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About The monitor. (Omaha, Neb.) 1915-1928 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 5, 1926)
m The monitor s E f. NEBRASKA’S WEEKLY NEWSPAPER DEVOTED TO THE INTERESTS OF COLORED AMERICANS Z THE REV. JOHN ALBERT WILLIAMS, Editor. O ^ ^ _ s 2.00 a Year—5 Cents a Copy' OMAHA, NEBRASKA, NOVEMBER 5, 1926VoL XII.—No, 19Whole Number 589 TWO NEGROES ELECTED TO HOUSE <COUSIN OF CLARENCE C. WHITE SUCCUMBS TO LONG ILLNESS Mrs. Ora A. Smith, wife of H. W. :Smitr, 2016 North Twenty-third street died Tuesday, October 26, after a pro tracted illness. The funeral was held Friday afternoon from Jones’ Funeral Home, the Rev. T. W. Kidd, pastor of Bethel A. M. E. church, officiating. Interment was in Forest Lawn. Mrs. Smith, whose maiden name was Ora A. Conner, was bom in Sel ma, O., and was married to Mr. Smith in February, 1907. They moved to Omaha in 1910, where they have since resided. Mrs. Smith was a cousin of Clarence Cameron White, the famous violinist. She is survived by her hus band, two sisters, Mrs. Ella Wilson of Columbus, O.; Mrs. Emma Ransom, wife of Bishop Rcverdy C. Ransom of Ocean Point, N. J.; and three broth ers, Dr. W. H. Conner of Fort Wayne, Ind., L. J. Conner of Chicago and Joseph C. Conner of Springfield, O. L. J. Conner was present at the funeral. NEGRO BUSINESS HOLDS REWARDS Chicago, III.—Thai fine reward awaits the man or woman who embarks in Negro business and brings to the effort ability ami 100 percent was demonstrated in a way which all Chicago appreciates wnen official announcement was made this week of the election of Mr. Edward H. Gary, director of agencies of the Liberty late Insurance company of Illinois, to the vice presidency of the company. This promotion comes in recognition of the wonderful work done by Mr. Gary in building an agency force which put on the books of the company over nine million dollars of business in the five years that the company has operated. This is the second recogntion of Mr. Gary’s worth by the company in less than a year, as last March he was elected a member of the Board of Directors. Mr. Cary will now assume charge of a real estate department, dealing in insurance, real estate, mortgage and bonds, in addition to his work con nected with the sales force of the company. “There is no finer a salesman anywhere than Mr. E. H. Cary," President M. 0. Bouafield said in announcing this promo tion, “Mr. Cary’s long and faithful serv ices to Liberty Life entitled him to the choice when we began to look for a man to head this important department of our work.” Mr. Cary’s successor as director of Agencies is Mr. Luther F. Simpkins, who has served under Mr. Cary nearly the whole time as assistant director of agencies and educational director. Mr. Simpkins has made an enviable reputation as a salesman and a teacher and deserves this appointment. In these promotions is seen Liberty’s policy of promoting men in recognition of their merit and service. PICKENS TO GO ABROAD New York—The international con ference for the suppression orf vio lence in the colonies will be held in Brussels, Belgium, in the middle of January. More thar. 100 organizations from among suppressed and dominated peoples in the world have been in vited to participate. Among the American organizations invited to par ticipate is the National Association for Advancement of Colored People. Other organizations are invited from China, Persia, Arabia, Syria, Indo China, Mexico, South America, Phil ippines, Hayti, Morocco, Algeria, Ma dagascar, other countries of Doth North and South America, Egypt, India, the Virgin Islands, and many other places. The conference is called under the auspices of the League Against Co lonial Suppression whose international headquarters are in Berlin. The sec retary is Mr. L. Gibartl, on Schadow strasse in Berlin. William Pickens, field secretary, will attend. LIVES WITH BROKEN NECK Helena, Ark.—Although his neck was broken when an automobile he was driving overturned, S. D. Prewitt, a rural mail carrier, continues to live. He is paralyzed with the exception of his arms. UMVLKbiTY OF CALIFORNIA i'KUMOltS CULOKr.U Sl.lK Berkely, Cal.—(Pacific News Bu • cuu;.—imtieit rrancis, xormer star play or in ms prep days as captain ux tne Polytechnic xiign bciiuul team ox ban rrancisco, wno was side kiacacd to tne substitute uencii oy uie late Andy bnutn, nas Xinany, after t»vu years of waiting, been promoted to tus rightful position as a member ox tne varsity squad. rrancis, a sensational halfback in •ns piep days, was snifted to tne line oy bimtn wnen ne entered tne Uni versity oi Caliiorni. railing to func tion with merit in tnis position, ne was side-tracked to the bench. This year after defeats by St. Mary’s, the Oregon Aggies and the University ol bouliiern California, Coach Clarence Price in seeking new material lor po sitions lelt unoccupied through in juries, decided to give r rancis his chance with the varsity as tackle re placing Fred Coltrim, who with Poi son of Stanford university and Brice laylor (colored) of University- of ooutnem Calilorna, are rated as the best tackles on the coast. Coltnn was injured in the recent game with the university of Southern California. FEDERAL. AUTOMOBILE ASSN. APPOINTS $5,000-A-YEAR HEAD Washington, D. C.—William M. Dent of Baltimore, Md., has been se cured by tfhe Federal Automobile As sociation, Inc., of Washington, D. C., as their national director of districts and auditor. Mr. Dent as ad over ten years' experience in the business world as a publicity man and public accountant, during which time he was managing editor of the Detroit Leader, auditor and director of the "Your Cab Company," Chicago, I1L, which company he helped organize, and the Liberty Life Insurance com pany of Illinois at Chicago, of which company he was auditor and is a life member of the advisory board of di rectors. Mr. Dent will be a great as set to F. A. D., due to wide acquain tance and general business experience. He is especially fortunate in that he was a close personal friend, as well as a business associate of the late Frank L. Gillespie, who was considered by many of both races as the financial genius of the present century. _ I WINNER OF LEGISLATIVE SEAT FROM NINTH DISTRICT Dr. John A. Singleton is the young est son of Mr. and Mrs. M. F. Sin gleton. He was bom in Omaha, July 29, 1896. He is a graduate of Central High school and of Howard university, Washington, D C. He is a practicing dentist. Dr. Singleton is married and has three children, his wife being for merly Miss Daisy Goring of New York. He is a home owner and tax payer. He is a member of the Epis copal Church of St. Philip the Deacon, of the Masons and other fraternities. NEGROES LEAVE M’PHEI^ON CHURCH. Los Angeles.—There has been a considerable exodus from colored churches here of members who have been attracted by the magnetic lead ership of Mrs. Aimee Semple McPher son, white pastor, head of the famous Angelus Temple and its various branches. She has had a policy of treating all alike, making all nations welcome, and using colored singers in the choir. As the scandal filled trial, in which Mrs. McPherson, her mother, and a man named Ormiston are co-de fendants, draws near to some star tling climaxes, quite a few of her colored members are said to be desert ing and returning to their mother churches. - • TWENTY-FIVE COLORED ACTORS IN “FIGHTING LOVE" Culver City, Calif.—(Pacific Coast News Bureau)—Bertram Millhauser, the brilliant scenarist who is adapting the story “Porgy" for an all colored super-feature, is also starring Jetta Goudal, seen in “Three Faces East”, and directed by Chrislander, of the DeMille studios. Twenty-five colored actors are being used in the African scenes. Adam McMullen. Re-Elected Governor by Less Than 8,000—Race Vote Saves the Day. EDITORIAL The election is over. Populus locutus est. The pople have spoken. They have declared their will at the ballot box. Fever ish excitement has subsided. A reasonable normalcy will now obtain among the American populace until another election draw eth nigh. * Viewing the election nationally there have been some sur prises. Substantial gains were made in Senate and House by the democrats, but not quite enough to give them control. The bal ance is so suspended that the republican “insurgents” or “irregu lars”, like Norris, Brookhart, et al, can easily tip the scale “twixt south and southwest side.” Nebraska is one of the bright spots of republican victory, made so, be it remembered, by Douglas county, although the state has lost a republican congressman in the person of McLaughlin of the fourth who was defeated by Norton. This makes the del egation four democrats and two republicans. The congressional delegation consists of John H. Morehead, democrat, first, re elected; Willis G. Sears, republican, second, re-elected by over 10,000; Edgar Howard, democrat, third, re-elected; John Norton, democrat, fourth, who has just defeated McLaughlin; A. C. Shall enberger, fifth, re-elected; and Robert Simmons, republican, sixth. Douglas county, too, also saved Governor McMullen. His 5,000 ma jority in Douglas county is all that saved the day for him. It can be said with truth that the Negro vote of Douglas county, something over 4,000, was responsible for Governor McMullen’s election. ~—-— The outstanding feature for our group in Omaha is the elec tion of Barnett and Singleton to the State Legislature. Thank God, we have at last forced open the door to legislative representa tion which has been closed to us for over thirty years. In the early nineties Dr. M. O. Ricketts was twice elected to the State Legislature, where he acquitted himself with distinction, and was recognized as one of the most useful members of the house. But since that time the door has been closed and barred. The election of a Negro has been considered an impossibility. The election, therefore, of two at this time is a signal victory, which must be taken full advantage of as it is an earnest of-greater things. The Monitor feels confident that their constituents will hahve no rea son to regret the confidence they have placed in Barnett and Singleton in electing them. The Monitor feels that it has a share in this victory inasmuch as we have insistently urged our people to lay aside petty criticisms and personal likes and dislikes and get unitedly behind these two candidates. The chief interest in Douglas county centered in the contest for sheriff. Charles B. McDonald, the republican candidate, sup ported by the Ku Klux Klan, the “Dennison machine” and the “Smith-Ure-Howell machine” defeated John Hopkins, democrat, by about 5,000 votes. Considering the tremendous odds against Hopkins he is to be congratulated upon the splendid showing he made. The Monitor is particularly gratified over the stand taken in his behalf by the colored voters. This independence augurs well for the future. In every ward where the colored vote is strong Hopkins polled a heavy vote. In the rock-ribbed republican second ward, despite the herculean efforts made to roll up a big majority for McDonald, hfe carried it by only 152. The third ward, another strong republican ward, confidently counted on by Mc Donald backers, gave Hopkins a majority of 152. The fifth was carried by Hopkins by 714 and the sixth was carried by McDonald by 30 votes. In all of these wards, and three of them in parti cular, there is a heavy colored vote. This shows that the colored voter knew his mind and knew 1\qw to scratch his ballot. Bauman, the only democrat elected, and whose election, like that of Hop kins, The Monitor advocated, also ran big in these wards. The strongest Kluxer wards in the city are the first, the ninth, the eleventh and the twelfth. McDonald carried the first by 1,542 votes, the ninth by 992, the eleventh by 964, and the twelfth by 940. It is also said that “the invisible empire” is com paratively strong in the tenth. McDonald carried this by 873. In other words, of the 5,766 votes by which McDonald defeated Hopkins ONLY 5,311 were cast for him in the wards where the Klan is reputed to be the strongest. No, there is nothing signifi cant about this! It just happened. That’s all. Of more importance to us, as a group, however, than the elec Elected to State Legislature issssssaasssK! 1 John A. Singleton F. L. Barnett UFF"^! tion of the sheriff, because, we as a rule, are law-abiding citizens, was the election of the seven members of the Board of Education. We believe the seven men elected, six for the long term, and one for the short, are men rtf excellent business ability and fair-mind edness. Four of the seven chosen, namely Fitzgerald, Higgins, Miller and Bergquist, were endorsed by The Monitor. Burke, Mason and Loomis were the others chosen. The return of Congressman Sears was the right thing to do, because of his experience and the important place he holds, especially in connection with Missouri river improvement. Taken all in all, the election, despite its peculiar angles, has been quite satisfactory. It is to be noticed that whoever is elected the sun still shines, God still reigns and the government still lives. The battle of ballots is aver. Let everybody shake hands and be good friends and prove themselves good American citizens. REPUBLICANS ELECT TWO RACE CANDIDATES TO THE LEGISLATURE Singleton Scores Victory in Ninth and Barnett Wins in Tenth Legislative Districts by Good Margins. THIRTY-YEAR DROUTH BROKEN Despite Largely Increased Population No Negro Had Been Elected to the Nebraska Legislature Since Early Nineties. Breaking a political drouth of over thirty years, the Republicans of Doug las county elected two Negroes to the State Legislature Tuesday. Dr. John A. Singleton defeated his democrat opponent, J. J. Barry, in the Ninth district, by 361 votes and F. L. Bar nett distanced both his democrat and progressive opponents, R. E. Roche, and C. C. Bogue, in the Tenth, win ning ober Roche, his closest competi tor, by 141 votes. Singleton’s vote was 1,495 as against Barry’s 1,131; and Barnett’s 1,076 as against Roche’s 936. An analysis of returns from va rious precincts shows that the race, in accordance with the Monitor’s request to lay aside all petty criticisms and personal likes and dislikes and vote for these candidates, stood loyally back of them. Discriminating intelli gence in the use of the ballot was shown, for while many ballots were scratched on the candidates for Sheriff and County Treasurer, the vote was straight for other candidates. McMul len ran strong in these districts. For the first time since the early nineties, when Dr. M. O. Ricketts was twice elected to the legislature from Douglas county, the race will-see not only one but two of its members in the house of representatives. It should be borne in mind that while both Sin gleton and Barnett are members of thfe colored race, they have been chosen not as the representatives of the col ored race, but of all the people of their respective districts. The republican landslide in Douglas county swept into office every repub lican candidate with the exception of Otto J. Bauman, democrat, who suc ceeds himself as County Treasurer. Bauman defeated Beisel by a large majority. Governor McMullen carried Doug las county by 5,721 votes, which ma jority has been cut to less than 3,060 by returns from out in the state. "When It is known that the Second ward gave him a majority of 1,072, which the Third and other wards in which there is a large colored vote) substantially increased, it will be real ized that this vote contributed largely to Governor McMullen’s re-election. Congressman Sears raced away from his competitor, North, at the speed of more than 10,000 votes. Charles B. McDonald, republican, defeated John Hopkins, democrat, in the hotly contested race for sheriff. McDonald’s vote was 27,562 and Hop kins 22,947, giving McDonald a ma jority of 4,605. Henry Beal, repcblican, candidate for re-election, defeated Harland L. Mossman, democrat, for county attor ney by 6,551 votes, the vote being Beal, 28,319 and Mossman. 21,668. The amendment granting increased pay to firemen and policemen was car ried by a substantial majority. FERDINAND L. BARNETT REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE TENTH DISTRICT The newspapers have contained sev facetious jibes at “Barnett, the Negro janitor, candidate for the legislature.” They have treated it largely as a joke that one of such a lowly station should aspire to political office. Ferdinand L. Barnett was bom in Selma, Ala., nearly sixty years ago. There he went to school, subsequent ly attending night classes at Fisk uni versity. Removing to Cleveland, he re sided there for 13 years. He came to Omaha in June, 1887, where he has since resided. In October, 1889, he started The Progress, Omaha’s first Negro newspaper, which he published for 17 years. His first political job was that of probate clerk with County Judge Irving F. Baxter. There’s where Barnett got the hankering for a polit ical job, a malady once contracted the patient very rarely recovers from. Subsequently he served as sidewalk inspector under Mayor Frank E. Moores, street foreman under A1 Ku gel, poundmaster under Mayor Dahl man and for the last six years head janitor at the city jail. Several years ago his first wife died and he re mained a widower until two years ago, when he married Mrs. Watts. He Is a property owner, owning the cosy lit tle bungalow in which he and Mrs. Barnett reside at 1618% North Twen ty-second street and another attrac tive modem home at 1613 North Twenty-second street. Mr. Barnett is a member of St John’s A. M. E. church and a 33rd degree Mason. Mrs. Charles H. Hicks is quite ill at her residence, 2530 Maple street.