The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1920-10-09

Sun from time to time, an uplift or a
detriment to the Negro citizens of this
great commonwealth Is he In a po-
sition to criticize and condemn at will
legitimate Negro enterprises without
the slightest authentic knowledge Of
their progress and without ever haV.
ing operated, a legitimate business of
his own7 Does his writings tend to
create places Of %eongenial and profit
able employment for our young men
and women when they graduate from
the schools and colleges; or do they
tend to close the door Of opportunity
and advancement to our young gener-
alton? Do they stimulate race prog
ress in the various lines Of CONNER
cial enterprises or do they tend to
retard, tear down and root out Of ex-
istence all the great progress that has
been made in the business world by
the young Negro Of today7
The object of this article is to prove
to the public that his writings are un-
called for; that they are not true;
that they are narrow and selfish; that
they are false and misleading and tina;
they are not only a detriment and a
slap at u great commercial progress
in this city but that of u entire
ace as well.
This article was written without
malice or %ill-feeling. Having had a
large and extensive practical knowl.
edge in conducting two of Kansas
City's most successful business estab-
lishments, l believe it is my duty to
myself and to the progressive bust.
ness interests of Kansas City that the
article 1 shall discuss should not be
permitted to go unanswered, since ii
is a detriment and a setback rather
than an uplift to the Negroes of this
community.
The article l have reference to ap.
peared IN the front page of The Kan
sas City Sun under date of October
2, 1920. 1t was headed thus: En-
dorsements and Testimonials - Mis-
sourians Demand to Be Shown" BY
]. Dallas Bowser." 1t begins:
mo recent happenings in Kansas
City has meant so much to it's Negro
population as the refusal of the Parl
Board to permit all c%arnivals in the
future of the character that on sew
eral occasions operated their various
gambling schemes and devices in the
neighborhood of 18th street and the
Paseo. Anyone of these misnameC
educational shows comprised all the
vicious influences of Coney Island
Monte Carlo and a Louisiana Lottery
combined. Nobody could hope in the
long run to beat the game. Besides
the thousands of dollars that wer,
carried out of the city during an en-
gagement, a carnival was the mean
of gathering together from every quar-
ter of the city hundreds of undesir
ables, thugs, ~pickpockets, professional
gamblers to mingle with the thou
sands of well meaning persons of al
ages and conditions who were tempt
ed to hazard a dime or a dollar for
chance to bring home a chicken,
ham or a sack of flour. The Parl
Board has been misinformed in tn,
past; it has labored under the opinion
that the masses of Colored peopl
hungered gered for such demoralizinI
forms of amusement. When confront
ed by a delegation of citizens who in
dignantly refused to endorse thes'
and all other schemes of graft ant
luck, the Park Board acted at ono
for all time during the terms Of tn
present membership.
Testimonials are often necessar
guarantee of honesty and sincerity
A church member from a distanc
wishing to Join a nearby c~ongregatiot
brings his letter from his Mothe
Church. Such is the procedure ais
if a member from a secret lodge de
sires to attach himself to an orde
in another city. Testimonials estat
lish confidence, medicines, toilet PREF
%arations, household conveniences ar,
sold upon the same basis"