The morning times., 1896-04-30
DRAW THE COLOR LINE
Charges Against the CoIored
School Trustees.
BLACK FIGHTING YELLOW
Mass Meeting of COlored People De
mands investigation of the Public
SchOOls-SOme Specific Charges
Made-COngress Asked to Inter
vene-Grave Accusations.

The black four hundred OF washington
asserted itself in contradistinction to the
yellow four hundred at a very lively mass
meeting, which was held last night at
the Vermont Avenue Baptist Church. The
substance OF the cause of disagreement be
tween these two classes of the colored
people has heretofore been given in The
Times.
There was very large crowd in at
tendance, and the meeting was addressed
by some of the ablest men OF the colored
race in the District.
The speakers handled a very delicate
question with good deal of tact, and at
times with an effcrvescence of humor, but
the question was evidently one of great
moment and serious TO the black people.
The meeting closed with a resolution, look
Ing to the appointment OF a committee 10
look into the conduct and administration
of the colored public schools, with special
reference 10 the colored trustees, and the
supervising principals. This committee viii
ask for Congressional Investigation.
The great point at issue before the meet
ing was the discrimination against black
boys and girls in favor of yellow boys and
girls; that the latter were the pets of
teachers, and that when the black boys
and girls were graduated they could not
find employment; while yellow girls were
employed as teache RS and yellow boys could
find employment in stores and offices.
YELLows WERE FAvORITEs.
One speaker gave an Illustration OF how
the well cared for youth were petted and
coddled by the teachers, while the little
black boy, If ill dressed, was tabooed and
considered as something not to be touched
by the dainty school teachers OF the yellow
four hundred.
The ommisSioHers were attacked. the
purchase OF school lots eXorbitant prices
was attacked, and IN fine the hack of
suffrage was attacked as possibly the root
OF all the evils, and the restoration OF it
the only remedy.
The meeting was opened by Mr.. o. c.
Black, who, In explaining its purpose, said:
Ladies and gentlemen, this meeting has
been called solely in the interest OF the
working people OF this district. For over
thirty years the management Of our public
schools has been in the control OF one
class of people, and they have so used the
pO werS delegated to them, rs to think them
selves the masters OF the people and not
their servants. 1t has come to such a de-
plorabe condition that the hone ST man who
works the streets, or the honest woman,
who labCrs at the washtub or in the kitchen,
| whose compile Xion is not white with
po WIDER or whose hair is not flaxen, is not
TO be considered in the distribution of the
public patronage. We are disappointed,
we are cha Eriucd, and we are here to strike
| blow ut the tyrants who for thirty years
have kept the working classes in degrade
| tion."
ATTACKED SCHOOL TRUSTEES.
The speaker then made an apology for
the absence of some of the speakers. He
| continued his address by saying that the
| colored people had made repeated demands
| for change OF the trustees of the Colored
| schools, but no satisfactory answer was
| given by the white people in authority.
! BE said that there were many instances
| of wrong doing of which he mentioned
| the purchase of the Slater school lands
| at S1.10 foot when the real price was so
cents foot.
Somebody, he se4i, had made more than
| 81 900 out OF that job. There was robbery
| going on and that was why there could
| be no relief. Then he mentioned the
| Ivy City school, where S666 was paid for
| lots that were worth only $500. Then
| there was the Fifteenth street school,
southeast, for which the land was purchased
| at 40 cents foot when its real value
was So cents q foot In all OF these
cases he said that adjoining lots or near
| at hand q nd just as good, could have been
bought for the figures he named as the real
| value.
This thing tell you." said Mr. Black.
must go TO Congress. for we haven't had
| any relief from our rulers. And that is
not all; they don't admit that our black
children are bright and they are not ad-
| vanced fairly as they ought 10 be- OhItbey
| tell US. you don't belong to the four hundred:
but tell you. yes we do; we belong to the
| five Hundred. the six hundred
| a voice: Yes, sir: were million.
IN THE SAME STRAIN.
Mr.. L. c. Moore. black man, spoke on
| the same line. only more strongly. He
| said that he believed that he was the black
| est man in the audience, but he didn't be-
| lieve in drawing the color line because he
| did not know but what he might have some
| octoroon, catoroon or mistaroon relations.
! The simon pure blacks were, however, to
| be credited with the emancipation of the
race.
1T was they who telegraphed to God
| Almighty and were the beginning of the
| fight that gave them Abraham Lincoln.
| The coiored people were however, gradu-