St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1956-10-12

! fessional touch TO the program
but II was not written that Louis
should SAVIOR her bit Of ham alone
Up trips Mrs. Hobson Reynold
(pen name, Eve Lynne q
write My first love is writing
she trilled to us during a visit I,
our office afterward)
Now, here is a generous, but
well-corseted, slice OF what Is
wrong with the Negro, on the
blue plate special.
"Ah, it's fabulous too fabu.
lous Los Angeles is fabulous
Louise Beavers is fabulous
My husband Is fabulous The
Elks are the most fabulous of all !"
She gushes like an Oil well, and
exactly as your reaction would be
TO seeing a big Texas gusher come
booming, you sit, awestruck, by all
this glib nothingness.
We have called her husband the
Mr. Barnum of the Elks. We are
saddened 10 relate that he is. It
isn't only that he isn't a Judge,
and only held an interim appoint
ment as a magistrate which in
Philadelphia is no more than a
justice of the peace, and so is not
entitled TO wear the title OF Judge
eternally; it's not that he isn't a
lawyer, but an undertaken, a nee
essary profession, but the civil
liberties department of a big or
ganization ought at least to be
headed by a lawyer but 1t is
that he is content TO lend what
brains and presence he has TO the
bolstering Of a false front, husk
of a leader like DR.. Honorary title
courtesy Bethune- Goodman col
lege) Robert A. johnson, behind
whom and through and in whose
name he works land we use the
word advisedly), and who hasn't
got half the savvy OF J. Finley
Wilson, who ut least knew enough
to take his hand out of the pot
long enough to keep the organiza-
ton from going into the red,
The audience sat through all
this and more besides, and II was
as dismal to behold as 10 hear.
You could almost feel its deter
mination TO stick Is out, however.
to hear what II was frankly ad-
mitted from the platform Zone ~
the few oddments Of honesty
thrown about up there until Or.
King spoke) they had come TO
hear.
We looked around the audience.
and not only did we see the ever
hopeful white liberal, patiently
waiting, his trained ears undoubt-
eddy assaulted by the assorted
crudities and soporifics coming
from the stage, but we recognized
local residents whom we knew to
be followers of the ElSs, sweating
II out for the sake OF their own
racial culture, determined TO hear
this man Of whom they had heard
so much and from whom they hope
for so much.
And we don't deprive the rank
and file Of the Elks, themselves.
They made up the overwhelming
majority of the audience, as Ken
meth Hahn found to his surprise
when he asked for a show OF hands
of people attending from out Of
state, and more than half the right
hands in the audience were raised.
We know by the way they hush
ed the corridor and said Amen"
and That's right" in the right
places during Martin Luther
Kings speech, that they were
ready" even II their leaders were
not.
The Negro masses are In the
position all over the country all
except Il seems, in Montgomery.
Ala, and Tallahassee, Fla, Of be-
ing ahead OF their leaders.
When win they come we thought
the young people, hard-muscled
and razor sharp OF mind, who can,
as Martin Luther King says,
Look the demagogue in the eve
and damn his treacherous flattery
without winling" leaders. a
gain quoting Martin King, who
can avoid excuses OF complaeency
on the one hand and hot-headed-
ness on the other, who can see the
issues and stand up for the right"
The people are ready, Their
friends are ready and trusting
Where are the leaders,