The Washington bee., 1899-04-29
NEGRO TROOPS FOR The
PHILIPPINES.

WHY not urge on President MCKin-
lev the necessity o sending negro
troops to the Philippines Islands? We
have in our southern states any guam
tity of negroes who properly officered
by whites, would be the best material
to use against the insurgents. The
climate would suit them, and we have
before us the example of the British,
who use inferior races, with white
officers, in India and Egypt. sug-
gest this, as it is evident that call
for 100000 or more volunteers will
have TO be made before the FilipinoS
can be subdued, and we cannot afford
TO sacrifice too many white men.
(. Fitzgerald Hollister.
1854 valderbilt ahe., NY. Apr. 10.
We clip from the Journal the
above to show in wha; aspect some
of our white friends (?) view our
helpfulness in the Philippines war.
That the colored soldiers would be
amost useful and effectual element
In the determination of war condi-
tions in favor of the honor as we'll
as the interests of the American
government, is most likely. The
excellent discipline and courage of
the colored troops have been amply
demonstrated in his conduct while
in Cuba. And there may be no
objection on the part of our people
to doing all that is reasonable to.
ward settling the difficulties and
terminating campaign of blood
shed. Bu5 the experience fIom
which our brave and efficient color
e. soldiers have just emerged is of
the sort to discourage rather than
encourage them to reenlist i'm "A
campaign so far from base. They
will Want some better reasons that
urged by the writer Of the above
clipping who seems to regard them
as SO many "things' to be killed
as means of saving white men.
The spirit Of discrimination shown
and practlced in the Cuban war is
hardly calculated to overstimulate
patriotic sentiments among our
people, still less to willingly and
foollshly submit to being battered
and butchered just TO save the
white people. The whites got all
there was of glory or profit out of |
the war, while the colored soldiers
get all of the "cussing" and it is no
more than proper that the whites
be made to maintain a policy which
they boaStingly characterized as
humane, but which now appears
but little better than an array of
the whites against the blacks.
The colored people are willing
and ready to do their part and
when called upon ir the spirit and
under conditions of fair play, will
doubtless do much to bring victo
ry and laure to American arms.
1t may not be the opinion of many
ignorant whites, but the fact is
that the colored people have al
sufficient number of able, expert
enced, brave and skillful men to
lead any or all colored troops
which the President NAV see
fit to enlist. Judging from the
way some of our white friends talk.
the colored people are in a most
deplorable condition of ignorance
but ;he talk is born of prejudice and
entirely out of tone with the facts. |
From motives of pride as well
as patriotism, the co!ored people |
will not throw themselves in the
breach, bear off the palm of victory
and then have it ruthlessly taken |
from them while they are mlsrep-
resented, ,sneered at and discouraged
The American negro is as brave
and as patriotic as the best and
proudest Of white Americans and
far the superior of the foreign scum