The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-10-08
MAY COME TO A BOYCOTT.
NEGROES TALKING OF ONE on
STREET CAR LINES.

Requirement for Separate seats on
ThundeFboIt Line the Cause-Pres-
ident Wright of the COIorcd Col
Iege Complains Tint the Marshal
Mt ThuBderbolt Has InterfeFed
with Special Cars Engaged for His
Pupils Coming out and Returning
to the Cfty-COIored Ministers
wanted 10 Take Hold of the Mat
ter--A Conference Between Tbun-
derboIt and street Car officials.
The effort Of the Thunderboit town au-
! thoridos to enforce compliance with the
! ordinance recently adopted by the Town
/ Council requiring the street railway com
/ p4uy TO provd separate seats for white
/ and coiored passengers has resulted IN
! considerable friction and much soreness on
/ the part of the colored people, both toward
the street railway company and The au-
thor.ties Of Thunderbolt.
/ on this account, il is stated on good au-
thority, the co.oro1 travel 10 Thunderbolt
has fallen off very materially during the
/ last three weeks, since ihe ordinance has
been in force. The colored people are not
I q sp0sed TO submit to discrimination on ac-
count of color ana have ceased to patron
ize The line 20 a large extent The white
( patrons are not "a all dispeascd with this
falling off la patronage, as there has been
much complaint or the croWdng together
Of white and coiored passengers on the
same cars.
The reopening Of the colored college at
Ihunderbolt last week furnished add
tionai cause of irritation on the same line
The college has a large attendance from
fIa q r4f e a. Nit
The street railway company to furnish spe-
cIal cars for these students coming out in
the morning and returning in the after
neon. The purpose in obtaining the spe
cial cars was not only to fac litate The
transportation OF pupils but TO avoid the
friction on account Of The enforcement OF
The separate seats osdnance. 1t seems.
! however that the Thunderbolt authorities
have made no exceptions ia favor Of The
students cars and the co.ored people are
very much worked up on account of the
Outrageous manner in which they consider
| their children have been treated.
President r. r. Wright Of the Georgia
Industrial College as the school is official
ly known, was in the city yesterday for
the purpose of comforting with Col. +. w.
Me-drim ana Supt Otis AshmoTe, the for
mer being chairman of the Board of Trus-
tees for the college, and the later mem
Der Of the board.
To Morning News reporter. President
Wright admitted that the condition of af-
fairs was about as stated above. Il only
| returned to the city Monday" he said,
'aud was in ignorance of the sue which
had been raised as to separating the two
races in the same cars. was soon in
formed, however, and attended a meeting
Of the coiored ministers of the city Mon
day night to discuss the subject. Reso-
lutions had been prepared cOndemning the
street railway company Ia the strongest
TAH on ffg i
calling upon the colored people to boycott
The company altogether. The feeling of
the meeting was strongly in favor OF
adopting the resolutions. / prevailed upon
it to Withhold action, however, in the hope
that some arrangement might be arrived at
with he street railway official, and the au-
thorides Of Warsaw which would allay
the grievance"
President Wright was not prepared TO
discuss the general question as to the sep
aratiOn Of the races in the street cars be-
I ing more especially interested in the rights
of his pupils who he thinks have not re-
ceived fair treatment
The attendance at the college this
year, he said, lis the largest we have
ever had. There are over 200 students in
the college and about 80 pupils in the
normal school. making a total attendance
eff 300 OF this number 1876 reside In the
city, coming out in the morning and re-
turning in the afternoon. Arrangements
were made with the street railway COM
pany TO furnish special cars for
/ the use Of the pupils. II was
/ thought that this would obyIate any
/ conflict with the authorities at Thunder
| bolt, as the cars were to be entirely for
/ the use of the colored students The au-
/ thorites did not regard the cars in this
! light but on the contrary, the marshal at
/ Thunderbolt, acting under instructions
| suppose, has boarded the school cars at
1alt frasr 4.
/ their seats and enforcing the ordinance
/ TO the effect that part of the cars shall
! be used for whites and part for colored
! people"
President Wright said that IL this inter-
! ference continues It will greatly interfere
| with the work of the school Il attended
! a meeting of he Thuuderbot Council the
! other night" he said, "and endeavored to
! convince them that they were wrong in
| their View Of The matter. Mayor Nelson
was the only one who seemed inclined to
! view my position in a favorable light. The
/ others gave no encoura eement."
/ President Wright did not state what al
vice he received from Col Meldrim and
! Supt. Ashmore. He understood that Cen
! erai Manager Lotion and Mayor Nelson
| were 10 have q conference on The subject
at Thunderbolt last night He was not
| prepared 10 say what further steps he
wound take in he matter Mayor Nelson
| left his Office early for Thunderbolt and
/ could not be seen.
The white patrons OF The street car com
! pany are not at all averse to the separa-
/ ton of ihe races, and they would much
1 prefer thai separate cars should be provid-
/ e5 on he suburban lines. ON which the
4 negro travel is fully as large as that of
/ he whites. II is said however, that the
4 travel on the Thunderbo't line has fallen
/ off considerably since the order for sep
arate seats has been IN force.