Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1869-11-25
Reading Matter on Every Page.

Elsewhere will be found the particulars of the
difficulty at the Franklin School Building. in
regard To the admission of a colored girl, the
Daughter of Rev. Selia Martin. The issue In
regard 10 mixed schools Is now distinctly pre-
scented. and must he met. our duty rs a COM
munity via be to deal with IL without passion or
undue excitement
Briefly We will state the circumstances of the
case:-Mr. Vsshon, one of the Trustees, gave a
ticket of admission, TO the common schools, to
the little daughter OF Martin on the ground that
she was nearly white and was therefore entitled
to admission to the White schools. Mr.lMartin,
the father Of the girl, however, claims her adj
mission a colored child on the ground that the
act OF Congress of March Is, 1869, striking out
the word white from the charter gives col
Ored children the right OF admission to the white
schools.
Two questions now presented: What
II the legal meaning of the word white
in our charter: ID. Under existing laws estab-
fishing separate systems of schools for white
and eolored children, is the admission of colored
children TO the white schools legal?
In Virginia a child with not more than one
tenth of negro blOodis held to be white. In some
other States q still smaller proportion of white
blood Is held sufi Gent to make the child legally
white. In one of the schools in the Fourth Dis
uict there is a child nOminally colored, but
really 50 white that the Superintendent when
called upon to select him from the others was
quite unable to do so. In some of the schools Of
the Second District the same is the case.
Now, a To the point made by Mr.. Martin i'm
regard to colored children having the right of
admission under the act of March, 1869, we
think his ground Is untenable. That act strikes
out the word white from our charter, where
ever it operates as a limitation on the right of
any elector Of such District, or of other of the
cities TO hold Office, or to be selected to serre as
juror
That is all. The act has no reference to the
status of white and cOlored i'm the Public Schools
and was evidently not intended to do SO since
Congress had already established distinct sys-
tens OF white and colored schools for tho Dis
triet- Nor under the act of Congress establish
ing separate systemns Of schools and dividing the
school funds equitably between them, have the
colored children a right to enter the white
schools and take the money allotted TO the white
schools The fund now provided for the white
schools is inadequate to furnish education ior all
the white children seeking admission, and the
number of white children denied a place win.
OF course, be Increased if the colored children
are TO have not only the benefit of all the funds
Tor their own schools, but also a share in those
for the support OF the white schools.
The question of caste or equality has very
little to do with the matter. 1t is one of equity
in the division of the funds, and this is the way
in which it should be treated. III a child is
white enough to entitle him to share In the
white school fund, send him to the white
schools; il not, let him take his schooling from
the fund to which he il entitled.