The advocate. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1901-1913, 1910-12-15
is NAPIER AND SHOULD BE RAN.
QUETTED BUT CIRCULAR
LE1%rBR CAUSES SPLIT.
AHairx'teo ''Dickty"
At Five Dollars The Plate and the
Common &''Reepul'' Arrange to
Have II Feed More in keepdng
With Their Ideas of Economy and
Attenuated Purses.
Especial to The Advocate. }

Knoxville, Tenn, Dec. 12-The
following circular letter seems to
have met with the popular disap-
proval Of the majority Of the pub
|lic-spirited leaders In Nashville and
may embarass j. G. Napier before his
final "send-off" from the capital city
| Of Tennessee to assume his duties as
Register of the United States Treas
urX. to which he was recently ap-
potnted. The letter is as follows:
'I.TTNashville, Tenn, Dec. Z, 1910.
Dear friend: :-
"A few OF us have decided it would
be splendid move on the part OF
the citizens Of Nashville, as well as
a just recognition of a worthy citizen
/ tcEtender banquet to Mr.. and Mrs
j. C. Napier of this city. The ban
! quet .as proposed is to be given on
| the eve of MIR. NGpier's departure TO
accept the position of Register of the
United States Treasury to which -he
mas been recently appointed.
We give the following plans sug-
gested at meeting held a few nights
| ago; the banquet is to be held at the
Odd Fellows Auditorium, 447 Four
tn Avenue, North. It is to be the
by the Negroes of this city. 1t wall
not be local but national in it's scope.
The most prominent men in the
United States will be invited and
quite a number will attend. Every
newspaper of note has been invited
and asked to make mention Of the
banquet. All money collected will
be used for eatableS and decorations
If you think you can participate in
| such an affair, KINDLY drop us line
using the self-addressed enclosed
envelope.
We have agreed upon $500 taxa
ton. Each party paying the $500
will be permitted to bring one per-
son as their company. 1t ds, prefera-
BILE that each gentleman bring lady.
t.k1ndly' let us know something de-
! finite this week, for we wish. to es-
| innate the number who will attend
| Mr.. Napier will probably be con-
| Armed at this session Of Congress.
| Many of the business, professional
and we'll known citizens of Nash
vile have already consented to take
part.
The selection of Preston Taylor as
Chairman, H. A. Boyd as Secretary,
and G. N. Langston as Treasurer Of
the General Committee, was also
made last week. Will
rus in showing the world how Nash
lYil1e honors one Of its citizens? You
can save us much time by returning
your check, making it payable to the
| treasurer Of the committee. This
will be the greatest social occasion
as we'll as the greatest event in the
history Of the citizens Of Nashville.
Yours truly,
| HENRY A. BOYD,
| Secretary.
The circular letter is pretty good
| evidence that somebody has strayed
from the track Of real public spirit.
| Then, it is also somewhat Of a sug-
| gestion of a poor lesson in economy
for the struggling Negroes in the
| Volunteer State. The men, no doubt
meant well but there is certainly
nothing heartening in such a plan as
this for the people Of any community
especially colored people. Ella
borate Affairs" and a $500 taxa
ton for "Eatables and Decorations"
can hardly be looked upon, even in
this degenerate -age,-as- the most
Intelligent and reasonable way to
show just recognition Of worthy
citizen.
The circular letter and the spirit
| behlnd it did not seem to be at all
| popular among many of the m ost
influential Of Nashville colored peo-
| pie. A news item in the Nashville
Banner of Thursday Evening, De-
eenber 8th, shows that the good
sense and sympathies of the thought
full Nashville people are at heresy
with extravaganza, vain show and
pomp.
1t has been learned that only q
very few Of the men who received
the circular letter signed by Henry
A. Boyd were at all inclined to agree
with the method and spirit Of it's
origin. After receiving the letter,
they held meeting and arranged
for general mass meeting of all
tho citizens in order to have the
details of the banquet thought out
and worked out in the only proper
way it could have been done. >Af-
fairs Of this kind belong to the pub
lie and not to "A few" people in
any community.
The banquet will be q successful
one, II properly arranged and con-
Quoted. The people of Nashville and
the rest of the state have not always
agreed with Napier, as a politician
but they have a high regard for him
as man and citizen of worth and
character. They also respect very
highly the position Of Register OF
the United States Treasury to which
he has been appointed. For these
reasons those who have been for and