The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-03-16
SAYS LIBERIA IS NO GOOD.
REV. c. =. SMITH. WHO HAS BEEN
THERE TELLS SOMETHING
ABOUT THE COUNTRY.

He says Immigrants Without Money
Not wanted-AbsOIuteIy No Induce
ment For Any Civilized Person TO
Go There. He Says-He Thinks the
Immigrants Had Much Better Die
Trench and bury Themselves
Here Than 60 TO Africa 90 Die.
The state of Affairs on the West
Coast of Africa A. He saw IL.
There are stumps in the road Of the In
ternatlonal Migration Company. Il may
get Off to Africa with the present cargo
Of emigrants. but It viii not do so with
out passing a close inspection under
the United States laws. regulating the
shipping OF both immigrants and emil
grants.
Rev. G. s. Smith. corresponding secre-
tary Of the Sunday School Union Of the
African Methodist Episcopal church. Is
in Savannah. and his visit is not friend
y to the emigration movement. He is not
acting as an officer Of the church, how
ever, but merely as an individual. DR.
Smith is an intelligent and highly edu-
Gated man and stands high in the coun-
ellis of his church He is probably better
posted on Western Africa than anybody
else in this section just at present. Out
OF interest in the African movement, he
made a trip TO the West African coast
last fail, spending three months there
investigating the conditions OF the coun-
try and the Inducements offered to emit
grants from this country He returned
strongly opposed to any immigration to
that section by the people Of this coun-
try, either white or black.
There "a ahzolutalv no inducer1arf
whatever for any civilized person to
emisrate to Liberia or anywhere else on
the west coast Of Africa, 4" said Dr. Smith.
The men who are at the head Of this
migration company cannot possibly fulfill
the promises they have made, however
sincere they may be in their purpose.
There is no employment for the people
they are carrying there, no demand for
their services whatever. and they are not
wanted by the government. 1 was in
Monrovia on Nov. Is last and had a long
conference with President Cheesman. He
told me positively that the only kind of
immigration desired by Liberia is capi-
talists people who have money to invest
IN new enterprises for the development
or the country. 1t is not
worth while for people who have not
money with which to push themselves to
60 TO Liberia. The only true thing stated
by the agents of the migration society
government. Every head of a family is
offered p acres of land and every single
man 10 acres. This is an offer of long
standing and not any recent contract
with this new company. Liberia has a
coast line OF about 325 miles and extends
for about $50 miles into the interior A
civilized population Of 1S000 and an I'M
civilized population of $4,000 is claimed
In my opinion, however, the civilized pop
ulauon is not over $780, as the number of
voters Is only 1900. MOnrovia is village
or about 1000 population. There are only
about 250 houses in the place. There is no
place to receive ana shelter any large
body of emigrants with the exception Of
the churches, and the court house. 1 will
give you my opinion of liberia in a nut
shell. These people who are preparing to
go there had much better go out here on
the hillside, dig a trench, lie down in It,
and beg someone to cover them up. than
TO continue on their journey. While in
Liberia | saw a young man who was a
member OF party Of about 100 sent over
by CASTOR, who created considerable
sensation in this state sometime ago. He
told me that n!ne-tenths Of the party had
persisted CASTOR was in Liberia when l
was there. The man who was shot in
Hancock county for Castor last summer
was not CASTOR, but an imposter The
reason why l am opposed to this move
ment is first because it holds out false
hopes to our people which can neveI. be
realized and in the second place it is
unsettlng them and disturbing them here.
/ saw a large party in Florida camped
out beside the railroad track waiting for
a free train to come along and take them
to Africa. In Northern Louisiana recent
iy a party OF 100 sold out their possessions
and started for Africa, having been prom
ised transportation there for 81 each.
u.
where they came from and settle down
again.
1T is absolutely impossible" continued
DR. Smith, for any person who has never
been there to conceive of the conditions
which prevail on the west coast of Africa.
The whole coast country is very I'M
healthy, and civilized people cannot go
there except at the risk of their lives. The
civilized people who are there are the
agents and representatives of trading
companies. They are literally paid and
well cared for. Their contracts are for
three years and at the end of that time If
they wish to re-enlist they are given a
vacation of seven months Notwithstand-
ing the inducements offered the majority
of the employees of the trading companies
and the railroad and navigation com
panies, are natives who have been trained
for their work. 1t is the greatest mis-
take IN the world to suppose that there are
no educated natives and no skilled me
chanics on the west coast of Africa. l
was surprised at the number that l found
there. The British schools at Sierra
Leone and the Catholic and other church
schools at the same place and other places,
which hav9- been engaged in this work
for yeaRs, have actually turned out more
~+RTIIed mechanics than can find employ
ment in that portion of Africa. The IN
civilized natives furnish the cheap labor.
They carry heavy bundles on their head
through the wilderness and subsist on
food which a civilized person could not
live upon. A shilling GA cents) a day is
high wages to them
DR. Smith will interview the customs
authorities to-day for the purpose of as
certaining the exact laws regulating the
shipping of emigrants.
From the size of the steamship which
has been chartered said he the emf
grants will evidently have to be packed
together like so much dead freight The
laws do not allow this and 1 propose to
prevent it. ! visited the places where they
are quartered to-day and found them
packed together like sheep. Several are
sick and ] regard their condition as very
unsanitary."
DR. Smiths opposition to the Idberian
movement Is likely to prove a very Sc