Page:The Negro a menace to American civilization.djvu/216

192 " Do you think that the negro is the equal of the white in natural ability?" " I do," replied the African Congressman. " History has shown that the sons of Ham are as strong as the sons of Shem and Japhet in every way. It was once thought that the negro could not advance in learning beyond a certain point, but the colleges know that the negro is the equal of the white, and, in many cases, superior. I think that we will gradually equal and eventually distance the whites. The reason for this is that we have got to start from the bottom. We have nothing, and we must fight for every inch. We are very ambitious, and we will not stop until we get to the top." A Mixed Race " What will be the future of the two races? Will the negro ever unite with the whites? " " I believe," said Mr. Murray, " that there will event- ually be a mixed race in this country, made up of negro and white blood. When the negro becom.es rich and educated the objection to him will wear away, and there will be intermarriages between the two races. At present the negroes have no objections to such marriages. They think that the only ground of marriage should be that of love. The objection comes from the whites, and this will disappear as the negro equals them in property and other things." " Do not a large number of your people object to colored men marrying white women? You remem- ber the howl of indignation that went up from the colored people of this country when Fred Douglass married a white woman." " Yes," replied Mr. Murray, " I do, and the indig- nation against Mr. Douglass was so strong because he, to a large extent, represented the colored people of the United States, and the fact that he married a woman of white blood was considered by our people a slap at the women of his own race. They thought it meant that he could not find a colored woman good enough for him and hence had to take a white one."