The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-12-02
AS TO MIR. RoosEyELT's SINCERITY

Mr.. Roosevelt in his Letter TO a citizen
of Charleston. S. c., regarding the col
Iectorship appointment refers to his
having appointed to office one negro in
PENNSYLVANIA and two in New York.
This he mentions TO show that in max
ing such appointments he is not infu-
cnced in favor of or against any locality
He wants to create the impression that
negroes at the north stand as good
chance for appointment to office by him
as those of the south-three out of the
many thousand negroes of education
and wealth in these two great states
How about the states of Indiana and
Ohio where negroes are still more nu-
merous? Among all the cOlOred men
in those states are there none qualified
to fill the position of postmaster? IF
Pr sident Roosevelt is sincere in his
statement that it is his consistent poll
cy in every tate. where their members
warrant it, to recOgni ( cOlOred men Of
good repute and sta ding in making APP
pointments to office why is it that
these two states are SO barren of negro
OfficehOlders? When We see cOlOred
postmasters waiting on ladies and di-
recting the work of ladies as clerks and
other employees in some of the towns OF
Ohio and Indiana and some other north
ern states then We will believe that
Mr.. Roosevelt is not talking simply fOr
political gain when he says he will
make no distinction between the two
sections of the country in the matter of
appointment of negroes.
We do not believe Mr.. Roosevelt Is
going to appoint any negro to office at
the north if he thinks it will arouse
serious opposition from the white people
OF his own party; and at the south he
is going to appoint only enough to keep
the negro from thinking that he has
been entirely cast off by the republican
party. The policy of his administra-
tion has been to greatly reduce the
urIbe of negro officeholders in this
section. a score or more postmasters
of MS race have been supplanted by
whi : men. His conduct in this respect
has not been consistent with his dec
lara.iou of policy in his letter. Between
TIL present time and the meeting of
the republican national convention we
may look for ar increase in the number
of negro o~fficeholders in the south, but
Hhis will not be from a fixed policy TO
recognize the negro to that extent, but
will be for the purpose of c~ounteracting
TIL effect of the recent movement for
the formation of a white republican
party in this section and securing for
himself the support of the negro vote in
that convention. h course will not
prove the presidents sincerity in his
declaration. Such course in northern
states would be of no aid to Mr.. ROOse-
Welt in securing the nomination, Cor
there the negroes nave no voice in the
management of party affairs. In fact
many appointments of this kind would
ieopardize rather han aid his cause.
Therefore the test Of his sincerity IN
declaring his determination to give the
n-gro equal showing with the white
man in all appointive offices is his flu
ture action as to appointments in those
no .thern states where there are large
numbers of negroes. His record in the
past has certainly been against him.
The presidents letter, its publication
at least by him, was entirely unCalled
for. There was no reason for it from
the standpoint of an act by the chief
executive of the land. His record on
the subject should have beer allowed
to speak for him and he should have
considered that sufficient. 1t was not
the act of the president, but of a can
didate for the nomination for the presi-
dency. This matter smacks more OF
political scheming than anything MI
Roosevelt has done siFce his accession
to the presidency