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EDITORIAL PAGE BLACKBERRIES By OR. W. L. RAN80ME .by the law of association small and insigniiicant things may call up 110m our sunconsciousness events 01 great importance irom xormer aays. £>ucn is tne case witn me and blackberries. wnenever i eat blackberries, or see them, or see tne woru, or near it mentioneu i tmnk 01 an mciuent which occurrea in my cnilanoou aays. -as tne years nave gone by me inciaent nas grown ueeper in meaning anu sigmycance to me. it was on tne iounh oi July, on iViecnamcsviiie Tike, lour nuies irom tne tnen corporate limits oi tne uty oi luchmonu, Virginia. 1 was twelve years oia. My mother had reluctantly yieiuea to my Doyish pieauing and permittea me to go biack oerry hunting. This was the day of the open saloon in Richmond. I had been out on the road several hours, had sauntered lour miles uown tne pike picking blackberries here and there until the ten quart bucket wmch i wagged along was almost lull, hivery now and then my heart would swell with the joy in anticipation oi the praise which my mother would give me on my re-urn nome with such a quantity ol so nice a lot of berries—but aias! A white man suddenly came upon me out of the thickets and said,* “Give me thefn berries, nigger." Such salutation ang ered me, but 1 was just a boy and he was a man; I was colored and he was white, and all the policemen were white. 1 toid the man that 1 could not give him the berries but that 1 wanted them lor my “poor” mother at home, i felt assured that such a plea would win him. He replied to me with an awful oath and asked me what did 1 suppose that he cared about my mother. This last lemark sent an arrow to my heart that made an eter nal scar. I had thought that all white peop’.e recognized that a Ne gros motne: was as dear to the Negro as the white person’s mother is io the white person and taat this relation was re spected by each person towards the other. I found out different that day. I found out also that the man wanted my Fbor but that he cared nothing for my rights, my feeling nor my kind. This man had been drinking, but often men simply ex press, when under the influence of whiskey, that which is upper most in their minds during their sober moments. Freud, th-* psychologist, holds that all our dreams during the night are caused by our unfilled wishes during the day time or during our waiting hours. rinding that my argument about wanting the berries lor my mother was proving iruitiess. I attempted to run. When X started the man quickened his steps, caught hold of my bucket and was about to take the berries, bucket and all, or pour them upon tne ground, i do not know which. Help Came in a Needy Time Just at that moment another white man happened along and quickly took in the situation. He caught hold of my ene my, ireed my bucket trom his grasp, and said to me, “Now uuy, run like tne devil.” The thing that impressed me was not tne tact that he would have me imitate the devil in my running, out tnat he addressed me as “boy” and not as “nigger” as the , .ncr white man had done. He furthermore held my assailant until 1 was at a sale distance. 1 have wished more than once tnat i might have been able to learn who this benefactor was, itiiu tnanK him for his kindness. Whiz As the years have rolled by I have wondered why thH sec ond wmte man came to my rescue, and 1 have made the loi lowing conclusions: 1. That he had a sense of justice, or 2. He was ashamed that his own race had in it such a ..a-acter as the first man, or '6. He had children himself and he anticipated the pos sibility of theHike befalling one of his children, or 4. He simply had the spirit of pity and humanitarianism, or 5. He wanted to see just how fast I would run, if I only had a chance. Application The Negro r«ce has been picking blackberries along the road to progress since ’65 but it it has been hard for him to do his best or to make a home run. The critics and judges in the grandstand are wondering why he doesn’t deliver the egoods &t the talley plate; but they forget that he is being assailed and exploited along the way by men—men who are drunk with prej uuice,or with whiskey, lor whiskey oietn away, out -v.ciujs eternal. Meeds vvn^t tne Negro needs is more wnite mends to come aiong, -.iac mat second man who came to my rescue, He neeus muu vaoou Samaritans. ne needs more wnite mends wun tne spirit oi nunrmnarianism, a sense ox justice, ana wun * uesire l0 see Wlttt can oc uone, u tne x\egro is given a lair cnance. ine iN«mo«r increases When we read ox me determined activity ox common we^u attorney Mccoy 10 ao justice to tne aitermatn ox tne ua^u case we xeei mat tne ciass ox men repieseiiteu uy me seconu man is increasing. jfrom tne ximes-uisp“tcn ox nprn x wc re-u tne ionowmg:: ' iNorioiK, va., March Ji—The mass of contradictory evi dence n\ the 'Harper case' win oe suomittea to a* special granu jury xor investigation, juage Wimam n. sargeanc ox oorpora uon court numoer i, wno heard tne second tnai wmcn resuiteu in me acquittal ox tne kz-year-oid Negro, Wnnam Harper pre viosiy convicted oi criminal assault upon Mrs. Horotny sLaws oi Portsmouth, announced today tnat m response to a request irom commonwealth's Attorney Harry McCoy he would order a special grand jury lor April V to investigate tne case ana a< requested by Mjr. McCoy, make a ‘specific charge' to that body. xne commonweaitn s Attorney's request for tne special investigation was made in a ietter received by Judge sar*eant today in wmch Mr. McCoy declared that ‘not only are the wit nesses in the Harper case involved, but also the integrity of the police department of Norfolk and Portsmouth.' ‘Mr. McCoy further urged that ‘no member of the special panel be related to or connected with any of the officers of the court, Commonwealth’s Attorney or members of the police de partment of Norfolk and Portsmouth.' P . _ ^ " To tile end that a thorough investigation be had.’ Mr McCoy requested in his letter that the court appoint a court’ stenographer to take evidence given before the grand jury ‘in view of the conflicting statements heretofore made in this case." (Ibe Htcbmonb planet Published Ercfry Saturday by ROSCOE C. MITCHELL at 900 St. Oames St., Richmond, Virginia ARCHER S. MITCHELL Managing Editor National Representative W. B. ZIFF CO., Chicago, Kansas City, New York SUBSCRIPTION ONE YEAR_s 2.00 SIX MONTHS_' 1.10 THREE MONTHS_ 60 All Communication intended for Publication should reach us by Wednesday tho Post Office at Richmond Virginia as second-class matter Give The Committee A Chance By Josepuus Biiupsou x uoro ua\e so Qx&ny movements star tea in tne past tnat iiavu supposed ly Had as their goal the upiitt ana tne betterment oi tue conditions surround ing the .Negroes of this city, tnat the colored people here, naturally, look askance at any movement which may be started ostensibly in their favor. We have looked forward with so mucn optimism, for so many times, and with such glorious anticipation to a harvest oi the beneiicient iruits, the natural results, and the happy climax of any real sincere efforts put forth in any movement of this kind, only to be dis appointed, that we may, if we are not caretul, spurn valuable assistance in our efforts to avoid being duped. A child who has beeu burned is afraid of fire, it is true, but that is no ex cuse for his freezing in winter. We admit that it is always wise wheu anything is proffered, to consi der the primary cause for, and the alter effects of such gifts that have in the past proved so distasteful to mem bers of our group. The souree of the gift, its immediate or future benefits, and its cost to the group must be con sidered. We make tiesc explanations, not because our opinions in our own estimation are anywise infallible, but because we feel that it is the duty of a newspaper to put its stamp of ap proval on those things which it deems beneficial, as well as to assail those things which in its estimation might prove disastrous. We are saying these things in a feeble attempt to make clear the position, the attitude, and we believe, honest intentions of the Committee on Negro Housing condi tions recenty appointed by the Rich mond Chamber of Commerce. W'e shall first consider the source from which this benevolent spirit em anates, the type of men behind the movement. There are three different types of men to be considered—The wealthy, those who are striving to ob tain wealth, and the poor. We will first consider the wealthy. The man who has wealth is in a great measure beyond the point and above the plane upon which he might feel that he could become contaminated by coming in contact with those who are beneath his station in life, or those who are identified wth an opposite group from his own. He is like a prince secure in his station and can eat with the pea sant without fear of losing his stand ing, he is independent of what may be said by society gossipers, and is forced to look to no man fOr hig daily i bread. Most wealthy people feel to a t certain extent indebted to those who ( have made their wealth possible. e The man who is striving to obtain ^ wealth is a jealous creature, in that * he seeks to destroy every obstacle thato: he believes to be iu his path to tho rosy rcaima of wealth auu power. He is voui oi the time to devote to move ments of this kind, he is too busy de vising ways and means to further his own ends and to increase his own gain, he may be willing in spirit but he is nunus the tunc and energy. The poor man is too near our own position in the scheme of things to be of any assistance to us. iu the first place he is not able, in the second, he is afraid of the power already in our hauus, feeling that at some time we may usurp the power that is in his luuids and couiisciute his place in society. The men who compose the chamber’s committee are men of wealth and fin ancial influence. They are not idle talkers, but men of action, who stand high in the councils of business, fin ance, and industry; We therefore be lieve that whatever the committee has set it hands to do in our favor, it can and will accomplish. We believ9 that the committee is sincere and ask that it be given a chance to show its mettle. By Prof. H. A. M. Johns Concluded from previous issue of The Lynchburg Advocate Not only were the congregations Ignorant about the selection of hymns for services by those that they consi dered home and up to the standard were filled with horrible misrepresenta tions or what they really meant. In the midst of revival services when jingiug around the ‘ ‘ Mourners Bench ’ ’ with hteir zeal for saving souls they sang such songs as this one, the refrain being: “I’m so glad. The leader dngiug the verses and the congregation responding with the refrain: “Sinner man setting; I’m so glad, On the gates of hell, I’m so glad, Tho gates flew open, I’m so glad, And the sinner man fell, ( I’m so glad.” £ Why there were they laoring so . ealously for the saving of sinner9 if - hey were so glad of their destruction f ( Certainly, these conscientious old moth rs and fathers did not mean what they rere saying. They were enraptured ith the rhythm and thought nothing * ■ the theme nor sentiment. \ f 4 HITS AND BITS Constitution, Article 1 Section 4, Part 2 me congress shall assemble at least once in every year; ana such meeting snail oe on tne hist ivionaay in December, uineas uucy snan oy law appoint a dilferent day. wouldn’t Believe Itl \ iVii’s. Martha Jane Cephas, who died at her home here on v tiiame Street Saturday is reported to have been a lorrner siave in a iticnmond lamny. she was the oldest depositor oi me i' ns! iNationai r>anK here, being one of the hrst persons to deposit lunus in me said bank in 187 a. She was more than eighty years ^ age, owned her own home, which in the not distant past was reiueu out to white people lor a period of thirty-hve years or more, and in which she died. Rev. S. J. Battin, white, Pastor of me union station Methodist Church, also white, preached the lunerai, six prominent white men were the pall bearers, and the Lunerai was held in the chapel of Woody’s funeral Parlors; her uouy having been prepared lor burial by Woody: a concern which has never been known to handle a Negro funeral before. Mr. W ooay wni be remembered as the man who raised the segregation question here a short while ago, culminating in legislation which was later thrown out by the United States Supreme Court. All this howl because a Negro moved in the block in which he lived, yei he is the undertaker in a Negro woman’s funeral who left a lwo thousand dollar bank account, a keg filled with money gath ered up from the premises together with two bags of paper money, the amount of which has been estimated at from seven hundred to thousands of dollars. Money seems to be the only power that win destroy race prejudice. Try It Both Ways. In Hustings Court a few days ago a high official of the court stated that he was in favor of empaneling an all-Negro jury to try a murder case in which one Negro is charged with the murder ot another, in order to carrectly ascertain just what colored peo ple consider a just sentence in a case of this kind. We informed him that we felt this was a good idea: And by way of amplifica tion we would recommend the empaneling of an all-Negro jury to sit in judgment on a case in which a white man is on trial for the murder of a Negro. Trying a case of each kind is the only way to arrive at a proper solution of the question of what the Negro considers justice. These things will happen when men begin to love their neighbors as themselves, and elephants begin to roost in trees. ‘ Trump Cards” \ Cases like the “John Funn case,” are the ones in which Negro attorneys should display their knowledge of the intricate work ings of the law. A case in which a Negro is on trial for his life, a Negro who is not able financially to employ counsel; one who is practically friendless. We are not discussing his guilt or innocence. The fact that he is guilty does not abridge his right :o competent counsel. WJien our attorneys demonstrate to the nasses the fact that they are capable of handling cases of this cind, when a Negro needs an httorney he will at least consider a ^egro lawyer before hiring a white one. These are your trump :ards, gentlemen. Will you play them ? Will you heed a layman’s iincere, earnest plea? ‘ )nly The Beginning. People everyhere are complaining of hard times, but they iave not gotten hard yet: Prepare for the coming years, for the rorst is yet to come. Virginia Baptist State Convention Will Meet in Lynchburg, Virginia, June 9th, In Great Group Of Jubilee Sessions. i\6xt June the ninth xn&rki the Ju bilee Session of the Virginia Baptist State Convention which is held every seventh year. Ail three of the State bodijea—Church Convention, "Woman's Convention, B. Y. P. U. and Sunday School Convention will convene in Lynchburg at the Virginia Seminary and College. The Presidents of these state bodies, Dr. A. L. James, Mrs. A, A. Galvin, Mr. Gilliam, and Mr. Hurst are ralying their forces to make this a banner session. A goal of twenty five thousand dollars has been adopted and each church, Woman's circle, Sunday School and B. Y. P. U. is urged to begin the campaign for funds at once instead of waiting un til the last few days before the meet ing. Already a few of the units have swung into action. On Monday, March the 23rd at the Derrington Baptist Church, pattered by Rev. McClendon, the good women met and raised more than sixty dollars toward the coming Convention. The women of the Court Street Circle are holding a raly for the same purpose on the third Sunday in April. It is like the women to be first. They were the first to reach the tomb on the morning of the Resurrec tion and they have been early on the march in all good enterprise! ever since, but when you see them pass you al ways know that the men will be along shortly. So now that the ladies circles are actually beginning to get the cash in hand for the June Convention we expect to hear soon that he brehren have begun to acquire funds for mak ing the twenty five thonsand dollars success in the month of June. AL RIGHT, LET'S GET ON THE MARK. GET SET. GO. Moore Street Baptist Church WEST LEIGH ST. (Between Kinney anJ Bow*) DR. GORDON B. HANCOCK. Mini.Ur SUNDAY, APRIL 5, 1931 (Easter Sunday) 11:30—“Life Beyond the Grave," an Easter Message a1 wp'iii'ia ^ <sa 3:30 P.M.—“Everlasting Life this Side of the Grave” “Miss Easter” will be crowned at the Morning Service Come Early for the Morning Prayer ALL ARB WBLCOMI Rev. Brown To Lecture On Haiti Rev. A. W. Brown will give his lecture on Haiti Sunday night at Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church, at 8:00 p. m. admission free. In reply to the many friends in and out of Richmond we are pleased to announce that we will give our lecture on the three phases of Hai tian life with pictures on the screen to cover the same. Gome and go with us from the president's palace to the jungle hut. See Haiti a* Ha highest and its lowest This lee two is free to one and all. Come early and secure your seat. ...RECITAL... The Leading “4” Club PRESENTS JULIAN A. PITTMAN IN A dramatic fading dental SUPPORTED BY Miss Ruby Hill In SONG oAccompamed by Mr. EMANUEL STEWART, Pianist Armstrong Auditorium Friday, cApril io, 1931 8:15 P. M., Sharp Admission - 25 and 35 Cents MISS RUBY HILL “Song Bird”