The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-11-03
MAJ. BROWN SPEAKS.
CoIored Orator Addresses Small
Audience at Auditorium

CoIored Orator Addresses Small
Audience at Auditorium
Major John NJ Brown spoke at the
Fusion rally at the Auditorium last
night.
Those who were there would have been
glad had the engineers been testing the
steam plant. TIL room was as cold aa
barn.
Not large crowd was out to hear Ma
jor Brown A State Journal reporter
counted the audience and found 453 in
the hall Of which about rs were colOred
people. Mr.. Brown directed his remarks
at few old colored men who had passed
through slavery times, and who sat in
the front row.
a man sat in the front row with his
head thrown back SO that he could get
view of the speaker, and with his mouth
open In his lap he had a dog. Not Il
pet pug dog, but a waterspaniel Every
time the audience cheered the dog would
join in and by barking would help out
with the demonstration.
Major Brown explained the small au-
dience by saying that the opposition was
holding meetings in every ward of the
city and that they were out with music
and the people followed the music I'VE
have not the music but can rest assured
that we have the right principles SAID
Major Brown.
1.-The time is nearly UP when the is
tied / have been asked why I changed
my politics. did SO because I think
the Republican party is a friend to the
negro only at election time
The major dweIt upon the disfran-
chisement Of the negro. He said: THE
state Of Mississippi was the first in
which the privilege of the negroes was
abridged. This was brought about by
property qualifications. The law was
made to read that the voter was requir-
ed to be able to read, understand and ex-
plain the constitution of the state Also
that they would have to pay a tax of SO
hundreds of the cOlored voters
Now the Republicans have had four
years since they have been in power and
have done nothing to remedy the situa-
ton They have had the power but have
never acted and they never will do any-
thing in this direction
we must not vote for the Republic
cans Tor past favors- If we ever owed
anything to the Republican party for
freeing the slaves, that debt has been
Cancelled long ago. They certainly can
not expect to keep us paying that debt
forever. If the Republicans poll the
colored vote from now on they will have
to work hard for it,
Major Brown went over the Philip
pine question and the Cuban question
again. He declared that lit was not the
intention of the Republican party lead
ers to free Cuba, if it was the idea of
the majority of the followers of the
party. He says that by fraudulent
votes the tools of the party leaders will
ton, and tthe Cuban will be in slavery
just as sure as they were under the
Spanish rule And he says they will
rebel and fight for their liberty just as
the people in the Philippines are doing
now"
No one who ever went to Cuba to
fight to help free them from the OPP
preston they suffered under the Span
ish rule will vote for the Republican
ticket if they understand the situation
properly. When McKinley's name is
mentioned among the Cubans in Cuba
a frOwn and a scOwI passes over the
faces Of the men, and when Bryan's
name is mentioned they yell They
know what is in store for them IS the
outcome Of this election If Bryan is
United States next Tuesday, the Cubans
will be set free And / will be proud
to have the honor to help in that work
by voting for Mr.. Bryan next Tues
day"
Major Brown showed where the Dem
ocratic and Populist parties had done
more for the negro by electing him to
public offices within the past few years
than the Republicans had done for him
during the past forty years
Following Major Brown, Ex-Governor
Click, who was in the audience, spoke
for few minutes He said:
"Since hearing Major Brown here this
evening I have heard more common
sense in a dozen of his sentences than
have heard from all the Republican
orators I have listened to during the
campaign
In speaking of the attempted disfran-
chisement of the colored man, he said:
I almost wish I were a negro SO that
I could defy them when they said to
me You can't vote"
Mr.. Click touched lightly on the Phil
ippine question, after which hs discussed
the trusts.