Womankind. 
 
 Inasmuch as the shaping of the destiny of 
 children is in the hands of mothers to such a 
 large extent, a due regard for the welfare of
 
 66 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 coming generations demands that the women 
 of the race shall be surrounded with an atmos- 
 phere of protection, respect, deference and 
 kindliness. Out of hearts made strong and 
 lifted up by the homage of mankind, the women 
 will impart to their children the qualities of 
 manliness and womanliness that should be in- 
 bred in the individuals if they are expected to 
 have the spirit and character needed for the 
 stern issues of life. Therefore every man who 
 treats well his wife, every man who acts hon- 
 orably and nobly toward any woman, is aiding 
 the life of the race just that much. Likewise 
 the mistreatment of any woman is just that 
 much of a load weighting down a race. 
 
 Morality. 
 
 It is universally conceded that the home is 
 the foundation upon which the greatness of a 
 nation is builded. In the home the father has 
 the strength, and the mother the love needed 
 for the successful rearing of children so that 
 they will prove to be good citizens. This form 
 of 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 existence 
 of such devotion, and you destroy the very 
 foundation of the home, which, in turn, is the 
 foundation of national or racial greatness.
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 57 
 
 Every act of immorality is an attack on this 
 faith, tends toward the loosening of family ties, 
 the disruption of homes, and the casting adrift 
 of children, so that they will fail of the joint 
 care of their parents. The man or woman who 
 lives a moral life and sets an example of purity 
 can have the satisfaction of knowing that he 
 or she is not only doing that which is right and 
 best for himself or herself, but that which is 
 necessary for the welfare of humankind. On 
 the other hand, let everyone lacking morality 
 regard himself as one of an army attacking 
 with might and main the very foundations of 
 society. 
 
 It has been said that there are three great 
 causes of war as revealed in the history of the 
 world, commerce, women and religion. Women 
 not only have been the cause of wars between 
 nations, but have been the occasion of much 
 friction within the nation. Men that should 
 have worked together for the common good 
 have become estranged on account of women, 
 have failed to give their nations the benefit of 
 their combined efforts, have weakened the na- 
 tional life by efforts directed toward the de- 
 struction of the influence of each other. Men 
 because of improper relations with women have 
 provoked antagonisms from people, not moved 
 by jealousy, but wedded to nobler ideas of life.
 
 58 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 It is thus that a race of moral men has a greater 
 opportunity to develop a harmonious working 
 body than a race of immoral men, in that a 
 great cause of friction, clashes and heart-burn- 
 ings over women, is largely eliminated. It is 
 thus also that morality contributes to the suc- 
 cess of co-operative endeavor. 
 
 We have laid down the rules for the making 
 of a strong collective force, and we would now 
 set forth the uses to which this collective 
 strength 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 society 
 under existing conditions. Provisions should 
 be made to take care of these orphans to pre- 
 vent them from drifting into lives of crime and 
 for the purpose of utilizing such talents as they 
 may possess. 
 
 There will be youths that will develop crim- 
 inal tendencies. Eeform schools should abound 
 to care for such. 
 
 Husbands will be found dying without hav- 
 ing made ample provisions for their widows, 
 and institutions of a fraternal character should
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 59 
 
 be conducted efficiently to help make the road 
 of life as easy as possible for the destitute 
 widows of those who placed their reliance in 
 such institutions. 
 
 There will appear within the race hordes of 
 ambitious young men and young women who 
 are anxious to distinguish themselves by their 
 good works, and there is dire need of institu- 
 tions that afford outlets for the aspirations- of 
 such. 
 
 The Negro race stands in need of men of ed- 
 ucation of a high order to lead properly the 
 people. More and more the Negro race will 
 be expected to foster institutions of learning 
 that will furnish this intellectual leadership for 
 the race. 
 
 Here stand five great needs for social effi- 
 ciency. They will not vanish. The passing 
 years do not reduce their importance. Their 
 cry unto the race does not grow less insistent 
 as time rolls by. 
 
 Beyond a doubt, wrapped in the minds of 
 neglected orphans will be powers which, devel- 
 oped, would add strength and glory to the race. 
 Neglected criminal youths will grow into giants 
 of evil, and in their criminal blindness will pull 
 down the pillars of the temple upon themselves
 
 60 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 and upon their race. The struggles of widows 
 to maintain themselves in conditions of comfort 
 and respectability will be painfully intense. The 
 flower of the youth of the race will be allowed 
 to flounder in the mire of bitter despair. Minds 
 needed for the uplift of the race will be allowed 
 to grope in the blindness of ignorance through 
 the lack of facilities for giving them the light 
 these 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 said 
 herein concerning social efficiency. We call 
 upon every one to make a study of himself and 
 to resolve to lay aside everything in himself 
 that will not contribute toward social efficiency, 
 that will cause him to be any sort of a weak 
 spot in the racial aggregation. 
 
 The time has been and the time may be again 
 when nations will issue calls upon their citizens 
 to lay their all upon the altar for the sake of 
 country. Wealth, comforts, home ties, life 
 all, all are sometimes demanded, and are freely 
 given. But our call here for the sake of the 
 Negro race is not unto a field of blood. No one 
 is asked to die for his race. But what is asked 
 is that men shall live for their race, that they 
 shall so live that they can and will work to- 
 gether faithfully, successfully, forever, trans-
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 6l 
 
 mitting collective power from one generation 
 to another. Unless the Negro race can develop 
 this social efficiency, can develop the virtues 
 necessary for the successful working together 
 of large bodies or groups of people, the race is 
 doomed to a life of continued sorrow and shame.
 
 62 //t/e' tocmAnds; of, According to Law. 
 
 The Laws of Race Adjustment 
 
 At the present time the Negroes of the United 
 States are outnumbered by other races in this 
 country in the ratio of 9 to 1, approximately. 
 Intelligence, wealth and other things that go to 
 constitute power are vastly superior in the 
 rest of the population to what may be credited 
 to the Negroes. In addition to the gulf of dif- 
 fering conditions separating the Negroes from 
 the rest of the population, they are of widely 
 different race with physical features that 
 prominently mark the fact of difference as to 
 race. In view of these considerations, it is of 
 the utmost importance to the Negroes that they 
 enjoy the esteem and good will of the rest of 
 the population. The peaceful enjoyment of the 
 comforts of life and the privileges incident to 
 citizenship depend almost wholly upon the es- 
 teem in which the race is held. 
 
 Reliance cannot be solely placed upon 
 statutes, constitutions and court decisions. 
 Statutes can be changed, sections of constitu- 
 tions can remain unenforced, and courts will 
 be found to be very slow to hold governments,
 
 Lifers bemanda; or, According to Law. 63 
 
 state or national, to laws that are not sustained 
 by an enlightened public sentiment. 
 
 The fact that the welfare of the Negro race 
 must rely upon the good will of the people of 
 the nation, is illustrated clearly by experiences 
 since the close of the Civil War. The first re- 
 liance of the Negroes was upon the military 
 power of the North. Northern soldiers were 
 quartered in the South to give protection to 
 them. But in the very nature of things, this 
 sort 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 soldiers 
 were to be withdrawn. The Negroes therefore 
 soon found that such a reliance, from the stand- 
 point of permanent protection, was vain indeed. 
 
 As a means of defense, the Negroes were 
 given the ballot, but it was not long before that, 
 in large measure, was wrested from them. The 
 Negroes allied themselves en masse with one 
 political party, and pinned their faith to it, but 
 this party finally grew quiet concerning the giv- 
 ing of political privileges to the race, so far 
 as an active forward programme is concerned. 
 This party, avowedly friendly toward the Ne- 
 groes, was given control of Congress for a long 
 period of years, but failed to meet their ex- 
 pectations. Men who protested their great 
 friendship for the Negro race have been ele-
 
 (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 this 
 source. The Supreme Court of the United 
 States has been appealed to, time and again, 
 but in some way has left matters about as they 
 were 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 national 
 government, but largely in vain. The problems 
 are all back in the hands of the people for ad- 
 justment. It cannot be insisted too strongly, 
 therefore, that a great problem before the 
 Negro race is that of growing up in the esteem 
 of the American people, of winning the good 
 will of their neighbors. 
 
 The fact that the logic of the situation de- 
 mands that the Negroes of Almerica have as 
 their policy the cultivation of a friendly rela- 
 tionship with their white neighbors wherever 
 this can be done honorably should not be a 
 source of discouragement to the Negroes of the 
 South, as no limit can be set as to the degree 
 of devoted interest the heart of a Southerner 
 may be led to hold for a worthy member of the 
 Negro race, or for the race itself. There ia 
 scarcely a Negro man of worth in all of the 
 South who has had contact with white people 
 but can point to some white man who is his
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 65 
 
 devoted and unvarying friend. Some of the 
 very greatest boons that have ever come to the 
 Negro race in the United States have come out 
 of the heart of some Southerner. When in 
 1818 the State of Illinois was admitted to the 
 Union an effort was made to introduce slavery 
 by law into that State. A majority of the peo- 
 ple of the state at the time were Southern 
 people, but the movement to give legal recog- 
 nition to slavery was defeated, the Governor, 
 Edward Coles, a Southerner, leading the fight 
 against its recognition. The first man ever 
 nominated for the presidency of the United 
 States on a platform of opposition to slavery 
 was a Southerner, James G. Birney, who was 
 born in Kentucky and later lived in the state 
 of Alabama. The first nominee of the repub- 
 lican party for the presidency of the United 
 States was a Southerner, John C. Fremont, of 
 California, who was born in Savannah, Ga. 
 The man who issued the emancipation procla- 
 mation, Abraham Lincoln, of Illinois, was a 
 Southerner, born in Virginia. The opinion of 
 the Supreme Court of the United States, 
 handed down upholding the validity of the fif- 
 teenth amendment to the Constitution of the 
 United States, which amendment has been re- 
 garded as the bulwark of the Negro's citizen- 
 ship, was prepared and delivered by a South-
 
 66 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 erner, an ex-confederate soldier, Chief Justice 
 White of Louisiana. 
 
 Throughout the entire South white men in 
 town and city councils, in legislatures, and 
 upon boards of education annually vote 
 hundreds of thousands of dollars more for 
 Negro education than would be thus applied if 
 money derived from the taxing of Negro prop- 
 erty only were used for this purpose. It is true 
 that so long as the Negro is industrious he 
 adds to the wealth of the South, and is, in 
 equity, entitled to the education of his children 
 out of it, whether the wealth created by his 
 labor is listed in his name or not, but what we 
 comment upon in this connection is the will- 
 ingness of Southern white men to take this 
 view of the matter. 
 
 The career of the late Booker T. Washing- 
 ton was a striking illustration to all the world 
 of the possibilities of the hearts of Southern 
 white people toward acceptable members of the 
 Negro race. He recognized their fundamental 
 goodness of heart, always appealed to it, and 
 throughout his life and in his death he received 
 overwhelming testimony of their respect and 
 good will. There is therefore, no ground for 
 despair over the fact that in the last analysis 
 the sentiment of the people very largely will 
 affect the status of the Negro race. The heart
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 67 
 
 of the white South is splendid soil upon which 
 a great tree of friendship for the Negro race 
 can be grown. 
 
 In the South a golden opportunity knocks at 
 the door of the Negro race, because so many of 
 its members are engaged in domestic service in 
 the homes of white people. If the Negroes in 
 the homes of the white people of the South are 
 moral, industrious, thoroughly efficient and 
 sensible, they will make a good impression for 
 the race. The Negro who is engaged in service 
 among the white people should regard himself 
 or herself in the light of a keyhole through 
 which others feel that they are looking into the 
 real inner life of the race. 
 
 An example of what a true man can do for his 
 own race while serving another race is found 
 in the labors of Nehemiah, the Jew. He was 
 cup-bearer to the king. His life was circum- 
 spect. He won the full confidence of the man 
 he served. The faith which the king had in 
 him, and the affection that accompanied that 
 faith, enabled Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of 
 his 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 more 
 important field than that of trying to aid the 
 Negroes who are to serve, to do their work well,
 
 Life's ttemandsj of, According to 
 
 and to demean themselves properly. Just as 
 a country takes great pains to train its diplo- 
 mats for service in foreign lands, leading Negro 
 men and women should show a like interest in 
 increasing the efficiency of the Negroes who are 
 to serve the white people and help shape their 
 attitude toward the Negro race. 
 
 It is said that on one occasion the president 
 of one of the great Northern colleges for young 
 women 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 concerning 
 the efficiency of the Negro servant class in the 
 South. The students in this particular school 
 were all planning for careers more profitable 
 than that of domestic service, and for that rea- 
 son may have regarded the talk as being out 
 of 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 effect 
 upon the destinies of all. Whatever one's sta- 
 tion in life or field of labor, let there be deep 
 concern about the Negro servant. 
 
 Domestic service schools should be conducted 
 in every city, and those who know the ways of 
 service that are correct should see that others 
 also 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
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 69 
 
 toward this matter. Homes for working girls 
 should be founded into which the young women 
 who are- to serve should be gathered and given 
 the training needed to enable them to play well 
 their part. 
 
 The complaint has been made that the white 
 people of the South are not coming in contact 
 with the better class of Negroes. In view of the 
 social separation of the two races, the best way 
 to get the wliite people in touch with Negroes 
 who can make a better impression for the race, 
 is to increase the efficiency of such Negroes as 
 they do come in contact with. 
 
 In the course of the life of a race certain 
 traits of that race become more marked than 
 others. These traits become a source of great 
 pride to the race and come to be regarded 
 as the very breath of life by that race. If 
 another race is to be judged, the cardinal 
 virtues of the race sitting in judgment will be 
 used as the points at which measurements are 
 to be made. The failure of another race to 
 measure up well at the points of comparison 
 chosen will excite deeper disgust than would 
 failures along some other lines. It is well then 
 for the Negro race to bear in mind that the white 
 race by the law of its being must pass judgment 
 upon the Negro race at those points which it 
 deems vital in its own life. For example if the
 
 70 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 white race has cultivated the virtues of prompt- 
 ness, truthfulness, reliability, thoroughness and 
 persistence to the point where they seem to be 
 a second nature, and if at these very points the 
 Negroes on the whole are lacking, it is apparent 
 that they cannot stand very high in the estima- 
 tion of the whites, despite other virtues which 
 they may possess. It is therefore urged with 
 all the force at our command that the Negroes 
 in all of their relations with the white people 
 shall take pains to come up fully to the stand- 
 ards of that race. 
 
 Keeping in mind these things, we now shall 
 name the things that will pave the way for ris- 
 ing in the esteem of others. The qualities which 
 we set forth as necessary for the rising of in- 
 dividuals and those which we named as consti- 
 tuting the foundation stones for rising as a 
 race, are now cited again as necessary for rising 
 in the esteem of others. In addition to those 
 things named, which in safety cannot be ignored, 
 we wish now to discuss other needed virtues. 
 
 There are two directions in which rising in 
 the esteem of others should be considered. Let 
 us consider how, as individuals, to rise in the 
 esteem 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
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 71 
 
 give careful thought to others, must study their 
 traits, tastes, opinions, and must try to under- 
 stand their viewpoint, the angle from which they 
 are looking at things. 
 
 Persons who are in the employ of others 
 should take pains to see to it that their interest 
 is not confined to the mere drawing of pay. A 
 genuine interest in the service rendered will, as 
 a rule, draw appreciation in return. Acts of 
 thoughtfulness extending beyond the range of 
 duties definitely assigned will not long pass 
 without their reward. Little acts of kindness 
 thus performed may not involve much labor but 
 will 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. The 
 bath removes impurities from the body, invig- 
 orates the system, and contributes to the vigor 
 and alertness of the mind. It reduces the 
 strength of the natural odors of the body, and 
 contributes to the pleasure of social intercourse. 
 The bath counts for so much in the life of the 
 white people that they have a very poor opinion 
 of all who do not believe therein. 
 
 Just as an individual is more sensitive to the 
 odors emanating from the flesh and clothing of 
 others than to those of his own body and cloth
 
 72 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 ing, thus it is that one race can detect more 
 readily the odors of the bodies of members of 
 another race than they can those of the bodies 
 of members of their own race. There is what 
 the white peole term the "Negro odor." For 
 a long time they supposed themselves to be 
 free from a racial odor, but the Japanese claim 
 that the white people have an odor, but state 
 that they themselves are odorless. Since the 
 white people are more sensitive to possible odors 
 from Negro bodies than the Negroes under the 
 circumstances are able to be, the latter should 
 make it a point to give special attention to the 
 question of eliminating or reducing to a min- 
 imum the odors of the body. Cleanliness is a 
 great thing in itself, but it has a double value 
 when it contributes to the spirit of good will 
 between two races living side by side and having 
 constant business intercourse with each other. 
 
 As a matter of simple justice, it should be 
 stated here that there are Negroes by the thou- 
 sands who bathe frequently, who, in every way, 
 practice cleanliness. Yet if there are large num- 
 bers of others who are lacking in the virtue of 
 cleanliness, and pass in and out among their 
 white neighbors in such a condition, they can 
 mould a sentiment against the race as a whole, 
 which sentiment each individual will have the 
 task of overcoming for himself in his own case.
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 73 
 
 The leaders of the Negro race should set up 
 as one of their standards the making of a 
 thoroughly clean and odorless race throughout 
 its entire ranks, as far as possible. Of course, 
 it is to be borne in mind that many of the 
 Negroes are poor, and lack proper bathing 
 facilities, and spend long hours in labor, going 
 to work early, and returning late, yet in spite 
 of all this, time should be found for the daily 
 bath. It is said that the English soldiers fight- 
 ing in France and Belgium daily sought streams 
 in which they might bathe. Regardless of the 
 obstacles in the way, a daily bath should be 
 taken by every member of every Negro family. 
 Tidiness. 
 
 The appearance of a race counts for a great 
 deal. A good appearance creates a presump- 
 tion in one 's favor, whereas an untidy appear- 
 ance creates a sort of feeling against the un- 
 tidy one. When we speak of tidiness we do not 
 refer to gaudiness of dress, which is likewise 
 very offensive, but to the manner in which one's 
 clothes are put on and kept, and one's appear- 
 ance in general is looked after. Clothes, to fit, 
 should be worn, rents in clothes should be 
 mended by means of patches that are neat and 
 appropriate in character, the hair should be 
 combed, the shoes tied, and all items of dress 
 ghould be properly adjusted. This should be
 
 74 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 practiced in public, in the neighborhood and in 
 the home. Whenever possible clothes purely 
 for working purposes should be used while en- 
 gaged in labor, to be laid aside for neater and 
 cleaner garments to be worn to and from work. 
 
 Good Taste. 
 
 There are but few things, perhaps, that 
 create a feeling of distance like wretched taste 
 in dressing. When one looks upon another 
 abominably dressed and yet thinking that he is 
 finely dressed, it raises the question as to what 
 sort of a person the strange dresser can pos- 
 sibly be. Take note of the dress of refined peo- 
 ple. AVoid loud, garish colors. Steer clear of 
 over-ornamentation. 
 
 It may seem a minor matter, yet we are quite 
 sure good taste and a display of common sense 
 in dressing will go a long way toward develop- 
 ing for the race a more kindly feeling. Good 
 taste should be cultivated throughout the whole 
 race. Those who have acquired it should in 
 some way seek to impart it to others. 
 
 The Suppression of Loudness. 
 Loud guffaws, loud conversations in public 
 places, loud talking on the streets and in con- 
 veyances, and in homes, the loud calling of per- 
 sons, the wild, loud night orgies are things that 
 we come across at times which mould a terribly
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 75 
 
 bad sentiment against the Negro race. The 
 persons who thus act seem to forget that others 
 have ears and may hear but not relish what is 
 going on. Utterly oblivious of their neighbors, 
 they proceed with their noises. 
 
 It is held by some that the Negro race is a 
 younger race than the white race, that its spirit 
 is now passing through stages that have been 
 passed by the white race. The Negro race is 
 said to be in its vocal period, the period of 
 song and noise, whereas the white race is said 
 to have advanced out of the vocal stage. In 
 coming in contact with white people, Negroes 
 should bear in mind that noise that is not of- 
 fensive at all to themselves may be thoroughly 
 offensive to those older in spirit who are 
 forced to endure it. This difference should be 
 kept ever in mind, thus removing a frequent 
 cause of irritation. The breaking up of the 
 loudness of the Negro race is one of its greatest 
 needs. 
 
 Tidiness With Reference to Homes. 
 
 Like the body, the home, both within and 
 without, should be tidily kept. The absence of 
 a paling here and there, the gate off of the 
 hinges, window panes broken, and their places 
 filled with pillows or bundles of rags, trash and 
 junk lying around the yard, the house un-
 
 76 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 painted, the week's washing stretched on a line 
 on the front porch these are too often the 
 characteristics of homes to be found among our 
 people. A home may be humble, yet it can be 
 kept tidily. There should be a movement within 
 the race of widespread proportions looking to- 
 ward the making of houses and premises be- 
 longing to our people tidy. 
 
 Kindliness. 
 
 Whatever the situation, let the Negro's kind^ 
 ness of heart shine. Be kind to children, kind 
 to women, courteous to men, polite at all times, 
 but not of the cringing, fawning kind, which 
 really brings contempt, if not disgust. The 
 kindness of the Negro women to the children of 
 the white people of the South before the Civil 
 War is drawing a dividend of blessings for the 
 Negro race even until now. 
 
 Language. 
 
 Inability to use properly the language that 
 we converse in will do much to hold down es- 
 teem. Each individual should be a careful ob- 
 server of speech, should take note of the lan- 
 guage of those who know, and should strive to 
 speak as correctly as anyone. But to speak 
 correctly one must be guided. Unguided at- 
 tempts to speak properly only serve to make 
 bad matters worse. Let each person whose edu-
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 77 
 
 cation is limited seek help in the matter of 
 speech. The brogue should be thrown away. 
 Carelessness in calling words should cease. The 
 tendency to call a word anything that sounds 
 like it should be laid aside, and only such words 
 should be used as one fully knows can be called 
 correctly. 
 
 The qualities which we have cited latterly are 
 needed under any circumstances, but their ab- 
 sence is doubly damaging where there is an- 
 other race involved. 
 
 Having discussed how to rise in the esteem 
 of others as individuals, we shall now consider 
 the qualities needed to rise in the esteem of 
 others as a race. 
 
 The Exhibition of Social Efficiency. 
 
 The Negroes should bear well in mind the 
 fact that the world has passed into an era in 
 which social efficiency, and not the mere ques- 
 tion of human rights, is the test applied. Many 
 of the privileges which they now enjoy came to 
 them at a time and during a period when great 
 importance was attached to what were called 
 the rights of men. The world has come to re- 
 gard a man as having no rights beyond those 
 which he can exercise with efficiency. To il- 
 lustrate the point which we seek to make we cite 
 the case of the Philippine Islands now under 
 the control of the United States. In consider-
 
 78 Life's Demands; of, According to Law. 
 
 ing the question of granting to them their in- 
 dependence the question of their right to be free 
 is being held subject to the other question as 
 to whether they are prepared to exercise prop- 
 erly their freedom. It is being held more and 
 more that power should be put only into the 
 hands of those who are efficient, regardless of 
 questions of abstract right. 
 
 Another illustration of the point here at is- 
 sue is the manner in which the world is ap- 
 proaching the question of woman's suffrage. 
 The debate is not revolving around the question 
 as to whether woman, because of her presence 
 in the human family, is entitled to the right of 
 suffrage, but the matter is being made to hinge 
 largely upon the question as to whether she will 
 or will not add to the excellence of government 
 by her presence. It is largely a question of ef- 
 ficiency, not of abstract right. If the world 
 comes to the conclusion that it will help the 
 world for women to vote, they will be allowed 
 to vote. On the other hand, if their presence as 
 a voting power is regarded as a menace to the 
 welfare of mankind, the vote will be withheld 
 in all likelihood, even if woman's abstract right 
 to the suffrage is not denied. 
 
 This represents the predominant thought of 
 the age in which we live, the epoch into which 
 we have passed. If the Negroes are to make any
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 7D 
 
 advances in this epoch, it is to be by the process 
 of demonstrated efficiency. In all of their ac- 
 tivities they should strive for the highest de- 
 gree of efficiency. Whatever is to be done 
 should be done well. The world is not going to 
 invite its Negroes to higher ground solely be- 
 cause of any discussion of rights, however 
 plausible in theory, but only over the highways 
 of demonstrated efficiency. 
 
 Nor is the Negro going to be considered pure- 
 ly upon the ground of his ability or achieve- 
 ments as an individual. This is pre-eminently 
 the age of mass-movement, the age for the ac- 
 complishment of things through the gripping 
 and welding of thousands and millions of men. 
 For this reason the Negro is going to be viewed 
 according to his social capacities, or, in other 
 words, according as he is good material in 
 every way for the formation of co-operative 
 movements. Rabbits, wolves, lions and horses 
 have no social capacities, have no qualities that 
 permit effective co-operation. Bees and ants 
 have. Butterflies are beautiful, and grasshop- 
 pers are comparatively harmless, yet the bees 
 and ants do not desire that they form a part of 
 their little governments, because they lack the 
 qualities needed for co-operative life. The but- 
 terflies and the grasshoppers are not system- 
 atic toilers, and they do not save, qualities
 
 80 Life't Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 needed in the kingdoms of ants and bees. Be- 
 fore the Negroes are freely absorbed into the 
 governmental structure, they will be asked for 
 evidence that they have acquired, and that their 
 natures are permeated with, the great qualities 
 needed for co-operative work. Within spheres 
 left for them, even under present conditions, the 
 Negroes have ample room to develop and mani- 
 fest the co-operative faculty. The religious and 
 fraternal organizations offer a broad scope for 
 their powers, and the business world is an in- 
 viting field. It is hoped that the true states- 
 manship within the race may make itself felt 
 mightily in these fields. 
 
 A great handicap to the development of so- 
 cial efficiency is a tendency in the Negro race 
 to divide, and subdivide, to a degree wholly un- 
 necessary, and harmful. This tendency is mani- 
 fested in almost all of the activities in the life 
 of the race. There are many religious denomina- 
 tions within the race in which the greatest 
 points of difference seem to be their respective 
 names. Essentially one in faith, one in practice, 
 one in all things fundamental, they yet remain 
 apart, causing an unnecessary duplication of 
 operating machinery and expenses. Within the 
 largest of the religious denominations of the 
 race there is often a needless multiplying of 
 churches, associations and other agencies for
 
 Life't Demands; or, According to Law. i 
 
 service in the same territory to such an extent 
 that all are crippled and none can render ef- 
 ficient service. Alnd what is here said of religi- 
 ous denominations is likewise true of a great 
 majority of fraternal organizations. If an ex- 
 pert on social efficiency should take the time to 
 observe the needless duplication of agencies 
 and count up the wholly unnecessary cost, the 
 figures would be startling. 
 
 There should arise within the Negro race 
 men with the true spirit of statesmanship ; men 
 with unifying tendencies ; men able to sink per- 
 sonal ambitions out of sight; men who will set 
 for themselves the task of blending kindred 
 denominations, of abolishing unnecessary divi- 
 sions everywhere, thus eliminating a great 
 waste of energy and money, and preventing a 
 world of needless clashing of interests. 
 
 What seems to be race prejudice may, in 
 some instances, be found to be the instinct of 
 self-preservation present in the social mind, 
 making it difficult to add to the directing power 
 of the group, traits and tendencies that would 
 make against social efficiency. 
 
 If a chemist is trying to secure a certain com- 
 pound he wishes no element that does not blend 
 into what he is making. The great social mind, 
 the cosmic forces, the influence running through 
 all of the affairs of men, when constructing a
 
 82 Life't Demands; or, According to tart. 
 
 group or nation where efficiency as a group is 
 demanded, like the chemist, does not desire to 
 have present as an important factor in that 
 group any element whose qualities, or lack of 
 qualities, will make against its effectiveness as 
 a group* 
 
 Interest in the Problems of Others. 
 There are things which vitally concern the 
 white people of America and engage their 
 deepest thought. The Negroes should give close 
 attention to these problems, should keep abreast 
 of all the great movements in which the 
 white people are engaged. If the Negroes prove 
 to be indifferent toward matters that others 
 consider vital, or if through half-study they 
 take the wrong side of questions, or if they, for 
 any reason, trample under foot that which the 
 whites regard as serious, and perhaps sacred, 
 such a course will work greatly toward the 
 alienation of the races. On the other hand, if 
 the Negroes will manifest intelligent concern in 
 the problems that engage the attention of the 
 white people, they will the more readily procure 
 the sympathetic consideration of their own 
 problems by the white people. 
 
 Development of Literature. 
 It will help the Negroes to be able to talk to 
 the white people in a way to fully reveal the
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Lav). 83 
 
 soul of the race. This is best done through 
 literature. This, then, should be the Negro's 
 voice, acquainting the white world with his con- 
 dition, his real aspirations, his spiritual yearn- 
 ings. Negro literature should be developed as 
 a racial voice, with the power to reach the 
 hearts of the white people. The Negro race 
 should develop an ear, a crave for literature 
 that it may read and imbibe whatever message 
 the soul of the white race has for it. 
 
 By intelligently speaking to the white race 
 through literature, and understandingly hear- 
 ing from it through a like medium, the esteem 
 in which the race is held will be materially ad- 
 vanced. Therefore let the entire race rally 
 around the printed page. 
 
 The Reaching of the People. 
 
 The world has entered upon an era of gov- 
 ernment by public sentiment. Kings and courts, 
 presidents and law-makers no longer register 
 their own will, but reflect the sentiment of the 
 people. The cause of the Negroes will be ad- 
 vanced in proportion as they direct their at- 
 tention more and more to the people as the 
 source of power, and strive to have the friend- 
 ship and backing of the people. The courts, 
 law-makers and executive officers of the land 
 will fall in line. Let the Negroes live such livens
 
 84 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 and foster such conceptions among the people 
 as to win their support, and all will be well. 
 Civic Honesty. 
 
 A ballot is not a man's personal property. It 
 is something handed to him by society to be 
 held in trust for its good. Whenever a man 
 gets to the point where he thinks that a ballot 
 is his to use simply for his own benefit he is 
 unfit to hold it. There should be instilled in 
 every Negro the fact that a ballot is a sacred 
 trust, and that the selling thereof is an ab- 
 ominable offense. 
 
 The ballot should be used to register an hon- 
 est conviction, unswayed by prejudice, and free 
 from the curse and blight of bribery. No mat- 
 ter what may be a man's needs, nor what his 
 views, under no circumstances should he take 
 as much as a penny from a friend or foe for a 
 vote. The misuse of the ballot should be held 
 up constantly as a heinous sin. The Sunday 
 school teachers, the preachers, the public school 
 teachers, those in charge of academies and col- 
 leges, the lodges and women's clubs, and the 
 young women in social circles should all make 
 it a point to hammer away concerning the 
 iniquity of bribery in the matter of voting. Even 
 when and where there seems no immediate 
 cause for the instruction, keep it up. 
 
 There are honest men in the Negro race as
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 85 
 
 honest as the world affords. This class must 
 carry the torch of honesty into all the dark 
 corners, and seek to clean out the life of the 
 race everywhere in this matter. 
 The Observance of the Proper Attitude Toward 
 Criminal Life. 
 
 Criminal Negroes who creep out of the life of 
 the Negro race, strike foul blows at members 
 of the white race and drop back into the life of 
 the race with blood-stained hands are indeed 
 dreadful enemies of their own race. The thought 
 at once arises in the minds of the white people 
 that it was out of the Negro race-life that the 
 criminal came and that back into that life he 
 returned in the hope of hiding. What were the 
 sins of omission that caused the production of 
 the criminal ? What function of the life of the 
 race were not working adequately to allow him 
 to flourish? How much of complicity is there 
 connected with the disappearance of criminals 
 within the ranks of the race? These are ques- 
 tions that will arise in the minds of the white 
 people. 
 
 On the part of the Negroes there should 
 exist no measure of sympathy of the kind that 
 leads to the shielding from justice of the Negro 
 criminal. Eeady aid should be given to attempts 
 to apprehend the perpetrators of crimes when 
 being made to deal with them according to the
 
 86 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 provisions of the law. The life of the Negro 
 race must be free from the taint of being a 
 willing shelter for the wrong doer. 
 
 But aid in the work of detecting criminals and 
 surrendering them to the demands of justice is 
 not the full measure of the duty of the Negro 
 race by any means. All of the influences 
 within the race should engage in the work of 
 bringing about such conditions as will prevent 
 the development of criminals. This in all races 
 is a difficult thing to do, yet it should be the 
 ideal toward which the Negro race is to travel. 
 Such an attitude plainly seen in the spirit of the 
 Negro race will give greater force to the uni- 
 versal desire of the race that its criminal ele- 
 ment be dealt with in keeping with the laws of 
 the land. It is probably true that 'the thought 
 that the community of Negroes is in sympathy 
 with Negro criminals lies back of the ruthless 
 manner in which criminals sometimes are 
 sought, resulting in the death of innocent peo- 
 ple and the illegal execution of the accused. A 
 transparent attitude in favor of law and order 
 should serve to soften such conditions. 
 
 Of course it must be realized that the mak- 
 ing of the courts of the land real temples of 
 justice, without regard to race or color, is nec- 
 essary to promote the full development every- 
 where in the life of the race of the spirit of co-
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 87 
 
 operation with those seeking to ferret out crim- 
 inals. Therefore let each man work for justice 
 to the criminal as well as for his detection and 
 punishment. A wholesome attitude like this on 
 the part of the Negroes will challenge the ad- 
 miration and enlist the support of white people 
 of a type able to contribute greatly to the peace 
 and well-being of the race. 
 
 The Development of the Spirit of Reform. 
 
 It is of course apparent to even the most 
 casual observer that there are many Negroes 
 that have correct notions and practices, whose 
 personal behavior is satisfactory to the most 
 exacting. But this prepared element must not 
 be satisfied with the mere fact of its own excel- 
 lence, must not adopt the attitude of Cain, who 
 sneeringly asked as to whether he was his 
 brother's keeper. There should exist in the 
 bosoms of the qualified Negroes a deep sense 
 of responsibility for the unqualified. It must 
 not be felt that one's duty is discharged when 
 he is able to point out a vast difference between 
 himself and his offending fellowman. There 
 should be in him the spirit of reform. Instead 
 of being content merely to point to a wide gulf 
 showing the yawning distance between him- 
 self and an erring one, he should put forth 
 every effort to build a bridge over which the
 
 88 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 erring one may come to his degree of develop- 
 ment. Oh, for the existence of an active spirit 
 of reform, a firm determination on the part of 
 the prepared to have all to become ultimately 
 even as they are. 
 
 For example, if one is riding in a public con- 
 veyance and a fellow Negro passenger is talk- 
 ing in an unduly loud tone of voice, and con- 
 cerning matters of no interest to the general 
 public present, let the one who realizes the value 
 of a quiet demeanor in public places go to such 
 an offender in an unostentatious manner, and 
 in quietness seek to influence him to adopt a 
 more subdued tone of voice. Now and then 
 one 's feelings may be ruffled by doing this, but 
 there should be a willingness to pay that much 
 as a price for a reform that would prevent the 
 Negro race from suffering so greatly in public 
 esteem because of this loud talking in public 
 places. 
 
 A like interest should be manifested in hav- 
 ing persons who make noises in their homes to 
 exhibit a due regard for their neighbors. Gen- 
 tle but persistent and tactful efforts should be 
 put forth to make the residences inhabited by 
 all Negroes as quiet as those occupied by the 
 most refined of any race. The children of Ne- 
 gro residences should be taught to play without 
 the boisterous screaming that sometimes is
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 89 
 
 heard. It is to be admitted that this is a deli- 
 cate task, but it must be borne in mind that it 
 is one of great importance, as a terrible loss 
 has been sustained by any one who grows to 
 be regarded as an undesirable neighbor. 
 
 In an adroit and inoffensive manner efforts 
 should be put forth on the part of tidy home- 
 keepers to influence all others to be likewise. 
 Every home should feel that it owes a neat and 
 finished appearance to the neighborhood. 
 There must not exist the feeling that if one is 
 content with his own home, his neighbors are 
 not to be considered. There are those who like 
 to live, not only in nice homes, but in nice neigh- 
 borhoods, and there should be developed in all 
 this strong neighborhood feeling. Those who 
 have it not will not be regarded as desirable; 
 neighbors, a development which the whole Ne- 
 gro race should be most careful to avoid, as 
 the best results are obtained for the race wher- 
 ever its interests are interwoven with the in- 
 terests of the general public. But there cannot 
 be a sharing on the part of the Negroes along 
 with the rest of the public, if because of a lack 
 of neighborhood pride, members of the race are 
 left to themselves as undesirable neighbors. 
 
 This spirit of reform should extend to every- 
 thing within the life of the Negro race that 
 needs improvement. The reform movement
 
 90 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 should go forward in two ways. First, there 
 should be constant personal effort to bring 
 about reforms. Each individual should regard 
 himself as a missionary always on duty in every 
 place. But care must be taken to do all things 
 in an inoffensive way. 
 
 In the second place, there should be organ- 
 ization. Existing organizations well could be 
 pressed into service to work for the reforms 
 herein set forth as needed, and for other needed 
 reforms not mentioned in these pages. Also 
 special organizations might be formed to work 
 out reforms along some given lines. When peo- 
 ple are working together they mutually encour- 
 age each other, and can be of assistance to one 
 another by an exchange of ideas as to how best 
 to reach the ends desired. 
 
 Attention is here called to the fact that the 
 minds of children are plastic, and often helpful 
 ideas can be gotten into homes by means of 
 children when other routes are closed. Those 
 who have children under their care have splen- 
 did opportunities that should be utilized for 
 sending reform ideas into homes. Movements 
 attractive to children should be inaugurated, 
 and when the children are gotten together they 
 can be inspired with proper ideals, and can be 
 used to carry into their respective homes and 
 neighborhoods those conceptions of whatis right
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 91 
 
 and proper that will aid in transforming the ele- 
 ment of the Negro race that is not yet living up 
 to the desired standards. 
 
 There is no race but that has been afflicted 
 with giant evils, and such evils as have been 
 eliminated have been overcome only by the 
 spirit of reform which is here strongly urged 
 upon the prepared members of the Negro race. 
 
 If these reforms are not prosecuted within 
 the Negro race efforts will be put forth with- 
 out the race to avoid the evils, the presence of 
 which suggest these efforts, and in that case the 
 prepared Negroes may be called upon to share 
 the fate of the unprepared. Thus we see that 
 the destiny of one Negro is, in a sense, linked 
 to that of another and the resolve should be 
 universal that all are to rise together. "All 
 men up, and no man down," should be the slo- 
 gan of the prepared element within the Negro 
 race. 
 
 Finally. 
 
 If the course here outlined is pursued there 
 will come a marked softening of the feelings of 
 the American white people toward the Negro 
 race. Many things which the Negroes now think 
 are due to color prejudice will be seen not to 
 be such. Many rights and privileges that now 
 can hardly be made secure by law will be freely
 
 92 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 granted without law. Cure the inside. It will 
 help the outside very materially. 
 
 The white people, you say, have prejudices 
 that are unjust. If such is the case, the class 
 of individuals and the kind of race here pleaded 
 for will greatly help in getting rid of improper 
 feelings. 
 
 May the Negroes of the world apply them- 
 selves diligently to the task of acquiring the 
 qualities herein set forth, as a cure for much 
 of the ill feeling there may be in the world to- 
 ward them. May they not feel that they are 
 through with this message when curiosity as to 
 what it was to be, has been satisfied. May they 
 not feel that merely assenting to the proposi- 
 tions laid clown is sufficient. 
 
 It is not the knowing of the principles of suc- 
 cess that brings success. That only comes when 
 men have the power to transmute knowledge 
 into action; when they have the power to 
 smother all of the voices calling them in a con- 
 trary direction, and actually pursue that path- 
 way which alone leads to success. It is there- 
 fore prayed that this message may abide with 
 the reader, that he may realize the eternity of 
 the principles laid down, and that he may be 
 found ever walking upon the highway cast up. 
 Let him induce all of his fellows within his 
 reach to adopt this body of principles.
 
 Life'i Demands; or, According to Law. 93 
 
 May these principles be studied, and ex- 
 pounded over and over again in the home, in 
 the school, in the church, in the press, upon the 
 platform, everywhere, at all times, through ev- 
 ery generation. Let each member of the race, 
 however humble in his own sight, become an 
 advocate of these principles. May the inven- 
 tive genius of the race be directed toward find- 
 ing the best ways of getting these principles 
 written upon the hearts of all the people, and 
 may those be found who have the activity, the 
 patience, the persistence and the love of their 
 kind to sustain them until the work of redemp- 
 tion has been attained. 
 
 Our urgent plea is that you become a worker 
 to impart to the individuals of the race the 
 traits herein set forth. Do this, and live as a 
 people. Neglect this, and perish. Do this, and 
 become a truly great people. Fail, and have 
 shame as a race as your everlasting portion. 
 
 Let us not merely assent to these principles. 
 
 Let us act. We must act. 
 
 When the things herein set forth have been 
 done, but not until that time, will the Negroes 
 be able to look up into their sky and see em- 
 blazoned upon their banner the enchanting 
 word, " Success.'* 
 
 We now have before us the pathway by 
 means of which we may rise.
 
 !>4 Life's bemands; of, According to Latt). 
 
 The Law of the Development of the 
 Spirit of Patriotism 
 
 But for the spirit of sacrifice found in the 
 human heart, by far the greater part of the 
 progress that has been made by mankind would 
 not have been possible. There come to men and 
 women many tasks that carry with them no 
 present-day rewards. If performed at all, they 
 must be performed with the knowledge that 
 during the life of the actor nothing in the way 
 of a reward will be received. The present con- 
 dition of the Negro race calls loudly for patri- 
 otic service of this character and it would be 
 well for the race to understand just how to stim- 
 ulate and keep alive among its members this 
 patriotic spirit. 
 
 There are two ways of attaining this end to 
 which we shall refer. There should exist a spirit 
 of appreciation for unselfish service. Wherever 
 members of a race are coldly selfish, and neither 
 pay for nor appreciate that which is done for 
 them in an unselfish way, that has a tendency to 
 check the growth of the patriotic feeling. Too
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 06 
 
 often members of the Negro race accept as a 
 matter of course unselfish service rendered. Too 
 often they are extremely critical. Too often 
 they fail to extend words of encouragement. 
 Too often workers must labor in an atmosphere 
 where, instead of being appreciated for the serv- 
 ice rendered, they seem to be regarded as fools. 
 
 If you would have the patriotic spirit to flour- 
 ish do not carry around with you silent appre- 
 ciation. Wherever you see one toiling for the 
 common good, take the pains to let him or her 
 know that you see and understand what is being 
 done, and are duly appreciative of the same. Do 
 this whether you are a direct recipient of the 
 service or not. 
 
 There is yet another way in which the patri- 
 otic spirit may be developed. Sometimes pa- 
 triotic service must be rendered where the de- 
 gree of development on the part of the people 
 insures that there shall be no appreciation on 
 the part of those being served. They may not 
 realize their own condition sufficiently to under- 
 stand the value of the service undertaken for 
 them. Not knowing, they may be hostile where 
 they should be grateful. Those wno are to live 
 and to labor under circumstances where not 
 even appreciation is shown, should be allowed 
 to have the consolation of feeling that their 
 memories are to be kept green after they have
 
 Demand*; or, According to Law. 
 
 passed out of this life. They should be allowed 
 in their hearts to appeal their cases from their 
 surroundings to the pages of history. Such a 
 consolation has a marked effect in stimulating 
 patriotism, but it can only exist in races where 
 the people have a keen historic sense, and be- 
 lieve in publishing and preserving from genera- 
 tion to generation accounts of heroic service 
 whether rendered by those known to the world 
 as great or by those classed as humble. 
 
 Let us suppose that a soldier in time of battle 
 is ordered by his commander to join in a charge 
 upon a certain fort where he is almost sure to 
 be killed. It may be that he is of the opinion 
 that he will not live to receive any reward for 
 his obedience, courage and devotion to the cause 
 of his country. Yet if he belongs to a race that 
 has a historic sense, that believes in making a 
 record of the noble achievements of even the 
 humblest of men, then he can be sustained by 
 the thought that long after he and his comrades 
 in the charge have passed away, the story of 
 their daring will be read and reread around the 
 firesides of the nation. But when a man feels 
 that what he does for his people is soon forgot- 
 ten, and has no appreciation beyond the mo- 
 ment, nor in fact for the moment, very naturally, 
 except in the case of the man of the truest spirit, 
 he hesitates about making too great sacrifices.
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 9? 
 
 The nobler tasks of life are not performed upon 
 bloody battlefields, but, in the ways of peace; 
 yet in the endeavors of peace sacrifices are as 
 necessary as in battle, and where there is to be 
 no memory of them after being made, sacrifices 
 are just as reluctantly made in the ways of peace 
 as on the battlefields under like circumstances. 
 
 We are not here arguing in favor of the idea 
 that a person is not to be heroic unless there is 
 to be some one to see and record the act of 
 heroism. One should do his duty regardless as 
 to whether the eye of man sees or pen records 
 what is done. But the fact abides that it is a 
 stimulus to heroic action for men to know that 
 what they do is to be appreciated after they are 
 gone, or that there is at least a chance of such 
 appreciation. 
 
 In order that the needed spirit of sacrifice 
 may be stimulated in the race, steps should be 
 taken always to honor the memories of those 
 who have served the cause of the people well. 
 Persons should be encouraged to write the biog- 
 raphies of the worthy. Days should be set aside 
 to honor the memories of those who have ren- 
 dered conspicuous service. We little know to 
 what extent an ambition to occupy an honorable 
 place in history has steadied the feet of the great 
 statesmen of the world. Nor can it be known 
 just how much of a tendency to go astray has
 
 98 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 been purged from men by the manner in which 
 the historians have gibbeted those who have 
 lived unworthily. Where there is no praise in 
 history for virtue, and no censure for vicious- 
 ness, there is likely to develop the thought that 
 the time being is the only period worth being 
 considered. 
 
 This brings us face to face again with the 
 question of the development of a literature. Ob- 
 serve that all of the races of mankind that have 
 achieved greatness have developed a literature. 
 Not a single race that has no literature is classi- 
 fied as great in the eyes of the world. Here 
 then is the situation: They who would foster 
 the patriotic spirit so needful for the advance- 
 ment of mankind must have a way of embalm- 
 ing the memories of those who thus serve their 
 fellows, and the races that have no literature are 
 devoid of a method of embalming. Where peo- 
 ple have not the habit of reading there will not 
 be much writing. The future progress of the 
 Negro race calls for an awakening on the part 
 of the people to the necessity of cultivating the 
 habit of reading and a stimulation of the art of 
 making literature as indispensable aids to the 
 development of the spirit of patriotism.
 
 Life'g Demands; or, According to Law. 99 
 
 The Law of the Making of 
 Great Men 
 
 A great need of any people is men of excep- 
 tional strength. They are needed as a source 
 of inspiration to stimulate the ambitions and 
 to quicken and sustain the activities of the 
 young. They are needed that there may be those 
 of commanding influence able to rally the people 
 at points and along lines necessary for the com- 
 mon good. 
 
 This need is strikingly illustrated by the ex- 
 periences of bees. A hive of bees traveling 
 through the air searching for a home is able to 
 maintain its unity because there is in its midst 
 a queen bee whose voice rises above those of 
 the others and thus gives notice to all as to the 
 direction in which to fly. When some one, desir- 
 ing to capture the hive, causes a noise to be 
 made that drowns the voice of the queen so 
 that the bees do not know how to make their 
 journey in unison, then it is that the hive settles 
 down and is captured. Just as nature never 
 regards a group of bees as fitted for group activ- 
 ities until she has provided the group with this
 
 100 Life's Demands; of, According to Law. 
 
 queen bee. possessing the loud voice that can be 
 heard above all others, likewise nature deposits 
 here and there in the ranks of men, characters 
 possessing exceptional powers. Even as the 
 bees are nonplussed when they have no superior 
 voice to guide, just so groups of people fail of 
 the desired progress whenever they have no men 
 among them of exceptional strength. 
 
 But in the matter of providing this type of 
 men, nature leaves much to be done by the 
 groups unto which they are given. And where 
 there seems to be a lack of natural leadership 
 the people are expected to beget a leadership. 
 Since the people have a part to perform in the 
 matter of the making of great men, and since 
 great men are of such vital importance, it is 
 well that we give earnest attention to the man- 
 ner of their making. 
 
 The fact that the late Prof. Booker T. Wash- 
 ington was a member of the Negro race may lead 
 some to feel that the race has already developed 
 full capacity for the making of characters that 
 are strong in influence and inspirational power. 
 It is possible that the fame achieved by Mr. 
 Washington may be the occasion of the develop- 
 ment of a false notion as to the degree of devel- 
 opment thus far attained by the Negro race in 
 the United States. A familiar assertion with 
 reference to his career has been somewhat on
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 101 
 
 this order: "If within fifty years after emanci- 
 pation the Negro race could produce a Booker 
 T. "Washington, there is no room for discourage- 
 ment as to the degree of progress being made 
 by the race." It is never a helpful thing for a 
 man or a race to think that he or it has accom- 
 plished more than is the case, and it is the part 
 of wisdom for the Negro race to realize fully 
 that in a very important sense it did not pro- 
 duce Mr. "Washington. The recital of facts bear- 
 ing out this contention will reveal the need of 
 strengthening the life of the race at certain vital 
 points. 
 
 In keeping with the principle laid down in 
 this book, Mr. Washington attained his remark- 
 able success and his great fame through co- 
 operation. He possessed certain qualities that 
 won the favor of men, and they lent to him the 
 strength that made him great. Of the more than 
 three millions of dollars represented in the 
 school for which he labored so successfully, but 
 few of the dollars came as the result of his earn- 
 ing capacity. Other men, Mr. Carnegie and oth- 
 ers, earned the money, and Prof. Washington 
 influenced them to devote it to the ideas in 
 which he believed. If he had devoted his entire 
 salary to the work it would hardly have amount- 
 ed to a hundredth part of what is to be found
 
 102 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 there. It is plain that Mr. Washington achieved 
 his success as a result of co-operation. 
 
 Since co-operation is the keynote of Mr. 
 Washington's success, let us note the source 
 from which the co-operation came. The white 
 people of the South in the days of slavery had 
 direct charge of the Negro slaves of the South, 
 and were in a position to enforce their ideas of 
 labor on them and to insist upon efficiency. 
 When the Negroes were set free and could at 
 will go from one employer to another, the white 
 people had no means of insuring that they would 
 have efficient servants. One of their great prob- 
 lems as an employing class grew to be the ques- 
 tion of securing well trained help. Mr. Wash- 
 ington saw this great need and devoted his en- 
 ergies toward developing efficiency in the race. 
 The white people know well how to co-operate 
 with the man with whom they sympathize, and 
 are thoughtful to do so. Seeing that the ideas 
 of Mr. Washington were helpful both to the 
 Negroes and to themselves, the white people co- 
 operated with him in all needful ways. In pri- 
 vate conversation they took pains to mention 
 and speak well of his labors. Editors of news- 
 papers freely lent him all the space needed in 
 their journals, and they did not neglect to com- 
 ment upon his work whenever it was appropri- 
 ate or profitable to his cause for them so to do.
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 103 
 
 Whatever would add to his prestige, advertise 
 his work and win him friends the white people 
 generally were glad to do. Legislatures invited 
 him to address them. Governors of states cheer- 
 fully announced themselves as his friends. 
 Presidents of the nation paid visits to the school 
 which he operated. It was the design of the 
 while people to call the attention of mankind to 
 the service Mr. Washington was rendering, to 
 the end that co-operation might flow to him 
 from every possible quarter. 
 
 Let us now turn from the picture of the co- 
 operation extended by the white people, and 
 take note of the attitude of his own race con- 
 cerning a matter that rested upon Mr. Wash- 
 ington's heart. The most famous Negro devel- 
 oped in the race in the United States prior to 
 the rise of Mr. Washington was Frederick Doug- 
 lass, a great orator and a potent factor in arous- 
 ing a sentiment in the nation in favor of eman- 
 cipation. Mr. Washington grew to feel that the 
 Negro race should honor the memory of Doug- 
 lass, and that it was somewhat a duty for him 
 to take the lead in the matter. The idea was 
 conceived that a good thing to do was to pur- 
 chase the old Douglass home in the District of 
 Columbia and fit it up for a memorial building, 
 where Douglass relics might be gathered, with 
 the view to having the Negroes to journey there
 
 104 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 to meditate upon the career of the man of their 
 race most instrumental in bringing about the 
 emancipation of the race. There was an indebt- 
 edness on the home approximating five thou- 
 sand dollars, and Mr. Washington undertook the 
 task of raising that sum of money from mem- 
 bers of the Negro race for the purpose here men- 
 tioned. He did not succeed in raising the de- 
 sired amount. He died with the task far from 
 complete, as small as it may seem to be. This 
 constituted the one known failure of his career. 
 
 The question well might be asked as to why 
 the weightier task of Mr. "Washington, the up- 
 building of a great industrial school, was such a 
 pronounced success, whereas his minor under- 
 taking came to naught. If the tasks had been 
 undertaken by different men it would not be so 
 valuable to us as an illustration of the point we 
 desire to make. It might be contended that 
 there was something lacking on the part of the 
 man who failed at the minor task. The very 
 plain and simple fact is that the major task 
 pleased people who have the characteristics that 
 beget successful co-operation, while the minor 
 task was undertaken with a people that greatly 
 needs strengthening in the virtues essential for 
 co-operation. 
 
 Let us consider some stubborn facts in this 
 connection. Men cannot become great of them-
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 105 
 
 selves, it matters not what may be their natural 
 endowments. The race of people that sits idly 
 by expecting its units to evolve into great char- 
 acters themselves is doomed to disappointment. 
 Nor are the needed characters going to be hand- 
 ed down to them from heaven. The very simple 
 way to have the needed great men is to make 
 them. Somewhere in every group and in every 
 race there are those who have natural endow- 
 ment that fit them for tasks, the performance of 
 which is essential to the progress of mankind. 
 When such individuals give evidence of their 
 possibilities the people should be thoughtful to 
 co-operate with them. 
 
 There are three great dangers that are a 
 standing menace to the developing of great men. 
 First, a man of unusual talents is very likely 
 to excite jealousy in the bosoms of men of tal- 
 ent who may regard him as a rival for the es- 
 teem which they would like to enjoy. Such 
 a feeling on their part would hold them back 
 from giving needed co-operation. In the second 
 place, the possession of narrow minds that have 
 but little room for anything save their own im- 
 mediate tasks is a serious handicap to co-opera- 
 tion. Whenever such a condition exists there 
 may be splendid local achievements accompa- 
 nied by a disgraceful failure in general matters, 
 all because men are so engrossed in their own
 
 106 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 local work that they fail to extend the hand of 
 co-operation to matters pertaining to the gen- 
 eral welfare without which hand there can be 
 no success in matters of a general character. A 
 third danger is the tendency of units to under- 
 estimate their importance. If a race is com- 
 posed of men who say of themselves, "I am an 
 humble man. I do not count for very much. My 
 help would do but little good, and will not be 
 missed if withheld/' then indeed is the situa- 
 tion unfortunate. However humble a man's sta- 
 tion, however little he may be able to do, he 
 should see to it that that little is done. Learn a 
 lesson from the bacilli that produce tubercu- 
 losis. The germ is so small that a thousand of 
 them can be assembled on the point of a needle, 
 and yet would be invisible to the naked eye. Yet 
 this germ does not underestimate its impor- 
 tance. It does not feel that it is of such slight 
 consequence that it should not act. No, each 
 germ goes diligently to work doing all in its 
 power, and as a result the disease begotten by 
 it and its fellows has baffled thus far all human 
 skill. Likewise if a useful man is found in the 
 Negro race and the units of the race will but 
 support him, each to the extent of his ability, a 
 great man will be developed and great things 
 will be accomplished. 
 
 Toward the close of a day on which an elec-
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 107 
 
 tion was being held, a white man who was a 
 laborer was hurrying in the direction of a poll- 
 ing booth for the purpose of casting his ballot. 
 A Negro acquaintance saw him and asked him 
 why he was in such haste. He told him that 
 he was hastening that he might reach the 
 ballot box before it closed, as he wished to cast 
 a vote for a candidate in whom he believed. Th 
 Negro watched the white man as he hurried by 
 and noted his great eagerness to vote. He 
 states that he was deeply impressed by the inci- 
 dent. Long he meditated about the white man, 
 leflecting on his great eagerness to get to the 
 ballot box to cast that one vote. The Negro 
 says he could not understand why the man could 
 be attaching so much importance to that one 
 vote. The campaign had been waged, thousands 
 of ballots had been cast, the close of the day had 
 about come, and the Negro said that he could 
 not understand why at such a stage this white 
 man should be so much concerned r.bout getting 
 his vote into the box. The idea seemed to him 
 to be silly. He looked upon the white man as 
 being somewhat foolish. He wondered as to 
 the state of his mind. 
 
 Have we not here a secret of the backward- 
 ness of the Negro race in the matter of the de- 
 veloping of a needed leadership? As has been 
 stated, each unit should have a sense of its im-
 
 108 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 portance, should feel with reference to every- 
 thing, where support appears important and 
 where it appears unimportant, that it should do 
 its part, however small, toward the support of 
 the cause that it favors. The first day, the 
 very first day the various units of the Negro 
 race develop the consciousness that they, each 
 of them, should give actual support to the men 
 and to the causes that they favor; the first day 
 that you, oh reader, if you are a member of that 
 race, and others with you convert your approval 
 of men and causes into action, however slight, 
 and you allow your little contribution of sup- 
 port of whatever nature to reach the individual 
 or the cause favored the day that this happens 
 will be the day of the real emancipation of the 
 Negro race, will be the day of the coming of 
 the needed great men to the race. This is the 
 law, and the Negro race, to have the desired 
 success, must obey it. 
 
 It is exceedingly important that the units 
 that call themselves humble should help men to 
 perform tasks undertaken for the common good, 
 for it is possible that jealousy may restrain 
 other leading characters from helping, may, in 
 fact, influence them to seek to hinder efforts. 
 Thus if the units that feel themselves humble 
 fail to do their respective duties the cause would
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 109 
 
 seem to be lost. A sense of personal responsi- 
 bility in the bosom of every man for helping 
 every other man in whom he believes will solve 
 the problem of the making of great men.
 
 110 Life's Demands; or, According to Lav), 
 
 The Law of Universal Struggle 
 
 Throughout the realm of nature, wherever 
 there is life, whether among plants, animals or 
 groups of men, there is in operation what is 
 called the Darwinian law of the survival of the 
 fittest, the struggle for existence. All life is 
 subject to the test of struggle. Nature seems to 
 value her space so highly that none save the fit 
 are to be permitted to abide and enjoy it. Many 
 forms of life are called, but few are chosen. 
 Whatever survives must do so by emerging tri- 
 umphant from a struggle. 
 
 No sort of truce can be arranged permanently 
 by anything that has life that will free it from 
 the necessity of contest. The struggle some- 
 times takes on one form, and sometimes another, 
 but, in one form or another, it rages ever, every- 
 where and with reference to everything. 
 
 The water that lies placidly on the bosom of 
 the quiet lake is attacked by the rays of the sun 
 which destroy as many drops of water as they 
 can, and send them to the sky in the form of va- 
 por. The air with its countless millions of teeth 
 is gnawing at every building that has been con-
 
 It/e's Demands; or, According to Law. Ill 
 
 structed, and whatever cannot withstand this 
 gnawing must perish. The tornado sweeps 
 through the forest, embraces every tree that it 
 passes, and when it comes upon one with a hol- 
 low heart, it breaks it, casts down its top, and 
 reveals its internal rottenness to the world. 
 
 Look about you, where the animals abound, 
 and observe the plucking process that all the 
 while goes on. The bug attacks the plant which, 
 to live, must withstand the assault. The bird 
 attacks the bug, and the huntsman, in turn, at- 
 tacks the bird. Crouching amid the bushes, 
 hidden by the leaves, is the panther, ready to 
 spring upon the huntsman. 
 
 A miscroscope will reveal the same sort of 
 struggle going on in a glass of water. An in- 
 sect swallows one that is smaller than itself, 
 and before the process of digestion is over, the 
 two are swallowed at a gulp by a third insect 
 that is larger than they. * 
 
 The air is not free from the universal strug- 
 gle. One bird attacks another and destroys it, 
 and in turn is itself destroyed by a stronger 
 bird. The hawk swoops down and catches the 
 chicken, and the eagle catches the hawk. 
 
 Thus it is that beneath the soil, upon the 
 earth's surface, in the water and in the air, the 
 great struggle for existence goes on and on,
 
 112 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 leaving alive only the things that have the judg- 
 ment and the power to escape. 
 
 The Negro race cannot hope to be an exception 
 to this universal law. Life is not to be a serious 
 matter with the insects and the birds, with the 
 plants of the field, and with other men and 
 races, and at the same time a pleasant joke with 
 the Negroes. They, too, must come under the 
 law, and stand the test of holding their own 
 through struggle. 
 
 The contest in America is not to be of a phy- 
 sical character, but the struggle is to be a 
 strenuous one just the same. It is not to be of 
 man's origin, nor can it be stopped by man. 
 
 A reading of the Negro literature of the day 
 reveals the fact that the race stands amazed at 
 developments taking place in America with 
 reference to its position in the body politic. The 
 lot of the race seems to be growing harder and 
 harder. That which alarms the race is but the 
 coming of a condition long overdue. American 
 slavery and the Civil War caused a temporary 
 suspension of the operation of the law of the 
 survival of the fittest, both in the North and in 
 the South. The fact that the Negroes began 
 life in America as slaves brought to their aid the 
 knowledge and skill of their white owners, who 
 helped them to adjust themselves to the new
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 113 
 
 climate and stood guard over them, protecting 
 them from many possibile vices and injurious 
 habits. Thus slavery served as a sort of shelter 
 beneath which the Negro rested, temporarily 
 exempt from some forms of the struggle for ex- 
 istence raging all around. Just as the farmer 
 goes into the field with his hoe and helps the 
 corn in its battle with the grass until it is far 
 enough advanced to hold its own unaided, just so 
 slavery, as a matter of self -protection, saw to 
 it that the Negro race had aid in its efforts to 
 live and get a firm footing in the new home of 
 the race. But slavery has been abolished, the 
 shelter is gone, and the Negroes have been sum- 
 moned to the open field of struggle on their own 
 merits, where they must compete and win, or 
 go down in the great battle of life. 
 
 The Civil War left a residue of pity in the 
 North for the Negroes, and the race in that sec- 
 tion was accorded attentions not gained as a 
 matter of pure merit. But that feeling has died 
 out largely in that section, and there the race is 
 being given just that that it is able to win for 
 itself by means of its own ability and graces. 
 
 Slavery cast a sort of stigma on manual labor, 
 but time has erased that largely, and now fields 
 of endeavor that were once left uncontested to 
 the Negro race, henceforth must be contested for
 
 114 Life's bemanda; or, According to tav). 
 
 with all energy. The little Negro bootblack has 
 been summoned to contest for his job with 
 youths hailing from the land of Socrates, Plato, 
 Pericles and Demosthenes, the land of Greece. 
 The Negro washerwoman must enter the con- 
 test for the bundles of soiled clothes with the 
 white owners of the modern laundry. Thus, on 
 and on, covering almost every field of industry 
 in the South, competition has come or is in 
 sight. 
 
 Following in the wake of the " Civil War" 
 there came an estrangement between the white 
 and the colored people of the South, and a pe- 
 riod of considerable violence ensued. Owing to 
 this unsettled condition of things in the South, 
 land was very cheap, mob violence exercising a 
 depressing effect upon land values. But rela- 
 tions between the races have grown better, 
 there is less mob violence than was formerly the 
 case, and conditions are no longer regarded as 
 generally dangerous. The result is that there has 
 been a tremendous 'rise in land values. Thrifty 
 southern white people, northern capitalists, and 
 many industrious foreigners are beginning to 
 lay greater stress upon the lands of the South. 
 Vast stretches of land which the Negroes at one 
 time Tented and could have bought on easy 
 terms, can not now in some cases be rented at 
 any price -by them, and in many such sections
 
 Life's Demands; of, According io taw. 115 
 
 the land is now held for sale at such figures as 
 to put it far beyond their ability to enter the 
 lists as buyers. Competition at this point has 
 appeared with tremendous force and is destined 
 to increase as the years go by. 
 
 Thus the battle is on. Not a shot is to be 
 fired, not a shout is to be heard, not a drop of 
 blood is to be spilled, not a harsh word is to be 
 spoken, not a frown is to be seen, not a sigh or 
 groan is to escape. It is to be a simple determin- 
 ing of the question as to who is the best suited 
 to do the world's work. He that is able holds 
 his own. He that cannot survive goes down 
 noiselessly to the sorrows of defeat. 
 
 The philanthropic forces of the nation, North 
 and South, stand by to give whatever aid they 
 may, but the Negroes themselves must do the 
 battling. The helpers can act only as seconds 
 do at the ringside. They can shout sugges- 
 tions ; they can demand fair play ; they can dress 
 wounds, but the brunt of the battling must be 
 borne by the Negroes themselves. 
 
 There is ample room for the Negro race in the 
 economic life of the country. There is no ne- 
 cessity for it to go down. It is needed. Its suc- 
 cess will not hurt others. It will be to the in-
 
 116 Life's Demands; or, According to Lav). 
 
 terests of all for the race to be efficient and to 
 hold its own. 
 
 Under the conditions as they now exist there 
 are certain tasks that should be performed, but 
 which can only be performed by a strong Negro 
 social body. Under the sway of Negro social in- 
 fluences children grow to maturity, and if the 
 social influences in the hands of the Negroes 
 have not done their work well, if the Sunday 
 schools, the churches, the public schools, the so- 
 cial circles, and the community life have not 
 written the right lessons in the fullness of power 
 on their hearts, then they have failed to perform 
 a task that was peculiarly their own, a task that 
 other social influences were not in a position to 
 touch. In view of this condition of affairs in- 
 terest is great in all thoughtful circles in the 
 establishment of a strong Negro social fabric. 
 
 Then, too, the American people have no need 
 of a dying element in their midst, emitting from 
 its soul the foul odors that tell of its condition, 
 sending forth crimes born of a spirit of reck- 
 lessness and despair. If the Negroes lose in 
 the struggle for a footing in the economic life 
 of the nation, they will prove to be that element 
 with a dying soul, and the long, tedious and un- 
 certain task of finding a factor to substitute 
 will be on hand with all of its new complica- 
 tions.
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 117 
 
 With all these forces calling for life, why 
 should we die? Why not develop the virtues 
 essential for permanently successful individual 
 lives, and for an enduring social fabric! These 
 things are needed in the struggle for existence. 
 
 Those who are concerned about the success 
 of the Negro race should not be content merely 
 with the thought that they are doing well their 
 special tasks, for the reason that the destruc- 
 tive force which we find running throughout 
 the universe hovers over all things and searches 
 for and will assuredly find the weak point of a 
 situation and will press home the attack at 
 that point. Kaces, nations and social fabrics 
 along with all things else are duly searched, 
 and those whose weak points can not withstand 
 the attacks must perish. There must there- 
 fore, be uniform strength in the life of the Ne- 
 ro race, and workers in any special department 
 must be concerned about what goes on in all. 
 If nine commandments of racial life are kept, 
 and the tenth is violated, the whole structure is 
 endangered because of the one violation. 
 We, therefore, call upon the members of the 
 Negro race who desire a strong social fabric, 
 who would have the increased respect of man- 
 kind, who would have the Negro race to become 
 efficient, capable of performing the natural and 
 exclusive tasks belonging to a Negro social fab-
 
 118 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 ric we call upon those with such desires to ad- 
 dress themselves to the tasks of writing deeply 
 upon the hearts of all the members of the race 
 the qualities set forth herein as necessary for 
 social efficiency. 
 
 The friends of the Negro race in all sections 
 of our country, in all races and all lands of the 
 earth desire that the race realize that this is no 
 play life, that the situation calls for the best, 
 and all of the best, that there is in it at all times 
 and everywhere, from the highest to the lowest 
 form of service.
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 119 
 
 THE PARTING WORD 
 
 The Social Specific 
 
 In the practice of medicine that which will 
 invariably cure a disease of any kind is known 
 as a specific. It is our claim that we have put 
 forward in these pages the social specific, the 
 remedy that unfailingly will bring about social 
 efficiency if it is but utilized. 
 
 For a long number of years the Negro race 
 has pondered its condition, has debated the 
 matter of a remedy, has pinned its faith to 
 certain things only to find out that they were 
 wholly inadequate. The collapse of so many 
 affairs that demand social efficiency the abil- 
 ity of vast bodies to act successfully, led many 
 to the verge of despair with reference to the 
 larger hopes and aims of the race, and afforded 
 soil for the springing up of many prophecies 
 concerning the race. 
 
 It has been said of the race that it would be 
 able to produce great individuals here and there, 
 but that it would be weak forever as an aggre- 
 gation, as a social body. It has been said that
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 te problem of having great 'bodies of men to 
 ise their minds and hearts and energies to 
 te point of constituting great organizations 
 oving toward the attainment of objects 
 spreed upon as desirable cannot be solved. 
 ; has been said of the race that it is doomed 
 > jog along the world's highway exhibiting 
 ily individual efficiency and presenting the 
 icture of disjointed sections failing to work in 
 irmony with each other and often working 
 ;jedlessly at cross purposes with each other, 
 ut the social specific has now come and these 
 redictions can be made to fall to the ground. 
 
 Let us, by way of recapitulation, give a list 
 ? the ingredients that go into this compound, 
 ic utilization of which will make the Negro 
 ice strong as a body, and will entitle it to the 
 aim of having attained unto the lofty estate 
 : social efficiency. 
 
 The Formula. 
 
 Worthy Individuals. 
 Co-operative Effort. 
 
 Possession of Firmness Amid Unfavorable 
 urroundings. 
 Courtesy. 
 
 Freedom from Excessive Emotionalism. 
 The Placing of Eight Above Courtesy or 
 riendship.
 
 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 121 
 
 Honesty That Can Withstand a Temptation 
 of Any Strength. 
 
 Discriminating Trust. 
 
 Fidelity Toward Eepresentatives. 
 
 A Disposition to Follow. 
 
 Subordination of Personal Feelings. 
 
 The Elimination of Opposition Born of 
 Jealousy. 
 
 A Spirit of Universal Helpfulness. 
 
 Capability of Being Influenced to Act by 
 Other Than Direct Appeals Made in Person. 
 
 The Ability to Feel Keen Personal Respon- 
 sibility Where Large Numbers Are Equally In- 
 volved. 
 
 A Proper Attitude on the Part of the Strong 
 Toward the Weak. 
 
 Regard for the Welfare of Coming Genera- 
 tions. 
 
 Due Regard for Womankind. 
 
 Morality. 
 
 Oh, member of the Negro race, whoever and 
 wherever you are, however humble or however 
 exalted may be the station in which you serve, 
 become a worker for social efficiency, the one 
 last great thing unto which, it is said, we can- 
 not attain. Let this thought be your guiding 
 star, and to this end make every possible sacri- 
 fice and every needful concession. If we would 
 enjoy a full measure of the world's respect, we
 
 122 Life's Demands; or, According to Law. 
 
 must become efficient as a race, as well as ef- 
 ficient as individuals. 
 
 May it be the will of the God of heaven to 
 give unto the Negro race individuals that will 
 have the spirit, and the patience, and the vi- 
 sion, and the energy to systematically drill 
 these qualities into the race until it has 
 fully demonstrated its ability for social effi- 
 ciency, the great outstanding fort which 
 it is yet to capture. When alongside its line 
 of illustrious individuals it can place its dem- 
 onstration of social efficiency, the last dark 
 cloud of shame shall have vanished from its 
 sky, and the earth will seem to be a new earth, 
 and the sky a new sky; the moan and the lament 
 will die away to be replaced with the shout of 
 triumph; and it will be found that it all 
 happened "According to Law." 
 
 THE END.
 
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