The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-02-20
A Negro View of Crum Case.


 Interesting among the weeks develop ments is the attitude of the Atlanta h. dependent, d negro publication, edited by B. J. Davis, one of the real sort of ne- groes, with regard to the Crum case, which is agitating Charleston.
 Editor Davis takes the position that the principle of negro appointments having been sufficiently vindicated by the tenure of office which Crum and others of the race have had, the negro as a whole has nothing to gain and much to lose by in- sisting upon the appointment of a few members of his race to these small jobs in the face of such strong opposition from the white people. The white people, he says, have the right to protest against the appointment of negroes, and as long as the negroes insist upon the appointment of members of their race all they can hope to get is little $120O job for iso- lated member two of it, while they succeed in increasing prejudice against them on the part of the white people and lose materially in other directions. Here is a paragraph from Davis interesting ed- ltorial on the subject:
 If the party finally succeeds in forcing pr. Crum again upon the 99 per cent of the people who transact business with the office against their expressed will, what will the race get out of it save the mere fact that one of our number holds s1200 federal place? For the isolated job we invite the dspleasure of the people who control everything of value in the community and intensity their prejudice against us in every other line of busi- ness. And in spite of this great cost we do not convert our neighbors into the belief that a negro has the right to hold pub lie office. But we fix him more firmly in the opinion that the race constitutes a character that ought to be regarded as a menace to the perpetuity of representa- tive government"
 The position taken by Davis is entirely a new one from the negro's standpoint. Yet Editor Davis loyalty and devotion to his race is proven and unquestioned. He is simply seeking to show the mem- bers of it that they have more to lose than to gain by unwise insistence upon federal offices being given to negroes where they are not wanted by the peo- pie who have most to do with such offices
 Trying to Save Harper's Neck.
 Six times within the shadow of the galloWs, John Harper, convicted of the murder of the sheriff of Fannin county, and sentenced to be hanged, has reached out to grasp the last straw. The supreme court having refused his motion for new trial on extraordinary grounds, his att torney has presented to Chief Justice w. H. Fish a bill of exceptions addressed to the supreme court of the United States. putting the appeal on the ground that Harper's constitutional rights were violated on the occasion of his trial in that one of the jurors before whom he was tried expressed an adverse opinion prior to the trial. There are other minor grounds, charging infringement of con Stitutional rights.
 Judge Fish has the matter under con sideration and as the record is a long one it will be some days before he de- cides whether or not he can approve 1t. | Harper's case has been three times be- | fore the pardon board and each time it | has refused to recommend clemency. Gov ernor Smith granted him three respites | in order that he might have opportunity | to press a motion for new trial on ex- traordinary grounds It is upon the denial of this motion that he proposes to appeal to the United States supreme court. In the meantime Harper is spending his time 1 in Fulton county jail, sent here for safe- keeping, reading the Bible and writing letters to relatives and friends. He says he will not give up until the black cap has been drawn over his eyes.