New-York tribune., 1921-02-20
British Feeling
ForNegro Gains
In kirldlilless
Liberals i'm England Show
sympathy Akin to That
Displayed by Certain
Americans for the Irish
Lynchings Are Watched
One Writer Says Blacks
Would Turn on America
in Struggle With Japan

From The Trt5ane's Ewropeas Bureau
LONDON, Feb. 12.-Recently at tea
the curious English institution where
cup of tea and cress sandwich fur
nish an excuse for a gathering of per-
sons Of various vlews-Stephen
Graham declared in all sincerity that
10 the event of war between the United
States and Japan the latter country
would find a valuable ally in the Amer
lean negroes.
He had just published his book The
Soul of John Brown, written after a
three months tour Of the South, most of
il spent in walking along Sherman's
path to the sea, and naturally every
thing he said was accepted without
question by his English auditors.
Whenever an Englishman and an
American discuss Ireland the former
invariably counters with "How about
your negro problem ?" Every lynching
is reported in the English press. Ev-
cry disturbance in the South is fea-
tured in the newspapers Of Great Brit
ain.
Sympathy for the Negro
Arewe as blind, Indifferent, as the Eng
ish were in the years preceding the
passage of the Home Rule bill of 1914
and the Dublin Easter rebellion of
1915? The English believe so. Liber-
ais on this side have a sympathy for
the American negro not unlike that of
certain Americans for the Irish.
Graham's trip through the South was
not prompted by desire to muckrake;
he went there because he had a SYM
pathy for the negro.
Harold Spender, another English
of 1byyn of
Lloyd George, has written q series of
articles on America. one Of which dis
eusses The Black Problem To most
Americans Spender's treatment of the
question would be considered eminent
ly fair and devoid of sensation, but the
English are greatly impressed and un-
doubtedly more than ever sympathetic
with the negro.
Spender points out that the British
did thriving business in slaves and
that they are more or less responsible
for the black problem
"The black specter dogs America
STILL" he says. Behind all her poll
cies there is a deep-rooted tear-a fear
Of the black man in the present and
still greater dread of him in the fu-
ture.
america fears for her civilization
and for her race. She breads lest
North America should become BLACK
mans continent. Those who travel in
she North may think this absurd. But
in the South the peril is nearer. There
are Southern states where the white
man is only in q bare majority; there
are states where he is now actually
outnumbered.
"All the time the black population
Is increasing at q great pace. More
important still, their ambitions are in
creasing also. They are no longer con-
sent with the policy of wholesale dis
franchisment and social ostracism
which has been so long pursued in the
Southern states. There are hundreds
OF black lawyers and black parsons;
thousands of black teachers. Many of
these black men have proved them
selves the equals of the whites.
"Often they work harder. So the
claim to white privileges is threatened,
and a very serious problem looms
ahead. 1t is not question of actual
slavery; 1t is a question of political
freedom. The broad fact is that in
spite of the Civil War and the famous
fifteenth amendment to the Constitu-
ton the negro has been by one means