The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-11-28

Washington, Nov. 27-The President |
has sent the following communication to |
a prominent citizen of Charleston, S. c.: |
Personal.
White House, Washington, D. c.,
November 26. 1902.
My Dear Sir:-I am in receipt of your
letter of November 10th, and one from |
Mr.. -. under date of November IL, |
in reference to the appointment of DR.. |
Crum as collector of the port of Char |
lesion.
In your letter you make certain specific |
charges against Mr.. Crum. tending to
show his unfitness in several respects
for the office sought. These charges are
entitled to the utmost consideration
from me and l shall go over them care
fully before taking any action. After
making these charges you add as a
further reason for opposition to him,
that he is colored man, and reciting the
misdeeds that followed carpet-bag rule
and negro domination in South Carolina,
you say that 1--WE have sworn never again
to submit to the rule of the African. and
such an appointment as that of Dr.
Crum to any such office forces us to pro-
test unanimously against this insult to
the NllltS eiHu yOu ludI you
understood me to say that / would never
force a negro on such a community as
yours.
MIR. puts the objection of color
first, saying: First, he is a colored
man and that of itself ought to bar him
from the office. In view of these last
statements 1 think 1 ought to make
clear to you why 1 am concerned and
panied by your making them, and what
my attitude is as regards all such ap-
pointments. How any one could have
gained the idea that 1 had said 1 would
not appoint reputable and upright col
ored men to office, when objection was
made to them solely on account of their
color, l confess 1 am wholly unable to
understand. At the time of my visit to
Charleston last spring l had made, and
since that time l have made. number
of such appointments from several States
in which there is a considerable colored
population. For example. 1 made one
such appointment in Mississippi and
another in Alabama, shortly before my
visit to Charleston. l had at that time
appointed two colored men as judicial
magistrates in the District of Columbia
| have recently announced another such
appointment for New Orleans. and have
just made one from Pennsylvania. The
great majority of my appointments in
every State have been of white men.
North and South alike it has been my
sedulous endeavor to appoint only men
of high character and good capacity
whether white or black. But it has been
my consistent policy in every State
where their numbers warranted it to
recognize colored men of good repute and
standing in making appointment to office.
THESE appointments of colored men have
In no State made more than small pro-
portion OF the total number of appoint
ments. L am unable to see how | can
iegltlmately be asked to make an excep-
tion for South Carolina. In South Car
oHna 10 the four most important posi-
tlons In the State l have appointed three
men and continued in office a fourth.
all OF them white men-three of them
originally Gold Democrats-two of them,
as am informed the sons of Confed-
crate soldiers. ] have been informed by
'he cltizens of Charleston, whom | have
met that these four men represent a high
grade of public service.
uo not intend to appoint any unfit
men to office. So far as I Iepitimate1v
can, | shall always endeayor IN nav ro-
gard to the wishes and feelings of tho
people OF each locality, but l cannot con-
sent to take the position that the door
OF hope-the door of opportunities to bo
smut upon any man, no matter how wor-
thy, purely upon the grounds of race or
color. Such an attitude would accord
ing to my convictions. be fundamentally
wrong. If. as you hold, the great bulk
of the colored people are not yet fit in
point of character and influence to hold
such positions, it seems to me that il
is worth while putting premium upon
the effort among them to achieve the
character and standing which will fit
them.
The question of negro domination
does not enter into the matter at ALL 1T
might as we'll be asserted that when | was
Governor of New York / sought to bring
about negro domination in that State
because I appointed two colored men of
good standing and character to RESPONSE
bic positions-one of them 10 a position
paying a salary twice as large as that
paid in the office now under considera-
tion-one of them a director of the Buff
falo Exposition. The question raised by
you and Mr.. in the statements to
be declared that under no circumstances