^EDnORIALS^i EriERESienEnErifcnfenfe'ril i£? rilarfejT&iBnfenfail^^ THE OMAHA GUIDE Published Every Saturday at 2418-20 Grant Street, Omaha, Nebraska Phones: WEbster 1617 or 1618 Entered as Second Class Matter March 16, 1927, at the Postoffice at Omaha, Neb., underAct of Congress of March 3, 1879. TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION $2.00 PER YEAR , Race prejudice must go. The Fatherhood of God and the Brother hood of Man must prevail. These are the only principles which will •tand the acid test of good. All News Capy of Churches and all Organisations must be In our office not later than 6s00 p. m. Monday for current issue. All Adver tising Copy or Paid Articles not later than Wednesday noon, proceed ing date of issue, to insure publication. THE NEW CARS ARE OUT l ast month <• immobile hows were lr 1<1 throughout, the country The new mis are more beautiful in design and finish than evr before. They offer much in the way of improvements and gadgets, heir power plants deliver staggering performance*— you can pnjrli the throttl down and run up to eighty or ninety m. ]). b. without trouble so far as the mechanics of vour cor arc concerned, , However, the 'emphasis placed on speed lui.s been product ive of one of the gravest national “troubles’’ Anuinifa has cvi r known—the growing accident toll. And the driver who thinks that seventy is safe because it seem* as slow as thirty used to should think again. Silent engine jxrformance won’t help if we encounter a ce ment guard rail at a hjgli rate of speed. Kffortless steering wont make a. head-on collision less destructive. Lack of vih'ra tion won t Help flic undertaker patch u.s together after the wreck ing crew gets tin* body out with blow torches. But these modern cars are magnificent examples of safety - engineering liliu-priilt safety. Brakes stop a hurtling ma chine in amazingly short dii-tance, wt;tli;mi( sway or sjhock. All at eel hodi s will take a lot of punishment without serious dam age. Steering mechanisms are next to fool proof. And the tire manufacturers have done their lift by reducing the blowout haz ard to a minimum. ' et each year’s sat fey improvements have been followed by more accidents and by more serious accidents, not less severe accidents. Why! Because we, the motoring public! have over flaftimated tin* safety factor of the new cam, just we have overestimated the safety factor of wider, better surfaced high ways. Til l cars and the roads have improved- and so we take chances that load to disaster. The new, super-performing cars arc out. Maybe you are lucky enough to be able to buy one. Have a good time with it— but treat it with respect and remember that 36,000 people die and many limns more are inijuned and maimed on streets and highways every year. Don’t add to that list. 1 ‘Only those who have followed the sad record of the rela tions between the United States and the government* of the countries to the south of us can really appreciate the epochal divinge that President Roosvelt has brought to the inter-Ameri can scene.’’ critics so far as the domestic policy is concerned—the United critics so far as the domest policy is concerned—in the United States News of November 30. About all the average citizen knows about U. S. foreign pol icy as related to the other countries in this hemisphere is that it is governed by somtliing celebrated nnd vague called the Mon roe Doctrine. Probably not ones citizen in a hundred could ac curately tell you what the Monroe Doctrine provides. And prob ably not one citizen in a hundred realizes that the Doctrine has been virtually a dead letter for several years and, ns well, lias caused a vast amount of unfriendly feeling toward this country in the Republics to the south. Briefly and roughly described, the Monroe Doctrine meant that the United States would not permit any European govern ment to take over territory in Latin Amrica—that the U. S ' would act as a “Big Brother’’ in protecting Latin American ter ritorial rights as well as its own. This seemed fair enough—but the Doctrine bad not been in effect long bfore discord arose. More than a century ago, Brazil requested that the Doctrine, in David fL|l'vfri£nlL’os wor^si “be made international, that it be j J «ome a sort of offensive and defensive alliance in which all Lat v countries should join with the United States in keeping Eu - rope an armies and navies out of this part of the world..-. i ns were similar requests made in later years. ^ 1 * * Consequently, the Latin Republics came to feel, rightly or - wr»mvly. Uuii the LT. 3. gg » taking advantage of the Doctrine to rule their countries. This feeling was strengthened by sending ft M~tI.|Hmarines s*u|ii wlg«cer trouble appeared in n Latin Amer 1 f*k» u U * ^ -There are no marines in T.uPiiJ Agaric.a now—and it seems Vldwftfnl-if t there ^p.ik. Jt is a curious fact that . Wh TToqyej and Roo*evdlt took the initiative in yithdrawing I'ftaf iifj'i ii!■ witnitiTiBlitn “U. S. Jperialis: eposition citizens . . ■What is the result of all tliis, In eyes of mniny American j Editor Warns Harlem In School Fight Editor Fred R. Moore of the New York Acre, and Mrs. Moore Photo shown Editor Fred Ii. Moore of the New York Age, dean of Harlem editors, being served tea by his wife, Mrs. Ida E. Moore. Ed itor Moore, recently in an article headed “A Dangerous Path ’ waitned Harlem in its current fight against certain public school principals as follows: We are with the agitators one hundred per cent whi >n they arc right, but when they veer off at a tangent, it is time for us to call atten tion to their faults. Hy continuing to rave and fight against certain public school principals in the school of Harlem the agitators are building up a wall of color prejudice which if allowed to continue unabated, will have wide repercussions throughout the city. Just as the Negro parents can agitate against white teach ers, so can white parents agitate against Ne gro teachers. Agitation on the basis of color alone, conducted by Negroes, always reacts to the Negro’s disfavor. observers, tin* result will be a genuine feeling of friendship for uis on the part of the Republics to the south—and there are signs that such a feeling ioys planted trees at top speed for fifteen minutes. FARM TENANCY Only five states ranked below Ne braska in the share of farm land irul buildings owned by the farmers >vho operated them in 1930, tables made public recently by the U. S. Bureau of Agricultural Economics evealed. The tables show that farm op j raters in Nebraska owned but one third or 33 per cent of the value of he farms they were operating in 1.930. Maine farmers, at the other \ extreme, owned 77.7 per cent equity In the farms they operated. These figures were arrived at by j counting out all farm tenants, who naturally do not own any share, who the farms they operate, and by cotinting out the mortgage indebt ness on land and buildings—since that share really belongs to the mortgage holder. Cal A. Ward, regional director of the Resettlement Administration, blames high farm mortgage indebt ness and the excessive number of farm bankruptcies in the pain sta tes since the war for a larger part of the rapid growth in farm tenan cy. Farm tenants in Nebraska have increased from 18 per cent of all farmers in the stote in 1880 to 49 per cent in 1935. Only the south has a large per cent of tenant-op erated farms than the midwest, Mr. Ward reports. “Most of the Resettlement Ad ministration’s programs are al ready helping to combat the grow ing farm tenancy evil by aiding farmers to hold onto land and build ings they now own, and helping tenants get in position to buy the land they are leasing,” he regional director comments, “but we are con fident the government can make much more rapid progress in check ing farm enancy the next few years by giving this problem the special attention it deserves.” Mid-West Co-ops Have Steady Growth A period of steady frowth for farmer’s cooperative organizations in the middle west is foreseen by J. H. Mason, president of the Oma ha (Nebr.) Bank for Cooperatives. Arriving in Washington for a conference of cooperative bank presidents at the central office of the Farm Credit Administraion, Mason declared the stage is set for cooperative farm activities to surge ahead. “Cooperatives came through the depression, with a comparatively low number of failures,” he said. “But more important is their will ingness to head the danger signals raised during the depression by re organizing on a producer-member basis and refinancing their debts on a sound basis. These two strides toward permanent growth are be ing taken by large numbers of co operatice ass’n. in Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota and Wyoming.” Organized three years ago to pro vide a credit service to farmers' cooperativs in the four states, the Omaha bank for Cooperatives now has 204 outstanding for a total j <>f $1,671,000, Mason reported. White Women Study American Negro Singer Finds Eager Interest In Accomplishments of Race Little Rock, Ark., Dec. 19 (Spe cial)—Will the influence of women, white and colored, become a really potent influence in improving rela tionship and understanding be tween the races ? Etta Moien, who is on a concert tour of the south during which she has sung at ipoints in Mississippi, Arkansas, Louiana, Alabama, Geor gia, Flordia and North Caroina, and has had one stimulating experience after another, described an incident to interviewers here this week which would indicate that such a possibility is not merely in the realm of conecture. The discussion leader of he. Wo men’s Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal church, south, the most fashionable church in Lit tle Rock, had called on Miss Moten and presented a picture of her work, detailing the changed outlook which it had given her. The leader, Mrs. Ozart, a daughter of the old aris tocratic south, had attended a Mis sionary Institute at which leaders of several states were enrolled for training in the study program to be presented in their various chur ches during the winter. Arriving, she found that the subject to be presented during the next six mon ths was “The American Negro." Feeling that the women of her church would never be interested in any such program, she protest ed to the instructor that there was nothing for her to learn about Ne groes; her father had worked many on his plantation in Mississippi, and she knew all about them. Prevailed upon, however, to remain for the course, she became so amazed and interested that she confessed to the instructor before it was over that she could scarcely wait to return home and arrange for the formation of the class in her church. She found a ready response am ong not all, but a majority of wo men in the First church. They won dered at their lack of knowledge of these people who had always lived right at their doors as the leader posed to them such questions as; ■who wrote the first Negro sym-1 phony ? Who is Cluirles S. Johnson? Where is Tuskegee? In what city is Fisk university? What great scientist has made many products from the peanut and sweet pota to.” They were eager to know more, and asked for additional examina tions and information of the same type. So Mrs. Corzart arranged a pro gram which she invited several Little Rock colored, people including a group of college singers, college president Gregg, and a housewife. Learning Miss Moten was in Little Rock, she had come to ask her if she would come and talk with them. Miss Moten went, and found a packed lecture room full of the lead ing women °f Little Rock including members of the Daughters of the American Revolution and Daugh ters of the War of 1812 who had been invited. Almost as gifted a speaker as she is a singer, Miss Moten told them about the accom plishments of Negroes, paricularly in music and the fine arts. She sketched the careers and achieve ments of Caterino Jarboro, Marian Anderson, Florenc^j jOole-Talbert, Lillian Evanti, James Weldon and Rosamond Johnson, Harry Burleigh, Hall Johnson, Eva Jessye, Dr. Du bois, Dr. R. R. Moten, and Dr. F.. R Patterson.. The wave of interest was electric. Expressions of appreciation were profused. The wife of the editor of the “Arkansas Gazette,” the leading nwspaper of the section, drove her to the “Gazette” office and to her next appointment. The foowing night, when Miss M<>ten sang at Dunbar High School, the women of the First church were there in force and sent a gorgeous basket of flowers. “I admit,” said Miss Moten, "mat more than ever before I am im pressed with the possibilities which lit before a better understanding between the women of the white and black groups. 1 hope our women, particularly those who are trained and have a message which may be serviceable but who frequently are as reserved in approaching or be coming interested in whites as they are in us, will embrace every op portunity to cultivate greater ap preciation on their part. After all, we are all just women under the skin, and if tolerance, a community of interest can be developed, who can tell what rewards it may bring, economically and spiritually for our whole group, and indeed our com | m'>n country. KELLY MILLER SAYS DEPARTMENT OF THE NEGRO FROM THE CIVlL SERVICE Both political parties in the re cent -campaign avowed their devo tion to the principle of Civil Ser vice reform. Governor Landon in jected the issue before accepting the platform as drawn up by his party. Not to be outdone, President Roosevelt forthwith extended the Civil Service so as to include post master of lower lank and grade. The Civil Service Reform League has been aroused to renewed inter est and activity touching this great reform which it inaugurated more than fifty years ago. It is probably not the conscious ness of the President, the Congress or of the Civil Service Reform Lea gue that its principles are vitiat ed when applied to the Negro race. For years I have individually tried my best through the press and di rect correspondence, to impress up on these dignitaries how this law breaks down when applied to citi zens of color. It would seem that I have failed utterly. It is difficult to impress upon public consciousness a matter about which it does not desire to be reminded. Several years ago I had an im portant conference with the then Civil Service Commissioner, ex Govemor Campbell. He frankly told me that the colored applicant did not have the ghost of a chance of appointment to clerical service ex cept in certain segregated assign ments. He expressed his full appre ciation of the injustice to the race. The responsibility, he ecared, does not lodge with the Civil Service Commission itself, which grades all applicants fairly, and certifies them according to their standing; but when the case comes before the ap pointing officer, there is the rub. These appointing officers are giv en certain discretions by the law to select among the names submit ted or they may reject the entire list. The identity of the applicant must be known to the appointing ’ffieer else he would be deprived of discretion, which it appears, the law intends he should have. The exchange of fingerprints for photographs would be of little bene fit for the colored applicant since his identity must be established. The introduction of photographs as a means of indentification was for the purpose of preventing the fraud of substituted names. The Civil Service Commission advised me some year ago that the substitution of fingerprints for photographs would be a very expensive proce dure reuiring the Commission to maintain fingerprint experts where ever a Civil Service examination is held. The control of the departments of the government is placed in the hands of the President by the Con stitution. He has full authority over the entire Civil Service machinery. If the miatter of basic injustice to the colored rare can be cearly im pressed upon his mind, there is not the slightest doubt that he would find some remedy either in the mod ification of the law or in its enforce ment. Now is the stragetic time for the colored race to unite in some ef fective method of impressing this injustice upon members of Congress and upon the President in such manner that they will be constrain ed to grant he colored applicant fair play or stultify the good name of the government. To invite the colored applicants to Civil Service examination and then to cheat him out of his justly earned reward would be condemned by gamblers. Surely the Federal Government can not be guided by a lower standard of ethics. Congressman Mitchell has ex pressed his purpose of introducing a bill in Congress to substitute fin gerprints for photographs as means of identifying Civil Service appli cants. As stated above this would do little or no good. But as the lead er of the race political character as a civic an political character as well as individuals who have the ear of public officials by their act ivity in the last campaign, should fall behind Congressman Mitchell, uphold his hand, and suggest modi fications and strengthening of the bill which he intends, to introduce that it will accomplish the purpose intended (I hardly think that any measure ^ can be presented to the incoming ad ministration which is more feasible and more likely of accomplishment than this. Here is a measure upon which all Negroes can and should unite. Kelly Miller v