Activities Among Negroes
The writer wishes to acknowledge the receipt of the following publications: The October issue of the Grizzly Bear magazine, published in Los Angeles, copies of the July and October numbers of the Messenger magazine, published in New York city, and the Searchlight Weekly, published in Seattle. All of these publications have articles of special interest to the reader in California. The Grizzly Bear magazine has an article in which it tells of the Bear flag waving over the White House in Washington, D. C., on Admission day, September 9, 1924. It said: "For the first time in the history of California the state (Bear) flag waved over the White House at Washington on Admission day. A few days previous Del Bowley of San Francisco, a member of Mission Parlor No. 38, N. S. G. W., called on President Calvin Coolidge and presented him with a Bear flag and outlined its history. The president volunteered to have the state emblem flown from the White House on Admission day in honor of California."
The article gives a copy of a telegram sent to President Coolidge as an acknowledgment of appreciation by Edward J. Lynch, grand president of the order of the Native Sons of the Golden West. Among other things he said: "The Bear flag was first raised in the historic town of Sonoma on June 14, 1846, by an Intrepid band of Americans while California was still claimed by Mexico, and other foreign powers were preparing to take possession. They determined to hold California as a republic until the time should come when the Stars and Stripes should wave over the entire land from the Atlantic to the Pacific. On behalf of the N. S. G. W. I extend most cordial greetings and most sincere appreciation."
In another article appearing in this magazine under the title "California Fifty Years Ago," by T. R. Jones, the following appears: "Ben Butters, a negro who was nearly 100 years old and a city character, was found dead in Sacramento October 1. He fought in the war of 1812 on a manowar (man-o-war). He had prodigious strength, and was said to be the strongest man in California when he came in 1843."
In the July number of The Messenger there is an intensely interesting article on "California" by Noah D. Thompson, member of the editorial staff of a Los Angeles daily paper, assistant instructor in journalism in the extension department of the southern branch of the University of California, and chairman of the department of statistics and records in the Commercial council of Los Angeles. This article has been illustrated with a number of photos of leading colored men and women of all parts of California. Among them is the picture of Dr. Eugene Nelson, president of Commercial council of southern California, and Unity Finance company, and a director of the Liberty Loan and Building association of Los Angeles.
The article, after outlining the admission of California into the union of states, gives information concerning the history of both the state and the negro in California. It is entitled "The Negro Trail Blazers of California," and tells something about the success of the present day negro people of California.
The colored people of Oakland were interested in the recent visit of Miss Bessie Osborne, a sister of Mrs. Vivian Marsh of Berkeley. She is a native of Houston, Texas, and after graduating from the high school of that city procured a position as city teacher in one of the ward schools. Later she attended the Louisville, Ky., training school for librarians, which is a 38 system branch school. After completion of the course she resigned as a teacher, and accepted the post as librarian for one of the city public library branches.
Miss Osborne was asked to tell something concerning her work and the branch. She said: "It was a Carnegie gift library, supported by a city library tax of the city of Houston. The building is a two-story structure. The first floor has separate rooms for adults and children's reading, a reference room, and for the officers and staff, which consist of librarian, assistant and substitute. On the second floor is an auditorium with a seating capacity for nearly 400. In the auditorium there is installed a radio which has been made by the library club of colored boys.
"The auditorium is used to feature lectures for racial uplift. During good health week there was a health exhibit which was visited by over a thousand persons. During the past school year the library has issued for home reading 10,324 books."
Miss Osborne said that the sociological congress and the University of Texas were doing good in their program of interracial studies. She thinks the negro of today has a great future for advancement in Texas. As an example she said: "The colored branch of the Y. W. C. A. of Houston has a boarding home, a center, and a summer camp located at, La Port on the Galveston bay. It has over 300 active women members, besides the Girls' Reserve. She added: "This, is no exception, for the women of Texas are active in racial uplift work. In Houston they have eight social workers and a social council. In Dallas the city colored women's clubs has a membership of 279 active clubs."
As Miss Osborne was leaving for the train she added as a parting: "And many of these women are coming to visit your city of Oakland when the National Association of Colored Women's clubs meets here in 1926."
Miss Ruth Moore, executive secretary of the Linden street branch, Y. W. C. A., and Miss Marie Lenix, Girls' Reserve secretary of the branch, have returned from a conference of the staff of the Oakland Y. W. C. A. at San Anselmo. During the conference the Y. W. C. A. work for the coming year was outlined.
Miss Mary Moore of Los Angeles is visiting the Linden street branch. She is a member of Weslyn (Wesley) chapel of Los Angeles and is the oldest officeholder from point of service in the M. E. church in southern California. She has been president of the home missionary society of the church for 14 years.
Mrs. Mattie L. Porter, the mother of the well known Los Angeles poet, is also a visitor at the Linden street branch Y. W. C. A.
The following is quoted from the California Voice in the Berkeley news of that publication: "At the residence of Mrs. H. B. Tilghman on Monday evening, September 23, 1924, a group of women met and organized the {sic} Civic club for study. The following officers were elected: President, Mrs. E. H. Ricks; vice-president, Mrs. M. Dozier; recording secretary, Mrs. I. M. Jackson; treasurer, Mrs. M. Williams; parliamentarian, Mrs. H. B. Tilghman; chairman of program, Mrs. L. C. Morgan.
