The Phoenix index., December 23, 1939, Image 1

About The Phoenix index. (Phoenix, Ariz.) 193?-19??

Image provided by: Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records; Phoenix, AZ

                
vghtyuy
ACCURATE
LOCAL
AND
NATIONAL
NEWS COVERAGE
VoXtlllE NUMBER
Lucky—They Pass The Luck Around
Vplllksr* , - £ '; j.' >. •V- .. ' v ••"■• V. : «-•-:
:: ffasfp* , #&'x>i iJs&3&£ >.^:v-7,./^ > v • ' \ v,> r
■ ■ /.'• <iov?''’ , ' A 0&- : ?' '•&- ■ *>\ • .>••; •>■ .;>•;?• -.^-.
.' .■ f a ■ s*K^y v %*&■%.:
~ r '*p '*~.fi }, S ’ V ■
,- Mmsm ss' I ■>/ c 6 && . ~* :< '
*• MJ®® ■■
PHILADELPHIA, Penn.—Lucky was Benjamin
Mason (standing) of So. Philadelphia. He won SL r »O,-
000 in the Sweepstakes. And lucky will be his former
neighbors, for Mr. Mason is going to invest a large
sum of that prize in building 1 model apartments for
his neighbors in the South Philadelphia slum
Laud Sweeps Winner
For Spending Flan
PHILADELPHIA— (A N P)—Onp
of the most praiseworthy philan
thropies in the history of tire
Negro race came to here this
week when a Negro couple—for
merly poor themselves ind on
relief—who had won $150,000 in f
Irish Hospital Sweepstake: last
March, announced that they
would use the money for construe
ton of a low-rent housing proj
ect in South Philadelphia lor 100
]>oor colored families.
The public-spilioed and Race
loving couple Benjamin and
Pearl Mason said they had de*
cided to spend the bulk of their
■winnings on the housing project,
“because we know what poverty
is”. At the time they won the
money Mason was unemployed and
he lived with his wife and two
children on a weekly relief check
of sll 40.
REPAY REI JET' BOARD
Soon as their “Sweeps” money
S.ap to hand, tlie Masons i*e-
districts where he once lived. Attorney Raymond
Pace Alexander, who is in charge of Mr. Mason’s
finances, is pictured here with Mrs. pearl Mason
and the lucky Sweepstakes winner, —-International
News Photo,
More than one-third of the sum
! they had received, amounting to
$2,i33.90, then invested $3,000
more in a modest home in which
J they now live. They spent $1,500
in furnishing the home and to
make their happiness complete,
bought a family car for S3OO.
More than one-third of the sum
they received went to the Govern
ment for income tax. This amount
ed to $57,000. All the rest is beine
invested in the housing project,
located in the block bounded by
Lombard, Waverly, Opal and 20th
sts. Mr. and Mrs. Mason retain
ed Atty. Raymond Pace Alexander
to attend to the maze of legal de
tails incidental to the construc
tion and under his direction
MC.OOO was spent to buy the block
of dilapidated tenements.
Another $40,000 will be spent for
construction which starts on De
cember 20, according to t r Ma
sons, and the project will oe
named the FRANCES PLAZA
APARTMENTS, for it was Uie
Phoenix SUS Index I
Mason’s daughter Frances who
picked the winning ticket Frank
V Nickels, prominent local archi
tect, will have charge of the proj
ect. Majority of all work on the
bui'dings will be done by Ne
groes, with H. H. Jefferson in
charge of construction and
George P Young in charge of
painting and plumbing.
APARTMENTS MODERN
The apartments will be modern
| in every particular, with refrig
eration, air conditioning, a play
ground, lawns and fountain; play
rooms in the basement, a gymna
-1 sium and bowling alley, a recep
tion hall for social affairs and a
| chapel for religious worship, be
; cause, as the Masons say, “God
| was good to them”.
Local citizens oi both races are
warmly commending the modest
couple for the spirit which prompt
ed their great. philanthropy. It
was pointed out that their chari
table act far exceeded the public
philanthropies of the Rockefellers,
Carnegies, Guggenheim s and oth*
I ers, because the Masons’ sacrifice
' is greater. They are giving their
; all, retaining only a modest home
| and the same economic level of
! their flellow race members they
a'm to help. Theirs is truly "bread
i cast upon the waters”, their pliilc
' soplu stemmed in the thought:
l “We know wliat poverty is.”
PHOENIX," ARIZONA, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 23, 1930
Cong. Mitchell Gets Tangled in
Illinois WPA Politics Controversy
Letter Is
Exposed
By Paper
Majr be Called
Before Illinois
WPA Committee
By ALBERT ANDERSON
WASHINGTON (AN?)
Stunned at the sensational
expose of the Chicago Daily
.News, in which the name of
Congressman Arthur W.
Mitchell figures prominently
in a controversy over the po
litical aspects of the WPA
and the obtaining jobs
through congressional assist
ance, base Washington waits
the second act in this re
markable drama.
Tn the last session of Congress,
special emphasis was placed upon
political influences in WPA and
a specific clause inserted making
the intercession of Congressmen
or any other officials in the ap
pointments to WPA a felony,
punishaible by a fine or an im
prisonment or both.
SENT TO WHITE VOTER
Addressed to a white, voter in
the Ist ward of Chicago, Mr.
Mitchell’s own district, the letter
as published in the Chicago daily
is as follows:
“I am in receipt, of your let
ter of Nov. 1 and in reply 1
write to say that 1 shall be
very glad to take your case up
with the WPA if you will get
a letter from your ward com
mitteeman, requesting me to
handle this matter for you.
“It is an unbroken rule of
the Democratic organization
in Chicago, that each person
seeking help from his congress
man must first get a latter
from his ward committeeman
requesting the congressman to
take care of the matter, r
must, therefore, insist that you
get a letter from your com
mitteeman first, and then t
shall be very glad to do every
thing in my power to help vo<>
“With very best wishes. I am.
Cordially and sincerely jours
ARTHUR W. MITCHELT,”
Written on official stationery,
the letter is being offered as evi
dence that politics is rife in the
WPA setup hi Illinois, but the
fact that the only Negro congress
man now r in office is party to it
has even the staidest residents
registering amazement.
MAY HAVE TO TESTIFY
Conjecture is rife as to whether
Mr. Mitchell will be called before
the congressional committee in
vestigating WPA activities in cer
tain states including Illinois.
An attempt to contact col. Har
rington and Howard W. Hunter
his assistant administrator of the
WPA, on Saturday for an opin
ion in the matter was futile, al
though Alfred W. Smith, of the
race relations division made sev
(Continued on Back Page)
As Honors Went To Paul Robeson
—oos-xx: ii ■ -
» ra I ; / ;;; ... jj»
•;<>, >TV ; A> >, .>•
'■. ' r-?' • lH v"
Paul Robeson, world famous baritone, is shown
as he was given a silver loving cup voted him by
five thousand hoys of the Northeast High School,
Philadelphia, ‘in recognition of the wholesome up
lift he has given the people of this land by his mag
nificent achievements in the realm of literature and
Heads Tenn. Teachers
fff& _ j
's. ■■■*■•£&? .■
s&££& - >; . ■'s>
Miss Fannie Clay of Austin High School, Knoxville, was the first
woman to ever be fleeted president »»f the East Tennessee Teachers' As
sociation, which recently convened ..t (
music.” L to r at the high school’s assembly are Dr.
Theodore S. Rowland, principal of the school; Paul
Robeson, Charles A. Valin, director of assemblies at
the school; and William Schabacker. president of the
student council. (INS).
j Greetings To All
♦
DR. I. W. GRAY
The B. L. i . Botanic Laboratory
and Manufactory Company at 101 l
E. Adams Street extends greetings
to its many friends and new custo
mers- many thanks for your libera,
support and many testimonies. We
pledge to do our best.
Dr. J. W. Gray, manager.
V. c. YOUTH EXECUTED IN
CHAMBER
RAU'IGH, N C. fANPV-Ray-
mond Williams. 23, was executed in
ihe lethal death chamber at State
prison last Friday after making a
confession that saved his ownge
5 CENTS
Pay No Moro
PRICE FIVE CENTS
Teachers
Win Out In
Pay Fight
Knoxville Board
Finally Agree#
To Salary Plea
By O. B. TAYLOR
KNOXVILLE, Tenn.
(ANP) —The Knoxville City
Teachers league, led by its
president, Dewery Roberts,
instructor of mathematics at
the Beardsley Junior high
school, has fought a hot per
sistent battle with the mem
bers of the school hoard dur
ing tile last three years, for
salary equalization where
preparation and type of work
done compared with that of
teachers among the majority
race.
Negro teachers regardless
of preparation or work done
have received 10 per cent less
than the white teachers.
At the regular meeting of the
senool board Tuesday night, Dew
ey Roberts was again on hand
with bis ajve-old fight and conten
tion, pointing out the injustice
heaped upon the Negro teachers
on grounds of color and color
alone.
At last the board recants. The
motion that placed the board on
record for equal pay was made by
the Rev. B. B. Lavander and was
adopted unanimously. This acuon
boosted the 1940 school budget bv
$i4,700 »
For the first time In the his
tory of Knoxville, Negro teachers,
where their preparation is equal to
that, of the whites, will receive
tbe identically same salary. The
new wage scale Is effective as of
December 1. 'rhis far-reaching
decision of the school board may
i ave repercussions in other cities
of the State and perhaps the South
as a whole.
Knox county school board adopt
ed equalization o£ salaries several
years ago.
No Arrests In
Trunk Murder,
D. C. Police Say
Washington, I> C., authorities
last night denied authenticity oi
reports here that arrests had
been made in connection with
the murder of a woman whose
body was shipped to Atlanta in
a trunk this fall.
In a teirgranv to the World,
Bmiard W. Thompson, Chief of
D« (ectives of the Washington
municipal police said that no
identity of the murdered woman
had been established and no ar
rests made in the. case.
brother from the same fate.
Raymond, bis brother Henry and
their brother-in-law, Lee Simpson
were convicted of slaying a Jewish
eddler, Nathan Rcif ; one year ago.