Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1913-05-28
WANTS CONDITIONS CHANGED.
Railroad Commissioners Address
Letter to Pullman Company.

| for selling negroes berths in Pullman
cars along with white people was
| voiced by the South Carolina Rail-
road Commission tonight in a let
ter addressed to f. B. Daniels, the
general solicitor Of the company in
Chicago, by John G. Richards, the
chairman. The letter follows:
ION May IA, 1913, | boarded a
Pullman car at Rock Hill, S. c., for
Columbia, S. c., and was assigned
by the Pullman conductor to a
berth or seat No. II, and was shock
ed to find out that Berth No. IL was
occupied by negro man. Practi-
cally every reservation upon this car
was occupied by white ladies and
gentlemen.
Southern Railway Train No. 81,
as, of course, you know, is an inter
State train and is under national
control. South Carolina, however,
has on her statute books law which
undertakes to separate races in
travel upon all trains operating in
this State. There are separate
coach" laws in every Southern State
through which this train operates
and carries your Pullman cars.
While we may not be able to reach
your company for having violated
the letter Of our law, you most GER
tainly are guilty Of a violation OF it's
spirit and purpose, and the railroad
commission Of South Carolina feels
that it should express to you in no
uncertain terms it's condemnation of
your conduct in selling passage to
negroes and affording them accom-
modations on the same co NuNes upon
which you have white women and
white men passengers.
''As you are aware, the Pullman
Company operating in the South is
sustained almost entirely by its
white patrons, and these do not pro-
pose to submit to conditions which
will permit negroes to occupy the
same coaches.
1--WE know full we'll that nattol al
law requires your company to give
equal accommodations to both
whites and blacks, but there is no
law which prevents your furnishing
seperate accommodations for the
races, just as our separate coach
law requires the railroads to do in
South Carolina. There are many
legal ways open to your comp. ny,
that If resorted to, would remove
the necessity for your company fore
Ing this indignity upon your white
patrons in the South, and the people
of South Carolina will most certain
ly expect you to provide accommoda-
tions in future that will effectuaIly
separate the races.
Through the exposure of this re-
cent occurrence, it has been brought
to our attention that your company
has frequently within recent months
violated the spirit of the South Car
olina law. With the opening and
closing of the negro college at Or
angeburg, s. c., we have been in
formed that your company sells to
negroes reservations on the cars
that you know are occupied by white
ladies and gentlemen.
"The Railroad Commission Of
South Carolina is aware of the fact
that 1T may entail some additional
expense upon your company to pro-
vide separate accommodations for
the races while you are operating
within this State, but we are Of the
decided opinion that if you do not
do so, and speedily, you will sustain
far greater loss through those who
will positively refuse to patronize
your company.
I'VE wish to impress upon you
this fact: That we propose to con-
tinue to give this matter our per-
sonal supervision and see to it that
the people OF South Carolina are
Kept thoroughly informed as to
what your practice is in future, and
If you do not voluntarily give us the
relief, we will appeal to our Repre-
sentatives in Congress for national
legislation that will compel you to
meet the demands Of the white Deo-
pie of this State, and of the South
generally
"Fertilizcr King" Drowned.