Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1904-02-19
HULL VS.. PRoU1Y.
Some Facts BY the Editor.

Within less than ten days the repuh-
lican voters will be called upon to
name the next congressman to succeed
Captain Hull. Men will try to sway
the colored voters, There are only two
candidats thus far, Judge S. F. Prouty
and Captain j. A. T. Hull. Now, col
ored voters, look we'll, be conservative,
study the history and record of each
candidate, use your own mind and
best judgment of who you think the
best qualified man and then the man
who will give our race justice and do
the most good for our people. Now,
the facts as we see them are simply
these: Congressman Hull has been in
Office for the past 80 years and we
know his record while the other man
has not been in Office and therefore we
have no opportunity to know what he
would do. Now let us examine hon.
estly and diligently the history Of
Captain Hull's record as regards his
own colored constituents. First he
has held Office 80 years and has only
appointed one colored man from this
district. Think Of it. Thirty-two years
and only one, although others have
applied. When the Spanish American
war came our colorsd boys thought
they would organize colored COM
pany and go to Cuba and lis men
signed their names to go. elected off,
GERS and sent them in to Captain Hull.
He wrote back the department would
not accept colored captain and we
would have to elect some white man.
We refused, a few days later that rule
was broken and colored officers were
accepted from Indiana Then we wired
Captain Hull again. He answered say
ing that we could have colored cap
tion. We again elected the same Off
Ger. The next day he changed his
mind and ordered the white man to
go on with colored company. why
did Captain Hull change his mind so
quickly? Simply to pay political
debt to a white man and rob our race
of colored otncers. Then again when
Lieutenant Wilburn and I lieutenant Ed
McAfee applied to be an officer in the
regular army he turned them. down
end Insisted IN appointing some other
colored man from Virginia by the
name OF Gilmore. who was not from
our state or district. Then again we
cannot find one written statement or
.speech in congress in the past IA years
that he has been there, where he has
defended our race. When some of our
local colored people called on him
in our city to go to mass meeting
OF the colored people to condemn the
lynchings, murderings, burnings and
the disfranchisement of our race in
the south and asked him to attend this
meeting and speak he said in sub.
stance that there was other more i'm.
portant business for America than this
and the colored people ought to do
something for. themselves. These and
many other things we can tell
will convince the average friend Of
the colored race public policy would
compel him to vote for our race as
does many other men in congress.
New, dear voter, Judge Prouty has as
yet never been tried. He surely can.
not II elected to congress do less than
the captain has done. While a juoge
on the bench he was at all times
friendly to the colored men brought
before him and always give him Jus.
tice. Judge Prouty has come IN
through life as poor boy struggling
Tor living and therefore in view OF
all these facts let us give him trial.
Not 30 years but only. a few years ii
ne proves false we will turn our sup.
port against him.