The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1907-04-28

RAILWAY MAIL SERVICE


clipped from the STATES ~ i''S'''
and i. commended to the careful pc
ru-aI Of al Southern men afflicted with
Eooscvcltism and a third term for hun
regardless Of the precedent hNed by
George Washington If it he desirable
ta have Roosevelt for third term. why
not 4 fourth Why not Mexicanize the
United States by making Roosevelt
President for 1ife2
Seriously. If the Republicans should
continue in power. the government serV-
ice n all its branches. will become thor
onoh1v Africanized. The States says;
ALREADY the process OF Africanlzing
he railway mail service has brought
forth many protests from thinking men
of the country. and it begins to look as
though it will be only question OF time
when that service will be entirely i'll the
hands Of negroes. The appointment OF
the negro TYLER Of Ohio to the position
Of Auditor for the Navy Department IS
another move which seems to have been
determined upon with the view of max
ing additional places i'll that department
for d horde of negro clerks
1T will be remembered that when that
appointment was announced 1t created
quite stir among the employees of the
Office who seriously objected to being
placed under the control of a negro
chief There still are, in the several de
partments at Washington. some clerks
from the South whose positions have
heen considered as secure by reason OF
the protection supposed to be afforded
bv the civil service rules. These South
ern clerks are no doubt competent, an
assumption supported by the fact that
they have up TO this time successfully
stood the strain put upon the civil serv-
ice rules to make places for Republicans.
THE appointment of Tyler touched a
verv sensitive spot irr the makeup OF
the average Southern clerk, and 1t Will
probably result i'll the resignation OF
many of them This will afford the OPP
portunity to crowd in more negroes III
that department. and will be but another
step in the steady progress of African
ling the government service. At the
time that Tyler's appointment was an
nounced the white clerks in the office
seriously considered the suggestion to
walk out in body as soon as the change
should be made Whether or not they
will be prepared to take such an eX-
IRENE. tough very natural step, is not
vet apparent, but it is reported that Sec
retary Cortelyou is by no means dis
turbed over the outlook. On the con-
trary. he seems to be rather pleased than
otherwise. and word is said to have been
passed down the line to the clerks that
those of them who may not like the COM
plexion Of their prospective chief Will
cause no dissatisfaction to Mr.. Cortel-
YOU by sending i'll their designations.
1T is quite possible that the stern ne
cessities Of the case-for we can lnag-
inc few persons who are more patheti-
cally helpless than the average lady clerk
in a government department--may cause
them to swallow their pride and CON
tinue to hold their positions. his fact
emphasizes the brutality of such an ap-
pointment, and the apparent determine
a.. Il. -, he
as unpleasant as possible to Southern APP
ricants for positions i'll the government
dtpartnents with a view to driving them
out Of the service. The alternative IS
thus squarely put TO every Southern ap-
.p1icant for government positions: Either
accept the extreme Northern view Of ra-
cia equality Of get out Of the service.
with this object lesson before them,
there can be small wonder that there are
comparatively 50 few Soutern young
women and men who are ambitious to
enter the service Of the government III
these subordinate positions. Our friend,
Commissioner McIlhenny, has but re
Icently been doing some missionary work
i'll the South i'll the way of trying to
arouse an interest among the young peo-
pie III this direction; but such incidents
as the one under discussion are not apt
to aid his efforts along that line. Those
presently III charge of affairs Of govern
ment may humiliate and degrade the
helpless women who are already in the
service, but while they are doing this
they can not hope that their inYitatlln
to other independent and spirited young
men and women i'll the South will be re-
ceived with any amount of favor.
Fortunately there are so many oppor-
tunities in the growing South now open
to ambitious and enterprising young peo-
pie that there is no necessity for them
10 apply to the government for positions.
The industrial, commercial and educa-
ttonal progress now apparent all over
this section furnish a live demand for
the brain, the activities and the enter
prise of every bright Young man and