Nebraska Newspapers

    prssrj The Monitor n=n
A National Weekly Newspaper Devoted to the Interests of Colored Americans
THE REV. JOHN ALBERT WILLIAMS, Editor
$1.50 a Year. 5c a Copy_OMAHA, NEBRASKA, OCTOBER 20. 1917 Vol. III. No. 16 (Whole No. 120)
Colored Americans
and Food Control
Specially Prepared for the Weekly
Press by Charles Stewart in the
Office of the United States Food
Administration, Section Co-Operat
ing Organizations.
Washington, D. C.—“ can 1
do to assist in this great s -le into
which our country has bee ced?”
is the question being aske 'S’. Ne
groes all over this country, hile
there are thousands of them u '<*, ave
passed the age limit for arm. qi v
ice, yet their loyalty, their lo\ %. r
country, and their patriotism £
them to strive to do something .
Through the weekly papers of the
race throughout the country the Unit
ed States Food Administration is at
tempting to answer this question, and
show each individual what can be
done in this direction—how to help
to win the war, for win we must.
Our soldiers who are to do the
fighting must he fed and clothed,
and the feeding of the American sol
diers is up to the United States. Not
only must we feed our own, but we
must feed the soldiers of the Allies,
and we are now trying to make the
supply equal to the demand. The
food shortage in Europe forces the
peoples of Europe to look to us for
foodstuffs, and we must supply it.
To accomplish this, we must have the
co-operation of every American cit
izen in the matter of conservation of
food. It is hoped that every family,
every man, woman and child of our
race will enter into this work and
study well the information which is
being sent to them by the Food Ad
ministration, free of charge.
There is no doubt that food is the
deciding factor in this war. Then let
us furnish food and back it up with
money and men—men who are true
Americans, men who are not afraid to
die, men who will fight for the right.
Our country is reverently dedicating
to the battle of free government the
lives of some of our best young men.
Not white men alone, nor black men
alone, but men—young men of both
races, white and black. With hearts
full of love for freedom and dem
ocracy, and tears of love for their
boys flowing down their cheeks, our
mothers are giving to their country
their sons. These young men, strong
and vigorous, are willing to spill ev
ery drop of blood coursing through
their veins as did their fathers, when
called upon in every conflict in which
our country has been engaged.
When these young men are out on
the battlefield or in the trenches it
becomes our duty to see that they are
fed. Our Allies must have more food
than they can raise, and to them we
must send more than we can really
spare. Looking forward to doing this
we must make a change in our daily
habits, a change that can easily be
made and must be made.
It must be recognized that we are
one solid America—not white Amer
icans, nor black Americans. We have
all been happy together, and now come
the hardships of war. Can we suffer
together, if need be? Can we go to
the battle with a solid front? Within
our race we must unite—unite our
local, State and national organiza
tions, for it is through these that
we must carry to all of our people
information about the national need
of conservation of food. Our women
must do their part. They must will
ingly give their signatures to the
United States F’ood Administration
pledge. If you are at the head of an
organization, or even a member,
whether it be local, State or federal,
see to it that Prof. A. U. Craig, Unit
ed States Food Administration, is put
in touch with your organization at
once and literature v. ill be sent to it.
Let us look at some of the things
we can do in the direction outlined.
We can help to win the war and to
furnish the necessary food by chang
ing our diet, by seeing to it thut there
iB no waste in our kitchens, in our
dining rooms and through our gar
bago cans.
How to Save.
We must cut down on our dishes.
That is, we must not have so many
courses at our homes, and cook only
what can be used at a meal, and if
there be any left over use it in another
meal. Have fewer banquets and big
spreads. There must be common,
economical living until after this war.
Use leBS sugar, less wheat flour, less
bacon and the like, and make your
meals as far as possible from the
things produced in your own garden,
or in the community where you live.
This will help, arid the request is.
due to the increasing necessity of
using our transportation system for
supplies connected with the war. By
this the usual transfer of foodstuffs
between different sections of the coun
try has been interrupted and this puts
upon every family the patriotic neces
sity of increasing as far as feasible
the use of foodstuff produced locally.
Use your local vegetables and fruits,
those from nearby sources father
than thoes transported from long dis
tances. Use what wou have rather
than buy something. Make what you
have last as long as possible. We
may have a surplus of perishable ma
terial as the result of our home gar
dens. Let us adjust our eating hab
its so as to utilize this present crop.
The plans outlined by the Food
Administration are meeting with gen
eral approval and people everywhere
are falling in line. We must not be
behind, for whatever concerns one
concerns all. Make feeding yourself
a study, keeping ever before you the
men in the trenches and their needs.
In this you are helping to win the
war.
Nebraskans Will Go
to Camp Funston
—
Three-Fourths of State’s Quota of
One Hundred Men Are Drawn
From Omaha. Lincoln Sends
Six.
Lincoln, Neb.—Governor Neville on
Monday received notice from the war
department that Nebraska’s Colored
men in the draft army will proceed to
the cantonment at Fort Itiley, Kas.,
between October 27 and 31. Nearly
a hundred Colored men in this state
were drawn on the first draft.
Three-fourths of the Nebraska Ne
gro contingent will come from Omaha,
there being seventy-three men to go
from Douglas county.
Lincoln and Lancaster county will
contribute six. The following other
counties are represented in the move
ment.
Two men eachl Kimhal, and Phelps.
One man each, Adams, Hox Butte,
Buffalo, Cherry, Custer, Jefferson,
Keith, Saline and Thayer.
This is the fourth contingent sent
to camp and it is the smallest one
from Nebraska, owing to the relative
ly small percentage of Negro popula
tion from this state.
PUBLIC RECEPTION
FOR SOLDIERS
The Negro Civic and Industrial
League lias Secured Council
Chamber for Meeting
Under the auspices of the Negro
Civic and Industrial League of Ne
braska, a public, informal reception
will be given in the Council Chamber
of the City Hall next Wednesday
night for the purpose of giving our
citizens the opportunity of congrat
ulating the officers who have just re
ceived their commissions at Des
Moines and for bidding Godspeed to
the conscripted men who are leaving
for Camp Funston at Fort Reilly,
Kansas. It is planned to make this
as democratic an affair as possible,
and for this reason the Council Cham
ber where everybody will feel free
to go has been secured. There will
be speeches and music and the public
is cordially invited to attend this
patriotic meeting.
BALTIMORE LAUNCHES
COLORED DAILY
Baltimore, Md.—The Daily Herald
made its initial appearance Monday,
October 8. Its salutatory stated that
it would be an afternoon newspaper
devoted to the interests of the race.
It has four pages and is the only Ne
gro daily published in the country at
this time. W. T. Andrews, formerly
of Sumter, S. C., is the leading spirit
in the enterprise.
WIN SHOULDER STRAPS
HOME ON FURLOUGH
Lieut. Harrison J. Pinkett, Amos
B. Madison and Edwurd Turner, who
received their commissions at the of
ficers’ training camp at Fort Des
Moines and have been assigned to
duty at Camp Dodge, Des Moines,
where they report November 1st, are
home on furlough. They are all look
ing fine and feeling well. They wear
their uniforms with unconscious
grace and carry themselves like vet
erans. They are receiving the well
merited congratulations of their
friends.
Colored Officers
Get Commissions
More Than Six Hundred Men, After
Four Months of Intensive Train
ing, Receive Shoulder Straps.
NEBRASKANS HOLD RECORD
Entire State Quota Secures Commis
sions. Nebraskans Are Assigned
to Camp Dodge.
(Special to The Monitor.)
Des Moines, la.—Nebraskans hold
the record among the six hundred and
twenty-four men who were given com
missions here, Monday, October 15,
after four months of training. It was
the only state represented in which
the entire quota received commissions.
Nebraska’s allotment was only five
men, but other states had equally as
small quotas, and some even smaller,
but Nebraska was the only one that
made one hundred per cent. Iowa’s
quota was was seven men, and five
of the seven were commissioned. Cal
ifornia’s allotment and percentage was
about the same as that of Iowa. Kan
sas made a good showing, but Ne
braska beat them all. Nebraska may
also claim with justice, Clyde G. Bran
non, of Fremont, who was accredited
to the Howard University contingent,
and S. Harris Dorsey, of the Twenty
fifth infantry. The five men assigned
from Nebraska were H. J. Pinkett,
Will N. Johnson, Dr. W. W. Peebles,
Amos B. Madison and Edward Turner,
all of Omaha. All of these were com
missioned as first lieutenants, except
Johnson, who was made second lieu
tenant. Those who claim to know',
say that he who was a former football
star on the Nebraska university eleven
was slated for a captaincy, but that
some breach of discipline caused him
to lose out. He has the military and
intellectual stuff in him, however, and
his friends expect to see him rise rap
idly in rank.
At the close of the camp addresses
were made by Brig. Gen. C. C. Bal
lou, who commanded the camp for
the first three months and is exceed
ingly proud of the splendid record
made by the men; by Col. J. E. Hunt,
at present in command, and Emmett
J. Scott, special assistant to the sec
retary of war.
In his address, Mr. Scott compli
mented the men on their work and
said:
“We meet today under circum
stances of commanding interest and
peculiar significance. Never before
in the history of the world have men
of your birth and traditions had the
opportunity of being prepared in the
arts of modern warfare in such num
bers and of such promise, to go forth
as representatives of 10,000,000 of
your kind to battle for human freedom
and human rights.
“In this supreme hour, when the
fate of the republic is at stake, your
emphasis, I am sure, will be upon
duties and responsibilities; will be
upon the sacred privileges of serving
one’s country in her hour of need.
You will remember always that you
are on trial. It will be for you to
prove that the men of your race,
when led by competent, efficient and
fearless men of the same race, are not
afraid to do, to dare, and to die.”
The commissions were distributed
as follows: One hundred and four cap
tains, three hundred and twenty-four
first lieutenants and one hundred and
ninety-eight second lieutenants. The
new officers have been assigned to
the various cantonments to train Col
ored troops and will command the
Seventeenth division of the national
army which is to be composed of Col
ored men.
The Nebraska men have been as
signed to Camp Dodge, where they
will report for duty November 1st.
The Negro Soldiers’ Valorous
Part In America’s Wars
They Have Been Eager Volunteers and Brave Fighters from
the Revolution Until Today; Only Two Isolated Blots
Were the Outbreaks at Brownsville and Houston.
(Continued from Last Week.)
“General Orders,” published near
Santiago on Aug. 11, 1898, contained
the following words direct to the
Twenty-fifth:
“Seldom have troops been called
upon to face a severer fire, and never
have they acquitted themselves bet
ter.”
The late General Joseph Wheeler,
ex-Confederate, one of tTie command
ers in the Cuban campaign, in writ
ing an introduction for Herschel V.
Cashin’s book, “Under Fire with the
Tenth United States Cavalry,” paid
this tribute to the Negro soldiers who
took part in the battle of San Juan
Hill:
“With unfaltering courage and de
votion they took part in the heroic
charge of the cavalry at Los Quassi
mas, and after that gallant fight
moved steadily forward with the cav
alry division, forded the San Juan
River, and captured the formidable in
trenchments of the Spaniards, driving
back the astonished enemy, fighting
b> day and working by night, until
glorious victory crowned their efforts,
and peace once more dawned upon our
beloved country.”
Thus runs the story of our soldiers
in black—praised for their bravery by
General George Washington, General
Andrew Jackson and General Benja
min Harrison in the first conflicts
with a foreign foe; honored for their
lo>alty and intrepid valor by President
Abraham Lincoln in the fight for the
preservation of the Union, and at the
same.time blessed by their masters
for their unfailing service on the
Southern side; and, finally, in our
war with Spain in 1898, credited
equally with their white comrades for
their unwavering courage under a
murderous fire.
There was, until the recent out
break at Houston, only one black spot
on their record—Brownsville. For
more than a century the historian and
the military critic had looked in vain
for any stain on the history of Uncle
Sam’s Colored soldiers. But on Dec.
19, 1906, President Theodore Roose
velt dismissed nearly all members of
Companies B, C, and D of the Twen
ty-fifth Infantry without honor.
On Aug. 13, 1906, about midnight
not more than twenty soldiers of the
Twenty-fifth Infantry, which was then
stationed at Brownsville, Texas,
leaped over the walls of the barracks
and began a mysterious fusilade upon
the town. Bullets flew in every di
rection. A Lieutenant of Police was
wounded in the arm, which had to be
dmputated. A children’s party was
rudely broken up by rifle balls, which
put out the lights. Many homes were
riddled with bullets while the inmates
slept. It was clearly established that
the missies came from the guns used
by the army and the affair soon sifted
down to the simple question, "Who
were the guilty members of the Twen
ty-fifth Regiment?” To solve this
puzzling question, President Roosevelt
went to extremes. He sent a com
mission consisting 'of Brig. Gen. Er
nest A. Garlington of South Carolina,
Lieut. Co. Leonard A. Lovering of
New Hampshire, and Major Augustus
P. Blockson of Ohio to Brownsville, in
structing them to apprehend the guil
ty members of the Colored regiment
and bring them to justice through a
1 speedy court-martial. In this the of
ficers were balked by an apparent ef
fort on the part of every member of
the Colored regiment to shield the vi
olators. President Roosevelt was crit
icized in some quarters, the charge be
ing made that he had acted upon the
findings of the Inspector General of
the Army, (Garlington,) who was a
Southern man, and, therefore preju
diced against the Negroes. To this
President Roosevelt, in a message to
the Senate, replied in his own pe
culiar way, as follows:
"As it happens, the disclosure of
the guilt of the troops was made in
the report of the officer who comes
from Ohio, and the efforts of the of
ficer, who comes from South Caro
lina was confined to an endeavor to
shield the innocent men of the com
panies in question, if any such there
were, by securing information which
would enable us adequately to punish
the guilty. But I wish it distinctly
understood that the fact of the birth
place of either officer is one which
I absolutely refuse to consider. The
standard of professional honor and
loyalty to the flag and the service is
the rame for all officers and all en
listed men of the United States Army,
and I resent with keenest indignation
any effort to draw any line among
them based upon birthplace, creed, or
any other consideration of the kind."
President Roosevelt said he had ex
hausted every effort to ascertain who
were the guilty members of the Col
ored regiment, but finding that they
were being protected by their fel
: lows in arms, he would himself, have
been guilty of retaining in the serv
I ice “a body of mutineers and mur
I derers” had he not dismissed the com
| panions in question from the army.
! He said he recognized the great serv
ice the Negro soldiers had rendered
I the country in the past, but he want
ed to impress upon Negro soldiers in
the future the lesson of upholding at
all times the honor of the army.
Race in Kansas City
Mo& Progressive
Monitor Representative Gives Read- 1
ers Interesting Account of His
Observations in the City on
the Kaw.
Kansas City, Oct. 16, 1917.
To the Readers of The Monitor:
You will note by my last letter that
I arrived in Kansas City. I stopped
at the Y. M. C. A., an institution that
the Colored people of Kansas City
should well be proud of. It is a
large commodious, comfortable four
storied building with basement, and
is complete in every detail. The base
ment is occupied by the gymnasium,
swimming pool and heating plant. On
the first, or main, floor by the office,
in charge of polite, neat and intelli
gent secretary, are the barber shop,
billiard hall, reading, writing and re
ception rooms. The upper floors are
given over to rooming, except the
second. The cafeteria is located here
and is a most unique and economical
institution.
Mr. Harris, the secretary who re
placed Mr. De Frantz, is a very agree
able as well as efficient director and
meets every one in that most affa
ble manner and way which some men
have and which makes you feel that
he has always been your friend.
I have tramped all over the city
meeting men in business and profes
sional men and Kansas City has quite
a number of them. To attempt to
name them would occupy too much
space, but I will say that I was great
ly impressed with the progress the
race is making here. The schools
and churches are largely attended;
the fraternal organizations and aux
iliaries have a large membership. The
knowledge of business and the ad
vantage of investment is steadily in
creasing. Kansas City real estate
men, that is of the race, are all wear
ing broad smiles, as the new residents
from the southland are arriving daily
in large numbers and they have
brought their money with them and
are willing to buy. Well, you know
they are buying, that accounts for
the smiles of the real estate men.
Kansas City seems to be the Mecca
of the travelers from the south and it
bids fair to become the goal of op
portunity for the Negro to the west
ern business world.
I leave for Excelsior Springs, Mo.,
Lawrence and Leavenworth, Kansas,
in the morning. Until next week, I
am,
Correspondently yours,
FRED C. WILLIAMS,
Traveling Representative for The
Monitor.
Editor’s Note: It will be of inter
est to Monitor readers to know that
Mr. Fred C. Williams, who is the ]
traveling representative of The Mon
itor, is blind. Despite this handicap,
he refuses to be dependent, and with
, commendable courage and an optim
ism which is contagious, he goes on
his way earning his living. His ar
ticles will, we are quite sure, be read
writh marked appreciation.
SOLDIERS SUBSCRIBE $45,000
Chicago, III.—Members of the
Eighth Illinois Regiment have start
ed out to raise $100,000 toward the
second Liberty Loan. The two thou
sand members of the regiment sub
scribed $45,000 last Thursday and are
after more subscriptions.
COLORED SOLDIERS BUY
LIBERTY BONDS
El Paso, Tex.—Colored soldiers at
Fort Bliss have subscribed $100,000
to the Second Liberty Loan, accord
ing to the local Liberty Loan commit
tee.
Present Memorial
at White House
"
Resolutions of the National Equal
Rights Convention Held in New
York City Go to President
Wilson.
Washington, D. C.—Tuesday after
loon, October 2, a large delegation of
Colored citizens called at the White
Souse, and delivered to Secy. Tumulty
he following resolutions adopted at
he tenth annual meeting of the Na
ional Equal Rights League, held in
New York City, Sept. 18-20 with the
request that it be given to the Pres
ident for his careful perusal. The
resolutions presented by this delega
,ion marshalled under the auspices of
;he District of Columbia branch of the
eague with Mr. Maurice W. Spencer
is spokesman read as follows:
rhe War—President Wilson and the
Kaiser.
The National Equal Rights League
rongratuiates the nation upon the fact
that the basic principles of the gov
jrnment, human equality and human
freedom, have been applied with in
creasing comprehensiveness to those
races which make up seven-eighths of
our population; and it declares that
the increasing withdrawal of these
principles from the other eighth of
the population is a challenge of the
patriotism of our governmental ad
ministration and of our fellow white
Americans.
Demands Made Upon President Wilson
The legalized killing which is called
war always requires justification.
When national self preservation is not
pleaded, only moral principles and
equity can be. The entrance there
fore of the U. S. A. offensively into
the most terrible war in history and
one in the other hemisphere, can be
justified only by vouchsafing freedom
and equality of rights to all citizens
of the United States regardless of the
incidents of race or color over which
they have no control. Likewise all
true patriots should lay aside hatred
and discrimination against fellow
Americans.
Now comes the President of the
United States and declares officially
to the world that this government
takes part in the European war to
promote World Democracy and World
Humanity. He tells the new army
raised specifically to make the world
“Safe for Democracy” that this war
“draws us all closer together in hu
man brotherhood as did the Revolu
tionary War for American Indepen
dence.” Hence, in view of his own
words and of this war, we do now
call upon President Wilson to abolish
that essential violation of democracy,
race segregation of government clerks
and to recommend to Congress the
enactment of laws; (a) To enforce
the 14th and 15th Amendments of the
Constitution which forbid peonage and
disfranchisement, thereby restoring to
millions of Americans their civil and
political rights; (b) To make lynch
ing a federal crime; (c) To forbid
segregation for race in interstate
travel in federal territory.
Segregation in Army Not Democracy.
Colored Americans demand only
that the “rights of free peoples and
the common rights of mankind” which
this government proclaims for Eu
rope be also in the possession at home
of all our citizens subject to risk or
suffer disease and death in carrying
this cause to these foreign nations.
We believe in democracy. We hold
that this nation should enter the lists
with clean hands, and that in this
formation of a new army, in the ab
sence of any law compelling race dis
tinction, the exclusion of Colored
Americans from Officer Training
I Schools, from camps and cantonments
with the rest is a betrayal of the cause
I of democracy, and is causing fresh
contempt and persecution. We de
mand equality of rights for all in all
departments of the government.
No Success Without Justice.
All patriotic Americans must be
alarmed that with the country at war,
American citizens are burned at the
stake by mobs, are massacred because
they work for a living, are beaten and
assaulted. All should unite against
the tyranny of mobs and of labor or
ganizations. Until the right of trial
'for crime is secure, until the right of
travel, to work and to vote is free to
all citizens alike, our country can not
expect or deserve success in this war,
or the favor and blessing of Al
mighty God.
Of course it pays to advertise in
The Monitor. It is the only news
paper published in the interests of
the Colored people in Nebraska.