Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1895-10-16
WEALTH OF A NEGRO.
ONCE A SLAVE, BUT NOW WORTH A
 FORTUNE.
He Keeps House All Alone In Dingy Little Room In Chicago-How He Made His Money-An Interesting and Success ful Career.

HIS MoneY-An Interesting and Success
 full Career.
 Lewis Bates was hornSa slave near Yan- reyyille N C., nearly 70 years ago. He vas sold away from his parents when child. Three times he changed masters and finally, when he was about 20 years of age, found himself in St Louis in the bands of slave trader, who again offered him for sale in common with lot of oth- CT slaves. While young Bates was with the trader an old ''auntie" who had been let out to a St. Louis family on trial told him that where she had been working there was Il colored woman called Aunt Fannie, who resembled him enough to be his mother. She asked him if he had a mother i'll St. Louis. Bates said he didn't know. He had some parents, once, he guessed, but that was so long ago that he had forgotten how they looked. We'll, honey" replied the good old auntie, .'dat woman is yo' mother, sho, an de good Lord is goin to fotch you two together. Bates went straight to the trader and told him what he had heard, and the lat ter, becoming interested, promised to in- yestigate. Word was sent to Aunt Fan nies master, who, it was found, owned Aunt Fannie's husband, too, and he brought his servant Fannie down to see young Bates, and, strangely enough, he was her son. The kind master was not deaf to the poor mothers entreaties for her sons companionship, but very hu- namely purchased him, and thus the little slave family was again united
 Bates new master owned a foundry, and fIara afn 1nd hn ino1. r,ll l .,e, trade. ; He was given a certain task each day, and when that was finished his time was his own.. He worked hard in his ex- tra hours, and in five years had scraped to- gether $l50 by doing odd jobs. He loaned his little nest egg to a free colored man for one year at 10 per cent interest, but at the end of the year the man told him he had lost the money, and Bates, being slave could do nothing about 1t. To add to Bates troubles, his father died shortly aft CT this, and the war broke out, and his master determined to take his remaining slaves to Texas, so that they could not es- cape to the free states.
 Then Bates began to plan for his free dom. He saved up S90 and made friends with one of the officers of the underground railroad and early one morning they took fishing poles and went to the river. Bates WAS rowed across the Mississippi to the H. linois shore and put on board a Chicago and Alton train, and in 12 hours he was in Chicago looking for work. That was in 1861 In a few days Bates found em- ployment in P. W. Gates foundry, on the west side, and i'll three months had saved Si00. Then work got slack at the foundry and he bought a horse and wagon and started out as all expressman, and al- though he rapidly accumulated property, he drove his wagon until a year ago, when he quit because he was getting too old for heavy work.
 The house in which he lives is four story brick at 400 Dearborn street It is valued at S75, 000, and the name Lewis Bates is carved ill a gray stone center piece over the door Bates owns another house just like it on Plymouth place, but he prefers to live on Dearborn street. Ills does his own cooking, and his room pre- sents such a poverty stricken appearance that one finds it difficult to believe that it's commonplace occupant is worth nearly $500, GOO.
 Soon after I came to Chicago he said. 1 bought horse, married woman an brought my mother here. 1 knew l needed an education, but 1 thought 1 needed money worse, cause l had others to take care of. One day I was driving along aE saw I could buy this place for S2, 900. l bought it an paid the money in one year. There was only a little frame cottage on it then. l was making S35 a week an sometimes more, with my wagon in them days, so I bought another house on Plymouth place. Then 1 bought two more lots for $20o apiece way out near Thirty-sixth street. on State. That was out O town in them days, an people laughed at me. Now I have fine house with seven stories an a basement worth ESQ., 900, on them lots an wouldn't sell for $500 a foot
 When got geod an ready, put up this building here, an-would you believe its--mv feller expressmen wanted to run me away from my stand They said I had money enoughl Up to year ago drove my old horse. kept a-saving O my money an buying property, an jist cause l drove wagon au was DO the colored folks all laughed at mean a-saying all could an why they done me so 1 never could tell. Maybe the good Lord knows.
 "Th%night of the first big Chicago fire I made Se0, besides what I made in the day had gore to bed tired, an long in the night the fire bells an the blaze woke me. I saw the fire was north O Harrison street, an that my house was safe, but l knowed it was fine time to make money, so hitched up an went out on the street. | Everybody was acting crazy an running for dear life. A man wanted me to haul some clocks to Twenty second street.
 I Il do it for $l0, I said, 'an 1 want my money before load up.' I got it an took the load Coming back A man says sWhat'll you charge to haul my trunk two blocks?' Five dollars in advance, says I. done the job an lots more, an when I went home had 50 cold dollars. 1 might have made mo, but 1 took pity on some DO colored families an moved them for nothing.
 The Watch Was Still Going.
 A singular incident took place the other i day on Damariscotta lake, Maine which | shows the yOracity If the bass fn that lake.