Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1912-06-07
J COL0R-lIaE H. MERIT
GENERAL LAND OFFICE AN e. DO
RADIO FOR WORTHY coLoRED
WORKERS.


servance Of the one hundredth ami
versary Of the establishment. Of the
general land ONCE. highly important
bureau Of the department OF interior,
brings II conspicuously into popular
notice. not. only because OF Its valued
functions ~ the real estate director
of the United States government, but
because Of the good things it's chief
ofhcial and his sponsors have done Tor
the uplift Of the worthy negroes shell
tered benath It's wing.
The sky under which colored men
live Is often so dark and lowering,
and the rewards of merit are SO mea-
ger, that many Of the race have come
to believe that justice to them from
members Of another race Is not to be
expected. AS an antidote to this
frame Of mind, 1t is pleasant to relate
the record Of Hon. Fred bennett, COM
missioner Of general land office, In
Washington. There are seventeen
classified employees of the colored race
in the land ONCE, and during the four
years OF Mr.. Dement'S incumbency,
ten Of these have received promotions.
Charles E. Cheatham, of North Car.
DINA, an expert stenographer. who en-.
tered the service in 1908, has been
promoted through all the grades from
5000 to $1,000, and is now In the office
of the secretary OF the interior at q
sclary OF $500 per annum; l.. NJ. Her.
shaw, of Georgia. who had been file
clerk for number Of years, at $1.4OO.
has been promoted to $1,000 and as
signed 20 examine desert land claims.
Other notable promotions are w. w.
Cohran, Of Mississippi, $1,000 to 81.
200; James A. Davis, OF Tennessee,
1000 to $1,000; David w. Utz, Of Ala
bama, 5000 to 81 900; Charles L. Webb,
of Illinois, 5000 to $1,000; Samuel H.
Webb, OF Virginia, $720 to 5000; Benta-
min s. Stewart, of the District of Co.
lumbia, $40 to $40. and Gabriel
Fletcher, Of Maryland, $500 to $720.
In addition to these promotions, Ed.
ward H. Hunter, of North Carolina,
who resigned to enter the ministry,
and is a candidate for one OF the gen.
eral ofiices OF the A. M. E. church, was
given the position OF law examiner at
81. 800, the first colored man who ever
held such a position in the classified
service, and Sampson H. Brent was
classified as skilled laborer at $500.
While this IL not a promotion in sal
airy, It 10 q promotion In grade and
tenure. ~ @%
Commissioner bennett makes the
merit system Of promotions mean
what the term implies, namely; that
those who show capacity for and per-
Torrance of assigned tasks are re-
warded according to ability and per-
Torrance. The fermentation of the
skin and chronological alignment are
not factors which enter into the es-
innate of qualifications for advance
ment. He has a fixed, unvarying-
standard of justice, and applies it to
all, having no thought as to race, po-
sition or substance. He Is calm and
undemonstrative, INDUCING in neither
professions nor batteries nor patroniz.
ings when dealing with members Of
the colored race.
"A colored clerk who had been pro-
NOTED to high grade, went to Mr..
bennett to thank him for his promo.
ton. The commissioner reply to the
clerks expression Of gratitude was:
"You owe me no thanks. had you
assigned to line OF work that would
show what you could do. You made
good, and that's all there is to it."