The herald., 1896-06-11
THE COLOR QUESTION
Negro Delegates Object to the Action Of Hotel
Keepers

line mas Deen drawn by some of the
hotels of this city there can be no longer
any doubt. The st. James hotel today
openly refused to entertain negro dele
gates and cancelled $4,000 contract it
had made for feeding and housing dele
gates. Several weeks ago the officers Of
the Tippecanoe club under the direction
OF M. A. Hanna, made contract with
Thomas p. Miller, the proprietor of the
st. James hotel, to take care of q GER
tain number of delegates for FIVE days
during the convention. The club officers
then wrote to certain Southern delega-
tions that rooms had been reserved for
them at the St. James. When Mr.. Miller
learned the club intended to fill the
rooms with negroes he objected. "If l
permit you to bring negroes here" he
said, ''all my help Will leave. 1t will put
me in a most embarrassing predica-
ment"
Upon the arrival of Mr.. Hanna from
Cleveland today he was told Of what had
occurred.
II am sorry for Mr.. Miller" said Mr..
Hanna to his agent, but he signed q
contract and unless he lives up to 1t he
will find himself involved In most un-
pleasant complication"
When the hotel man was notified OF this
he made the following written reply:
"ST. LOUIS, June 10. g
"Mr. J. G. Dorm, agent Tippecanoe
club-Dear Sir: I cannot entertain the
colored delegates in our main dining
room or under the contract with your
THOMAS p. MILLER"
AS all the hotels are crowded the Tip
pecanoe club is in a Quandary as to
what it will do with the colored dele
Mr.. Hanna said he felt very sorry for the
Business Mems league, which Is'omised
the national committee there would be
no color line drawn.
1.-The league has done everything in
its power to prevent this trouble" he
added. land I do not consider 1t in any
way to blame"
Mr.. Hanna's emissaries also rented the
big exposition building for use during
the convention. 1t was suggested that
cots be placed in 1t for use of the colored
men, but when the management OF the
building learned of this 1t told the club
the negroes could not be Quartered there.
1t was finally agreed. however, that the
colored delegates could be fed there.
Tony Faust. who holds the lease OF the
kitchen at the exposition, said he could
not furnish either food or cooks to do the
work. An officer Of the club said to-
night that cooks would be imported from
Cleveland.
Many Of the colored men, of their own
accord. had gone to the homes or the
colored people living here and obtained
board and lodging. Some ofthem, How
ever, refuse to do this.
DR.. John Grant Of Sherman, Tex. who
leads the contest of the Mckinley dele
CATION from the Lone Star state, Is mad
over the treatment which he Is assured
Proprietor George Griswold fthe Lac
lede hotel. proposes to give the colored
men of his delegation. Grant has con-
~, f<,v. RI q the
Laclede for his people, black and white
alike, and this end of 1t the hotel man Is
going to keep. The black delegates will
not be allowed to eat In the dining hall.
Meals will be served in their rooms, and
there will be no lack of attention to them.
but the discrimination. will exist just
the same. This Is what makes DIR.
Grant angry. He knows the disposi-
tion of the colored citizen well enough
to understand that he win feel insulted.
The fact that such service Is usually
charged extra and indulged in by not
ables who dislike the stare of the COM
mon herd, will not appease the wrath of
the darkeys.
When Peter Jackson, Joe Walcott and
George Dixon, the fighters, were in st.
Louis, they stopped at the Laclede, and
they had their meals served In their
rooms.
r. r. Wright, colored delegate from
Georgia, is at the Southern. Mr.. Wright
is president of the Georgia state ollege.
He said the negroes were treated scand-
alously.
ITS an outrage" he said, "that our
contracts could be cancelled the way
they are. We shall have to find accom-
modations as best we can. 1 will prob
ably find a good place myself, but some
Of my friends will get along very differ
emily. There will be about 200 negro
delegates and alternates, and they are
all good men. deserving of better treat
ment."