The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-12-25
UNCLE TOM NOW WHITE.
Not Mrs. Stoves Hero, but a Georgia
Negro Named Cleveland.
From the WASHINGTON Post.

From the Washington Post.
"Uncle Tom" Cleveland, an aged col
ored man, who has recently been brought
to this city from the cotton fields of Geor-
gia, has not the powers of a chameleon by
which he can adapt his color to that Of
surrounding objects, and such an expla-
nation cannot account for his appearance
on Tuesday evening before the physio-
| logical class of the Georgetown Medical
School. The peculiar thing about Uncle
| Tom is that where he was once black as
| the ace of spades, he is now white 1t
was this that called several medical men
| together to discuss before the students
the character Of the phenomenon.
The exhibition took place at o'clock
| in the lower lecture-room of the school
on II street. 1t had been advertised
among the students, who thronged to see
it with as much eagerness as one could
20 to view a dime museum freak. DIR.
G.. l.. Magruder, the dean of the medi-
cal faculty, told the class that Uncle Tom
was now 60 years old, and that from the
| age of 40 there was the best of proof that
he had been as white as a Caucasian. He
said that Mr.. ID. M. ID. Lindsey, pro-
secutor of claims in this city, had brought
the man from Hart county, Georgia,
where he had lived all his life
ATTEsTED BY AFFIDAvITs.
He then read number of sworn testi-
monials to show that Uncle Tom was not
fake" One of these referred to
Thomas G.. Lawson, ex-member of con
| gresS. They were signed by Il. G.. Stev-
enson, ordinary, and Horatio j. Goss,
| justice of the peace in the county, and
! asserted that Uncle Tom had been known
to them for at least twenty-five years,
and that he was once as black as any
/ no p1apfufiOnu a 1affat.
/ also read from Mr.. Thomas w. Teasley,
whose father had owned Uncle Toms
mother as a slave. He declared that the
man was born black, and that he grew up
black, but that he had turned white.
Uncle Tom came in company with the
learned medicos and listened to the read
! ing of the letters establishing his identity
with Indifference. He is a man of small
, stature and would probably be classed by
the enlightened colored gentlemen of the
city as "cornfeld niger" he appeared
en- dishabille. DIR. Magruder told him TO
mount a chair so that the spectators could
see him better, and he was disrobed.
From the top of his head to the sole of his
feet, excepting small patches on his face,
his skin is as white and clear as that of
the purest blonde His face is piebald.
There are patches of the black still
remaining across the nose and little round
spots upon the ears. His hair is black and
kinky, and his eyes retain their normal
African color.
OF RARE oCCURANCE.
DIR. S. E. Watkins, of the Emergency
Hospital, was called upon to describe the
case and stated that it was a species of
skin disease which occurred very rarely.
IL began in small spots on the face, the
back, and the hands, growing in size until
the whole BODY was covered This was
he . ha1 ed In he
ent case. IT was not accompanied with
itching or pain, and so far as known
there was no cure for it. 1t was caused
by the dying out of the pigment that
colored the skin. Some people had con
founded il with leprosy, but it was diff
fereut from that disease in that it was
not accompanied with any destruction Of
the tissues. IL was not contagious so far
as was known, and its cause had not been
explained. Among the cases hitherto re-
ported it had occurred most frequently
among women and between the ages of 10
years and 30 years.
DIR. G.. w Stiles, lecturer before the
school on medical zoology. said that as a
zoologist he did not believe that Uncle
Tom was afflicted with any disease. He
thought IL was a species of albinism. IL
seemed to him 10 be an individual variation
which could be classed with the habit OF
certain animals to change their color at
different seasons of the year The fur of
rabbits changed TO white in the winter.
Some animals had power TO change their
color at will There were instances of
freaks of this kind, of which he men
toned white rats and white mice among
the lower orders.
This change of color was not uncommon
among people of different parts of the
world, especially in Turkestan. The
change of pigment occurred also early in
life among the darker races DR..
Stiles stated that colored children irnme-
diately after birth were reddish brown
and that they afterward became slate