Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-12-18
THE RETURNED LiBERIAN EMIGRANTs
Secretary sCoppinger of the Colonization So
ciety Thinks They Were Prejudsced.

Secretary sCoppinger of the Colonization So
ciety Thinks They Were Prejud:ced.
The party Of eleven colored people who re-
turned to New York on Thursday after a dis
astrous experience as emigrants to Liberia,
and who told such a narrowing story Of their
life and hardships there. we're, it seems origi-
nally sent out by the American Colonization
Society that has its headquarters in this city.
According to Mr.. VIM. Coppinger the secre-
tary of the society, this party, that came from
Florida in the first place, left for Lii
IBERIA last May. They had upward of
1900 with them. Their expenses to the new
country were paid by the society and they left
with the assurance that each head of a family
would receive twenty-five acres of land and
that they would all be lodged and fed for a
period OF six months, so that they would not
suffer during the time that their crops were
maturing.
Mr.. Coppinger said to STAR reporter this
morning that he knew nothing more Of the
matter than he had read in the newspapers. 1t
was an unusual matter for any assisted emf
grants to return to this country except for
brief visits, and he was unable to see why this
particular party should have had any
harder times than their predecessors.
Il presume said Mr.. Coppinger, "that
this case is much like the experiences of many
here and finding that they don't like it as much
as they had expected 90 back again. Why,
know Of q man in Philadelphia who came over
from London with his family and has gone
home three times intending to stay, but every
time he has come back to this country again.
81 have any number of letters from people
whom we have sent out to Liberia, and in all
cases they are enthusiastic in their praise
Of the country. They all say that there
is no room there for a man who does
% hr<A AlnA
Is willing to work is sure Of large returns
When q man is the owner of a lot of bearing
coffee trees he is sure Of a good thing. True,
it takes several years to get these trees in
bearing order, but in the meantime vegetables
Of all sorts, fruits and the sugar cane can be
raised in abundance and as man wrote me not
long ago from there. 80 long as a man has the
energy ito tickle the earth with the hoe there
is no reason why he should ever want for a
moment for the necessities and comforts of
life. In another letter man tells me that
he has been there for many years and
that q result of his success in life he has been
enabled to travel all over Europe and America,
but that he has returned gladly to Liberia and
would not take any palace in the world for his
cottage in a land where there are no dis
is eligible to every Office, from policeman to
king:
'The party that has Just returned" con-
tinued Mr.. Coppinger, ''were sent out last
spring with every reason to suppose that they
would be prosperous in their new venture.
They left under most favorable auspices and
we had reason to think that they would
make a success 1 see that one OF
the men says he did not like the
place in the first place, and that not seeing any
opening for work he did not work. 1 rather
think that was the secret Of the whole trouble.
They were prejudiced against life there from
the start, were unwilling to work, and in short
did not go about the matter at all in the right
way. Asacounter argument to their experiences
can tell you that in the spring we are going
to send out q large party from Missouri, who
have been induced to take this move on the
glowing representations of their friends from
this country, who have already gone out 10
Liberia. They are more than satisfied with
their life there and are all the time writing TO
their friends here to come out and Join them"