The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1900-02-10
EBONY BLUE BLACK.
Tells of his Visit tothe Bla ok Folks To
In Mississippi.

Tells OF his visit to he Bla ok FOLKS Town
In Mississippi.
The Mems Sunday Forum will cele-
brate Lincoln day next Sunday at 4
o'clock, at Bethel Church, by a sym
postum. Several prominent speakers
will address the Forum, after which
the members will discuss the life and
character of Lincoln.
Mound Bayou, Miss.-It has been a
long time since wrote you the last
letter, and it is because I have been
too busy to think about writing to
you. [ was pleased to see my name
in your paper, and want to thank you
for it.
You know I had been to Chicago
and had a talk with the editor and
then left for another part of the world,
when I wrote you the last letter, and
now I am. away down here in the
South, where I have spent 80 many
years of my life, and I can imagine
that I am in Chicago-that great big
city Of freedom-and I want to come
back again just as soon as can get
my cotton planted. I thank you ever
so much for the courtesies you showed
me while I was there.
Did you ever hear of Mound Bayou
before? Well, it is just 104 miles
from Memphis, Tenn, on that rail-
road known as the Y. & M. ", and it
is strictly colored town. All the
houses in the town are owned by COL
ored folks, the Mayor of the town is
Hon. I. T. Montgomery, the Postmas-
ter is Miss Virginia Montgomery, the
Constable is a colored man, the Alder
men are colored men, and all the
homes are owned by us. have little
shanty down here myself; in fact, this
is where my plantation is, and I am
getting along we'll on it. I cannot
understand why so many of our people
will flock to the cities filled with
white folks, and then complain about
the treatment they receive, when there
is so much land yet to be possessed,
and is almost begging for someone to
come along and take it up. Now, take
town like this, and you will find
splendid opportunities for young men
of our race to make something and
nothing to keep them back. This is a
town that young college graduate
can be something more than a waiter
or bootblack in. I am not prepared
to say why so many of them will go
to the cities with all these good op-
portunities. Why is it, and why
should it be?
The saw mills belong to colored
men, the cotton gins belong to them,
and almost everything here except the
railroad, and it belongs to the white
folks. The ticket agent here is Mrs.
Green, colored woman, and she is
doing good business for, in addition
to being the AGENT she. owns a great
big store. But then. white man
has entered the town recently and
opened his business here. He is a
Jew, and it ut ms to me that if there
ment, he wov d go there and start
is a man that will go all over the
world to make little money, and
when I get up t. heaven, if I see any
of them there l expect to see them
dealing in secG ldhand clothes or
lending money. They will have their
junk shops Their their pawn-broker
stores, and he W. i be standing out on
the street -invitil 8 people to come in
and buy. Now, you see what I am
talking about.
Miss Minnie !.adie Washington, a
graduate from Tuskegee, is teaching
the college. S IL is smart young
woman and is ,pable of doing good
work. The boys and girls are bene-
flied by having ller in charge of the
school. She can teach them how to
do SO many thing , and they are learn
ing. I want to invite some of those
big folks I met in Chicago to come
down here and wee us, and we will
make them have big time. This is
not whisky TOW n, and you can't buy
any for miles. You see we can live
without whisky down here. When
you read this I I'm sure that it will
make you feel g cd to know that we
are getting alonl like that
Now, I must ring my letter to a
close for this tin e. Give my love to
all the folks I n 1t up there, and tell
them that I am we'll and doing we'll,
and hope when th sse few lines come to
hand they may :. ind them the same.
I have just hear of big time they
are having in Ke ltucky. Write to me
some time.
EDO ~ BLUE BLACK. I