The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1905-06-07
A Color Story.

OOiot 0hoi y
In The Age-Herald of May 30 was
printed an article that had to do with
a clergyman who was called to a
church in Philadelphia, whence, after
remaining a few weeks, he returned
to New Orleans, there to resume his
earlier pastoral charge.
The article, which was in the form
of an interview, explained that one
reason why the clergyman in question
returned to New Orleans was that
some members of the Philadelphia
congregation were negroes.
Now comes the Mobile Register in
due and regular order, stating with a
great deal of emphasis, If not with
equal authoritativeness, that the arti
Gle printed in The Age-Herald was
"a pure nyention-absolutely and UNI
qualifedly without foundation
Well, in order to get and keep the
record straight, let us see what are
the actual facts in the case. Here is
the article as 1t appeared in The Age
Herald
THAT is surely an Illuminating
story on the race question that comes
to us from New orleans and Phila-
delphia" said a Birmingham man last
night at the IIllman, who lived the
first thirty years of his life in or near
Boston.
mo: you haven't heard it?" he went
on. somewhat surprised.
"Well IL seems that a noted and ex-
ceedingly popular clergyman who has
been at work in New Orleans for the
last ten years. hesitate to call his
name-recently went to Philadelphia
to take charge of a most important
parish in the City of Brotherly Love.
This clergyman mind you, was
northern man by birth. rearing, edu-
cation and marital ties. He had we'd
ded representative northern wo-
man
"A day or two thereafter the clergy
man received the cards of two callers
at the rectory. He examined the cards
and found that the names of the call
ers were on the list handed him by
the wardens. He promptly commune
Gated the fact to his gracious helpmeet
and together they went downstairs,
ready to show the distinguished call
| ers every courtesy When they en-
tered the drawing room they were con-
fronted by two mulattoes-a man and
| a woman.
''The call ended at length. the clergy
| mans wife eXcusing herself before Ii
closed When the clergyman had
showed the visitors out he returned
TO his study, there to find his wife in
tears. A few days thereafter the
clergyman resigned the rectorship OF
the church in Philadelphia and re-
turned to New Orleans, and thereby
hangs tale that is highly signih-
can't"
And here is the denial recorded by
the Register:
The Birmingham Age-Herald printed
| this week, in its minor interviews, a
| statement by New Orleans visitor
| that there was current in New Orleans
| and elsewhere in the south story
which the visitor Vouched for by re-
peatng tito the effect that a promi-
nent clergyman of New Orleans had
| practically been driven to resign a
| reetorship in Philadelphia because he
| found negroes as members of the
Philadelphia congregation. and callers
| upon himself and wife. The only
| truth in the story is that the cerlgy-
man referred to did accept the call to
| Philadelphia. remained there a short
| while, and then resigned in order to
| return to his people in New Orleans.
All the rest is pure invention, abso-
| lutely and unquestionaby, without
foundation, Nothing occurred in Phil
adelphia or in any place else to even
|, suggest it.
The gentleman quoted by The Age
Herald was not "a New Orleans Wis
itor," but "a Birmingham man who
lived the first thirty years of his life
in or near Boston" 1t might be sug-
gested that the Register should have
been accurate at least in this detail
of its criticism; and it might be in
ferred that if a newspaper is careless
in its statement of facts so readily
obtainable, its expressions of opinion,
unsupported by cited authority, have
little if any value.
The truth of the matter is that the
story printed in The Age-Herald is in
circulation and that it started in New
Orleans, where it was vouched for by
persons who know intimately we'll the