The herald., 1898-10-20
rue AFRO-AMfRICANS
RoUsIM0 MEETING AT WIoWAM
s LAST NIGHT
HAVE LEFT REPUBLIcANISM
Mcguire Endorsed a. Well - ths
Union County and City Tickets.
Over 500 Colored Voters

dnOb Oh Cne hepuDllcans as to the TACT tnat
the Afro-American vote of Los Angeles
port Gage OF. the Republican county and
city tickets, that doubt must have been re-
moved by the Outpouring of the colored cit
izens at the Mcguire wigwam last night.
Over 500 colored men were in the audience
OF 5000 people who assembled in the tent,
9f G sos ha. .p aS
OF the fact that the Republicans held a
counter Afro-American meeting at Pano-'
rama hall.
The Band
When the Afro,Americans first signifed
their intention of holding meeting IN this
city the campaign committee Of the union
party at once offered the wigwam free and
promised the colored boys their own band.
ored band of this city to engage it for last
nights meeting they found that the Re
publicans had already engaged the home COL
ored band. Nothing daunted, the commit
tee cast about for another colored band and
found one at bakersfield. Arrangements
Colorel boys to this city and the band ar.
rived here on the noon train.
After marching through the streets and
rendering The Herald much appreciated
serenade in the afternoon, the valley band
took rest until evening.
Pasadena's Recruits
Troop d from Pasadena came up twenty.
two strong. This did not represent the
total of the Afro-American contingent from
ber of men in uniform. The troop was met
at the cars BY the Bakersiield band and pa.
raded to the wigwam. They were greeted
with most cordial reception and after the
applause had subsidized Charles Melhado in
troduced as chairman of the evening r. +.
Douglass.
Men In Earnest
Chairman Douglass made brief but elo.
Quent speech. He is one of the Afro-Ameri-
mites afforded him and, as he said, ''he
thinks for himself" upon the questions pre-
sented In the campaign now being waged in
this state, county and city. He said that
the uprising of the Afro-Americans against
the Republican party was due solely and
%hen pGssy pssoSy tire 1r hsS
her hand" The time had come when the
Afro-Americans were thinking for them
selves. While they loved and revered the
memory of the men that made them citi-
xens, they would not stand being called
"traitoEs" because they would not follow
had pointed out.
Douglass was cheered to the echo by his
countrymen and after O clever duet by the
two Hudson children of Pasadena, the words
OF which were q clever parody, j. i. Ed
monds was introduced.
A Plain Talk
Edmonds did some plain talking to the
men of his race, interpreting his remarks
with stories, told in his own way, that kept
the audience in more than a good humor
He handled the Republican party and its
promises to his race in o. way that convinced
those who heard him that he had dug be-
meath the surface for his facts. His address
was well received and, if anything, the
white voters in the audience cheered him
even more Justify than did his colored breth-
rem.
Thompson Talks
A. Thompson, the union party nominee for
secretary of state, who is visiting Los An
geles, arrived at the meeting and was at
once introduced to the audience.
Il bring you good tidings from the north
in this state. this year will surely win their
battle for right, James G. Mcguire will
surely be elected"
A recitation by Leroy Albright followed
and then the chairman introduced G. C.
Flint a. the next speaker of the evening.
The Right Of Citizenship
Flint at once attacked the supposition ad-
vanced by the Republican party that the
colored man was ungrateful if he failed To
vote that party's ticket. eff the Republican
party today was the party of Lincoln, Of
Sumner or of Garfield, ungrateful indeed
would we be If we deserted it; but, my col
today the party of Mark Hanna (cheers),
the party of the Southern Pacific (cheers),
the party of monopoly, and we have no rea-
son to feel longer bound to it. The Repub-
lican party deserted its principles, deserted
the colored man, long before the colored
man deserted it. 1t has no complaint to
make. If we are free men, if we are Amer
ican citizens, we have as much right to
change oup opinions as the leaders of the
Republican party and we are going to excr-
else that right"
Mr.. Flint then took up the Republican
county and city tickets. He showed that
the nominees on the Republican county
ticket had held, in the aggregate, official po-
sitions amounting to l08 years in time and
that the nominees on the city ticket had
served, in the aggregate, 4s years in public
office. =
Flint scored the local Republican organ
ization for begging the colored vote but
denying that race any representation, and
closed by urging the colored voters to stand
by the union party ticket from top to bot
tom.
From all over the tent came the cry,
eve will" eve will"
Mayor Snyder Talks
Mayor M. P. Snyder, who came into the
tent while Flint was speaking, was invited
to the platform and at the conclusion of the
address was introduced and spoke briefly.
He urged the colored voters not to be
swayed by tradition or prejudice but to
carefully investigate for themselves the
present situation of affairs in the city, coun.
ty and state and then vote as their honest
convictions told them was right.
Albright All Right
The next and last speaker of the evening
was G; W.. Albright. He is well known
colored orator and has the happy faculty Of
presenting plain truths in most entertain
ing way. His fund of stories is illimitable
and ne never tells story without making
point. He said that he had got
trying to feed his family by bowling "bloody
shirt" for the Republicans. He had got
tired OF Hanna prosperity. He had got
tired OF being. protected by the Republic
ans until ne had mighty little left to pro-
tect. Albright went on to show how at
national, state, city and county affairs the
Republlcans had ignored the colored men,
except IN the matter of promises He told
the colored voters that the union party was
the first and only political organization that
had ever gwen colored man place on its
ticket and ne urged the colored men to vote
the union party ticket without scratch.
Albright, in his inimitable way, scored
Gage and prophesied the election Of Ma.
guire. He told the colored men that the