The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-05-09
THE COLOR LINE.

Ray Stannard Baker is writing for
The American Magazine a most inter-
esting series of observations on race
conditions in the south, Following the
Color Line" AIR. Baker does not seem
to be attempting to solve the race prob
lem. He is merely reporting, in his own
interesting and intelligent way, and
without prejudice for or against either
side, the situation as he has found it.
In the second installment of the series,
published in The American for May, Mr..
Baker makes this statement:
But scuriously enough 1 found that
these men Ohe better class whites) rarely
knew anything about the better class
of negrOes-those who were in business,
or in independent occupations, those who
owned their OWL homes. They did come
into contact with the servant negro, the
field hand, the common laborer. who
make up, of course, the great mass of
the race. On the. other hand, the best
class or negroes did not know the higher
class of white people, and based their
suspicion and hatred upon the acts OF
the poorer sort of whites with whom they
naturally came into contact. The best
elements of the two races are as far
apart as though they lived in different
continents; and that is one of the chief
causes of the growing danger of the
southern situation
More truth has rarely been COM
pressed into fewer words. The question
is as to the method of making the bet
ter class of whites acquainted with the
better class of negroes. Personal con-
tact is usually considered necessary to
close acquaintance. There will never
be this contact between the better class
of whites and the better class of ne
grOes. Nobody who is familiar with the
race feeling in the south expects the
white man of good blood to summon a
negro physician to prescribe for men,
bers of his family; nobody expects him
to employ a negro lawyer in his court
proceedings; nobody expects him to buy
drugs from negro druggist or goods
of any sort from a negro merchant.
Procedure of that sort would not be
expected in the north. Mr.. Baker him
self quotes a negro druggist who went
north looking for an opening. The man
said:
when got there I wanted a shave.
walked the streets two hours, visit
ing barber shops, and they all turned
me away with some excuse. 1 finally
had to buy a razor and shave myself.
That was just a sample. 1 came home
disguised and decided to fight it out
down here where 1 understood condi-
tions.'
If the intense prejudice here de-
scribed exists in the north how can any
reasonable man expect to find it absent
in the south? In the south the negroes
have always been servants. And as SER
wants they enjoyed the confidence and
the love of their masters. The new ne
gro of whom Mr.. Baker speaks is most
offensive to the better class of whites
because with his education has come
however much he may deny tia burn
ing desire for equal recognition in pub
lie places. if not for social equality.
The new negro is really to be pitied.
He is too good for his own people; he
is not good enough for the whites. 1T
is grim business he is in as Mr.. Baker
says, this being free. this new, fierce
struggle in the open competitive field
for the daily loaf" But we are sure
Mr.. Baker will appreciate the force of
the suggestion that the new negro, I'M
like the old, is not satisfied with the
daily loaf He insists upon ice cream
and cake. And that causes a lot of
trouble