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About The Omaha guide. (Omaha, Neb.) 1927-19?? | View Entire Issue (Aug. 10, 1935)
V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.'.VV.V/AV.VAV.WAW.'.VW.V/.V.V.V.V.W.V. . . . EDI IORIALS . . . • ■ ■ ■ ■ ■■■■■■•■ a .1 ■ tm m mmmmm ■■■■■■■ aaa m m m m m m Thz Omaha Guide Published every Saturday at 2418-2j Grant St.. Omaha, Neb. Phone WEbster 1750 Entered as Second Class Matter March 15. 1927 at the Post Office at Omaha. Xeb., under the Act of Congress of March 3, 1879. Terms of Subscription $2.00 per year Race prejudice must go- The Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man must pre vail. These are the only principles which will stand the acid test of good citizenship in time of peace, war and death. Omaha. Nebraska, Saturday, AUGUST 10, 1935 WILLED AND UNWILLED FACTORS IN THE RACE PROGRAM July 17, 1935 Special to The Omaha Guide by Kelly Miller In my last release I spoke of the solution of the race problem by si'ence as contrasted to the solution by conscientious effort and agitation. Since recon struction times both of these types of effort have been in operation. Negro leaders through individual effort and organized endeavor have sought to direct the life of the race, but in spite of it all the present trend is retrograde and no satisfactory outcome is in sight. This is the conclusion arrived at by Dr. DuBois, who for forty years has been the foremost exponent for the doctrine of rectification of racial affairs by protes and agitation. The National As sociation for the Advancement of Colored People for the last quarter of a century has typified the spirit of agitation and protest and has directed the organized effort of the race in this behalf. This militant organization has undoubtedly accomplished sundry incidental results of considerable racial val ue and advantage; but comprehensively it has not been able to remove a single obstacle against which it directed its energies or yet to point, out a plain path of procedure for the future. Its energies have been directed against jim crow cars, disfranchise ment, separate schools, segregation ,lynching, and various forms of industrial and economic discrimi nation. And yet not a single jim crow car has been taken from the tracks, disfranchisement, to all in tent and purpose, is as rampant as ever, segregation is all but complete, lynching proceeds according to its own savage will, separate schools are extending Northward and Westward, legal and civil discrimi nation have become the established vogue of Feder a' and state government, organizaitons and indivi duals. Inother words, the race problem in all its es sential features remains unbudged. I do not mean to say that conditions might not have been worse had not the NAACP and like organized and industrial effort exerted themselves during the past fifty years. They have at least kept alive the spirit of pro test In the mean time the racial life has been impel led. in the main, by unwilled forces. The influx of Negro population into the North was unwilled and unpurposed by any individual or organization, it was the inevitable result of uncontrolled conditions. The shifting of political power from South to North came as the incidental result of the shift of popula tion. A million Negroes were thrust into Northern industry as an incidental outcome of the World War. and they were thrust out again as soon as the war was over. The development of machinery has produced an impasse in the industrial world. As a result millions of workmen are thrown out of employ ment. incidentally the negro becomes the chief vic tim of this displacement. The Negro’s place in the life of the nation is conditioned upon the relative scarcity of unskilled labor. Where this type of labor is abundant, the Negro is cheap, where it is scarce he is dear. The Negro is cheap today in both the North and the South because there is no scarcity of the type of labor which he is qualified to perform. The invention of the cotton gin made the Negro in dispensable in the cotton growing industry of the South, but the loom excluded him from the textile industry. The invention of a successful cotton pick er would exclude him from the cotton growing in dustry and make him as industrially unneesesary in the South as he is in the North. All of this is the re sult of unwilled factors over which the Negro has no control. Race prejudice is the outstanding factor in the race problem in America, and indeed, in the world. "V\ c have not yet found any agency that can effec ti\cl\ grapple with this evil passion or seriously modu.' its malignant manifestations, try ever so hard. Thus the Negro stands in the face of destiny like an infant crying in the night, and cry he must The theologians used to discuss the relative part played by predestination and free wlil in human destiny. Although we have changed the terminology we are still confronted by these two factors of which social evolution is the joint outcome. We hear much in this day and time about social planning which must depend upon social foreknowledge and the power to control foreseen faetors No one is able to forsee or foretell the destiny of the Negro in the Western world, and therefore all racial planning must be haphazard and uncertain. | if we cannot see the distant scene, we can at least guide and guard the immediate step. After all, human concern is with duty, not with destiny. Each K indi\ idual should perform the duty which is voueh to him without reference to its affect upon ul ■ timate destiny. The prophet sits on the wall and sees warns ve multiude of the coming danger, but alas, ! ■ :.as been woefully lacking in prophets. The indivii; a Is have had to feel after the right way. if luiji.y u.ey may find it. There is a certain school of philosophy which preaches that if the individual looks after himself, the race will look after itself. This rs hut a half-truth, but an important one. When Denmark Yeasev and Nat Turner stirred up slave insurrections. Frederick Douglas fulminat ed against the iniquity of slavery. Booktr T. Wash ington launched his industrial propaganda, W. E. B D. Bois wrote “The Souls of Black Folk” Kelly Mil ler, sailed the Negro Sanhedrian. Marcus Garvoy promoted his African empire—Those all by con scious effort, were essaying a solution of the race problem. But when Phillis Wheatley and Paul Lawr renee Dubar courted the Muse, Benjamin Bannoker and Ferdinand Wood invented mechanical contriv ances. Henry Tanner painted pictures, Ira Aldridge Gilpin and Paul Robeson displayed histronic talent, Roland Hays and Ethel Waters excelled in song, Jesse Owens outruns the world, Joe Louis heads for kingship of the prize ring—those were but perform ing the immediate tasks which lay before them with out eoseious purpose of settling the race problem. These two types of effort indicate the relative ef fectiveness of willed and unwilled effort. The re former and the performer must both play their part. Both are efficient, neither is sufficient. Kelly Miller A CENTURY OF FACT FINDING For more than a hunderd years, an insurance executive recently pointe dout, the institution of life insurance has been collecting facts about the af fairs of men—their needs, hopes, dreams and em bitions, and the ersponsibilities they have to cope with. The result of that century of effort is that life ’nsuraaee is better able to deal with man’s financial problem tha nanv other agency ever devised. It is the only agency that creates weath for the individu al. then undertakes its distribution and, finally, guarantees, the income derived. A life insurance company, in brief, when it ac cepts a premium, accepts the entire responsibiity for the investment and care of the '‘wealth’’ deposited with it. The owner of the money is automatically relieved of the worries attendant upon investments by an individual—worries that are especially great when the amount of money involved is relatively small, and the investor is without the special knowl edge and dispassionate, realistic advice that mak£ for investment safety. The life insurance company puts that money to work, so that it may produce a return—and, instead of putting it all in one place, it distributes it widely, in government bonds, indus trial securities, farm and urban mortgages and so on. And, lastly, it maintains a vast cash reserve to insure that it will be able to meet obligations promptly and in full. It is only in recent years that the average per son has had an insight into the investment phase of life insurance. That phase is as important as the protection phase. VITAL SERVICES T OTHE FARMER An example of the vital services that good co operative institutions provide for theirmembers— services that are not obtainable elsewhere—was pro vided during the recent eleventh annual session of the American Institute of Cooperation. Executives of eooperatiive dairy associations, coupled with research experts, made the most searching probe in 10 years concerning the national and international outlok for marketing America’s dairy products The probe and the ensuing appraisal included factors of production; the trend of consumption; the effect of imports on both dairy products and competitive oils and fats; the extent to which two years of operation under federal and state control has changed market conditions; the possible influ ence of reciprocal trade agreements upon dairy pro ducts. and similar questions which effect the future welfare of the dairy farmer. It is impossible to exaggerate the worth of such a probe. Leaders of dairy cooperatives throughout the country wil be much better prepared to cope with the marketing and price problems they foce, and to inform their members as to the best course of future action. They will be able to scientifically develop plans, and to proceed with greater confi dence and certainty. FIE REQUISITES OF COOPERATION According to Earl W. Benjamin, General Man ager of the Pacific Egg Producers, there are five requisites to success in forming and conducting an agricultural cooperative: First, qualified executives must be employed to handle the cooperative’s affairs. Second, the co-op must be soundly and ade quately financed. Third, it should stand on its ovwi legs, meet competition through advancing the efficiency of op eration, and should so far as it is possible avoid de pending on governmental subsidies. Fourth, it should limit its activities strictly to the business purposes of the cooperative. Fifth, it should keep all members thoroughly informed as to what is going on. As Mr Benjamin says, cooperatives lacking any of these requisites are doomed to trouble sooner or later. ECONOMIC HIGHLIGHTS Happenings That Affect the Dinner Pails, Dividend Creeks and Tax Blls of Every Individual. Na tional and International Problems I nes parable from Local Welfare. The march of New Deal legisla tion through the courts continues. Within the past three weeks, three major Administration measures have been subjected to judicial scrutiny —and two of the three have been found wanting. Last words, of course, will be said by the Supreme Court when it meets for its next term, but present decisions provide a lead on what the highest court of all is likely to decide. First case concerned the Agricul tural Adjustment Administraton. This bureau pays farmers for re | stricting their crops, raises the money throuih processinb and floor raxes. Plantiff in the case was a milling company, which had refused to pay $82,000 demanded by the col lector #f internal revenue. In the district court, the government was upheld, and the company was ord ered to come through with the $82,000. It appealed to the district court in Boston, which reversed the lower court, by a 2-to-l decision, and held that Congress did not possess me power to aeiegue uixn^ autnor ity to the Secretary of Agriculture. If this decision is given validty by the Supreme Court, the Government may have to refund processing taxes already collected, and pay future benefits out of regular funds. Second case concerned the policy of the Public Works Administration in condemning land to use for low cost federal housing projects. Tihs is very close to the heart of Secre tary fc-kes, wha has planned s. 5250,000,000 slum clearance and low-cost housing program. Suit was brought by a property owner who did not wish to sell at the Govern ment’s price, wshed to bargain for greater compensation. The Cincin nati circuit court upheld for the plaintiff, said that the Government has not the power to condemn land for this purpose. Third case involved, one of the most debated of Administration activities—the Tennessee Valley Au thority. A few months ago a suit was brought to restrain the Author ity from selling electric power in competition with private producers and to invalidate contracts made be tween the Authority and various towns in the Tennessee area. Fed eral District Judge Grubb held for the plaintiff, decided the contracts were illegal. The Government ap pealed to the Appellate court in New Orleans, and the judges overruled Judge Grubb, decided that the Gov ; emment can sell power in competi tion with private parties. Thus the New Deal came to the bar three times—won once, and lost tiwcfc. This is similar to past experi ence. and illustrates a fact recog nized by Administration friends and opponents alike—that much of the legislation proposed and pushed by the President cannot be held valid without Constitutional change. And that promises to be the prime plank in next year’s general elect on. Every business publication and : commentator seems agreed on this: | The business outlook continues to improve, with advances especially noteworthy in the durable goods in rustries. These heavy industries are in a better position now than at any rime since depression set in. In the words of one magazine, “It’s a dur able goods summer.” Here is some specific information: COPPER—Recent« demand excep tionally heavy. Tonnage sold in first half of July was equal to the quota for two months under the NRA code. Frice advances forecast by some. MACHINE TOOL—T r e. m endous gain registered in dollar volume. Index recently touched 91 per cent of the 1926 avearage—best level since 1929. MOTORS—Reports continue to be good. Passenger car sales for the frst half of the year ran about 45 per cent ahead of the same period in 1934. In June. Ford sold most ears for that month since 1930, Chevrolet surpassed all June records since 1929. ELECTRIC POWER — R e^c e n t month showed highest consumption since the latter part of 1931. STEEL—At 40 per cent of capac ity. a substantial advance over a few months ago. RETAIL TRADE—Held steady in to the summer, avoding the usual seasonal drop. These serve to illustrate the trend. Queston now is, can advance he con tinued ? European observers who can spare time from the Italian-Ethiop ian trouble, are casting synical glances on Germany these days. Another Hitler “purge” is under way-bloodless as yet. though many fear blood-letting will soon start. Objects of persecution are. of course, the Jews. And along with them are the Catholics, clergymen of all denominations, and members of | the Stahleim—the German equiva lent of the American Legion. Reas on for the attack on the veterans is that they contain “re&ctianaries” —in other words, men who are op posed to the Hitler dictatorship. Stricter censorship prevails in Germany. Individual liberties are furt her proscribed. Concentration camps are jammed. Hitler’s sword agan hangs above those Germans who think him less than divine. Elks of The World In The ‘Convention of The Century’ Washinglon—C'NS—The * ‘ Con vention of the Century’’ is the way in which the coining Thirty six annual grand lodge conven , tions of the Improved Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks of the World, here in the Capital of the Nation, August 25-31, is heralded throughout the country. A delegation of “high Elks” headed by Grand Exalted Ruler, J. Finley Wlison called at the White House, Wednesday, -July : 31, to invite President Roosevelt i to review the grand parade Aug ust 27 and attend the oratorical contest. The Chief Executive of the Nation informed the commit tee that if possible he would ac cept the invitation. He expressed interest in the health, educational and civil liberties programs of the ] order and gave the delegation one | of the heartiest greetings ever ex tended to any group in a visit to I the White House. Mr. Wilson handed the Presi dent an engraved nivitation to re view the parade; and Mr. Roose velt responded pleasantly and grasped the hand of “the Grand” with a hearty hand shake, as the | cameras of the photographers reg istered the eventful meeting. All the principal national news picture bureaus had representa tives present taking pictures and the next morning the metropoli tan dailies throughout the coun try carried pictures taken during the visit of the delegates. The President “was shot” in a dozen os more different poses with members of the committee group. The delegation in addition to J. Finley Wilson, grand exalted ruler, and l)r. Charles B. Fischer, general ehairmantof the conven mittee, were Attorney Roy S. Bond, grand royal knight; Wil liam C. Hueston, commissioner of education: John H. Rhines, com missioner of athletics; Dr. Wil liam J. Thompkins, commissioner of health; Captain Arthur New man, grand marshall of the pa i rade; and Robert H. Ogle, grand Secretary of the convention com mittee. The convention proper will be held August 25-31; and by act of j Congress a sufficient sum of mon ey has been appropriated for street decorations, maintenance of public order and the protection of life and property during the convention. Congress also au thorized the use of public parks, ; reservations in the District of Co lumbia, and the use of the neces sary tents, cots, hospital applianc es, etc., to provide for the com fort and convenience of all who visit Washington during this per iod. Grand Exalted Ruler Wilson has just issued his annual procla mation to the officers and mem I bers of the grand and subordinate j lodges and. the grand and sub ordinate temples of the order, in which he set forth that: “When, with prophetic vision, our beloved Order dug into its treasury to aid general welfare, there were narrow-minded critics who complained, but we have liv ed to eee the Nation dig into its treasury to the tune of billions to avert distress and bring recov ery. Elkdom is proud of its fore sight and its program, aided by your loyal support through the last decade. “We Ishall consider the econom ic welfare of our group. We shall : formulate plans looking toward hte manufacture of our uniforms and regalia amounting to a mil lion dollars a year. Your proposed Fidelity Fund to secure the trust worthy performance of all obli gations by those wrho handle funds of the Order is to be mov ed forward to function. The beet brains and loftiest aims growing out of the principles of the Order of Improved Benevolent Protec tive Elks of the World will be commanded to move ever for ward. The Education and Economic Congress From August 22 to 24, an edu cation Economic Congress, under the auspices of the Elk’s Depart ment of Education will assemble in Washington, for the purpose of devising ways and means to se cure the equitable administration of the laws governing public edu cation in the States of the Union; as well as to attempt to work out a formula by the use of whicr to break down the wall which ex cludes Negroes from the credit world. Delegates to this Congress are being named by Governors and Mayors throughout the country. The membership of the Congress is not confined to the membership of the Elk’s fraternity. All who are interested may select dele gates; and certify their names to the Director of the Congress, W. C. Hueston, 1915 Fourteenth St., ‘orthwest, "Washington, D. C. Health Awakening Health Director William J. Thompkins, Recorder of Deeds of the District of Columbia, the Capital City has a new, progres sive Health Officer, and improved health condtiions are now outlin-1 ed. Throughout the nation, health has taken on a new meaning in conformity with the movement started by this order ten years ago. Junior Elks to be Prominent General W. T. Meade Grant, grand director of the junior herd, has completed arrangmeents for our boys and girls to enjoy the experience of their lives. A full day wlil be given to their section of the program. As the Boy —Scouts of America are to be in Washington at the same time, the opportunity for making manhood will be supreme. Future members of Congress may be created by this vsiit Of the Junior Elks to the Capital City. Athletics Director John T. Rhines is put ting the Athletic Department on the map. He will put on a pro gram during the Convention w hich will cause his most san guine admirers to sit up and take notice when the heroes of the cin despath and bathing beauties take charge on August 27. All athletes should communicate with Director John T. Rhines, 301 Eye Street, S. W., Washington, D. C., for information and assignments. Jesse Owen, holder of three world records, and recently appointed State Director of Athletics for Elks in Ohio, wrili positively ap pear. Convention Program “The National Oratorical Con test wall be held at the Metropoli tan A. M. E. Church ; the sessions of the Convention of the Grand Lodge will occupy the New Ma sonic Temple; the meeting of the Alumni fo the Elk’s Educational Section will be held at the Metro politan Baptist Church. Dr Chas. E. Wesley will preach the Bacca laureate Sermon at the Metropoli tna A. Al. L. Church and Grand Chaplain W. G. Avant will pre side. The pilgrimage to the shrine of the late Grand Legal Adviser, Col. Henry Lincoln Johnson, will move Sunday. August 25, with a sermon by the Grand Chaplain at night. “The address of welcome will be delivered by the Honorable Melvin C. Hazen, President of the Board of Commissioners; Tuesday afternoon, 1 o’clock p. m.; tHe Grand Parade will move down his toric Constitution Avenue, head ed by the machine gun battalion of the Old Tenth Cavalry, w'hich will hail from Arizona, August 27 “The championship baseball game and the band contest will be held at the Griffith Stadium following the pardae. cash prizes wil be awarded the first and sec-j ond mands for the best mus:e and the longest distance travel'ed.1 Prizes wil lalso be awarded the i Marching Clubs with the largest enrollment and traveling the long est distance. “All units preparing to parti cipate in the Grand Parade should communicate at once, with the Commander - in - Chief, the Grand Exalted Ruler. To post pone this actoin until the places are assigned in the parade may cause embarrasment, and to wait until the arrival in "Washington will be too late. ‘ Wednesday will see the Grand Lodge in session, with the Grand Promenade at night at the Mason ic Temple. You Must Not Miss This Con vention “Every American citizen should visit and see the city of the whole people. It will thrill you with pride and stir you to new enthu siasm for American ideals. Our racial history is written largely hero, from the Statute of Freedom which tops the Capitol’s dome, set in place b yNegro workmen to Howard University with its new million-dollar building, the “Capstone of Negro Education You may stand where Lincoln stood at Fort Stevens with a Ne gro woman praying by his side for God’s protection from the bul lets flying around hmi during the Civil "War; you may ride down the w'ide avenues surveyed by Benjamin Banneker, worknig un der L ’Enfant; you may gaze upon the bronze replicas of those Civil "War heroes—Grant, Sherman, Logan, Sheridan, Garfield, Scott and Thomas—never to be forgot ten; you may visit the plants of the greatest business in the world, the departmetns of the United Sttaes Government and its gigan tic extensions under the growth of the Nation. These and a hun dred other experiences await you at the “CONVENTION of the CENTURY’’, to be held here for the frist tmie in 25 yeans.” Court Rules on Howard University Status Washington—CNS—For the first time in the history of How ard University, the Court of Ap peals today established the status of that institution as a private en terprise rather than a public un dertaking within the meaning of the Heard Act. A group of sub-contractors had instituted proceedings to recover under a bond which the genreal contractor on a construction pro ject at the uni verst iy had pur nished. Attorney Geoorge P. Lemin op posed the payment under the bond, claiming that although the contract had been signed by the Department of Interior and the bond w-as required under the con tract, the university was operated under a private charter and is not “public buildings or public works’’, within the meaning of the Heard Act Under the ruling of the Appel late Court sub-contractors with unpaid claims must file liens just as would be required in the case of private corporations. Hero’s Widow Plans To Conserve Fund Raised For Family Washington, Aug.—ANP—Mrs. Sterling Calhoun, w hose husband drowmed in the Anacostia river, near hen- on July 12, in the ef fort to save two white children from drowning, will spend the thousand or more dollars raised for her and her family as sparing ly as possible, according to a statement made by her this week, when she was handed $215 raised by Joe Turner, local fight pro moter. Citizens of both races have ral lied to the cause of raising fileds to aid the family of the man wrho lived a pauper for the last three. years but who died a hero. Bene fits have been staged by theaters, fight promoters, churches and civic organizat'ons and at each the public turned out in large numbers, boosting the fund to a little more than $1,000. When interviewed in her humble but spotless and neatly kept little home a tl7 L street, southwest, Mrs. CaLhoun, with her two little children present, said: “When Sterling went to his death, it seemed that life was not worth living any more, but the way people have come to our res cue. has given me new courage and I am going to spend this money just as slow as I can, pay ing my rent, buying the necessary clothing for my children and my self arid of course for food.”