“To the Editor of the New York Times.

“I read in your Sunday’s issue an item headed ‘Subway Manners: Boys keep their Seats rather than Give to a Sick Old Woman,’ which reminds me of the first time I saw Mr. Theodore Roosevelt, about eight or nine years ago. He was sitting next to me in a Broadway car, and somewhere along about Thirtieth-street the car stopped to let some people on. All secured seats except a coloured woman with a large bundle of clothes. As soon as Mr. Roosevelt saw that she had to 14stand, he jumped up, took off his hat, and bowed as graciously as though she were the first woman in the land.”

14

“Yes,” said my hostess, as she handed back the cutting; “you will find these differences.”

“Of course,” I said, “Mr. Roosevelt is a Northerner.”

“I’m afraid that doesn’t always mean liberality of feeling nowadays,” was the reply. “I should rather say Mr. Roosevelt is Mr. Roosevelt.”

My host is a chief of department in a large Government office.

“Have you any coloured people working under you?” I asked him.

“Not long ago,” he replied, “a coloured girl was sent to me—I think because they knew that I would ‘kick’ less than any other chief of department. It was suggested to me that I should assign her some special work by herself. I refused. ‘No,’ I said, ‘if she comes to me at all, she follows the regular routine.’ I made a point of speaking to the three most responsible young women among my clerks—all girls of good family and standing—and telling them they must behave well to her.”

“And how did they behave?”

“Oh, well enough, on the surface; there was no trouble; but she was quietly sent to Coventry. Soon afterwards a Russian girl entered the department, who knew nothing and cared nothing about our prejudices. She made friends with the 15coloured girl; but when she sat at the same table with her in the lunch-room, the quadroon herself said to her, ‘You mustn’t do this; you’ll get into trouble with the others. They don’t behave badly to me; but when I seat myself even at the other end of a long table they make an excuse to move away.’”

15

“How are negroes placed in these positions?” I asked.

 Prev. P 13/182 next