Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1921-11-10
Washington Correspondence.

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Birmingham, "Whether you like it
or not, if our Democracy is not lie,
you must stand for the political and
economic equality of the races" he
was uttering sentiment which will
sooner or later have deeper effect in
the north than in the south, and he
was undertaking the old and impossi-
BILE task of measuring unlike things
with the same yardstick.
OF course the real purpose of the
speech was political; he expressed
the desire that the white people of
the south would divide up on economic
lines and forget the race question
which is nothing but the old, old
effort to break the solid south. Even
Lincoln dreamed of it, and every Re-
publican President since has tried his
hand at it--all in vain. The President
also urged the'negroes to divide their
ranks on political questions-know-
ing all the time they would not do it.
ALO hhOW tduu tuOpC WIZ bdh0 cul
ficient interest or pride in their new
found rights to vote, still vote more
than SO per cent for the candidates
bearing the Republican label.
Conditions in the Southern States
demonstrates two things; first, that
the Southern white people are not |
going to have equality of any kind
between the races; they couldn't have
if they wished, and they will never
wish it. The differences, socially,
economically and ethnically, are
fundamental and ineradicable; they |
go back to creations dawn and to the
Creator; they have always existed
and always will. The ipse dixit of a
President is uttered, talked of for a
while and is forgotten, while the age
old fundamental obstacles remain.
In Egypt, before the Exodus even, an
Egyptian writer; speaking of the
negro, said: "He is different; his
skull is not like ours; it ossifies at the
age of puberty, after which the brain
does not grow" That is free trans
lation from the cuneiform characters
OF the Egyptians. The difference
noted then exists now.
If the Presidents words, quoted in
the first paragraph, mean anything,
they mean that the negro must be
allowed to work on an absolute equal
ity with the white mechanic or artisan.
To be allowed to so work, he would
of necessity have to be admitted to
membership in the labor unions-the
bricklayers' union, the carpenters
union, the steamfitters, the boiler
makers, the stonecutters, the timers,
the cigarmakers, The machinists, the
electricians, the Typographical union.
The President says, ''You must stand
for the political and economic equality
OF the races" It will be interesting
to note if the question will appeal to
the labor leaders of the country with
the same force with which it seems TO
have gotten hold OF the President. 1t
is interesting to ask how such equality
is possible in the Northern cities to,
which the negro has focked in recent
years, where practically all labor is
performed by the members of labor
unions, operating under their rules,
which require that each member
demonstrates before selected COM
mittee his ability to perform skilfully
the work falling to members of that
union. I believe it is true at the
present time that all negroes are
barred from membership in these
unions, and am informed by union
men that there are a few negroes in
those cities who could pass the re-
quired examinations provided they
were admitted to them. Now the
questionnaturally arises will the great
unions yield to the plainly expressed
determination Of the President?
Those who have tested the temper of
these men in other matters do not
think SO.
IT the President is sincere in his
startling utterance, he should show
his faith by his works. The world is
still judging the tree by its fruit.
Something like twenty per cent of the
Republicans are negroes; on that
basis, twenty per cent Of all the Presi-
dents appointments should go to the
negroes. They should have two
members Of the Cabinet, while part
of the assistant secretaries In the De-
partmeuts should be negroes, and
part Of the Presidents Office force, a
few members of the Diplomatic Corps,
two Associate Justices of the Supreme
Court, ct Cetera. But will the ap
pointments be made? No, not one Of
themi in fact, the negroes will not
get at President Harding's hands
three appointments that are desired