The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-11-09
BLOW FOR BLOW
Broughton and Dixon
Hold the Stage.
Rev. Mr.. Broughton Says His Clans
man is a Disgrace. Mr.. Dixon An
swers in Language Reek'ng
With RidiCule.
(Atlanta Journal

Rev. Len G. Bsoughton, pastor of
| the Tabernacle Baptist church, in the
presence of a congregation that taxed
! the large auditorium to its utmost
| capacity, departed from his regular
| sunday night sermon long enough to
pay his respects to Thomas Dixon, Jr.,
author of THE Clansman.'
Mr.. BroughtOn said:
Pardon me just here for going
bit aside from my prepared sermon
to say a word further on the stage
of today. Recently, as you know |
have had somewhat of a controversy
with the author and promoter of
The Clansman' He tried to reply
to me in a sort of silly, Cheap John
way. But my challenge to him to de-
bate the moral of the situation has, it
seems, forever hushed the matter up.
His whole show is a disgrace to
Southern manhood and womanhood
To claim that it is necessary today
for him to go gyrating about over the
South, stirring up such passions of
hell, to keep the races apart and thus
prevent what he imag mes, an impend-
ing amalgamation of the whites and
blacks into one race Of mixed bloOdS,
is a SANDER of the white people of
the SOuth-a SANDER so vile, espe-
cially coming from q man who is pos
ing as the friend of the South, that
| cannot find words sufficiently strong
to denOunce it.
81 deny that the South needs a
travelling troupe of masked mon and
women, from God knows WhaIc AM
what, to keep our men chivalrousc
our women pure, and our children
free from the blood Of blacks. Shame
be upon the son of the South who
turns traitor TO the people of his race
and the section of his birth to thus
mpugn the virtue OF its women and
the pride of it's men.
my father was Ku Klux. as was
Mr.. Dixon's father, apd neither of
them ever dreamed of the amalgama-
ton of the races. 1t is misrepre-
sentation of history and SANDER upon
our people.
II cali upon the South to resent it.
/ call upon the North to disbelieve it
and to boycott it. There is no need
for Mr.. DiXon's tour of race prejudice
revival and money grabbing. The
devil of selfish greed is back of it all.
1t is doing the negro harm, and cor
rupting the people of our own race.
The negro ever is hard to see les
son: he gives way to passion, and if
such insane agitations of passion con-
tinuc unchecked, it will be the ruin OF
the negro and the disgrace of the
whites.
81 call for a halt in all this wild
and foolish talk about the negro. Let
the white man go on and rule this
country as he is doing it now, but for
Gods sake the Negroes sake, and our
sake, give the negro rest from abuse
and incendiarism"
1t is estimated that over 400 people
heard the sermon, and while the
preacher was speaking of the stage
and Thomas Dixon, Jr., he was fire.
quently interrupted with applause.
Dixon Cuts at Broughton's Hair.
The Journal on Monday morning
received the following telegram from
Rev. Thomas Dixon, Jr., author of
The Clansman':
New York. Nov 5.-The Rev. Len
Broughton challenges me to settle inn
mediately by a joint debate in thea
ire in Atlanta, whether the drama was
born in hell. Let us all rise and join
in a solemn smile. What Atlanta
needs is not joint debate but an ex-
tension of the public school system to
night classes for Broughton's kind.
AS rapidly as we develop our schools
in the South we will outgrow the kind
of religion which is but single de-
gree removed from negro voodoism.
THE real reason, however, why |
that / play only the legitimate drama
never vaudeville or burleSque.
Broughton wears his hair in waving
tresses a fool long. Think of a joint
performance with such a reverend IN
the irreverent atmosphere of a thea
tre If sinners should mistake him
for a fairy maSqucrading in panta-
looms the police would have to pull the
whole show. His manners are loud
on
81 must draw the line somewhere.
The Clansman may be of the devil as
he says, but even SO, the devil has a
dignity he must maintain in his own
realm. / suggest, therefore another
question for Brother Broughtons
prayerful consideration. May it not
be that the effeminate vanity which he
displays in that hair is the real STUN
bling block in the way of true relig
ion in Georgia. Perhaps it caused
so many of his flock to backslde and
rush to see The Clansman, who
knows?
Isn't the Bible dead against such
hair? Let d week of prayer be ap-
pointed at the Tabernacle to consider
this. I'll pay for lights and | want
every jet turned on full. If the Lord
reveals to the faithful that it is time
to put the blade into those beautiful
locks, | offer to pay the BARRIERS bill
If / can have the hair. We need
dozen minstrel wigs for The Clans
man
THOMAS DIXON, JR.