The bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1918-07-26

will be hot time in the old town.
and not only saved the day for Col.
Roosevelt, but they brought victory to
the American nation. . .,-
Today black hands are still holding
high the flag. We see them as they
come, 12,0OO,000 strong, marching,
their faces wreathed in smiles, going
oyer the top into No Man IS Land,
where Roberts and johnson, the sons of
freedom, single handed and alone put
to fight twenty-four Germans. Can you
longer doubt the valor, loyalty and pa
triotism of the black man9 I wonder
| if when he returns he will find his wife
and children, his mother and sisters,
and his dear old father whose head is
f,beading low and whose hair is feecy
white. say, will he find them safely
tucked away in that cozy little cottage,
protected with the strong arm of the
government Of the Land of the Free,
and the Home of the Brave? For he
has gone over there to mingle his
blood with the blood of other nations,
that the world may be made safe for
democracy, which has been so long
denied him.
Now and then, but seldom, you hear
one say, "This is not my country. I
have no right to fight for flag that
does not protect me- But let me say
to you that this is our home, and wheth-
er we have that protection that is our
J due or not, all we have is here and tho
time will come and it is not far dis
tant, until we must and will receive
every protection guaranteed to every
American citizen under the American
constitution.
It is true we complain and we have a
just cause for complaint, but right here
I am reminded of the words Of Fred
erick Douglass, when he said, "I will
continue to pray, labor and wait, be-
lieving that my country cannot always
or deaf to the voice of humanity"
When I was passing through my dark
est hour and was all but ready to give
up the ghost, I picked up a fireside
companion and read a little poem by
Ella Wheeler Wilcox, the first and last
verses Of which said:
Smile little, smile little
As you 60 along.
Not alone when life is pleasant
But when things go wrong.
Care delights to see you frowning
And loves to hear you sigh
Cast the smiling face upon her
And quick the flames will fly.
Smile upon your undone labor
'Tis not for him who grieves
0 'er his tasks awaits wealth or glory,
He who smiles achieves.
Then why sit in gloom and darkness
With thy grief to supf
AS you drink fate g bitter tonic
Smile across the cup.
Our face is the smiling face, for we
have faced the world with the over
flowing cup Of sorrow and still we smile.
Is there any other race under the
canopy of heaven who has drunk the
cup of bitterness in oppression, segre-
CATION, humiliation, jim-crowism, and
every other thing that could tend to de-
grade people, and still smiles and
achieves.
Fight on. brave race Of mine, for God
still lives and He moves in myster-
ious way. Let us not forget that our
history is now in the making and
while we are justly proud Of the rec
ords made by our race and the heroic
deeds of our boys on the battle front,
there is here great work for us to do
which is of just as much Importance
and while I believe that we should do
our all, during this great crisis to hold
up the arms Of our government, I also
believe that we should have the moral
courage to protest with ALI orr mipht