The Nashville globe. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1906-193?, 1912-06-28
NEGRO DELE
Gates STAND
COULDN'T BE BOUGHT
OR SOLD.
Their Praises Sung
Throughout Nation
The &C staIwarts Defied Mr.. Perkins
and His Crowd-They Favored
Roosevelt, But Were Instructed
for ,Taft-Would not Change
for Thousands of Dollars.

When the National Republican
Convention convened at Chicago on
the 18th, the newspapers throughout
the country printed in bold letters
that the &C Negro delegates controlled
the situation. 1t was meant by this
that the contest between President
Taft and Col. Roosevelt was so close
that these 6G delegates could turn the
results in favor of either candidate.
Most of these delegates were from the
south and had been elected on the
Taft ticket. True, there were equal
ly as many of the contested Roose-
veit delegates, but it was not be-
lieyed that the contested Roosevelt
delegates would be seated from any
of the Southern States, except Texas,
Arkansas, and probably a few from
Alabama and Georgia. 1t was also
conceded at that time that the steam
roller process set in motion by the
National Committee, in making up
the Temporary Roll, would be kept
in action throughout the Convention.
This made it clear that President
Taft would be nominated if he could
hold the &C Negro delegates. For it
was apparent that every contested
seat would be given to him, regard
less of the nature of the case; and as
the days passed, and the giants of the
Republican party passed from time to
time to this or that matter, whenever
a vote was taken, the results
strengthened the belief more that
step by step the Office-holding crowd
were gradually taking from the peo-
pie the delegates they had elected
and sent to Chicago to represent
them.
So the situation was really in the
hands of the Negro delegates, and
they were singled out as the ones
that would be bought by the Roose-
welt side, and it was predicted that
Mr.. Perkins, with his millions, would
at the psychological moment step over
and purchase the 66 Negro delegates
and thereby nominate Mr.. Roosevelt
as President of the United States.
The Taft managers were alsoappre-
hensive; but the Negro was put on
his honor, and while the white men
from the Southern States we're chang
ing from time to time there were
only four Negroes who we're elected
as Taft delegates who switched over
to Roosevelt; and those four were
from Mississippi; and while they
were elected as Taft delegates, 1t
has been known from the outset that
they were for the Colonel In fact,
a large majority of the Negro dele
gates were opposed to President Taft,
but they had been elected and in
structed for him and they stood as
men on the honor Of their words;
and at the last hour, and when the
last and final appeal had been made,
the Negroes reply was mol" | can
not be bought; l am not for sale.
And so the delegates who were sent
up from the South and who were sin
ed out by the press of the nation
as the chattel of the Republican party
returned to their several homes the
heroes of that great and dramatic
Convention.
Their praises are being sung on all
hands, and the leading business men
of the country as well as the leading
politicians are today looking at the
Negro in a new light They see in
him those qualities of Integrity that
make men; and in the future when
conventions of a like nature assemble
to deliberate, the Negro will not be
singled out as a bunch to be bought
and sold as chattel, but every man
will be counted as one man in the
body.