San Antonio Register (San Antonio, Tex.), Vol. 12, No. 13, Ed. 1 Friday, May 1, 1942 Page: 4 of 8
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J'JZZ
SAM AKTONIO
BEQI8TEB
FRIDAY, MAY I, 194f
MAN KILLS THREE, WOUNDS ONE
SAN ANTONIO REGISTER
A Publication Dedicated to Right, Justice, and Progress
PUBLISHED FRIDAY OF SACS WEEK BT
THE REGISTER PUBLISHING COMPANY
OFFICE 207 NORTH CRNTHB NTRKKT
PHONE CSTHKllltAL 1721 - P. O DRAWKB I30S
SAN ANTONIO. TEXAS
u saooiHt-ciaaa matter May I. 1SS1, at the Poet Office at San
Taw. under Act of March I. 187 . Advertisln* ratee furnished on
Subscriptions rate* 1 year, fi.00; I months. tl.tl; slnrla copy Ic
al Anramamo npinKrrtnTU w. . nxrr oa. rmcAOo. to am.
«voilu toouma. canhah citt in uoo«, oold ro* r,
St. Philip's
Junior College
W9 ■ arm aionin jm ii on nmoi ▼ tttbaday «oo to appiab **
■nu. vmra mattes uvtrr urn n.Aiwt.Y trn awo oa ott.T on
taaT. m amir to oommiai uattkb ioi ooaTiaimn oa
■miD OTT.ua SUCH mattkb ib PAID fOt.
▼AXJIO a BELLINGER
SMBPHINE 0. BELLINGER.
a J. ANDREWS
1 A. JAMES
BR TIN LITTLES
_Prtsldent
-Secretary
-Managing Editor
-Advertising Manager
-Circulation Manager
NATIONAL NEGRO INSURANCE WEEK
Mrs. Hill lo Duncan Field
St. Philip's was botb glad and
sorry at the announcement this
week of the civil service appoint-
ment of Mrs. Alnia J. Hill as jun-
ior stenographer at Duncan field;
glad of her success in obtaining
a position she so richly deserves,
sorry that as a result of her
advancement, St. Philip's must
lose Its beloved and efficient reg-
istrar.
A St. Philip's graduate, as well
as a memlier of the staff, Mrs.
Hill has been generally thought of
as a fundamental part of the insti-
tution. Having entered the ele-
mentary department of St. Philip's
academy in 1920, she remained at
Founder's Day Tea Success
Mrs. Hill worked faithfully np
until the day she began work at
the field. Her efficient chairman-
ship was'largely responsible for
the signal success of the annual
Founder's Day tea which followed
Garage Dice Game Ends
In Blood Orgy When
Man is Ganged
IN Ban Antonio's biggest mats killing and shooting in
recent criminal history, three men were shot to death, and
a fourth wounded, by a fifth, in a garage dice game, early
this (Friday) morning, Two died instantly, bullets finding
their hearts. The third died About 30 minntes after being
receivtd at the Robert B. Green hospital.
Hurried investigation* fail to .eveal another instance of
any Negro, in San Antonio's his-
tory, slaying as many as three
persons at one time.
This morning'a blood orgy lest
the city Negro murder record sky-
rocketing to six, now within one
of lust year's total of seven
homicides.
The triple-killing occurred on the
1JSXT week, May 4-9, will mark the eighth annual observance f the gc;i00l her Kra(,llflUon
of National Negro Insurance week, sponsored by the Na- fmm ,])e jnn|or college; and she
tion&l Negro Insurance association. lias been a meml er of the staff
The insurance field is "big business" with the Race. 'Ne-1 Intermittently since 1937
(pro companies have $360,000,000 wortli of insurance in force.
There are over 16.000 persons, in various capacities, employed
by Negro insurance firms, affording job opportunities in
Mrwutive positions, in specialized and clerical fields, and
various other departments.
Annually these companies Dflv over $13,000,000 in claims,
commissions, and salaries to policy holders and employees.
The Negro companies are safe, well organized, efficiently
run, and headed by men of integrity, ability, training, and
aggressive leadership.
Race members should avail themselves of the protection 1,le city in making the tea a stie-jwl)o wn, t0 jater nge j,| pjgtol
Jiepro insurance companies offer. At the same time, they arc Outstanding in their con- v;ith s(]cll dendliness.
r I .r i Kit f!irant fhn T«r cl,-hnFP!l l>
helping to make jobs—possibly for their own children.
■fcce.
, I'rom the statements of numer-
ous witnesses, and that given by
Wil li, the following story of the
singling has been reconstructed.
yninton Barrlan Tucker, 23, 613
jSouth Mwsquite street, bartender
ai the Roosevelt bar, and Duncan,
Chirk, and Halfin all left the bar
213 North St. Mary's, where a
certain group of men, according
to signed statements, have been
accustomed to meet for "little
games.
In a fight that started snd-
. denlv, and which—according to
the school reconsecratlon service ltat(,menU by wltnesses and the
second floor of the Star garage, shout 11:30, going to the garage,
anil, after two sets of dice had
ban sent for—their being bought
at, a nearby drug store—the "crap"
game got under way about 11:45.
Several others also participated In
the game, and there were two
women present, but not gambling.
on Sunday. Her final report was 1,^ man-raged furiously all
n message of appreciation for the
cooperation of the various clubs of
over the place, the three men who
were killed nil "ganged" the maa
Ark. High Court
Saves Preacher-
Killer from Chair
on Wednesday bp! i a long consul-
tation with the directors of the
near Eastern division of the state
department which controls the af-
fairs of the t'uited Stales with the
African republic. ISnmors gain!
that Walton will not return to
Africa.
■y The Associated 3 urn Prrtt
HELENA, Ark. — The Supreme
court, at Little Rock, in a five-to-
two decision Monday, saved the
Jlev. A. T. Jones, a convicted
Atrer, from the electric chair be-
came the Phlllipe county jury that
convicted him failed to specify
Arst degree murder in its verdict
Irving C. Miller, producer, whose
Chow was appearing at the Fiaia,
atre here on the night ot Oe-!
er 1, captured J ones, the gun-.
v..- alter he had attempt-j
—s sisi i mrf
owner and operator. Goerge Mil-!
Icr was fatally wounded In the;
Allah No Help
To This D. C.
Draft Dodger
Br Th« AMnrtatrd Negro frpfl
WASHINGTON. D. C—
Putting his faith In Allah
failed to save Elmer O. Car-
roll, claiming to be a Moslem,
wbra arraigned briar* Judge
fioldsbereugh, here, last
tributlon were the Terpsichorean
club, the Utopia club, the Fine
Arts club, St. Catherine's Dra-
matic club, the Junior Progressive
Women's club, St. James church,
J and the Brooks field quartet.
Reronsee ration
Before an appreciative a'lliliieiice,
•Sunday afternoon, St. Philip's
«tudeut* and alumni reaffirmed
j their faith and pledged increased
devotion to the school's ideals in
i an impressive candle lighting serv-
ice in the school chapel. Before
the service. Miss Nano Whitfield,
of the class of '39, delivered a
brief address on the history of
St Philip's; and Miss Alyce Shep-
pard, of the class of '42 made the
dedication speech as a representa-
tive of the present student body.
At the close of her talk. Miss
Bheppurd presented to i^reslaeul
ArtemUtt Bowden a floral tribute
as a ftkon of the esteem in which
the sffcdents hold b e long and
Jones stated to the arresting of-
ficers, at the time he was appren-1
tended, that he was a licensed'
$rsicner and uuinii'ed having bf"T5
responsible for holdups of two
friaces in West Helena, the stickup
of a dance at Eliza B. Miller high
school, the robbery of a Chinese
■t„r In Catholic Hollow, and the
■booting of Percy Moore in the
man hrosgtit to trial
SW just as had happeued la.— ....... .—p
ofler cases, his plead failed distinguished service to the school.
10 stand up and he was 'he chairman for this program
^ound guilty of evading the'was Mrs. C. F. C. Cnrm school
The men slain weri
Paul Davis Duncan, 39, 829
Virginia boulevard. He was shot
through the heart
Rudy Clark. 27, 2223 Virginia
boulevard. Clark was shot in the
# .. .
of a-hitch." Another was heard to
say, "Slap me, I'm larger than
fclnt."
Wash replied, "Maybe I will,"
juid reached over and touched
Sbtsicau in the face. Duncsu
itrnck Wash, and then the others
lied in the battle, flghtlrtg fur!-
The Fhillipe county jury con-j
tricted Jones of the killing of <
jBeorge Miller, and, at the time,
of the trial, Jones pleaded in
•ncent by reason of Insanity.
The majority opinion, writteu by
Associate Justice Frank G. Smith,1
•aid a jury, before imposing cap-;
Ital punishment, must specify,
sunnier in the first degree. It:
kevers(«I the decision of the Phil- j
#|ie Circuit court and ordered th \
Mae retried.
draft. j librarian,
Carroll said he was a ' Memorial Program
brother to the Japs, and re Looking back on the past of Sf.
fused to fight against them.! Philip's, a group of students pre-
altho the court tried to eon-J "ented in colorful skit and - qnref
vinte him that the Moslems 1 contest. a spotlighted history of
were a fighting people, and ihe school's growth. The program
had been so for thousands | was written and directed by -Mlns
of years. Had Carroll reg- Sophia P. Nelson and Mrs. Hen-
istered and then made his | rietta Stevenson, of the English
plea to the draft board ind Romance language depart-
that he was a conscientious j ments. respectively, students par-
objector. his case would have tieipating were: Miss Pauline An-
lieen different. I derson. Miss Gloria Brown, Miss
FBI men were busy on the Thelina Cunningham, Jesse Goode,
case attempting to locate the ■ Miss Dorothy Pettus, William
leader of the sect, whirh i Smith, Miss Dorothy Harris, Rob-
they had not done at a late ort Taylor, and Miss Jennie V.
date last week. ' Thompson.
rk-bf shoulder, the bnllet piercing you are going to fight one of us.
his lung and heart. He wa. -AtosJjou ve r-' M whip us nil, you son-
shot in the right arm.
Raymond Halfin, 28. 110 Morris
alley. Halfin was shot in th>
chest.
Duncan and Clark were dead
when the ambulance got them to
the Robert B. Green hospital. Hal-
fin died a half-hour after bein,-;
admitted. All three dead men
were employees of the Roosevelt
liar, 227 North St. Mary's street
Alvin Maddox. 3ft, 209 Ruiz, em-
ployed at the garage, was wounded
lo the left shonlder as.he attempt-
ed to stop the fight.
Held ns tlie kitler Is Leona
Wash, 2& 700 1'ost Crockett
Wash has ' been ^niolorcd
car washer at the garage, work-
ing from eight in the morning
until seven la the evening. .Know-
ing that there would probably l>e
a jiirc game,. last night, and this
morning, lie had returned to the
ously all over the place,
The men were beating Wash,
and somebody slashed him on the
arm with a knife. 'Then 1 got
mud," V/f.ah's utt'sment said, "and
took out my pistol and storied
shooting . , ."
Maddox, one of the women, and
another man had been trying to
stop the fight, but every time they
would get the battlers off Wash,
they would break loose and start
fighting again.
The first shot hit Maddox, who,
k lien he realized he bad been shot,
ran around to the far side of a
car, and lay, for a moment on the
running board. A witness said
Wash's next shot got Duncan. Clark
was the next, and then Halfin. •
Wash, witnesses said, when he
did start firing, shot fsst and at
close range, with a .25 calibre
Colt automatic. •
In the melee, one of Wash's
eyes was closed, he suffered head
injuries, and was cut on the nrm.
A Latin-American employee of
the garage, ran from the place,
when the shooting started, and
summoned Patrolman Wade Rob-
bins.
As Robbins entered the place.
Wash was running out He stop-
me," Vera said.
"Hunhr said Bigger, looking la
surprise at her pouting lips. Then
h« noticed what she meant and
he poked out his lips at her,
Qnlckly, she jumped up and threw
one of her shoes at him. It sailed
past his head and landed against
the window, rattling the panes.
"1 lold yon not to look at me
Vera screamed.
Bigger stood up, his eyes red
with auger. "I Just wish yon had
hit m'e|" rie' aiu.
"You, Vera I" the mother called.
"Ma, make 'im stop looking at
me," Vera walled,
"Wasn't nobody looking at her,
Bigger said.
"You looked under my dress,
when I was buttoning my shoes!"
"I Just wish you had hit me,"
Bigger said again.
"I ain't no dog!" Vera said.
"Come on In the kitchen and
dress. Vera," the mother aald.
"He makes me feel like a dog,"
Vera sobbed with her face burled
In her hands, going behind the
curtain.
"Boy," said Buddy, "I tried to
keep awake until you got In last
night but I couldn't I had to
go to bed at three. I was so
sleepy I could hardly k ep my eyes
open.
"I was here before then," Bigger
said.
"Aw, naw! I was r,p..."
"I know when I got in!" They
looked at each other in silence.
"O. K.," Buddy said.
.Bigger was uneasy. He felt that
ped him. and, as he questioned
him. one of the women came] he was not handling lilmself right
screaming from the garage, telling
the officer that Wash was the
I.uck was in Wash's favor, aiid(n)(ln wim ,i0„c the shooting,
he won, which, according to his. This Wash denied, and a search
statement, made the men from tbe| faned to reveal a gun. Robbins
bar—and who had been drinking, tn<ll[ wash into custody, and hand-
Whiskey—angry.
At any rate, according to wit-
n<v?cs, an argument developed he-
(wen Wash and Duncnn, with
Wash telling Duncan, "I'll slap
hell out of you."
tfiluesses say that one of the
group from the bar declared, "If
cuffed him.
Investigators later found the gun
in the rear of the first floor of
the garage, where Wash admitted
liavlug tossed it.
One of the men, Duncan, was
found lying at the top of the
ramp, oil the second floor. About
30 feet from him, and about 10
feet apart, were the ouier two.
I'ncle Killed Two
Wash Is the nephew of Orange
Wash, who, on April 0, 1931, killed
Will McNeill and George Dllworth,
with a rifle, lu an argument over
a chicken leg.
!S~2
"The Hell We Won't
fight Together,"
Says White Marine
By Th Aflftoriaied V^fro Pr*«
san DIEGO. Cat —"Like
bell we won't flzht together"
•aid Negro and white sailors,
soldiers and marines station-
ed here when Interviewed
week by Los ingele*
Sentinel reporters on their
attitude toward a more dem-
ocratic figiltin; force.
fine white sailor said,
"This war has changed a lot
tt foolish notions I used to
have. We all stand to gain
and la lose the same thing.
We play together and have
• darn good time. I don't
•ee why we have to fight
and die separately. It seems
like damn foolishness to me."
Asserted a marine whose
home state Is i-ouisiana,
They claim wt southern
toys b%te Negro troops and
won't fight with them. I
that. There are a«
nonttiemen who be-
levc to and practice true
democracy as northerners.
Sell, I'd welcome Negro boys
Commentary—
n i
vv or
battlefield is here and now.
Here Is no war of men and
machines—lint a war of poison
gas, of treaihery, of sniping
from behind—a stealthy guerilla
warfare that descends from the
I shadows and flees before the
"I collated because I be-
Here to democracy and It
will take democracy in ac-
«oa te win this war. The
Mi we wont i'ghl together!
AM give na a rhance."
%
£rt WAftHttWrON
V«|ro Prtu
D C. — Le*U
adAiate. to Liberia, la
Wuhiagtun at the Prest-
u to stated, tod
THE KLAN KIBES!
By RUTH TAYLOR
are waging two wars today. One is the war of men
and machines which is being fought all over the world.
To this war we send our best. To the winning of this war
we have dedicated ourselves as a nation and as individuals.
Rut there is another war raging at the same time. Its
querade, be it biack shirts,
brown shorts or flowing robes
of white. But it will be an
appeal to hatred of others, a
generalization about groups, an
attempt to stir up resentments,
to emphasize the flaws in our
democracy, in order to conceal
the fact that these same flaws
are a bottomle > abyss In the
totalitarian empires.
At the present moment an at-
tack Is being made upon the
mind* and emotions of the
Americans of Negro blood. It
will fall, I ^now. I have talked
to too many Negroes in the past
months not to be absolutely
confident of your loyalty and
steadfastness. But yon mnst do
more than defeat its purpose—
you can and must tear the mask
from these Klan raiders of the
mind. You are in the van of
ihe attack—yours can be the
glory in its defeat!
light, leaving havoc and desola-
tion I". Its wake. It Is a gigantic
Klan attack upon the minds of
our people.
This Is the war in which we
all are soldiers. This is the
war we must all fight. Just as
our boys are In training to learn
how to fight the enemy, so we
must learn how to fight this
Insidious attack upon ns. We
must learn to recognise the
enemy propaganda for what it
is: a deliberate attempt to de-
stroy from within—to divide and
cotjqner.
The attack Is coming In vari-
ous ways—but the first and
foremost Is an attempt to divide
our people, to ap faiib, and
;r. sapping faith to destroy cour-
age. The enemy tries many dif-
ferent methods but whatever
creates bate or division among
the class, racial and reljglous
groups that make up Ihe
i"SfXED Slates is enemy prop-
aganda—and It is another Klan
lie!
II will come oioaked In s dis-
gais*. of eonrfe—the purveyors
of hatred delight la Uu r «s-
WIFE BEATEB JAILED
Hitting his wife, Mrs. Llllie Mai:
Webber, on the biuj with a ehalr,
resulted in incarceration in the
county bastile, and charges of
aggravated assault against Wil-
liam Webber, .70S Aviation avenue,
Saturday morning.
The arrest wss msde by Deputy
Sheriffs Christopher and Msciss.
Co*t-of hvrna
i 1941
- :f-i-HI [SO SORRY/]
' i
ecJ Another increase like (&~
this m 1342 would mean v '
create nver January
1941
Jan 1941
Jan.1942
Biddle Names
Prosecutors for
Peonage Case
B7 The AiaoelaUd Negro Press
Washington; d. c.~Further
prosecution of peounge in Georgia
with ft view to its abolition was
seen in the steps taken bj At-
torney General Biddle when he
authorized the naming of two
special attorneys to push the in-
vestigation of the conditions in
I>xinffton, Ga.
William Tolliver Cunningham
and Hamilton McWhorter. former
president of the Georgia State
senate, were the targets of the
investigation.
The charges grew out of the
indictment of Cunningham and hl3
lawyer, McWhorter, for violation
of the 13th amendment
The Incident charged that "fori "favorable" position. Tho great
—-too
' I.94.1 194.2
* ^ ^ * * j j ^ >' (j * « £ « > a- 5 £ a - > «J
Jan.,p4J
Jan.1944
JL
Index Numbers I923'25*/00 Data: Bureau of Labor Stoh'sHci
TJfij it the fourth of a scries of articles on inflation based upon data
prepared for the Consumer Banking Institute by its research staff with
th ! assistance of its consultants Dr. John F. Bly, Dr. Barley L. Lutz,
Dn. William 8. Carpenter, members of the faculty of Princeton University.
What Inflation Means To All Of Us
I NOTATION means rising prices
for all of ns.
It means more money — much
more money — in circulation but
not evenly distributed to all of us.
Some of us—a few—will be bo
fortunate that our Incomes will in-
crease faster than the general rise
in prices.
This will be to our advantage but
It will be an advantage gained at
a great expense to others less for-
tunate. Carried to the extreme, this
type of advantage is called "profl-
toWlng."
But only a few will occupy this
many years, Cunningham enslaved
colored laborers on his plantations,' 001
inducing them to come to work by
promise of wages and by getting
them out of jails and off the chain
of us will find our dollar In
lea will remain practically the
*.
bese dollars will buy fewer and
feiltr goods as the price spiral
_ i, ria k There is only one answer:
Once on the plantation.1 Q|i «tand^ IM*. m,..
gangs.
the men were no longer free.
standard of living must great-
eterlorate.
"They received no wages and ,,
Cunningham instilled in them a| *ls Is the well known "Inflation-
fear of running away by lashing ary boom." It sets buyers against
them with straps and causing them'' iei rs, labor against management,
to be imprisoned or sent to the
chain gang if they attempted to
escape."
The case came to the public's
attention when he unsuccessfully
tried to drag back to, his planta-
tion three colored men who had
escaped to Chicago. He sought to
extradite the three men on a
charge of burglary, but It was
pointed out that no charge was
made against tbein until they had
fled the plantation. Atty. William
Henry nuff led the fight result-
ing in the federal setlon.
Named to conduct the probe sre
Barry Wright of Rome, Gs., and
William Anderson Sutherland of
Atlanta.
"According to the complaints,"
the department of Justice ssid,
"Oglethorpe county court records
show thst rnnnlagham has re-
peatedly charged Negro field hands I
who left or 'escaped' his employ-
ment with past misdemeanors, re- I
employing them after their arrest 1
nnd after short terms on the chain i
fwg-'1
the rich against the poor.
It creates mistrust, strife, and
suffering. It is more potent than
any fifth column movements which
the Axis may devise.
It Is a painful, extravagant, and :
destructive method of war finance;
and Its terrible results will bang '
on long after the war itself has
become history.
Not only can the "inflationary I
boom" greatly impede the war ef-
forts, It can likewise lose us the
peace.
Deflation must follow inflation.
The replacement of our depreci-
ated dollars with normal dollars can
be as great a catustrophy as the
upward price spiral which brought
about the first disruption.
The cost of living in the United
States Increased 150 per cent in
the six years of World War I. Ex-
"Yoti get the Job'/'' Buddy asked.
"Yeah."
"Driving?"
"Yenh."
"What kind of a car is It?"
"A Buick."
"Can I ride with you sometime?"
"Sure: soon as I get settled."
Bnddy's questions made bim feel
a little more at ease; he always
like the adoration Buddy showed
him.
"Gee, that's the kind of Job I
want," Buddy said.
"It's easy."
"Will you see if you can find
*^2 Oil" '" " " " — - -
"Sure, give me time."
"Got a cigarette?"
"Yeah."
They were silent, smoking. Big-
ger was thinking of the furnace.
Had Mary burned? He looked at
Ills watch; it was seven o'clock
Onght he go over right now, with
out waiting for breakfast? Maybe
he had left something lying ronnd
that would let them kuow Mary
was dead. But if they slept late
on Sunday morning, as Mr. Wal-
ton had said, they would have no
It helped him to have patienca,
Maybe someday he would be eat-
ing In jail. Here he was sitting
with them and they did not know
thst he had murdered a white girl
sod cut her head off and burnt
her body. Tbe thought of what
be had done, the awful horror of
it, toe daring associated with
such actions, formed for him for
the first time In bis fear-ridden
life a harrier of protection be-
tween him and a world be feared.
He had murdered and had crealcd
a new life for himself. It was
something mat was all his own,
and it was the first time In his
life he had had anything that
others could not take from him.
Yes; be could sit here calmly and
est and not be concerned about
what his family thought or did.
He had a natural wall from be-
hind which he could look at them.
Ills crime was an anchor weigh-
ing hlui safely in lime; it added
to him a certain confidence which
his gun and knife did not. He wns
outside of his family now, over and
beyond them; they were incapable
of even thinking that he bad done
such a deed. And he had done
something which even he had not
thought possible.
Though he had killed by ac-
cident, not once did be feel the
need to tell himself that it had
been an accident. He was blsck
snd he bad been alone in a room
where a white girl had been kilted;
therefore he had killed her. That
was what everybody would say
anyhow, not matter what he said.
And in a certain sense he knew
that the girl's death had not been
accidental. He had killed many
limes before, only on tbaie ether
times he had had no hand/ vic-
tim or circumstance to mak ris-
ible or dramatic his will t> till
ills crime seemed natural; M felt
that jit his life had lieen lead-
ing to something like this. It wns
no longer a matter of dun.b wonder
as to what would happen to him
and his black skin; lie knew now.
The hidden meaning of his life—'
a meaning which others did not
see nnd which he had always tried
to hide ... he spilled out. No, It
wss no accident, nnd he would
never say that It was. There was
111 hltn a kind ot terrified pride
in feeling and thinking that some
day he would be able to say
publicly that he had done it. It
was as though he bad an obscure,
but deep debt to fulfill to himself
in accepting the deed.
Now tbst the Ice was broken,
could he not do other things?
What was there to stop him? While
sitting there at the table waiting
for his breakfast, he felt that he
wss arriving at something which
liad long eluded him. Things we
perience during the first two years
of World War II have been similar was no rug on the floor nnd the
to those In the early stages of i plastering on the walls and cell
World War L
The time to act Is now. The de- 1
cision is still for us to make. If
we fall to make It, terrible conse-
Ibfewniiur . he would toanX ^
there. l how to act from new on. The
Bessie was by last night." EinlV thing to do was to act Just like
fly sold ■ -■*
"She said she saw you in Ernie's
Kitchen Shack with some white
folks."
"Yeah. I was driving 'em last
night."
"She was talking about you and
lier u'eftiim tuair'i&T:*
"Humph!"
"How come gals that way, Rig
ger? Soon's a guy get a good job,
they want to marry?"
"Damn if I kn^w."
"You got a good Job now. You
can get a better gal than Bessie,'
Buddy said.
Although he agreed with Buddy,
he said nothing.
'I'm going to telt Bessie!" Vera
said,
"If you do, I'll break your neck,"
Bigger said.
"Hush that kind of talk in
here," the mother said.
"Oh, yeah," Buddy said. "I met
Jack last nigiit. He said you al-
most murdered old Gus."
"I ain't having nothing to do
with that gang no more," Bigger
said emphatically.
"But Jack's all right," Buddy
said.
"Well, Jack, but none the rest."
Gus and G. IT., and Jack seemed
far away to Bigger now, In an-
other life, and all because he had
been in Dalton's home for a few
hours and had killed a white girl.
He looked around tbe room, see-
ing it for the first time. There
quences are Inevitable.
<(
Native Son
y>
iy RICHARD WRIGHT
tontlnued from last week.)
"Y a get tbe Job?"
*Y lb."
"ifw much you making?"
Vera. Ask Ma. I donu
er everything."
"G >dy! Bigger got a Job!"
/era.
, shut up," he said.
,ve blin alone, Vers," the
said.
st's the mstter?"
st's the matter with 'Im all
lie?" asked the mother.
I Bigger," sold Vers, teuder-
plalntiveiy.
boy sln't got no sense,
111," the mother ssld. "He
ven speak a decent word
i yt-ur head so I can drees,"
Vera said.
Bigger looked out of the window.
He heard someone say, "Aw!" and
he knew that Buddy was awake.
"Turn your head, Buddy," Vera
said.
"O. K."
Bigger heard his sister rushing
into her clothes. "You can look
now," Vera said.
He saw Buddy sitting up in
lied, rubbing his eyes. Vera was
sitting ou the edge of a chair,
with lier right foot hoisted upon
another clia'r, hackling her shies.
Bigger stared vacantly In her di-
rection. He wished that he could
rUe up through tbe celling and
float away from this room, for-
ever.
"I wish you wouldn't look at
Ing hung loose in ninny places.
There were two worn iron beds,
four chairs, an old dresser, and a
drop-leaf table on which they ate.
Tills was much different from
Dnlton's home. Here all slept in
oue room; there he would have a
room for himself nloue. He smelt
food cooking and remembered that
one could not smell food cooking
In Dalton's home; pots could not
be heard rattling all over the
house. Each person lived In one
room and had a little world of his
own. He hated tliLs room and all
the people in it, including him-
self. Why did he nnd his folks
have to live like this? What had
they ever done? Perhaps they
had not done anything. Maybe
they had to live this way pre-
cisely because none of them In
nil their lives had ever done any-
thing. right or wrong, that mat-
tered much.
"Fix the table, Vera. Breakfast's
ready," the mother calbnl.
"Yessum."
Bigger sat at the table and
waited for food. Maybe this,
would be the last tluie lie wottHl
other acted, live like they lived,
and while they were not looking,
do what you wanted. They would
never know. He felt in the quiet
presence of his mother, brother,-
and sister a force, inarticulate and
nnconsclons, making for living
without thinking, making for peace
• i.l hihK, fir s bor" 'bet
blinded. He fell that they wanted
and yearned to see life In s cer-
tain way; they needed a certain
picture of the world; there was
one way of living they preferred
above all others; and they were
blind to what did not fit. Thef
did not want to see what others
were doing if that doing did not
feed their own desires. All one
hnd to do wns to be bold, do
something nobody thought of. The
whole thing csme to him In the
form of a powerful nnd simple
feeling; there wns In everyone a
great hunger to believe that msde
him blind, and if he could see while
others were blind; then he could
get what lie wanted and never lie
caught nt It. Now, who on earth
woutd think that he, s black,
timid Negro boy, would murder
nnd burn a rich white girl and
would sit nnd wait for his break-
fast like this? Elation filled him.
He sat nt the table wachlng the
snow past the window and many
things became plain. No, he did
not have to hide behind a wall
or n curtain now; he hnd a safer
way of being safe, an easier way.
What he hnd done last nlgbt had
proved that. Jan was blind. Mary
bad been blind. Mr. Datton was
blind. And Mrs. Dalton wns blind;
yes, blind In more ivnys than one.
Bigger smiled slightly. Mrs. Dal-
ton did not know that Mary was
dead while she had stood over
the bed in that room last night.
She had thought that Mary was
drunk, because she wns used to
Mary's coming home drunk. And
Mrs. Dalton had not known that
he was In the room with her; it
would have been the last thing
she would have thought of. He
was bluek and would not have
figured In lier thoughts on such
mi occasion. Bigger felt a lot of
people were like Mrs. Dalton
blind . . .
"Here yon sre, Bigger," his
mother said, setilug a plate of
grits on the table.
He begun to eat, feeling much
belter after thinking out what had
happened to liiin last night. He
felt lie coiild control himself now.
"Ain't you all eating?" he asked,
loo'iiug round.
"You go on and cat. You git
to gn "We'll eat later," his .
wtluT said.
(To bt rontiliuodl
< !'• 00 milium -II
eat here. He felt ii keenly and.Vj0,l,,m r,.,tore nj'usa.
■ J
Sfi
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Andrews, U. J. San Antonio Register (San Antonio, Tex.), Vol. 12, No. 13, Ed. 1 Friday, May 1, 1942, newspaper, May 1, 1942; San Antonio, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth399929/m1/4/: accessed June 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UT San Antonio Libraries Special Collections.