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About Omaha monitor. (Omaha, Nebraska) 1928-???? | View Entire Issue (Dec. 7, 1928)
OMAHA MONITOR Successor to The Monitor The MilitaiT: Defender of the Rights of the Race Published Every Friday at Omaha, Nebraska, by the Monitor Pub lishing Company Entered as Second-Class Mail Matter July 2, 1915, at the Post office at Omaha, Nebraska, Under the Act of March 3, 1879. CEORGE H. W. BULLOCK_ _ Editor W. W. MOSLEY, Lincoln, Nebraska_ .Associate Editor Subscription Rates: $2.00 a year; $1.00 6 months; 75c three months; 5c copy. Advertising Rates furnished on application. Address the Omaha Monitor, Box 1204 1724 North Twenty-seventh Street Telephone Webster 1984 Declaration of Policy The name of this paper will be slightly changed. It will now be the “Omaha Monitor” instead of “The Monitor,” as formerly. In the main, the policy of the new management will conform to that of the preceding one. The editorial policy of the Omaha Monitor shall be: 1— Independent in thought and action. 2— Liberal in attitude and interpretation. 3— Honest in convictions and writings. 4— Militant in its fight for justice. 5— Non-sensational in composure. 6— Instructive in subject matter. 7— Conservative in viewpoint. 8— Decisive in judgment. 9— Broad in its interests and subjects. 10—Free from political alliances. G. W. H. BULLOCK, Editor. t AN IMPORTANT WORD TO SUBSCRIBERS i * * X The postal regulations require that for newspapers 3 X to be sent through the mails subscriptions must be paid •: f in advance. A reasonable time, thirty days, is allowed $ £ for renewals. At the expiration of this period, where 2jl 2j| subscriptions are not renewed, the paper must be stop- $ ? ped. If this is not done, postal privileges are denied the *{:• £ publication. Those, therefore, who desire to continue 3 ", receiving The Monitor must see to it that their subscrip- j f* tions are paid, as the law requires, in advance. State ments are being sent to all those who owe, or our col- $ £ lector will call—and unless your subscription is paid :j; 2 2 we will be compelled to cut off your paper which, of $ ;; course, we do not want to do. < We, as publishers, MUST comply with the law or > pay the penalty. < ❖ 3 ♦ •• EDITORIAL EDITORIAL SALUTATORY Fellow Countrymen: With the present issue of this paper I assume editorship of its publication. I do so with full knowledge of the greal r esponsibility such a step entails. It is not a job for any weak ling, but a task which requires grit and stamina, brains and brawn, to successfully perform. It requires a special high grade of intellectual preparation, skill and long seasoned ex perience in one who undertakes it. I believe I know the jot and possess a sufficient measure of all these qualifications tc perform the duties iti mposes. I entertain no foolish or fanati cal notions about the requirements of a successful editor. 11 is no job for a laggard, neither is it any place for self-adver tisement. It is a job that requires continuous digging to sur mount the innumerable obstacles strewn all the way over the road. He must expect disappointments and discouragements and be prepared in body and soul to wade through them dry shod. It is therefore, with no spirit of pomp and arrogance, thal I accept this Elishan mantle thrown down on me by my illus trous predecessor. It is rather in a spirit of faith and humility. The retiring founder, owner, editor and publisher of this paper spent many years of arduous labor to build up the high standard which characterizes it. He stuck tenaciously to the idea that a newspaper was an educational institution whose business it was to educate the people up to the highest stand ard of citizenship. He believed that the surest route to solid and worthy citizenship was through the intellect. In this, I be lieve, he succeeded. The Monitor has won its way deep down into the hearts and affections of many people of all races ir this and other countries. Its circulation reaches into far Rus sia, Europe, Africa, South America, Canada and all parts oi Continental America. It has built about itself a name and a fame the lustre of which time and opposition will not dim. 1 cannot hope to improve on that standard. I shall be content to emulate it. I shall, of course, add features that will appeal to groups of every shade of intelligence, and treat things per haps from a different angle. The field of journalism is a calling as sacred as that to th« Divinity. It requires of, and expects from its servants absolutt devotion and self-sacrifice to the common weal. The Press is the organ and agent of the people it serves, the pulse and heart beat of its constituency. More largely than from any other source, the people look to the Press for guidance and leader ship. They take the color of the influential newspaper in theii community. The colored press occupies a rather unique posi tion in any community where colored people live and have in terests. When functioning properly, it is the vigorous anc militant defender of the civic, social and economic interests o! its constituency. It can never be honestly used to promite one’s personal ambitions. It is a public servant, and its columns should be ever open to the public use with a cordial invitatior that they be so used. In these particulars I shall not fail you To these ends I shall set out with all that is within me to ac complish. m i . .1 • j _ _ • _ l ■»• /»jt* « w. The editorial policy of this paper will be my own. Its editorials shall be used to reflect my own view-point on the subjects which I shall treat. Whatever that view-point, how ever, it will be my honest conviction and will be absolutely in dependent of any and all promptings of mere expediency. 1 shall strive to make it faithful, fearless and unrelenting in its fight for civic justice and righteousness; active in, and aliv< to all things which concern the colored race. This paper wil be no agitator, but shall be found at all times right in the thicl of the battles where the rights of the race are threatened. Th« accomplishment of these objectives lies not within the province of the editor alone, but rather in the co-operation of the racia group in whose special interest it is operated. You are a pan and parcel of either its failure or success. If, then, it is a fail ure, you are responsible. If successful, you are the beneficiary ■ The colored people have made great strides along the waj of material progress. Their business horizon has been greatlj extended, their material interests far flung. In consequence they need confidential guides and defenders such as only then own newspaper will give. That they may be inspired to greatei effort they need to know what others of their group are doing This they cannot expect from the big dailies. Their concerr is too vast to give time ,to any racial group. They often givt the restricted truth about our good deeds and an embellishec story of our misdeeds. A case in point is the Jake Bird affair What Negro in tihs beloved country of ours, although he moved heaven and earth, could have gotten such publicity as did this .shiftless fellow? But their clientele is among people who like E this kind of reading matter, and they must please their con stituency. You can't kill them for that. But what you musl do to counter-balance that is to support your own paper sc i? * i i ..,..... that you can get your side of the question in the proper and true light. A colored paper should be in every colored home, matter not how many dailies we read. “The worm turneth the color of the plant on which it feeds.” Let us put two kinds of plants there for us to feed on. Finally, my friends, I appeal to you to give me your un divided support in order that I may accompjlish these desired results. It is to the sacred task of making the Monitor a vigorous medium through which these things can be brought about, that I dedicate myself, my talent, my service and my all. Faithfully yours, GEO. H. W. BULLOCK, Editor. Discrepancies in Bird Testimony I Mrs. Mary G. Hakins, who lives five blocks this side of the Stribling home, in a fairly well-populated neighborhood, re ported to the police Wednesday afternoon, November 21, that at 7:30 a. m. Tuesday afternoon, November 20, a prowler whom she described as a Spaniard, Mexican or a very light colored Negro, about 5 feet 8 inches in height, and about 25 years of age, came to her home and by various ruses sought to gain admission. She got her gun and drove the man away She knew nothing of the Stribling attack at that time, ac cording to her statement. The man’s description, however, tallied quite closely with that given by Mrs. Stribling of her murderous assailant. • Mrs. Hankins related that at 2 o’clock in the morning she was awakened by a noise at a window. When she arose later she found that a hand-ax had been taken from an out-building and left on the porch at the door. About 7:30 a suspicious acting man, wearing a gray overcoat and a gray cap, sought admittance to her home. In an account given to another newspaper man, she described him as ayoung light-skinned colored man or foreigner, with a wild look in his eye, who acted queerly. Wednesday afternoon, November 28, Attorney H. J. Pink ett, who is rather fair, and Dr. A. M. McMillan, who is brown skinned, interviewed Mrs. Hankins at her home. Mr. Pinkett said to her, “Mrs. Hankins, was this man light er or darker than either of us?” “Oh, he was much lighter, than either of you men,” she replied, “much lighter.*’ Friday, November 30, after viewing a photograph of Jake Bird shown her by Sheriff Lainson of Council Bluffs, Mrs. Hankins stated that Bird was not the man who appeared at her home. “The man I saw was a light-colored mulatto, with large lips and a dangerous look in his eyes. He wore a gray overcoat with a gray cap,” said Mrs. Hankins. (From a report in The World-Herald, Saturday morning, December 1.) Saturday afternoon, December 1, Mrs. Hankins saw Bird in the office of County Attorney Northrup in Council Bluffs, Sheriff Lainson and Detective Arnold also being present. At that time, she repudiated her former description and positively “identified” Bird as the prowler who had come to her home! On no less than three separate and distinct occasions this woman asserted that her unwelcome visitor was a light-colored mulatto, and yet she indentified Bird, who is the very opposite of her description, as that man. Such discrepancies in her dercription as have marked the stories of Mrs. Stribling and Mrs. Hankins cannot pass without raising grave questions in the mind of the public. ' There seems to have been a reckless handling of the truth. There are phases of this case which do not impress us very favorably. The alleged suppression of the fact that a police officer had reported seeing Bird in Peat’s cafe about 3 o’clock of the morning of the attack and the statement cred ited to another police officer that he did not investigate this because he was acting under orders not to do so unless ac companied by an Omaha or Council Bluffs deputy sheriff, seems rather questionable procedings. Is something being covered up? Is somebody trying to put something over? There* seem to be some queer angles to this whole bus iness, but one of the queerest is the aptitude shown by two women to make a dark brown-skinned man fit the picture of “a light-colored mulatto.” It cannot be done. One descrip tion absolutely excludes the other. Either they did not tell the truth at first-or they are not telling it now. The discrep ancy is not of MINOR but of MAJOR proportions, too great to be reconciled. This paper has no love for Jake Bird. Neither would it shield or defend any man, black, white or yellow, in whose guilt it had the faintest conviction. But we cannot twist our imaginations to the point where we believe Bird is the guilty party in these atrocious crimes. TO OUR ADVERTISING CLIENTELE Gentlemen: The policy of this paper shall be to give you the best returns on your investment. To do this we shall work for you while you support us. We shall make no false claims about cir culation, but shall represent only the genuine subscribing class that is hon estly and truly our own. We can vouch for their worth to you because i we know all of them by name. We know that they lead in intelligence and progress; and are the most suc cessful citizens among our group in business, finance, home ownership, ; home and community loving. A | check of the records of The Monitor ; subscribers shows that 98 per cent of ! them own or are buying homes. ; Ninety-three per cent of them are heads of families running from two > to 12 people. That they spend hun dreds of thousands of dollars an nually with the various merchants and business houses of the communi ties in which they live. That a big, majority of them can and do pay their bills promptly. That the great ma jority of them are engaged in busi ness or other gainful occupations. With this kind of clientele, we come to you for your business and feel confident that we are offering you a fair assurance for returns on your investment. Gratefully yours, THE EDITOR. TO OUR CIRCULATION CLIENTELE Dear Friends: You have subscribed to this paper, some of you, from the first issue un til now. You have been its most worthy and loyal supporters. We have reason to believe that you have enjoyed its reading matter and pol icy. For this, the new management, j returns most humble and hearty thanks and the hope that you will continue with it. If you are behind on your sub scription, please send remittance to BOX 1204, Omaha, Neb., or call WEBSTER 1984 and I will be glad to send or come for it. Our existence and legal stat us depends upon paid up circulation. Thank you. THE EDITOR. NORTH SIDE Y. W. C. A. VESPERS Do attend the vesper service, Sun day, December 9th, at 4 p. m., at North Side Y. W. C. A., in charge of the religious and general education committee, Mrs. Hiram Greenfield, presiding. The striking Biblical narrative of the life of Christ from the call of the disciples through to the feeding of the five thousand will be beauti fully portrayed in a cantata, “The Story of the Orient,” by fourteen girls and boys of the Zion Baptist church, under the direction of Mrs. Lena Dallas, who has trained the chorus so perfectly that they render their parts in song so exceptionally that it brings yearnings to the soul for a deeper Christian life. This is the first cantata presented at our vespers. Come early and secure good seats. Bring all your friends. Devotionals, Mrs. Frank Cole. Cantata, “The Story of the Or ient.” Personnel of cantata: Dorothy Beck, Stenola Williams, Dorothy Springs, Aislee Dotson, Anita Wil liams, Orade Maxwell, Eva Mae Dot son, Lucile Moore, Dorothy Thomp son, Willa Weston, Harry Anderson, Clede Maddison and Delmar Kirtley. Reader, Mrs. Lena Dallas. At piano, Miss Helen Hunnigan. A delightful social hour will fol low. You are invited to remain and enjoy your “Y” hospitality. ,The Athletic Gem club, composed of high school reserves, will have charge of the following vesper pro gram on December 23rd: Processional, “Silent Night,” Girl Reserves. Call to worship. Hymn, “Come All Ye Faithful,” Girl Reserves. Responsive reading, led by Miss Mary Caldwell. Prayer. Hymn, "Joy to the World.” Christmas message, Miss Josephine 1 Martin. Christmas carols, Girl Reserves. Closing ceremonial. Memberahip Remember, this is homecoming month. Have you paid your mem bership? Hospitality The hospitality committee invites you and your friends to have “an evening of fun” on December l?th. The health education class will give a demonstration. Games, music, and a general good time await you. Come and bring 5 cents. Watch for the date of the “Hang ing of the Greens,” you can't afford to miss this. URBAN LEAGUE SEEKS EMPLOYMENT FACTS The industrial re lations department of the National Ur ban league is com piling a list of Ne groes engaged in unusual occupations throughout the country, and is asking that the read ers of this paper co-operate by send ing to the department information on this subject. Tf you yourself have a job of a knid not usually held by colored pe.ople, or if you know of anyone else having such a position, please send the following informa tion: Name of the person, kind of work, and the fact or circumstance that influenced his or her employ ment. If you are not sure about any of these items and can give only the name and address of the person you know about, send that. Ail infor mation gathered will be available to the public. Address all correspond ence to T. Arnold Hill, National Ur ban league, 17 Madison avenue, New York City, N. Y. The board of director? of the Oma ha Urban league, for social service among Negroes, invites you and your friends to attend its first annual meeting Sunday, December 9, at 4 p. m., at Zion Baptist church, 2215 Grant street. Hear Rabbi Frederick Cohn on “Interracial Co-operation.” Special musical selections will be ren |dered. LETTER COMMENDING RETIR ING EDITOR A. Stuart of Stuart’s Art shop, 1803 North 24th street, writes a let ter commenting on the former Edi ' tor’s retirement. Father John Albert Williams, Omaha, Neb., Dec. 3, 1928. Reverend and Dear Sir: Your editorial entitled “Editor’s ! Adieu,” appearing in The Monitor of November 30th, was very inter j esting to me. The paper which you have been editing for several years has done credit to this state, city, colored people and yourself. _ We appreciate the difficulty of securing another to fill your place on that paper, but we take courage in the knowledge that God has relieved any anxiety coming from this angle by bringing to you a man to replace you who is endowed with high intel lectual attainments, a knowledge of the industrial, and economic welfare of our people, and a man whom I hold in the highest esteem, in the person of Mr. Geo. Bullock. While I regret very much your going, I feel a deep sense of indebt edness to you for your notice of Mr. Bullock’s succeeding you. We ap preciate your good reason for re linquishing the editorship to devote your time to your church work, and my sympathy and good wishes go with you. The citizens of this city and com munity will remember you long for your fearlessness as a newspaper man and as well as a logical thinker. We have faith that you will advance the Kingdom of God in this higher capacity as you have done in this j lower. m Very truly yours, ^ A. STUART. Nashville, Tenn. — The Citizens Savings Bank and Trust company of this city, which claims to be the old est Negro bank in the United States, will soon celebrate its 25th anniver sary. Henry Allen Boyd is president and J. C. Napier, formerly registrar of the U. S. Treasury, is cashier. FOLLOWS IN ANCESTOR’S FOOTSTEPS New Orleans, La., Dec. 7.— (A. N. P.)—Michael A. Doyle, 19, the son of George Doyle, former deputy U.S. marshal, enlisted in the Tenth Cav alry pf the U. S. army and left for Port Huachuca, Arizona, Friday. Doyle’s great grand uncle, Charles Forneret, was in chareg of a Negro regiment at the battle of New Or leans. yAVW.V.V/W.VAVV.VAVAV.V.VA'.V.VAW.V.1 □E Our Bargain Basement Christmas Gift Items At Savings! Rayon Spreads / Saturday jl 3.98 I 1* Specially purchased high grade Rayon £ *■ bedspreads! High luster and attractive jl designs make them worth-while Gifts , ■! Basement 5 WAVWA,AV/AV.,.V.V.,.V.,.V.,.V,V.,.,.,.V.V.,.,.V.,.V.V.,.y jj THE CHICAGO RESTAURANT j: £ Formerly Chinaman Sam’s Place £ ■I 107 SOUTH FOURTEENTH STREET J •I Open Under New Management £ J Fresh Substantial Home Cooked Food and Quick Service v £ Will Be Our Motto At All Times Ip jl Open Daily from 6 a. m. Till 12 p. m. Midnight £ Prices the Lowest ;• I; MR. and MRS. BENJ. F. BURTON, Proprietors £ ■* Jackson 9946 !■ % AVV/.VAVA,.V.V.VAV.‘.V.V.V.V.,.V/W//AVAVW/WJ WAmV.VW^WWWWA'W.WWW.V, j Subscribe for 5 "■ THE ^ l OMAHA MONITOR I ■j Omaha’s Old Reliable Weekly j i 14th Year J "■ • 5j ■: Largest Circulation :■ J $2.00 a Year — 5c a Copy ^ ation ■: rnitor i| MHUWNIHBNS9K ■BHHS