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About The monitor. (Omaha, Neb.) 1915-1928 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 11, 1925)
11FTINC :: ^ I ^ If ¥7' f \ TVT T ^ I ' f \ TJ CROWING t: ,. ■■ - l,ftt°° 1 nil/ IV1 UiN 1 1 Uxv ==j!^ NEBRASKA’S WEEKLY NEWSPAPER DEVOTED TO THE INTERESTS OF COLORED AMERICANS THE REV. JOHN ALBERT WILLIAMS, Editor $2.M a Year—Sc a Copy OMAHA, NEBRASKA, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 1925 Whole Number 530 W XI—No. 10 COMPTROLLER CUSTOMS REMAINS a—————————. 'D —————————— i ————————————————————————— i ———— ————1^—■—————M———— V Urges That Chambers of Commerce Get Acquainted With Negro COHEN INDICTMENT “RUM CONSPIRACY” CALLED A FRAME-UP Comptroller of Customs Claims That Charge Another Chapter in Lily White Plan to Have Him Removed SPEEDY TRIAL IS REQUESTED Treasury Department Sends Special Investigator But Declines to Suspend Cohen During Probe Washington, D. C.—The indictment of Walter L. Cohen, comptroller of customs at New Orleans, La., is re garded here by Government officials aa frame-up. A special investigator of the Treas ury Department is on his way to New Orleans to make a rigid examination of the facts and circumstances .sur rounding the indictment. This inves tigation was ordered by General Lin coln C. Andrews, assistant secretary of t.ii* Treasury, in charge of the cus toms service. Pending this investiga tion Mr. Cohen will not lie suspended from office, as the interests of the United States are in no way in jeop ardy, General Andrews said. Mr. Cohen does not plan to come to Washington at this time, as it was at first reported. He wired the follow ing statement: “My indictment was more of a sur prise to me than to many of my friends. I knew nothing of it until caU.vt up on the telephone at my sum mer home at Bay St. Louis. “The whole matter is only another effort on the part of the lily-white ( rowd to discredit me and have me re moved from office. “1 have requested a speedy trial, and am asking the public to withhold judgment until after my trial, which I am sure will result in my acquittal as I am entirely innocent. I have also requested the Treasury Department to send one of its most trusted ami impartial agents here to make a thor ough investigation.” Thirty-four persons were involved in Uw indictments charging conspir acy to violate the national prohibition act. Mr. Cohen is the only one among those indicted against whom no al legation is made of having received any money. He is involved by allegations that he was consulted by heads of the rum running conspiracy on the movements of customs craft; that he advised when and how it would be safe to transport liquor from Havana, Cuba, to New Orleans. The indictment charges that Cohen and the thirty-three others conspired to transport 4,250 cases of liquor from the Cuban capital to New Or leans:, between June 1 and August 10. The progress of the alleged con spiracy is traced from early June, when the alleged head of a gigantic rum ring is said to have gone to Cuba to purchase a shipment of liquor. It is alleged that $10,000 was paid for protection to a prohibition agent with the understanding that it was to lie turned to the Federal prohibition director for Louisiana. This money, officials claim, was collected by the agent who was operating under in structions to accept payments. It is being held as evidence. Walter I. Cohen was confirmed as •aanproller of customs at New Or leans on March 17, 1924, after the Senate had previously voted to re ject his nomination. Mr. Cohen was first nominated by President Harding. The Senate ad journed without acting upon this nom ination, and he was given a second recess appointment. President Cool id** returned his nomination to the Senate, and he was rejected upon the personal objections of Senators Brous sard and Ramsdell, democrats of Loui liua At the instance of the late Senator IjgEollette, Senator Henrik Shipstead, farmer-labor of Minnesota, who had vpted against confirmation, moved a reconsideration. Cohen was then con firmed by a vote of 39 to 38. Contrary to the general belief in Har Im, it was neither Robert S. Abbott, Ed ward H. Wright, nor Oscar De Priest, but am eminent Harvard scientiest who re cently expressed the opinion that in thirty yearn no one but the very rich and the vary poor will be able to live in New York City. i GIVE CULTURAL PRIZE AWARDS (Associated Negro Press) New York, N. Y., Sept. 4.—At the ex 1 ercises incident to the awarding of Spin garn prizes, “The Broken Banjo” a one | act prize play, was given. This play wa? written by Willis Richardson, Washington, D. C Those taking part were Bill An drews, Dr. Frank Horne, Mae Miller, Myles Paige and Charles Burroughs. Read ing of prize poems and essays also were, features of the evening. The affair was! held at the Rena Renaissance Casina, and marked the giving of the Amy Spingarn prizes for Negro literature and art. Seven hundred colored persons took part. Of the contributions submitted, 330 were short stories, 139 were poems, and die remainder essays and plays. Twenty eight paintings were also submitted. MyrtleA. Smith of Colorado, third. Countee Cullen of New York won first prize with his cycle of poems; Frank Ifarne, New York, was second, and l^mgs ton Hughes of Washington, third. Dr. Randolph Fisher of Freed men’s hos pital, Washington, won $100 for the story entitled ’‘High Yaller”, Miss Marie French of Colorado Springs, received second prize, and Miss Anita Scott Coleman of New Mexico, third. “On Being Young A Woman and Col ored”, an essay by Miss Marietta O. Bon ner, Massachusetts, received first prize. Langston Hughes received second and G. A. Stewart of Ohio, received third prize in this contest. For illustrations, E. A. Charleston of South Carolina got first prize, Albert Smith, who is now studying in Paris, re ceived second, and M. A. Woodrug, In dianapolis, third. PICKENS* DA1GHTER IS A FAST SWIMMER (Associated Negro Press.) New Work, N. Y.. Sept. 11.—Miss Ruby Ann Pickens, the 14-year-old daughter of I William Pickens, field secretary of the Na tional Association for the Advancement of Colored People, was first in the annual I swimming meet held at Lake Tiorati, hav ing in all her races finished well ahead of all other contestants and being the in dividual star of the meet. WHITE CITIZENS UNDER WRITE GIRLS' SEMINARY I (Associated Negro Press.) Lynchburg, Virginia, Sept. 11.—>At a conference in this city of the officials and leaders of Lynchburg and its Qiainber of Commerce, Secretary 1. Garland Penn. Cincinnati, Ohio, outlined the plans of the Women's Home Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal church for the establishment of a Beminary for colored women at some point in the South, pre ferably Lynchburg. As an inducement to locate the sernin ary here, the city council and Chamber of Commerce agreed to guarantee values at $25,000. five years ago the society at its natiunal council in Detroit, Mich., agreed upon Lynchburg. As the city and business in terests are now ready to make good its guarantees, it is expected that the national council at its meeting in First Methodist Episcopal church, Pasadena, Culif., in Oc tober, will re affirm the action at Detroit. The seminary is to J)e a select college for Negro girls offering degrees and open to students from any section of the United Slates. Its main support will come from the Woman's Home Missionary Society which is the organization of leading white and colored women of the Methodist Epis copal church. This organization had an I income last year of over two million dol ! lars. The seminary is to be known as the | Carrie Barge seminary after Miss Carrie I Barge, a noted and consecrated white wo man living in Delaware, Ohio. BAPTIST DELEGATES LEAVE FOR CONVENTION Sunday night clerical and lay dele gates left to attend the National Baptist Convention which opened in Baltimore, Md., Wednesday morning. The Monitor has not secured a com plete list of the local delegation, hut among those who have gone are the Rev. W. F. Botts, pastor of Zion Bap tist Church; the Rev. Z. C. McGee, pastor of Pleasant Green; the Rev. E. H. McDonald, assistant secretary of the National Convention; the Rev. J. S. Williams, pastor of Salem Bap tist Church; H. J. Ford, state presi dent of the B. Y. P. U., and Mrs. Senora M. Wilkinson, state president of the Women’s Missionary Society. The Rev. Messrs. Botts and Wil liams were accompanied by their wives. America’s fire lots in 1924 was approxi mately $548,000,000, or $1,044 a minute. New York, Sept. 4.—The National As sociation for the Advancement of Colored People has received the American City Magazine for August, in which Leo M. Favrot, of Louisiana, field agent of the General Educational Board, asserts there is hardly any contact between while and colored citizens in southern cities and urges that white chambers of commerce ar range to meet and discuss community problems with colored citizens. “The South has only recently begun to realize,” writes Mr. Favrot, “that it can never attain its highest development while the interests and welfare of 40 per cent ot its population are neglected. We southern members of the white race too frequently think of our community life in terms of the white population alone. It is strange that we should forget the old adage that a chain is no stronger than its weakest link, and that link in the average south ern community is likely to be the Negro population or the community influences derived from it. “There is little opportunity in the South for the leaders of the colored race to come in contact with the leaders of the white race. Southern white people do not come in frequent contact with Negro physicians dentists, merchants, bankers, educators or ministers, although the number of trained and educated Negroes in southern commun ities is increasing every day. We come to think of the Negro then entirely in terms of the great masses on the lowest rung of the ladder and seldom of that intelli gent and capable minority which furnishes the guidance and leadership of the masses. “In my experience of thirteen years as a worker among Negroes, I find a distinct desire on the part of many of their lead ers to discuss with white men plans for ra cial betterment. They fleet that their sphere of opportunity as leaders is limited by the fact that they do not have ample opportunity to get before the proper au thorities many of the problems that beset the Negroes who live in cities and towns.” Mr. Favrot reports that he questioned 167 secretaries of chambers of commerce and that 78 per cent of them had no pro vision for consulting or meeting with col ored citizens. Methodist Weekly Sounds Warning of Klan as a Menace to Protestantism In its leading editorial of August 27, the Southwestern Christian Advocate, pub lished by the Methodist Book Concern, condemns the recent parade of the Ku Klux Klan in the national Capitol, and utters a warning that the Klan is a dan gerous menace to protestant Christianity. The Southwestern Christian Advocate had previously published two articles defend i ing the Klan and it is upon these articles that the editorial comments. Of the pa rade in Washington, the editorial says: “It was an ignorant and defiant Haunt ing of the red shirt of religious and racial 1 narrowness into the faces of the other scores of millions of law abiding citizens i and protestant Christians who refuse to lie carried off into bigoted pagan vagaries and i excesses of religious Pharisaism and racial discrimination at the Kbin’s behest. How ever much it may voluntarily assume, it : has no legal or allowed status or recogn ! izeil role as mentor or guardian of the' I " 1 EDUCATORS ATTEND CHICAGO UNIVERSITY (Associated Negro Press.) Chicago, HI., Sept. 11.—Among the ed ucators and social workers pursuing the course of Sociology during the summer ses-! sion of the University of Chicago were j Jesse O. Thomas, field secretary of the [ National Urban League, Charles S. John son, editor of Opportunity, and Monroe N. Work, editor of The Negro Year Hook and j director of ihe Department of Records and Research, Tuskegee Institute. Mr. Thom as and Mr. Work were among the speakers at a dinner of the Research association held in the south parlor of the Auditorium hotel. WASHINGTON SOPRANO TO SING OPERA Washington, D. C.—Mrs. l.illiun Evans Tibhs lias liecn engaged to sing in opera at Nice and at Monte Carlo under the name Madame Evanti next winter. She will he one of the first colored Americans to engage in prand opera, having trained for the past two years in Paris under Champi. She is the wife of Wilfred Roy Tibbs, leader of the Howard University Glee Club and other musical organiza tions and the daughter of the late W. Bruce Evans for many years principal of the Armstrong Manual Training School. She has been heard frequently in this city over the radio. NATIONAL MEDICAL ASSOCIATION ORGANIZER URGES CONSERVATION _ Chicago, III., Sept. 11.—(By the As sociated Negro Press.)—Dr. I. Gar land Penn of Cincinnati, Ohio, one of the secretaries of the Board of Educa tion of the Methodist Episcopal Church, organized the National Med ical Association in the First Congre gational Church, Atlanta, Ga., when he was National Commissioner of Ne gro Exhibits at the Cotton States and International Exposition, now thirty years ago. He returned to visit the Association in its Chicago meeting, and was introduced by President Dumas as the “Father of the Associ ation”. In his address he congratulated the association upon its wonderful growth and said that in his judgment it vfas the most representative educational body of the Negro race. He stressed the importance of con servation in the forward progress of the Negro saying that “the promoter is a valuable man but recent exper iences, must reach the Negro, that conservers of progress were equally valuable, if we are to hold our ground and make further advance.” rights or religion of American citizens. We have a government of the people, com petent for these tilings. The Klan pro poses either to usurp the functions of our government or to supplement them; if the former is their object, they should lie stopped by the government; the latter pur pose is an indirect indictment of the gov ernment as inefficient, and is equally hlam able and unAmerican. “If Klanism is synonymous with protes tuntism, and this protestantism is the ve hicle of Christianity, in such a combina tion is the death warrant of protestanl Christianity. A Christianity that, under dominance of the spirit of rampant ra cialism such as the Klan espouses, arrays groups within itself against each other; and that not only opposes race against race, but sanctions race subordination and suliservieney, thereby repudiates itself at the bar of public opinion. It thereby dis- j qualifies itself to become a universal re- j I’ASTOR OF ST. JOHN’S A. M. E. CHURCH CLOSES FIRST YEAR The Rev. Charles A. Williams will close Sunday his first conference year as pastor of St. John’s A. M. E. Church, Twenty-second and Willis avenue. At the morning service he will preach his closing sermon and at night will present the financial re port for the year. He will leave Tues-, day for Leavenworth, K’ans., to attend the annual conference. The Rev. Charles A. Williams suc ceeded his brother, the Rev. W. C. Williams, at St. John’s last year, com- | ing here from St. Louis, Mo., where he had served as pastor of St. Paul’s A. M. E. Church for six years. Prior to that time he had filled other im portant pastorates in the Kansas, Colorado and Missouri conferences. His first year’s pastorate at St. John’s has been most acceptable and his re turn here is confidently expected. While devoting himself to the up building of St. John’s the Rev. Mr. Williams has been always ready to cheerfully cooperate in any movement of the community for civic and racial uplift. Mrs. Lottie Roach, formerly a res ident of Omaha now residing in Los Angeles, Calif., arrived Sunday and left Wednesday for a visit in St. Louis, Mo. On her return she will tarry here for a visit with friends. ligion, ami loses its sanction and status as a divine revelation. In its basic philoso-! phy, Christianity is non-racial. It must remain so or be outdistanced and sup planted by some other one of the world’s living religions. “We do now and will forever repudiate i on ethical, historical, religious and racial grounds that Klan-ridden protestantism be i ing fostered by such fanaticism as was ex hibited in the Washington demonstration ! already alluded to. It was in no sense an official protestant demonstration. It had not the official sanction of any protest ant Christian denomination. It is gratify ing food for mental reflection that uie President of the nation was not bam boozled into honoring it by his presence. As faulty as is the American church, it stands ,o her eternal credit that no branch of the church gave even tacit approval I to that large-scale expression of racial and religious animosities.” NEGRO IS II ST HALF THE EQUAL OF WHITE MAN (Associated Negro Press.) New Orleans, La., Sept. 11.—It has been learned that the Mississippi Power Com pany, domiciled at Gulfport, Miss., with; 1.000 employees, had taken a blanket in surance coverage of $500 for white and $250 for colored laborers. These amounts will be increased for each year of con tinuous service up to ten years to the max imum of $2500 for white and $1000 for colored. Of course, these Southern gen ! tlemen do not draw the color line or dis criminate against the Negro. SECRETARY KELLOGG IIS LUNCHEON HOST Washington, I). C.—The secretary of | state, Mr. Kellogg, entertained at lunch eon Monday, August 31st, in honor of | Hon. Edwin Barclay, secretary of state I of Liberia. Ihe guests were Secretary of the Navy Wilbur; Garrard B. Winston, arting sec retary of the treasury; Joseph G Grew, undersecretary of state; J. Butler Wright, assistant secretary of stale; Surgeon Gen eral Hugh Cummings of the Public Health Service; William R. Castle, Jr., chief of the Division of Western European Af fairs of the state department; Doctor Ar thur N. Young, economic adviser of the department of state; Doctor Ernest Lyon, Liherian consul general; Henry Carter, of the state department, and Richard G Bundy, business manager of Wilberforce University. GOOD SAMARITANS MEET IN WASHINGTON! — (Associated Negro Press.) Washington D. G, Sept. 11.—The Inde pendent Order of Good Samaritans and Daughters of Samaria held its Sixth In ternational Biennial Session and its 78th | Annual Session at Odd Fellows’ Hall, 16th | and M streets, N. W., Washington. D. G, August 25-28, inclusive. Delegates were in attendance from twen ty slates, besides which there were repre sentatives from Panama, Colon, Jamaica. Cuba, Porto Rico, Costa Rica, and the Turkish Islands. ELKS ESTABLISH SCHOLARSHIP FUND * (Associated Negro Press.) Richmond, Va., Sept. 11.—One of the outstanding features of the recent meeting of the Elks held in this city, was the es tablishment of a national scholarship fund amounting to about $20,000 to aid deserv ing young men and women of the race in securing an education. The scholarship fund was suggested by Judge W. C. Hues ton, Gary, Ind., and was received with much enthusiasm as was indicted by it* almost unanimous passage. MASONIC GRAND MASTER KILLED (Associated Negro Press.) Philadelphia, Pa., Sept. 11.—William t». Butler, one of the be9t known men in this section, was killed in an automobile acci dent on the Lincoln Highway two miles east of Coatesville late Friday night. He died of a fractured skull and internal in juries. Mr. Butler was elected Grand Mas ter of the Pennsylvania Masons last De cember and for many years had been an active and prominent figure in this order. He was a member of the Knights Templar, a patron of the Eastern Star and was con nected with other branches of the Masonic fraternity. Funeral services which were largely at tended were impressive. He was the ac counting warden of St. Cyril Protestant Episcopal church, serving in this capacity for eight years, from which church his funeral services were held. His body lay in state at the Masonic Temple where it was reviewed by hundreds of persons. The impressive and solemn Episcopal funeral rites were held. Archdeacon Henry L. Phillips officiated. Music was rendered by the Rev. Mr. Young and C. Holloway. Miss Margaret Jackson, a soprano of prom inence rendered “Deep River.” The interment was at Bennett Square, where full Masonic services were held by Acting Grand Master James R. Williams. Mr. Butler is survived by one daughter, Mrs. John T. Cuff, of Hayti, a brother, Theodore, and one sister, Mrs. Mary Hac kett, both of Kent county, Md., and several nieces and nephews. His wife died several years ago, since which time he had made his home with his daughter and son-in-law. ARREST SIX WHITES FOR MURDER New Orleans, La., Sept. 11.—Six white men are in jail at Point-a-Ia-Hache, a short distance from here charged with the murder of Ftlix Narcisse. a Negro, in the swamps of Plaquimine several days ago. Narcisse was struck on the head, his throat cut and also stabbed in the stom ach. No reason can be assigned for the crime unless it was the victim’s color. COLORED COMMERCIAL CLUB OE OMAHA The Colored Commercial Club of Omaha is publishing below the copy of a letter which has heen sent to the colored min isters of Omaha urging their co-operation in securing the patronage of colored peo ple for the Negro business throughout the city Many of the ministers, receiving this letter, commented upon it to their congregation and have pledged their co operation in securing patronage of col-i ored people for colored enterprises. It Is ^ our earnest hope that the campaign will | be kept np with intelligence and vigor and1 that lasting results along this line will be oblained. Dear Pastor: The Colored Commercial Club of Omaha is beginning a Campaign of Publicity for the purpose of helping the colored pro fessional and business men and women of Omaha, Nebraska, among our group. We are, therefore, calling your atten tion to the fact that we have in this city a colored population of about seventeen thousand persons. Among them there are being conducted thirty-five separate lines of business. We have physicians, attorneys, dentists, undertakers, clothing stores, grocery stores, restaurants, shoe repairers, barber shops, taxi companies, express companies, stor age companies, drug stores, hair dressing parlors, tailoring establishments, cleaning | und dyeing establishments, employment I agencies, caterers, cigar stores, shining | parlors, real estate dealers, insurance I agencies, contractors, paint and paper | shops, newspapers and a few minor busi nesses. We spend for the necessaries of life, an average of $1.00 per person per day or $17,000.00 per day. That represents the expenditure of $510,000.00 per month, and $6,120,000.00 per year. This sum is what we spend for food, clothing and shelter of the group. Nearly all of the businesses among the colored people are struggling for existence. It lies within your providence and power, merely by speaking of the businesses to your members to make all of them a sue CMS. May we not rely upon you to tell your members to buy some of the things they need from colored people who have such things to sell, whether those things be wearing apparel, medicine, or services of doctors, lawyers or other kinds of service and goods? Will you not begin to do this on the first Sunday in September and continue to do it regularly? If you do this, you will help your church, the col ored people, and the community at large. We shall be pleased to note that you are helping in this praotioal Respectfully yours, PUBLICITY COMMITTEE, Colored Commercial Club of Omaha SIXTEEN HUNMED 1 NEGRO GRADUATES IN PHARMACY, CLAIM Interesting Article Recently Published in The American Druggist Gives Many Important and Valu able Facts AUTHOR IS PRIZE WINNER Part Taken By Race in Development and Progress of Pharmaceutical Profession Worthy of Record (Associated Negro Press) Washington. D. C.. Sept. 11.—The Amer ican Druggist, a monthly magazine for pharmacists and drug merchants, pub lished in New York City, issue of August, 1925, contains an article covering five pages being “A History of the Negro In Pharmacy”, by Miss Mozella E. Lewis, who graduated from the College of Phar macy, Howard university, with the class of 1925. Along with the article itself is a pic ture of Miss Lewis and the following statement: “This history of the Negro pharmacist in America is a thesis written by Miss Mozella Esther Lewis, winner of the Lehn & Fink medal in pharmacy this year at the College of Pharmacy of How ard university, Washington, D. C. As is well known, Lehn & Fink, New York, award a gold medal each year in some for ty colleges of pharmacy all over the Uni ted States, Each medal goes to the stu dent showing the greatest proficiency in pharmacy or who submits the best thesis, though this is not a requirement for the ] award, which is made entirely on the rec | ommendation of the faculty. In this case. I the medal was awarded by a committee of j the faculty on the basis of "Originality in thesis, amount of work invested and con scientious effort.” This article is largely statistical, but it is not abridged, as it is believed it will prove of value as a rec ord to any compiler of American phar maceutical history. The description of the part that the Negro has taken m the de velopment and progress of the profession is well worthy of note and recording for permanent preservation and reference.” As stated by the publisher, the article is largely statistical, hut it is probably the most complete story so far written of the Negro in pharmacy, with an extensive bibliographical reference. An important statement contained in Miss Lewis’ ar ticle is: “We have had approximately one hundred Negro pharmacists graduated from white colleges and approximately one thousand five hundred from Negro col leges. Of this number about twenty pet cent have taken medicine and are at pres ent successful physicians and surgeons. About ten per cent have taken dentistry, and twenty per cent have pursued other lines of study, such as teaching, law, the ology. The other fifty per cent have found wonderful fields in pharmacy. These sta tistics give us an idea of what the Negro has done in pharmacy, and should encour age the young men and women of that race interested in this work to improve the many branches of this science in which the Negro has become famous and further develop those phases in which he seeming ly has not entered to any great extent, so that the Negro will be an outstanding light in the development of pharmaceutical science.” RELEASE PRISONER AS , AFTERMATH OF LYNCHING (Associated Negro Press.) Stillwater, Minn., Sept. 11.—Max Mason, one of the nine Negroes charged with rap ing a white girl, on the circus grounds at Duluth, Minn., June 15, 1920, and the only one to he convicttd upon trial after three of them had been lynched, was released from Stillwater prison upon conditional discharge Monday. One of the Justices of the Supreme Court of Minnesota in a dis Benting opinion said: “In my view the evidence does not sustain the conviction.*’ It is the general opinion that Mason was not guilty. Mason spent some time with Attorney W. T. Francis, in St. Paul, who has been working to secure his release for the past two years. SOUTH AMERICAN PAPER PRAISES N. CLARK SMITH (Associated Negro Press.) Chicago, III., Sept. 11.—Press dispatches from the Independent, published in Hon 1 duraa, South America, have been received i praising the work of Professor N. Clark Smith, local bandmaster, composer and musician. The reports commend especially the work which Professor Smith has done . with the Negro Spirituals.