The Black Peril. (Efterskrift til Politivennen)

What may be expected in our new islands.

Former slave laws.

Little religion or educaion and many superstitions.

of the 18,000 dwellers of Santa Cruz only 200 are legal voters.

Written for The Evening Star by Louis McHenry Howe.

The obliging planter who shows the visitor through the town of Christiansted, in  Santa Cruz, the largest of the Danish Islands, will willingly call attention to the ruins of many buildings, and inform him with great volubility how many people were killed in each one, with many other details of the damage done by the cyclone of 1808. But every now and then one will come across a ruin quite different from the others, whose blackened stones tell plainly that fire and not the hurricane was the cause of its destruction. If asked the cause of this destruction, the guide at once becomes evasive and non-committal. Without actually saying so, he will try to give the impression that it was the work of the storm; if, however, like the writer, one had seen these same dismantled warehouses thirteen years before, the guide, under persistent questioning, will murmur something about an insurrection many years ago and at once change the subject.his whole bearing that of a man, forced on the witness stand, to reveal the family skeleton.

And, indeed, these sharp points of smokestained walls that persist in towering above the wealth of glossy green which kindly nature has striven to throw over them are, after all, the unsightly ribs of disgrace your planter-friend would fain forget.

To the cheerful sound of lusty hammers and clinking trowels the storm-razed buildings are being restored to their former state again. But on these fire-crumbled stones a curse seems to have fallen. Like the mummy at the banquet, perpetually they bear witness to the terrible possibilities of evil that lurk in the dull brains of these same negro laborers who, care free, constantly pass by with coarse jest and idle laughter.

As the same negroes who wrought this ruin, with their descendants, form today nine-tenths of the population of our new Danish possessions, some account of this riot and its causes may be of value to us in studying what is, after all, the real problem concerning these islands, namely: What political rights are to be granted to their Inhabitants?

Little of Real Facts.

Accurate information on the subject is very difficult to obtain. The books published about the West Indies barely mention the insurrection, or ignore it entirely. The semi-official West Indian Almanac, published at St. Thomas, skips deftly over It with a brief sentence. The annexationists are afraid to mention it, lest it injure their cause, and it was only after much trouble that the writer found one who had lived through that exciting time and was willing to talk about It.

Amid the wreck of what once had been a fine dwelling, seated on crumbling steps that led up to nothing more substantial than the blue, tropic sky, his voice quivered with emotion as he talked.

The foundation of the trouble was really laid by a fatal error of the government, in 1848, a mistake which has never been forgotten by the negro, and may yet be bitterly regretted by our government. At that time it was announced that slavery would soon be abolished. As was the case in all the other islands, this news proved too much for the negro's mental equilibrium. As the appointed date drew near he refused to work and, taking first to drinking, quite naturally wound up the celebration by a bit of rioting. Had the disturbance been put down with a strong hand, no permanent harm would have been done. But, instead, against the protest of the cooler heads, the government, in a panic of unreasoning fear, proclaimed the liberation of the slaves at once, ahead of time.

The rioting Immediately ceased, but the negroes had tasted the sweets of power. Though they had been but yesterday a mass of whip-driven slaves, now they could rule their former masters with the awful scourge of the mob. Although, they waited thirty long years, they had not forgotten. Slavery had been suceeeded by the "labor law," under which every negro laborer was compelled to sign a contract with some planter on the 1st of each October, binding himself to work through the ensuing year for ten cents in cash and ten cents in food a day. Any found after the 2d of October who had not signed such a contract were punished.

Better Than Formerly.

Even this unsatisfactory arrangement was so much better than previous conditions that at first there were no complaints. Each October, however, dissatisfaction grew stronger until, in 1877. the mutterlngs of a gathering storm were heard, and the government announced a repeal of the law, to take effect three years from date.

Again they had triumphed. The leaders of the uprising of 1848 recalled the easy victory of the past. Three years was a long time to wait, but still they hesitated. As the 1st of October, 1878, drew near, however, it was noticed that a new spirit of insolence had appeared among the laborers. As they assembled in the towns where the contracts were to be renewed there was much disorder. On the morning of the first the planters were surprised to find a well-organized opposition to the renewal of the contracts. Arguments, threats, promises, all proved unavailing. Every hour fresh bands of negroes, armed with keen machetes, marched Into town, chanting fragments of wild African melodies. Toward dusk the merchants, fearing trouble, put up their heavy shutters, and the townsfolk retired to their homes. A swift sloop - there was no cable then - set sail for St. Thomas, bearing urgent appeals for help from the tiny Danish garrison there.

Refreshment Necessary.

At first the mob was contented with marching up and down the deserted streets, howling the rallying cry: "No more 10 cents a day." Shouting was a thirst-producing exercise; a rum-shop door might, perhaps, be broken in. Yes, It was quite easy, there was refreshment for all at no expense. The flambeaus of resinous wood began to wave unsteadily in the hands of their bearers. How easy it would be merely to lay one of the torches against the huge wooden doors of the sugar warehouse! Yes, dry with age, it caught fire quickly. Like children terrified at their own wickedness, they paused a moment: the red fire leaped through the building; in a twinkling the soft blue-black of the midnight tropic sky was hidden by a lurid veil of crimson smoke, shot through and through with dazzling streaks; with the strong rum seething in their veins, they danced the wild jungle dances of their forefathers to its light. With brains awhirl. they staggered from one building to another. The red glare crept in through the closed blinds behind which the frightened townsfolk crouched, shuddering with terror. Woe to those traders whose dealings had been harsh or unfair! Only at the imminent peril of their lives might they steal from their burning homes to safety. Brighter grew the glare, back on the hillsides an answering glare appeared. Long tongues of flame crept up the hills from the burning fields of cane. The sites of the planters' homes were marked by brighter, higher flames. Wilder and madder grew the chantirg. merely hoarse howls of savage joy now, all semblance of articulate words lost.

A Horrible Scene.

The black forms dancing around the burning buildings stood silhouetted like fiends around the mouth of hell. The whole island was wrapped in flames. Still, strange as it seems, no lives were lost. The morning came unseen save for the lighting up of the dense blue smoke that filled the streets. A planter rode bravely into town, forgetting that these former slaves had tasted freedom and power. Maddened at the ruin of his estate, he rode straight into the mob, lashing right and left with his heavy riding whip. For an instant the crowd fell back, the old instinct still strong. For an instant it seemed that daring would succeed. Then a huge negro, his face bleeding from a cut of the lash, and working with brute passion, leaped forward and siezed a stirrup. In an instant it was all over. A swirl of half-naked black forms, the piercing neigh of a dying horse, the awful cry, half scream, half curse, of a human being in the throes of a fearful death, and it was done. Seized by a strange panic, the mob turned and fled. A bundle of red-stained, muddied clothes lay in a sickening heap, very quiet on the cobble stones.

Of the deeds done that dreadful day there remains no record. Gaunt chimneys, towering like seared, ungainly monuments above the smoldering ashes of the factories around them, mile after mile of black, unsightly fields veiled in a sickening deep blue smoke - these alone could tell the_tale. Strangely enough, that red stain, slowly thickening on the cobble stones, marked the only human victim of the mob. Satiated with their wild orgy, there was a lull, and then - the prayed-for troops arrived. Only 200 of them; what could they do against 6,000 savages? Yesterday they had been torn to pieces in an instant, but now reaction had set in. Frightened at their own daring, the negroes lied before the soldiers. Swiftly, relentlessly, the rioters were hunted down. There is no record of the number that satisfied the thirst for vengeance with their lives, but tales are of black forms lying huddled on burned, cane heaps that were burled with scant ceremony, and presently, under the sanction of the Inw, 600 figures writhed helplessly in the air, suspended from rude gibbets, outlined against the splendor of the sunset sky.

A Lurid Tale.

Such was the story told me by the old man sitting on the flre-scarred stairway that led upward, most absurdly, to nothing but the blue sky.

Yet, even in its hour of triumph, the government repeated its mistake. The labor law was declared abolished again ahead of time. Can one wonder that the negro still feels that the triumph was his. after all? 

"There Is no danger of riots now," the annexationists will tell you. "for this happened twenty years ago." Yet one remembers that there were thirty years between 1848 and 1878 and the conditions and surroundings of plantation life are practically the same.

The negro child from six to thirteen years of age is compelled, theoretically, to attend the public school; practically, he escapes much of it, as every year the family moves into a new district in search of work, and it must all be begun over again. Luring this time he has learned, what? To stumble through the first reader, the most elementary geography, arithmetic only as far as fractions, and a few words of banish. learned by rote and almost Instantly forgotten. After that he must take up his machete and begin the dreary hunt for work. There is practically no place open to him save the cane fields and, in these dark days with the slender profits of the sugar crop dropping, fraction by fraction, it is none too easy a matter to find work even there. Hundreds have left in me past few years, and other islands have sent notices, conspicuously posted on the custom house doors, stating that further emigration is useless, as they are no better oif themselves. In this competition for work wages have naturally dropped, and twenty cents a day is not an uncommon rate anywhere.

The Planter's Complaint.

The planters complain bitterly that the negro will work only when he pleases. About five days a week is his average. A little thought will show that this is not surprising. As a slave he worked only when he had to; as a freedman he works only long enough to satisfy his cheaply supplied wants. It is not a pleasant task, this laboring In the cane fields. White men have tried it. and died miserably, quickly in the effort. In planting time the fierce sun beats remorselessly on his bended back. Ice coId showers sweep down, without warning, from the mountains and drench him through and through. At hardest he must take his place in the long line and swing the heavy machete hour after hour, cutting the thick stalks. With the precision of an army, the long line of black figures, naked to the waist, sweep over the vast fields, the overseers, like officers, following with watchful eyes to detect a straggler or shirker. From a distance they look Iike a procession of huge black ants gnawing their way through a field og tender grass.

Soon a deep, mellow voice begins to hum a familiar air; quickly it is taken up by the others until, swelling into a weird chant, it sweeps down the line, the flashing steel rising and falling in unison with its strange barbaric rhythm. The dry dust rises beneath their tread and settles in their, postrils; no breeze penetrates the dense cane growth, it is hot with the stifling heat that sometimes swells the death roll in our northern cities. With the perspiration streaming from everv black pore, they move, on, on, all through the weary day. Perhaps five days a week of this would satisfy the best of us.

When our negro, fresh from' the schools, find labor such as this, he straightway settles down and takes unto himself a wife with or without the formality of a wedding, as may seem most convenient. A wretched hut of palms and cane is built - well named a "trash" house, and his life work has begun. Small wonder if the rum shop, where the strong native liquor that rings such delightful forgetfulness at 2 cents per glass may be obtained, attracts him in his leisure hours. Still smaller wonder that the little knowledge he has gained feeles utterly from his brain.

As for his religion, well, the church is very far, but the "obeah" man verv near, indeed. The Pariah Priest, the Lutheran minister, they are by all means to be respected and even, on occasion, heeded, but they live in their neat houses near the churches. Well, the "obeah" man. with his white hair and awful charms, he lives but two huts away, and is to be very greatly feared, indeed. A close friend of that terrible devil you hear so much about in the churches, he can make your hair fall out and your flesh rot with a few muttered words. He can even, if occasion required and you have sufficient money, give you certain curious herbs which, properly mixed with a rival's food, will end all trouble from that quarter.

The "Obeah" Man.

So his life runs, work, drink and constant dread of the "obeah" man, while curious tourists from passing steamers write down notes, placing him a little lower than the beasts.

Whose fault is this?

What we may do for this negro of Santa Cruz let those skilled in such matters answer. This is a simple statement of facts pointing a plain moral. As he was thirty years ago, so is this negro today. Do not think his long peacefulness means no danger in the future. A few weeks ago. when the false news was receiveel that the sale of the islands had been abandoned, a Danish warship was dispatched post haste to the island, as another insurrection was feared. The existing law, requiring a property qualification, bars the negro from the ballot. There are but 200 legal voters among the 18.000 inhabitants of Santa Cruz. This law, for the present at least, must be left alone! and, what is more important for future peace and progress, no promises of changes should be made.

Let a few northern agitators go among them prating of equal rights and universal suffrage and the tale of the old man sitting on the ruined stairway will repeat itself once more.

(Evening star (Washington, D.C.), 15. marts 1902)

Louis McHenry Howe (1871-1936) var journalist for New York Herald og politisk rådgiver 1909-1936 for den kommende præsident Franklin D. Roosevelt. Han kom fra en velstående familie, og arbejdede ved en avis hans far havde købt. Han rejste bl. a. til Cuba i 1898 for at dække den spansk-amerikanske krig for New York Herald, men nåede for sent frem. I de sidste år af sit liv var han syg af hjerte- og lungeproblemer. Han fik en statsbegravelse.

Værtshuset "Nordpolen". (Efterskrift til Politivennen).

"Nordpolen"

"Signe med kongenæsen"
Den danske "Skalle"
Ignatus fortæller i "Politiken"

"Nordpolen" er en af de få virkelig forbryderfælder der findes her i byen. Man stiger fra Vognmagergade ned ad en smal trappe og befinder sig i et underjordisk, af borde, stole, diske og flasker opfyldt lokale, hvor ordenen mellem vagabonderne opretholdes af et par solide kæmper, der passer handsker nr. 12. Gennem en dør i baggrunden opdager man et glimt af værten, der dog ikke viser sig uden ved højtidelige lejligheder. 

Til venstre for den egentlige beværtning ligger der et aflangt rum, som kaldes "Stuen". Dette rum hvori der som regel er slagsmål i den ene ende, medens en halv snes driverter ligger og sover i den anden, er unægtelig interessantere end gaskælderen i "Sherlock Holmes". Rundt om på de fedtede bænke sidder forbrydere, der har tilbragt deres meste tid i Vridsløselille, og mellem forbryderne Vognmagergades friserede alfonser, de såkaldte "krasseka'le", "blæsere" eller "embedsmænd" (betegnelserne "alfons", "hopsaka'l" og "gummidreng" er opfundne af bladene og ukendte i kvarteret). 

Mellem damerne, der næsten uden undtagelse ryger træpibe, er den mest bekendte en tidligere værtshusholderske som bærer navnet "Signe med kongenæsen". Når hun er drukken, synger hun en sentimental sang. 

I denne stue sad i gamle dage "den dovne Dreng" (han er nu i Horsens Tugthus), og her soldede "Tevehår" og "Bernhardt med Patten" for de penge, de havde tjent ved indbrud. Mange pladser er nu blevet tomme efter Lersøaffæren. "Og alt det", siger Bræddestablen. "fordi de fingererede lidt ved en politibetjent."

Bræddestablen er en mand med ydre optræden og måske i øjeblikket den af vagabonderne, der renest har bevaret kvarterets sprog. Den 35-årige mand er høj og velvoksen, med et rødligt, stærkt bygget ansigt, med en dobbelt overlæbe, knækkede fortænder og med et knivstik-ar på underlæben. I henseende til toilette er han på højden af de moderne fordringer. Han taler gerne og understreger enkelte ord med stærke armbevægelser. Og hvad er det ikke for besynderlige ord!

Forbryderne i kvarteret har deres eget sprog, som dels er ejendommeligt ved de adjektiviske betegnelser (en pibe med et stort hoved kaldes fx for "bredskuldret") dels ved en ironisk ombytning af ord fra bogsproget, som når fx en bisse ufravigelig kaldes "prins". (Ordet bisse er opfundet af skribenter). Yderligere benyttes disse ord til dannelse af verber. En prins der om natten sover i en retirade, siger, at han "prinser den", og damer som han møder på logisstedet kaldes prinsesser. Hr. sprogforsker! Tal med Bræddestablen og Strile-Karl, og De vil opdage, hvor uvidende De er i dansk sprog!

Han "går og skyder" betyder, at han går og stjæler, "et skud" er et stykke tyvegods (ladegårdslemmerne kalder i øvrigt en cigarstump "et skud"). "Kan du være i vognen" betyder: Kan du klare dig? At "gå på'en" betyder at bekende. At "blive solgt" er at blive overlistet i et krydsforhør. "Vil du springe?" betyder: Vil du slås? Og "Så siger jeg nik" betyder: parat til at drikke en skalle.

At drikke en skalle er at træde et par skridt tilbage, lynsnart at fare frem og med den øverste del af panden at ramme modstanderen over næsen og knuse denne med et stærkt stød. Nordpolens stamgæster viser i så henseende en forbavsende færdighed. Man må personlig se dem drikke en skalle eller dog betragte deres skade, knækkede næser for at få en forestilling om det frygtelige våben. Danske slagsbrødre, der om bord på skibe henflyttes til andre egne her drikker fremmede slagsbrødre skaller, vækker på en gang forfærdelse og forbavselse. En lignende benyttelse af hovedet til slagsmål er ganske ukendt andre steder end i Danmark. Bræddestablen viser styrken af sin pandebrask, idet han drikker kældervæggen en skalle, så det bogstavelig talt knager i den gamle, sure rønne. Endda erklærer han at Lars med Patten er hans overmand. En gang i ungdommens dage drak han Bræddestablen en skalle, der "blev siddende", og at denne mester i faget nu i 2 år skal være forhindret i at præstere ordentligt arbejde, forøger yderligere Bræddestablens misfornøjelse med de bestående samfundsforhold.

Ved afskeden gør han følgende klassiske bemærkning:

"Man går op af pølen og fingererer ved en panser (gadebetjent). Værså'artig, ind i svededåsen med det samme. Man danderer den med seven (grøn sæbe, som benyttes til at knuse ruder med i udhængsskabe), og aldrig så snart har han lugtet til et par skaldede brocher, førend den står på kul (vand og brød). I Leret (Lersøen) må man ikke komme, og forladning i pistongen er der ikke over det hele. Man kan li'så godt straks gå ud på går'en og slå de tre slaw."

Derefter vendte Bræddestablen sig til Signe med Kongenæsen og sagde:

"Sine! La vos så få de to drosler!"

(Aalborg Tidende, 1. marts 1902).

Fotoet viser ikke Nordpolen, men en kælderbeværtning i Lille Brøndstræde 12. Bagest porten til Sjæleboderne (7. oktober 1908). Fotograf Ernst Nyrop Larsen. Københavns Museum. Public Domain.

I en omtale af en bog af Albert Gnudtzmann og Helmer Lind, bragte Fredericia Social-Demokrat 26. februar 1907 nogle citater fra bogen:

Vi vælger at aflægge "Nordpolen" et besøg. Det stemmer os for brystet da vi efter at være klatrede ned ad den stejle trappe, befinder os i et lokale hvor en snes mennesker trænges sammen i to rum der hver for sig er af størrelse som et pigekammer i en ældre københavnsk ejendom. Et lokale hvor den ubeskriveligste stank af last og dyrisk ligegyldighed lægger sig tyngende på åndedrættet, og hvor kærligheden til snavset har overtrukket de nøgne vægge med en fedtet og klæbrig patina.

Af de to rum er det ene skænkestue, det andet "dameværelse". Ved denne elegante betegnelse forstås at stedets furier her har deres residens. Ikke alene opholder de sig der på de tider af dagen da de ikke virker i deres kald, men de sover her også, hvilende på borde og bænke eller simpelt hen på gulvet, hvor det tommetykke snavs er stampet sammen til en fast, ubestemmelig masse. Når dagens jagt efter de usle skillinger de behøver til megen brændevin og en smule mad, er endt, og kavalererne er gået ud for at forsøge hvad nattens timer kan kaste af sig, synker det hærgede kvindelegeme sammen her, svækket og udmarvet af last, arrest og pint af utøj, stinkende af spiritus.

(Fredericia Social-Demokrat, 26. februar 1907).

Pastor Ussing og højtidsofferet. (Efterskrift til Politivennen)

Pastor Ussing ved Ølkirken Valby har til julen udsendt en opfordring til beboerne i Valby-Vigerslev om ikke at glemme at betale højtidsoffer til præsten og kirkesangeren. Denne opfordring har fremkaldt stor forbavselse; for beboerne er allerede en gang i år blevet afkrævet præste- og klokkerpenge sammen med skatterne, og de mener derfor, at præstens private henvendelse ser højst mærkværdig ud.

Hr. Ussing er imidlertid ikke tilfreds med de penge, som han har fået ved præsteofferets afløsning, og derfor har han udsendt denne opfordring. Men der er næppe mange, der lader sig forlede til at ofre mere end nødvendigt til præstesækken, der jo i forvejen er fed nok. (6.600 kr. årlig!)

Pastor Ussing meddeler i sit cirkulære, at “den i København herskende kirkelige uorden har forledt mange til imod loven at fritage sig selv for højtidsofferet."

Det er dog næppe hr. Ussing, der skal afgøre, hvorvidt der er kirkelig uorden i København; for dette spørgsmål hører vel nærmest ind under kultusministeriets afgørelse. Og når de københavnske sognepræster ikke som pastor Ussing søger at få dobbelt offer, er der vel ingen anledning for ham til at blande sig ind i den sag.

Præstens “private" henvendelse er ledsaget af 2 konvolutter, en større, rød konvolut til sognepræstens og en mindre, hvid til kirkesangerens offer. Hr. Ussing ønsker altså så tydeligt som muligt at gøre det forklarligt for folk, at der er forskel på præst og degn, og at man har at ofre mere til den første end til den sidste.

På prædikestolen står præsterne og prædiker nøjsomhed og tålmodighed for de arbejdere, der må kæmpe mod sultens kvaler. Men selv våger præsterne med nidkærhed over, at ikke en øre går fra dem, men at deres store Indtægter tilflyder dem i så rigt mål som muligt.

Præsterne er kommet langt bort fra deres store mesters fodspor; for da Kristus vandrede her på jorden, udsendte han hverken røde eller hvide konvolutter.

(Social-Demokraten 2. januar 1902)

Andréa Nielsen om Fagforeninger. (Efterskrift til Politivennen)

Er det til nogen Nytte at være Medlem af en Fagforening?

Dette Spørgsmaal bliver saa ofte rejst af Kvinder, naar rnan taler til dem om Organisationen. Vi skal der betale Kontingent 25 Øre om Ugen, siger de, hvad faar vi for de Penge; de, som staar uden for Organisationen, kan jo arbejde som vi andre, og de er fri for at betale Kontingent.

Ja ganske vist har de maaske Arbejde ligesaavel som de organiserede, men de staar aldeles retsløse overfor Arbejdsgiverne og maa finde sig i de Forhold, som disse mer eller mindre vilkaarligt byder. Thi veed Arbejdsgiveren, at hans kvindelige Arbejdere - i dette Tilfælde tænker jeg navnlig paa Syersker - staar i deres Organisation, er han nødt til at tage noget Hensyn ogsaa til deres Mening. Jeg skal ganske kort omtale, hvad en enkelt forretnings Syersker har opnaaet i de sidste Dage ved Organisationens Hjælp.

Omtalte forretning forfærdiger for største Delen Bomuldsarbejde, og Syerskerne havde der som saa mange andre Steder staaet ligegyldige overfor Organisationen, men efterhaanden som Tiden gik, sank Arbejdslønnen, og Syerskerne følte, at de stod magtesløse. De besluttede da at melde sig ind i Fagforeningen og sendte derefter en Skrivelse til Fagforeningen med Beklagelse over den stedfundne Lønreduktion. Nogle Møder afholdtes og en Henstilling til vedkommende Forretning om at betale højere Arbejdsløn blev ikke tagen til Følge. Syerskerne nægtede da alle at tage Arbejde Hjem paa de gamle Betingelser.

Rasende derover sendte Arbejdsgiveren en Skrivelse til Foreningens Bestyrelse med Fordring om at faa opgivet, hvem der havde givet Anledning til, at der blev rørt op i hans Sager, disse skulde afskediges af hans Forretning. Samtidig havde vi imidlertid indbudt ham til en Forhandling om Sagerne, og det kan kun siges, at den i alle Retninger førte til en tilfredsstillende Ordning for de organiserede Syersker. Saaledes maatte Arbeidsgiveren gaa ind paa at betale 18 og 20 Øre for smaa Drengebenklæder, som han for kun gav 15 -16 á 19 Øre for, det bliver en Merfortjeneste af 2 a 3 Øre pr. Par. eller, lavt regnet, at en Syerske syr 6 Par om Dagen, en Merfortjeneste af 12-18 Øre om Dagen, 72-108 Øre om Ugen. Og naar vi regner med 48 Arbejdsuger i Aaret, 56 Øre til 51 Kr. 84 Øre om Aaret.

Et andet Arbejde, Bomuldsbenklæder til Voxne, vil der i Fremtiden blive betalt 5 Øre mere for end hidtil; det bliver 30 Øre mere om Dagen, naar der opstilles samme Regnestykke som ovenfor nævnt, 90 Øre om Ugen og 43 Kr. 20 Øre om Aaret.

Og da Syerskerne havde erklæret, at de ikke vilde arbejde sammen med 2, som ikke var i Foreningen, gik Fabrikanten ind paa at afskedige disse, saafremt de ikke til 1ste December var blevne Medlemmer af vor Forening. Som man ser, førte vor Forhandling kun til Fordel for de organiserede Syersker; og saaledes er det selvfølgelig altid til Gavn og Nytte at staa i sin Fagforening.

De Tal, som her er fremsatte, maa mer end tydeligt nok vise, at de 25 Øre, som indbetales om Ugen til Foreningen, eller 13 Kr. om Aaret, kommer igjen med større Rente end nogen Bank kan give. Hav derfor ikke saa mange Betænkeligheder, eller lad Tiden gaa med at spørge til hvad Nytte.

Naar I skal være med i Arbejdet, da vær med som maalbevidste, organiserede Arbejdere, der forstaar at hævde deres Stilling og at blive respekteret.

Andrea Nielsen.

(Aftenbladet (København) 26. november 1901)

Andrea Johanne Marie Brochmann,  født Nielsen (1868-1954). Hendes forældre var cigarfabrikant Lauritz Christian Nielsen (1842-1918) og herreskrædder Anna Pedersdatter (1842-92) som var formand for de Kvindelige Herreskræderes Fagforbund. 

Andrea Nielsen var født i et socialdemokratisk arbejderhjem, og i hjemmet kom bl.a. partiets stiftere Louis Pio, Harald Brix og Povl Geleff samt den socialistiske feminist Jaquette Liljencrantz. Moderen Anna Nielsen var 1890-92 formand for De kvindelige Herreskrædderes Fagforening (KHF), den ældste selvstændige kvindelige fagforening, aktiv i kvindebevægelsen (De samlede Kvindeforeninger) og var med til at udgive kvindeforeningernes tidsskrift "Hvad vi vil". Arbejderkvinderne havde i modsætning til den daværende kvindebevægelses overklassekvinder, dobbeltarbejde: husarbejde. Det havde kvindebevægelsens kvinder tjenestefolk til.

Andrea Brochmann gik 1875-83 på Mathilde Borums pigeskole på Nørrebrogade. Da der ikke var råd til at hun blev lærer, blev hun i stedet herreskrædder. I Dansk Skrædderforbund var der blandt de mandlige svende uvilje mod kvinderne, og da Andrea Nielsen i 1896 mødte op til et agitationsmøde for skræddere fra en af de københavnske systuer, sagde den daværende formand for skrædderforbundet at “han havde rigtignok ikke tænkt sig, at der skulde komme kvinder”. Hun var formand for De kvindelige Herreskrædderes Fagforening (KHF) 1887-1909 der i starten havde godt 35 medlemmer. Men holdningen i Dansk Skrædderforbund ændrede sig. Ved årsskiftet 1898-99 havde KHF over 1.200 medlemmer, og skrædderforbundet iværksatte en strejke (se artiklen Syerskerne i Provinsen, 14. april 1899). 1.000 kvindelige skræddere nedlagde arbejdet for at få udarbejdet en fælles prisaftale og dermed ensartede lønninger. Arbejdsnedlæggelsen varede i 14 dage og førte til en sejr for kvinderne og indgåelse af den første prisaftale. (Se artiklerne herom på bloggen)

Andrea Nielsen var kvindesagsforkæmper og blandt de ledende i kampen for kvinders valgret, og hun var samtidig overbevist socialdemokrat. 1899 var der for første gang kvindelige talere ved en 1. majdemonstration på Fælleden. Hun talte om kvindernes organisering og om den netop afsluttede strejke. 

Andrea Nielsen blev gift 1905 med journalist, politiker Jens Peter Brochmann (1870-1937) og de to arbejdede sammen på avisen Social-Demokraten. 

Andrea Brochmann forblev formand indtil 1909, 1899-1909 tillige medlem af Dansk Skrædderforbund og De samvirkende Fagforbunds forretningsudvalg. Så udtalte hun at hun var “nervøs og træt” og desuden efter sit giftermål ikke længere i faget. 

I 1907 trak de socialdemokratiske kvinder sig ud af Kvindeforeningers Valgretsudvalg, og dannede Socialdemokratisk Kvindevalgretsforening hvor hun var formand. Socialdemokratiets hovedbestyrelse afslog at optage foreningen i partiet - man ønskede ikke at optage særskilte kvindeorganisationer. Selv da loven om kvinders valgret til de kommunale råd blev vedtaget i 1908, fastholdt Socialdemokratiet modstanden mod særskilt kvindeorganisering. 

Andrea Brochmann på talerstolen ved et friluftsmøde på Kvægtorvet, et agitationsmøde i 1. kreds' vælgerforening i den store forgård til selve slagterhusene på Kvægtorvet. Der deltog flere hundrede. Ved mødet talte også Stauning og cand. mag Vilh. Rasmussen. Andrea Nielsens emne var kvindens stilling til skattebyrderne. (Social-Demokraten 19. august 1912). Fotoet er taget foran Øksnehallen, set mod det der i dag er Husets Teater og bag det Halmtorvet.

I forbitrelse over Socialdemokratiets kvindepolitik var hun i 1908 medstifter af Socialdemokratisk Kvindeforening (SK) og efter 1912 tillige formand. Det var partiledelsen meget utilfreds med. Thorvald Stauning kaldte det “separatistiske tilbøjeligheder”. Da kvinderne for første gang kunne opstille til Folketinget i 1918, opstillede Socialdemokratiet kun to kvinder: Andrea Brochmann og Helga Larsen. Det Radikale Venstre opstillede ni kvindelige kandidater. Kun Helga Larsen blev valgt. Først i 1929 (på bl. a. Sylvia Pios initiativ) dannedes socialdemokratiske kvindeudvalg. Senere blev hun valgt til Landstinget 1926-32 og 1933-40. 

Andrea Brochmann var 1917-43 medlem af Borgerrepræsentationen. Her argumenterede for arbejdernes berettigede lønkrav, for arbejdsløshedsunderstøttelse, folkekøkkener og brændselshjælp. Hun argumenterede  for opførelse af kvindehuse til enlige og selverhvervende kvinder og husmoderferiehjem, og nødvendigheden af vuggestuer og fritidshjem og forebyggende børneforsorg. 

Se også Silkehusets"s Syersker, om forholdene i 1902 Fru Andrea Brochmann fortæller om 25 Aars Agitation, 23. januar 1923.

Andréa Brochmann blev begravet på Bispebjerg Kirkegård. Urnen stod i kolumbariet indtil 1974, hvorefter den blev nedsat et ukendt sted.

Ali Nouri Bey (1858-1937) og Hairie Ben Ayad (1879-?). 1/7. (Efterskrift til Politivennen)

Oprindelig hed Ali Nouri (alternativ stavemåde: Ali Nuri Dilmec) Knut Gustaf Noring (Thorup?) og kom fra Sverige. Han var forfatter, lærer og bogsamler fra Malmö. I 1879 rejste han til Konstantinopel og konverterede til islam. I 1884 blev han gift med en tunesisk prinsesse. Samme år udnævnt til tyrkisk generalkonsul i Athen, senere Serbien, Krim, og Rotterdam. Sultanens formål var at han skulle spionere på hans modstandere, ungtyrkerne. Men i stedet gik Ali Nouri over på deres side.

Prinsessen hed Hairie (alternativ stavemåde: Hayrye) og blev som 18 årig bortgivet som brud til en tyrkisk pasha som var polygamist. Efter to år blev det hende for meget og flygtede fra Tyrkiet. Allerede da prinsessen var omkring 25 år, holdt hun foredrag i Europa og USA om forholdene i tyrkiske harem. 

Parrets sympatier for Ungtyrkere blev opdaget, og de faldt 1901 i unåde hos sultanen. Prinsesse Hairie undslap fra parrets hus i Konstantinopel der var under konstant overvågning af spioner, ved at nogle venner smuglede kufferter og hendes to børn ombord på et fransk dampskib til Galata i Grækenland. Det lykkedes hende at slippe uset ud af huset og køre til havnen. Hun ventede her i en kø indtil landgangen var ved at blive taget, hvorefter hun løb over en åben plads og sprang på skibet før nogen kunne nå at stoppe hende.

De rejste tilbage til Sverige og flyttede i de efterfølgende år rundt omkring, boede bl.a. også i København. I 1900-tallets første årti skrev Ali Nouri flittigt i vestlige medier og ofte citeret som ekspert på tyrkiske forhold. Da ungtyrkerne tog magten i Tyrkiet i 1909, rejste han tilbage til Tyrkiet hvor han levede i ubemærkethed til sin død. 

En tyrkisk prinsesse som Foredragsholder.

Fra London skriver en Korrespondent: Vor By kan i de kommende Uger vente siq noget splinternyt paa Forelæsningsomraadet, idet man for første Gang vil se en tyrkisk Dame, tilmed en Prinsesse, offentlig optræde som Foredragsholderske.

Den paagældende Dame, hvis Navn er Prinsesse Hairie Ben Ayad, er gift med Ali Nouri Bej, fhv. tyrkisk Konsul i Rotterdam Begge er ivrige "Legitimister", d v. s. Tilhængere af "Sultan" Murad, Abdul Hamids Broder, der har været holdt fængslet i Konstantinopel siden Broderens Tronbestigelse.

Murad, fortæller Prinsessen, er ingenlunde sindssyg, som Rygtet paastaar, men fuldstændig rask, baade i aandelig og legemlig Henseende. Hun agter nu sammen med sin Mand at begynde en Agitation i England til Fordel for Murad; allerede mens de opholdt sig i Tyrkiet forsøgte de derpaa, men opnaaede kun at blive sat under retslig Tiltale, af hvilken Grund de strax flygtede til Vestevropa.

Som en Slags Indledning til sit "Felttog" agter Prinsesse Hairie at holde en kort Række Forelæsninger. Disse vil dog ikke omhandle politiske Forhold, men kun dreje sig om den tyrkiske Kvinde, hendes Liv i Hjemmet, Haremets Mysterier, Slaveriet i Tyrkiet og andre Warner, som kun en tyrkisk Kvinde kan vide Besked om.

Prinsesse Hairis, der er den  første tyrkiske Dame af Rang, som offentlig viser sig i England, er en høj, mørk Kvinde med en smuk Figur og fine Ansigtstræk. Hun vil sikkert "gøre sig"

(Nordjyllands Arbejderblad 14. august 1901).

Princess after the Sultan

"THE secrets of the harem" are to remain secrets no longer. Simultaneously with the publication of M. George Dony's new book, "The Private Life of the Sultan," a lady of high degree has just come London to make a further expose. She proposes to begin a crusade against the degradation of her countrywomen, and after she has created a movement of reform to emanate from England, she will go to the United States.

This female knight errant of modern days is the Princess Hairie Ben Ayad, the wife of a former Turkish consul at Rotterdam, who has espoused the cause of the "Legitimist" party In Turkey and has, in consequence, been condemned to prison for ten years. He escaped to England and his wife has just joined him after numerous exciting experiences. The party of the "Legitimists"is in favor of the deposed sultan, Murad, the elder brother of the reigning monarch, Abdul Hamid. Murad has been in prison at Constantinople for over twenty-five years and his party claims that all evils in Turkey would be righted If he were restored to power.

The Princess Hairie bids fair to become the latest London fad and her movements are chronicled as if she were a personage of extraordinary Importance. She possesses great beauty, having a face of unusual refinement for the somewhat heavy brunette type of the east, and she carries herself in a regal way. She drives out with her husband frequently, but always veiled, wearing a long black satin cloak and hood, from which the veil hangs to the throat. In the house she loves to wear the close fitting garments of the European.

HAIRIE BEN AYAD; THE TURKISH PRINCESS WHO IS TELLING TALES ON THE SULTAN.

She is a daughter of the late Mahomond Pasha Ben Ayad of Tunis, who represented his country at the court of Franco during the time of Napoleon III and received several marks of honor from the emperor. He kept a magnificent harem of over 500, including his wives and female slaves, so that his daughter knows of things whereof she speaks, although her own husband has not indulged in the luxury of so many wives. She is the first Turkish lady who has ever set foot in Europe with the mission of making known the social condition of her native land, but she says that there are many other women in Turkey who would come forth In like manner If they dared, and that they are keenly conscious of their miseries.

The sultan himself seems to be the greatest polygamist. Although a law exists which permits a man to have only four wives at the same time and another which prohibits slavery, the sultan disdains to be bound by either law. But his greediness to adquire so many wives brings him no end of trouble, for each one becomes the center of a political faction as soon as she enters the royal palace. Many of them are very shrewd and ambitious, and sometimes not overly fond of his Imperial majesty. One of his wives was accused of conspiracy against him about a month ago, and the sultan shot her with his own hand. Another one was sent into exile as late as last week, being suspected of setting unto his majesty's bedroom. She was only saved from death because she had been a favorite wife for over fifteen years and she had a brother high in political power.

The sultan seldom condescends to marry legally any of his wives, according to the princess, unless he takes a fancy to the wife of one of his subjects who is powerful enough to refuse to give her up. The sultan then decrees her divorced and goes through the form of marrying her. If he becomes tired of a wife, one of his royal ministers receives her as a present whether the minister wants her or not. Another way of disposing of these wives is to present them to his political enemies, who dare not refuse them, and who thus take a spy into their own household in constant communication with the throne.

The women of Turkey could be well educated if the sultan and the religious teachers - who are his tools - would permit. But they have recently banished the English governesses from Turkish homes and they oppose the foreign schools, Catholic and Protestant, which have been established among them. The princess speaks very highly of the American school for girls at Constantinople, which, she says, is liberally patronized by the daughters of advanced Mussulmans, notwithstanding the opposition of the sultan. The priests try to keep the people, especially the women, In Ignorance. These priests are in the employ of the government; they are the official surveyors of the wards and delegated by the municipality to arrange the marriage contracts. But the priest acts in this respect more as a magistrate than as an official of the church and the marriage is merely a business contract. If the parents pay him an extra sum he will deliver a long prayer at the end, but otherwise not. The bride and bridegroom hold separate fetes in honor of their marriage. If either family has a large house the fetes are celebrated on the same day in different apartments, but If not they occur on different days.

The only thing in which the women score in Turkey is in the "dot." The husband must give a dowry to his wife If he marries her by law but what the wife brings remains still her own. Her husband has no legal right to appropriate It. It Is probable, however, that the poor Turkish woman as a general thing falls to enjoy this right, as well as so many others which are hers in law, but not In reality.

REBECCA A. INSLEY.

(The Illustrated Bee 20. oktober 1901)

Den egyptiske prinsesse, Hairie ben Aiad, søster til Cherif paschas gemal, datter af Mahmud Pascha Ben-Ayad. Ali Nouri Bey, egentlig Gustaf Noring. (Hvar 8 dag, 1901/1902 nr. 1 6. oktober 1901.

I oktober 1901 besøgte Ali Nouri København, i hvilken anledning Nationaltidende 28. oktober 1901, 2. udgave bragte et næsten helsides interview med ham på forsiden. Han var da blevet dømt til døden af sultanen. Her udtalte han sig i kraftige vendinger imod den sultan som havde overtaget styret efter sin broder ved at erklære ham for sindssyg. I artikler i aviserne (Nationaltidende 17. november 1901, Dagbladet (København) 20. marts 1902, Nationaltidende 4. september 1903 2. udgave.) vedblev han herefter at berette om paladsrevolutionerne og omskiftelserne i Tyrkiet.