Evening journal., 1890-03-18
COL0RED PEOPLE PROTEST
THEY HAVE BEEN lLL-TREATED BY
THE BOARD or EDUCATION.

The Board a Political BOdy-The Condi-
tIon of the Colored People.
The colored people expressed them.
selves in strong terms concerning their
ill-treatment by the Board o. Public
Education, at an indignation mass meet
ing in the lecture room of Ezion M. 4.
Church, Ninth and French streets, last
night The room was crowded with men
and women, who were in accord with the
sentiments expressed.
Rev. Joseph r. Waters was nominated
as chairman of the evening. w. j.
Anderson, as secretary and A. L. Mason,
as assistant secretary. Each was elected.
The Lords prayer was said. The call
for the meeting was read. stating il was
for the purpose of protesting against the
action of the Board of Education in re-
fusing to consider the petition Of nearly
25OO citizens concerning the Lewis
matter.
Asbury Sterling, Charles H. View,
Marry @. Robinson, w. II. F. Wright
and M. B. Waters were appointed a
committee TO draft resolutions contain
ing the sense of the meeting.
Rev. j. B. Stansbury was the first
| speaker. He spoke forci0ly and to the
/ point, and excited enthusiasm many
times during his speech. He said that
he was glad to be present at a meeting
to protest against the treatment of one
of the best teachers in the city, Miss
Frances f. Lewis.
| This condition is owing to envy and
| jealousy, and il we will get down to it,
it is murder This seems to be the cause
| of all the trouble for the last two months
1 30 I. IA L.
brethren is that it was an insult to tht
colored people If Wilmington, to degrade
Miss Lewis
THAT committee would not hav,
dared to suspend white teacher under
the same conditions They did it because
she was black woman. Applause Nov
for a few facts in the case Miss Lewis
knew nothing about the matter until SD,
received note that afternoon to com,
before the committee. That was
thunder-elap.
THAT investigation was unfair. Tn
committee arraigned Miss Lewis en- tn
say-so of the principal, Miss Kruse, an,
vet she was not at the investigation Z
face the accused l have favored Mis-
Lewiss side, because of. the injustic
with which she had been treated. Man
of the papers printed articles, pro an
con, which amounted to nothing. w
wanted less talk until the board had acte
on the matter.
He then read the report of the com
mittee on No 16 school, DR.. ]. q. Nor
gan and Abner P. Bailey, suspendin
Miss Lewis for insubordination, ungov
ernable temper and failing to co.operat
with the principal. He also read the pc
tition of the Afro-American League
asking investigation. In discussing tn
action Of the committee, he said:
"Dr. Morgan said that the action 0
/ the committee was final, and closed I'll
! | whole matter, and that it received I'll
approval Of the board 1t did not do 81
/ DR.. Shortlidge objected to the reading
the report, but DR.. Morgan was permitte
4 to read it. 1t was referred to the Con
mittee on Teachers, as well as the pet
tions of the Afro-American League, I'll
colored citizens and the scholars Of IL
( school. DR.. Morgan said that that WI
the last of them, which seems to sho
It that DR. Morgan is greater than 20
II colored citizens of the city.
IS At a meeting of the Committee
?, Teachers to investigate the matter, Mi
i Frances Lewis appeared with couns
II and DR.. Morgan made the charges.
d said that he had notified her of Il
"a charges in the letter he wrote to h
n telling her of her dismissal She show
70 him the letter, and IL contained
/ charges. Mr.. Bailey. an honest old gel
It tleman was frank to say that he knt
II nothing of his own knowledge, but Mi
% Kruse had told him.
!. Now, what was the motive for pu
Q suing Mrs Lewis2 Because the commi
+ tee could not be mistaken in Miss Krus
g Why she had been with them so Ion
ID She could not be wrongl OF course 0
le of the gentlemen invested Miss Krus
# funds, and the other was her physicia
10 But that is all right They were JUS
sr little wrong in their method of pushi
rs the case.
" Now, if these charges against NJ
a Lewis were true she should have be
n dismissed, but she should have had f
X trial Now what did the Committee
L. Teachers do at the next meeting;
he ported progress. Thus was settled 7
r 16 school. Now, I'll tell you seer
7. The next day heard the plan of plaei
L. | Miss Lewis beyond Eleventh str
lh bridge; it had been done the night befo
d. and the opponents of Miss Lewis knew
ry too. / heard the same news seve
to times during the day.
ar "Some of us went to President Char
es Baird on Thursday and asked him abe
or it. and he said that the committee |
st. done nothing. Now he must have l
ng cognizanee of the action. At the nC
L. meeting Of the board the committee
n ported that Miss Lewis had been tral
ferred across the river lin the Mi
ward) with a salary of $365. Wha
humiliation; from over $500 to $3
The fact of the committee continui
40 Miss Lewis showed that it had no ia
as in the charges against her, or il wo
ng have suspended her entirely. III
.on charges were not true, it should hi
~ withdrawn them.
ca. "The Board of Education sanctio
the action Of the committee, and {
showed that it was against the colo
= people Of the community. You h
- heard the last of your petition. Gabri
4 trumpet will not bring it to life.
the Board of Education done right, A
Lewis would now be in her old posit
They say if we talk too much we
have our schools placed by the be
md under the actuary of the state. Tina
No a threat, and shows the falseness
their petition. Close your mouth, {
say, or we1l hit you in the mouth.
Social life should not affect the b.
ness position Of people Our w
la brethren say that the black people mi
be too forward If given too much SO
~ notice. Why there are some white
" whom l would not be seen on the str
with, and there are some colored
IN with whom l would not walk across
otraat %