Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1899-12-24

life, and In some particulars 1t seems
almost beyond belief. He never knew
his father, because the latter was sold
IN lot OF slaves who went to Georgia
Few months before John was born.
HIS mother was q mulatto, who became
ny inheritance the property of a tobac-
co grower. Daniel Upton, and who lived
at Danvllle. Ala. Upton was scholar
~. Kindly disposed man, so Knight sald
who treated his slaves well, and his
wire, who had been school teacher.
peneVed 1t was her duty to guide and
protect the black people OH her hus-
bands plantation. Mrs Upton had a
brother. John S. Knight after whom
she named the little black boy when he
was porn III an outbuilding one spring
gay In 1S45. The child was unusually
bright, and Mrs. Upton discovered that
ne TOOK an absorbing interest in the
instructions given her children. In the
nriGht weather. when children and
.eacher sat on the piazza Of the house,
John would take UP station near by
and listen to all that was said. His
apparent zeal for an education appealed
70 Mrs. Upton, who determined to give
the little slave boy sufficient lessons to
set MN started on the road to indie
pendent studies. Eventually Mr. Upton
became interested In Johns education
and helped him along.
When old enough, Knight worked in
me ned with its mother and the other
saves, but he had had special privileges
IN the evening and while other small
pl"eks Cid chores around the place he
WAS allowed TO study. When about
s,Nteeh years old yourg knight. was
the most promising negro in 'PaIapoosa
county. Mr.. Upton died al that time
ana at the executors sale at the Upton
plantation In 1850 Knight was auction
ea OH 10 Hannibal NJ. Ju6son of the nd
Jaeent county of Chambers for l.Soo
winch was rather n stih price for n
negro 1T tlsat time. But slave bows who
Ie"u ana figured were at II premium.
Knight went with his new master to
cotton plantation III Central America.
NeNt spring the war broke out. and Mr.
Jndson entered the Confederate army.
Nhi%h- was then made an overseer of
p'.rl OF the plantation, and for four
years superintendent the gathering of
me cotton and It's shipment to New
Orleans. When his master returned
from the war knight declared his free
ooin,and walked to New Orleans. where
ne secured work as kharf laborcr for
hrh who handled fruits from Central
america. He saved his money. and one
day in June, 1866 he was sent Inv his
employers to Iucatan to superintend
me packing and shipping OF fruits to
New Orleans, for which lie received s25
per week
BEGINNING OF HIS SUCCESS.
From that time dates the fortune of
Don Juan Knight. He lived in Yucca
TIN one year, working hard all the time,
saved every penny of his money. and
conceived an ambition to be a frul,
supper on his own account He learn
ed of the immense tracts of fertile
land adapted to fruits south of San
Crlstobai, = Guatemala, and located
thcre. An energetic person was some
thing not only unique, but weird. in
those days in that region of sicstas
ana tropical sunshine. 4 revolution in
Witch Nanon Sanchez was deposed
from the presidency was lust closing
and Knight realized there was an eS,
ceilent opportunity to ingratiate him
SER IN the favor of tho new admits
tration. He proposed, In return for n
concession of $4,000 acres of land suit
able for pineapple and banana grow
ing 10 30 to New Orleans and get the
wholesale fruit dealers, who controlled
The Southern markets about thirty
years ago, to agree to buy So, 900 900 a
year OIL fruit from Guatemala plnn$a-
IONS. The government accepted his
proposition, and within three months
Knight had put his deal through. This
was the beginning of n trade which
eventually became worth several mil
lion dollars annually.
This first success opened knights
eyes TO other possibilities and oppor-
tnnities. Subsequently he obtained
other valuable concessions from the
Guatemalan government when he dem
onstrated the profit there was in grow
ing fruit for the markets OF the United
States. The shipping business to New
York, New Orleans, and San Francisco
was tremendously enlarged. BY 1879
Knight was the largest employer of
labor In Northern Guatemala. White
men had often despaired OF getting
work out of the lazy. improvidcnt and
careless mi ives OF thermal districts
of the state, but Knights experience
among them stood him in excellent
stead.
Don Juan was rich and something
more than thirty years of age when he
married young native woman, mar
rage which was great help to his
fortunes. About twenty years ago he
persuaded capitalists in New York and
Boston to embark extensively in coffee
growing in Guatemala, and invested at
the time $4,000 of his own money Adj
NantageouS concessions were made to
him by the government for his sue
cessful efforts in bringing capital into
the country. For many years coffee
growing proved marveiously remuner-
alive. and at one time the annual ship
ments of the bean from the Knight
plantations were the largest from any
private estate in Central America
VISITS TO TIE UNITED STATES
Some years ago Knight came here
and also visited Philadelphia and Bal
timore, where he contracted to furnish
SO many. tens of thousands of feet of
mahogany annually for ten years
Then he returned and bought up great
tracts of mahogany trees in Nicaragua
and Guatemala. At one time and he