CITY EDITION
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/JUSTICE/EQUALITY JEW,TO THETlNEA
_ cated
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_LARGEST ACCREDITED NEGRO NEWSPAPER WEST OF CHICAGO AND NORTH OF KANSAS CITY
Entered e* Second Class Matter at Post Offic, Omaha, Nebr., under Act of March 8. 1874. SATURDAY, APRIL, 27' OUR 13th YEAR-Number 4- NO. 5
Business Phone WE. 1517
Twelve Choirs Will Stage Sixth Annual Spring Musical At Teen
212 NEGROES DIE
IN DANCE HALL FIRE
75 INJURED
FIVE SUSPECTS
ARRESTED
Natchez. Miss. Special Release
_Some 60 per cent of this town’s
16,000 inhabitants are Negroes
and there was scarcely a Negro
home untouched by loss of rela
tives or friends in a fire that
gutted the Rrythm Night Club.
Julius Wright, Negro, gave this
description of the few deadly sec
onds just after he heard a girl
cry “Look!”
“I looked but for a second, I
didn’t see anything. Th«n I saw
the moss all aflame. Women be
gan to scream. One man Jumped
up, pulled down the imoss, and
fell against a cardboard petition
“He knocked it down and fell
down with it. The flames fell all
over him. I grabbed my wife and
got out to the street.”
A white eyewitness called the
hall “the worst fire trap imagin
able.”
“When we finally got in,
bodies were lying all over the
floor.’’ he said. “You could scare
ly take a step without walking
on one
“Near the bar there was a pile
of bodies five feet high. Many
were very bloody, indicating des
perate fighting.
DEAD LINE GARAGE FLOORS
AND FUNERAL HOMES
AU day thousands of Negroes
tense and dry-eyed, crowded
funeral parlors where the dead
were laid in row8 on garage floors
for identification.
One by onie, relatives of vic
tims. the youngest of whom was
14, were admitted. They searched
among the dead, screamed, shout
ed “That’s him,’’ or “There she
is,’’ or “That’s my Johnny,’’ and
were led weeping away.
Mrs. Ruth Zercher of the Red
Cross amUfunced the expanded,
death list late today after it had
stood at 212 for hours. She said
also that 75 of the injured were
being cared for by the Red Cross.
Six nurses were sent in from
Greenville, Miss., and Washtngtno
Red Cross Oeadquarters authoriz
ed the Natchez chapter to pay
for funeral for victims whose
families could not meet the ex
pense.
INVESTIGATE
FIREBUG RUMORS
Sheriff Hyde Jenkins sald ru
moi's that the blaze was a fire
bug’s work had been investigated
but all evidence so far pointed
to an accidental origin. He added
that gomes cases of minor looting
from the bodies of the dead were
being checked.
NLRB HITS EMPLOYER
USE OF RELIGIOUS BIAS
Washington, April 25 (CNA)—
Two favorite weapons of southern
employes, religious prejudice and
the company store, were assailed
this week in an order by the Na
tional Labor Relaitons Board that
three textile mills in Gaffney
South Carolina “cease dominating
or interfering with” three em
ployee clubs. The Board declared
there had been “an active cam
paign to frustrate and destroy
Textile Workers Union of Ameri
ca. CIO
The board said that the mills
fostered the clubs as rivals to
the union. It also charged “phy
sical violence directed against
union members^and assemblages,”
appeals to “religious sympathies,”
and the use of “economic force
in the form of denial of credit
at the company store as weapons
against the union.
SALEM BAPTIST CHURCH
GETS NEW PASTOR
Rev. A. N. T. Chism, pastor,
Second Baptist Church, Redlands,
California, has accepted the pas
torate of Salem Baptist Church,
Omaha, announced Rev. C- C. Pet
ties and W- E. Ford today. The
new pastor is to take charge of
church services Sunday, April 28.
Public invited, they stated.
DEWEY 100 PERCENT
FOR LYNCHING BILL
New York City—During his
recent speaking tour in Nebraska
and Missouri, Thomas E- Dewey,
candidate for the Republican nom
ination for President .made at
least two definite statements sup
porting a Federal anti-lynching
measure- His position in this mat
ter was made clear in a letter to
the national NAACP last year,
but the two statements in the
West were even more pointed.
During an interview in Omaha
when asked aibout the lynching
measure he declared:
“I believe it should become a
law- I am 100 per cent for it.”
Asked the same question by a
woman reporter in St. Louis. Mr.
Dewey replied without hesitation:
**I am in favor of it. heartily in
favor of it.’’
UPSET HOMES LAID
TO FATHER DIVINE
Boston, April 26 —(CNA)—
Wrecked homes and abandoned
children are casting shadows on
the pearly gates of the kingdom of
Father Divine, two white New
York psychiatrists reported this (
week. The report followed less
than 24 hours the suicide in New
York of Floyd Schaefner, white
WPA laborer whose wife deserted
him, with their 10-year-old daugh
ter, to go “to live with God.”
Disclosing a study of a group
of children whose parents had
“neglected” them to behome “an
gels” in the Divine kingdoms,
prs. Lauretta Bender and M. A.
Spalding of New York’s Bellevue
Hospital, declared:
‘‘The teachings of the move
ment Include a denial of family
ties and responsibility towards
the family. We observe that when
an individual accepts Father Di
vine’s teachings, all of the family
relationships of the home are
broken, very often the home it
self.”
In the Journal of Nervous and
Mental Disease, the investigators
told of intellectual and emotional
confusion” among offspring of
parents who ‘‘have diverted their
amotions toward Father Divine,”
and added:
‘‘The parents interested in
Father Divine n0t only neglect
their children emotionally but al
so neglect their physical well-be
ing.”
A similar indictment was made
against the cult recently by Judge
Jacob Panken who denounced
Father Divine’s edict forbidding
normal marital relations on the
part of his followers. Panken ac
cused Father Divine of advocat
ing race suicide and of breaking
up family life.
Schaefner committed suicide in
his three-room apartment at 527
ThrooP Ajvenue, Brooklyn* leav
ing an unaddressed note explain
ing that his wife and daughter
had been “converted” by Father
Divine and had “gone to live with
God.”
CANADIAN STUDENT
GIVES WAR VIEWS
Clemept DuMont, A 3, premedic
from Rock Creek, B- C., Canada,
believes the Allies were not
caught napping when Germany
invaded Denmark and Norway.
MASONICS BURN $14,000 MORTGAGE”
BUILDING FREE OF DEBT
Left to Right, Past Grand Master
Walter L. Seals of Omaha; Bran
In nineteen thirty, (members of
the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge
of Nebraska and Jurisdiction,
purchased the present building,
26th at Blondo streets, for four
teen thousand dollars. (Monday]
they burned the mortgage of all
outstanding debts. announced
I ham N- Hyde of Des Moines, Dr-1
[Sumner A. Furniss, Nathaniel L.
Nathaniel Hunter, Grandmaster
of Nebraska.
‘‘We have fought a tough battle
to reach this goal. The members
and our friend8 have been faith
ful and kind," he stated.
Dr. Furniss of Indianapolis, In
diana is a truly third decree Ma
Hunter and Ed. Fletcher.
_Photo Oouditesy World Herald
son. Hunter Is holder of the same
honor, it is reported.
The four hundred fifty members
at the Masonic Order in Nebras
ka will have a public cornerstone
laying in July, the Grand Mas
ter disclosed.
DuMont, who considers himself
Just as far away from the Canadi
an army now as two months bapk
believes the Allies may have bait
ed Germany to fight in preferred
territory.
BLACK EAGLE OF HARLEM
HEADS FOR FINLAND
TOO LATE
Several weeks too late, the
American Negro aviator, “Colon
el” Hubert Julian, self styled
black eagle of New York’s Harlem
arrived in Bergen tonight enroute
to fight for Finland.
An American ambulance unit,
also intended for service with
Finnish armies in the Russo Fin
nish war. was on the same ship.
The vessel had been long delayed
in its voyage, officers of the unit
said.
Both the black eagle, who was
rated an “ace" when a member of
Haille Selassie’s tiny Ethiopian
air force, and the members of the
ambulance unit will proceed to
Finland to aid in reconstruction
work.
STROUD & BRYANT WIN
PIANO HONORS; AT HIGH
SCHOOL MUSIC FESTIVAL
FLORA PINKSTON PRAISES
STUDENTS CONTEST
RENDITIONS
Sylvester Stroud, South High
High School senior and Arthur
Bryant, won the honors of super
ior in piano at the Nebraska High
School Activities Association’s
Twelfth Annual Music Festival
district number two, Fremont, Ne
braska, April 10, 20. asserted
Mrs. Flora Pinkston, music teach
er today.
Winning superior privileges,
Stroud and Bryant to enter the
National Music Contest at Kansas
City, Missouri, May 9. 0 and 11.
The highest rating in this contest
is high superior, says Mrs. Pink
ston.
Contest judges were: Bernard
F. Nevins, Lincoln. Nebr., direct
or Instrumental music; David T.
Lawson, of Topeka, Kansas, di
rector or Music; Rosalind Cook,
Ames, Iowa, music department,
Iowa State College; Stanford Hul
shizer, Des Moines, Iowa, Drake
University School of Music; Her
bert Schmidt, Lincoln, Nebraska,
School of Music; James A Meli
chor, Cedar Falls, Iowa orches
tra and band director.
These boys demonstrated their
“stuff” in this contest that anY
musician should have and must
acquire to succeed, stated the
teacher.
1 t
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* Urban Moods
tn'iMifinnmi!' nmiiiiiiniiiiniiHiraniiii by Raymond r. brown iiiiiiiiiiiiiiriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii®,
‘‘A dioP of ink may make
a million think.”—Byron
• ••
“200 Negroes lose their lives
through a fire in a Natchez, Mis
sissippi. dance Hall. Many more
of the 700 packed in this small
dance place were injured. Most of
them young people 15 to 17 years
of age.'1—came blasting from the
radio this morning.
Negro Americans, what a hor
rible price for pleasure! Every
week throughout America, our
young people seek pleasure under
just such conditions. Wjhen I
heard this statement, I wondered
how many were accompanied by
parents or were properly chap
eroned- I wonder how many of
those parents knew where their
children had gone that evening or
had paid any attention to the
fact that the hall was a fire
trap with only one door for an
exit. I wondered if we think
enough about how our children
are growing up.
PARENTS MUST KNOW
DUTY TO YOUTH
In Natchez, in New York, in
Omaha, “Negro Parents’’ must
realize th“ir responsibility to our
young People. These questions
might flash in your mind as you
consider our responsibility to
youth: Do I owe youth anything?
Didn’t I have to make my own
way in this world? Won’t hard
ships make a man of him? What’s
the value of a college education?
Isn’t it the duty of the church,
the school, and social agency to
control youth’s desire for plea
sure? Don’t I give my son or
daughter a place to sleep and
eat? Or. I don’t have children,
why shouln I worry? A^id so
forth and so on, we could con
tinue with an endless list of ques
tions which answered, one way or
another, determine Negro youth's
delstiny on this earth and which
have a b< aring of this question of
the responsibility of Negro youth.
The Natchez disaster is closer to
Omaha than we realize in a num
ber of respects.
Our dance halls may be safe
but our young people will be in
danger of “fire” from other
sources if we do not assume our
; full responsibility to them. We
may not be in anguish because
our children have perished from
real fire but we will be in anguish
equally as great if they suffer
physical, mental, moral or econo
mic disaster.
THINK OF CHILD
BEFORE BIRTH
(1) To prevent physical (lisas
ter besetting Negro youth we
should begin thinking about that
even before they are born so that
they might be given the best pos
sible healthy bodies with wnich
to begin life free from disease
and physical hanricaps. This
means we must keep our own in
that condition to assure them of
this opportunity.
<2> We must study the matter
of child care, proper food and
diet, and health habitg of child
ren. This does not require a col
lege education. The government
has provided adult education and
parent education classes Just Tor
this purpose. If necessary, we
could organize parent clubs our.
selveg t0 study for better cbild
•hood.
We must give serious consider
ation to the matter of proper
exercise, sunshine and wholesome
recreational opportunities for our
chldrein and ourselves. We have
state parks, city parks, and coun
try spots provided for this pur
pose. We have social agencies set
up to provide this service to you
and the young people. Some of
them might need more adequate
facilities. That again is your
responsibility to help them to ob
tain these facilities not criticize
their lack of them. Perhaps your
moral support, maybe even your
financial help, might mean that
they obtain complete gymnasium
or swimming pool or club rooms
that are so vital to the recreat
ional needs of our youth. In the
meantime, encourage them to be
come Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts,
Girl Reserves, Brownies. Hl-Y
members, etc. Encourage them to
hike, under proper supervision,
to learn to swim, to enjoy and
learn of nature and the out of
doors. Some of these things we
can teach them ourselves and not
wait for the social agency to do
it.
(4) We have responsibility to
our youth’s physical well being by
providing them with the proper
clothing and seeing to it that they
learn the laws of cleanliness and
form habits of neatness.
(5) The last phase of physic
al disaster which t8 so important
to youth of high school age is a
proper understanding of sex edu
cation.- This is a black mark on
A/merican parenthood because It
has been a subject hushed by ta
(Continued on page 2)
WILLIAMS PRAISES MCVAY
WELCOME 300 CHOIRSTERS
-«
A. H. HARRIS’ MOTHER
BURIED AT CHILUCATHE MO.
Mr. and Mi's. A- H. Harris came
home Tuesday from ChUHcathe,
Missouri, where Mr. Harris’ moth
er, Mrs. Caroline EUis, 78 was
burlod Sunday ,2:30 o'clock.
Mrs. Ellis suffered with asthmu
several years. She died April 18.
11: SO q'clock stated Mr Harris.
»Surviving are three sons, Leon
Bruce. Detroit, Michigan; WiUie
Bruce, Kansas City, Mo ; and A
H. Harris, Omaha; two daughters
Miss Marlnn Brme. Detroit and
Mrs. Ethel and seventeen grand
children.
YOUTH, LABOR. CIVIC
GROUPS BACK THIRD
NATL NEGRO CONGRESS
Washington. April 25 (CNA)—
Third National Negro Congress, to
be held here April 26 through
April 28 promises to be a rich
cross section of Negro life in
America according to indications
gained from a study of the 100 or
more organizations which already
have notified the Congress na
tional office here of the elections
of delegates. Registrations already
have been received from organlza
tion* in far off California and
New Mexico, Congress- officials
said. Other states heard from In
clude Arkansas, Alabama. New
York. Pennsylvania. West Vir
ginia, Ohio .Indiana, and Massa
chusetts.
Youth and college groups regis
tered include the Garver Society
of the City College of New York,
Beta Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha
Fraternity, Phi Beta Sigma Fra
ternity, the Southern Negro Youth
Congress, the Council of Young
Southerners, and the 4-H clubs
of North Carolina.
Church groups Include, the Mt.
Olive Baptist Association of New
Mexico, the Interdenominational
Ministers Alliance and the Reli
gion of Labor Foundation.
Labor groups delegates are the
Hotel and Restaurant Workers
Union (A F of L.)) United Mine
Workers of America, Stata
County and Municipal Workers,
United Agricultural and Cannery
Worker*: and locals of the Amal
gamated Clothing Workers.
M!ore than 2.000 delegates from
every section of the country and
from every type of organization
are expected to take part in the
Congress sessions.
JIM CROW TERROR
BARED IN CCC CAMP
Seattle, April 25 (CNA)—Re
ports of intolerable conditions in
a Jim Crow CCC camp at Yucca
Creek in Northern California
were brought to light by the
Washington Iew-Dealer, organ of
the Washington Commonwealth
Federation, following an interview
with a quartet of boys from Seat
tle who quit the camp after los
ing a strike to better conditions.
In violation of regulation stan
dards, 270 Negro youths at the
camp are forced to work seven
days a week, subsist on a diet of
beans and cabbage while a system
of arbitrary fines isd imposed
against those who protest, it was
reported.
pm LA. BAPTIST BACK
ANTI-LYNCHING BILL
Philadelpsia, April 25—(Maude
White for CNA) Baptist Churches
of this city and vicinity recently;
observed a special "peace and an
ti-lynch" day.
The action was taken following
the unanimous adoption by the
Baptist Ministerial Conference of
a resolution urging all churches,
to send resolutions to Senators
Guffey and Davis requesting them
to vote against a filibuster on the
Sixth Annual Goodwill Sprlnf
Musical will be held at Technica
High School auditorium Sunday
April 28. 2:46 o’clock. HUlsid*
Presbyterian choir is host accord
ing to Rev. John S- Williams, son*
festival director, twelve choiri
will participate.
WPA Orchestra. Charles Bryan
director, will begin the program
playing medleys- At the chose ol
these music numbers. Three hun
dred persons of the mass choir
will begin the processional, di
rector Williams said.
Curtains are to be raised at
3:15 o'clock. The joint choirs will
sing the first song, continued the
Hillside church pastor.
Lincoln Choir Entered
Quinn Chapel AME Methodist
Church choirv Lincoln, is partici
pating in the song feast. This is
the first time the capitol city
singers have taken active part in
the music festival, he added,
Mrs. Nelson Honored
Mrs. Flora Sears Nelson one of
the honored music patrons of the
afternoon will sPeak on ‘‘Choral
Music.’’ The program will con
clude with the singing of "Great
and Marvelous,” by Harvey Gaul'
Lauds McVay
Mr. L- L. McVay is the organizer
of this Goodwill festival. Much
credit Is due him for his vision
and hard labor from year to year,
asserted Reverend Williams.
CAPITAL PAPERS HIT
FOR ATTACK ON NEGROES
Washington, April 25 (CNA)—
Six delegates met this week with
Eugene Meyer, publisher of the
“Washington Post" and with the
managing editor of the “Evening
Star' ’to protest the appearance
in those papers of advertisements
calculated to stir up race preju
dice and aiti Negro feeling in the
nation’s capital.
The delegation represented the
National Association for the Ad
vancement of Colored People,
Women’s Trade Union League,
Civil Rights Committee, Ministers
Alliance. National Negro Con
gress, New Negro Alliance, Wash
ington Housing League and seven
other important organizations.
The Advertisements in question
were signed by Harvey S- Cobb,
attorney for the Press Cafeteria
whose employees, members of the
United Cafeteria Employees Un
ion No. 471. CIO. have been on
strike since March 23. Both ad
vertisements alleged the union
called the strike it was irked by
the dismissal of a "colored’’ em
ploye who had allegedly laid his
hand on a “white” waitress, who
has conveniently “left" the city.
The delegation pointed out that
the manner in which the adver
tisements were worded was such
as to make the reader feel that
the strike involved a racial issue
rather than a labor dispute, and
as such was inflammatory and
vicioug in the extreme. The adver
tisements were an attack upon
the solidarity of the Negro and
white workers in the union and
an attempt to stir up racial strife.
As a result of the conference
with the Star, a letter submitted
by the delegation, signed by IB
prominent Washingtonians was
published by the Star the follow
ing day, with the statement that
the Star “regrets the undue em
phasig which the wording of the
advertisement placed upon racTSl
differences.’’
anti-lynching bill.
Resolution in the Conference
was introduced by the Rev Mar
shall ShePherd, pastor of Mt. Oli
vet Baptist Church and former
Democratic state legislator. The
Rev- C. David Foster is president
of the Conference.