The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-06-24
pELupING rHE NEeRo.

Ever since the negroes were freed from bondage and thrown on their own resources. left to take care of them selves and make their own bargains. they have been looked on as an easy mark for fakirs and swindlers. white and black, who have robbed them through every form of robbery that could be devised. Hardly had the noise of battle ceased when the forty acres and a muie'' swindlers commenced to ply their disreputable business. and many pooe negro gave up his hard earned dollars for bit of worthless paper through which he fondly imagin- ed that the govsrnment would soon put him in possession of snug little farm and a mule to till 1t.
 The pension scheme was another shrewd device by which thousands of negroes have been robbed. It Is work ed in many ways, but the dominant idea Is that the fakir obtains name. age and other data from the victim for which the latter is assured that he will shortly be placed on the govern ment pension roll and receive his first instaliment. Then he hands fee to the alleged agent and that Is the end of the transaction. Even if the poor darkey pays over but one dollar the swindier makes good thing of 1t if he can land enough suckers. Strange to say. this swindie is still going on in some portions of the coun- try. and 1t has been but short while since there was a case of 1t here in Montgomery. One might think the colcred people would ''get wise" to this swindle but they are slow to do so. The, promise of monthly stipend from the government is sufficienty<to blind many of them to the obvious swindle.
 Another fake which has been and still is continuously worked on the creduious negroes is through the sale of preparations to make their skins white and Itheir hair straight In the days of slavery the average negro did not look on kinky hair and black skins as any discredit to them. They con- tented themselves with the reflection that God made them so and were com tent to remain as He. created them. Nor. as a general thing, did they care. They had sense' enough to know that they would still be negroes and remain slaves. even though their skin should be bleached and their hair straightened.
 Now it Is different Being free they imagine that nothing Is needed to place them on the level with the white race but to take the black from their skins and the kinks from their heads, and 1t is surprising to see how gullible they are on the subject. Any negro news paper or magazine one picks up will be found to contain advertisements of preparations warranted to turn any black skin white and to make the kinkiest hair straight. There are always pictures of the Before and people bite easily at the paIpable swindie. They seem unable to see and understand that if these prepara- tions were effective they would not alter their features. change the shape of their heads or the size and capacity of the, brain, or change their nature and disposition. In short, they would still be negroes in all but color and kinks. All the bleaching and un- kinking they can do will not give them the white mans features. brains or character. and their last condition would be really worse than their first.
 It is encouraging to learn that the Postoffice Department has issued a fraud order against one of these swindlers who does business in Rich mond and advertises extensively in the negro papers. He has evidently been doing a good business among the coIored brethren and Is growing rich on their. credulity. The government proposes to protect the negroes of the country as far as possible against this swindler by denying him the use of the mails to reach his victims. It will be only partial remedy for some means will be found to evade the law. or to get to the negroes without using the mails, but if such an order is enforced 1t will do some good and save some victims. Even then. however, other shrewd rascaIs will find a way to de- Jude the negroes who are apparently always looking for bait.