The age-herald., 1899-01-22
CALLS WASHINGTON NOTORIOUS NEGRO White Shield Protests Against
 His Lecturing BEFORE A WHITE AUDIENCE Invitation of Lyceum to Him to Appear Here Has Caused the Writing
 of Letter to Secretary
 White.
BEFORE A WHITE AUDIENCE

secret organization known as the Re- gents of the White Shield has entered a protest against the proposed lecture of Booker T. Washington before the Lyceum.
 The following letter was handed Secretary H. K. White, of the Lyceum, yesterday:
 "At an informal meeting last night of the Regents and Queens of Washington Con- clave. No. 1, Regents of the White Shield, of this city, the subject of the invitation and engagement of Booker Washington, to lecture to the white ladies and gentle men of Birmingham, in the near future, was discussed; and the undersigned were appointed a committee to call upon you as the secretary of said society, which we. as citizens, have held in high esteem, as one of the most aristocratic, honorable and potent for good of all our numerous moral patriotic and philanthropic societies, to en- ter our respectful protest against this de- parture from your precedents in the past, of honoring only persons of the Caucasion race in the entertaining, educating and amusing our people, and to express modest ly, yet firmly, our convictions that your in vitation extended to our people to visit your hail. and listen to this somewhat notorious
 
 tune.
 Under the auspices of your society, we have been permitted to hear the matchless oratory of a Morgan, and Ingalls,, a Me- Intyre and other men of national reputation and from them down to Booker Washington is too sudden a change from the sublime 10 the ridiculous.
 Ut may be true that Booker is the bright
 ic Jn- ing good work in his line as an educator of his own people, and deserves credit for what he has done; but he does not, in our opinion, deserve to be regarded as our equal or our instructor; for to accord him this honor, is to some extent the social recogni- tion of a negro.
 How many of the brightest minds in our state and nation would feel honored by such an invitation as you have extended to this black man to appear upon your plat form and discuss to the elite of our city any of the interesting topics of the day?
 ''The White Shield will defend the negro in his civil and religious liberties, but we unalterably oppose his social and political equality with white people,"
 It was signed by c. c. Bates, C. E. Ed
 
 Harris and w G. Beklay.
 The distinguished Alabama negro has al- ready been invited to address the lyceum and has accepted The probable date of his lecture is March 30.
 "The lyceum is not social or a political organization" said MT. White in discussing the matter. "It is a cooperative organiza- tion with the fee the only qualification for membership. The membership is. com- posed of citizens broad enough to appreciate entertainment of an instructive nature from any legitimate source. The board of directors, numbered among which are many of the most prominent and substan- tial citizens of the city, were first consult ed about the matter and they expressed the opinion that the lyceum would be glad to hear MT. Washington. So far as I know there is only one member of the White Shield who is a member of the lyceum."