The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-07-26
you exact Of them. / should say they are

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John Gaynor has charge of the Michigan
Central construction work here. He has
handled negro labor around the colony
as farmer and section worker many years
To the writer he said:
These. negroes are very uncertain.
employ eight regularly. They receive ST.
day pay them monthly.
IN the last year | have used on this
work more than fifty of these black men
They are not steady, and won't work regl-
larly. As soon "a they get month or two
I 6av salary lar a coming to them they quit
They work well under my direction.
But they get into debt 80 fast they can't
save anything. They want to take trip
down to Detroit or Windsor every Sunday,
"A case in point; employed one of
these young colorod boys. % years old
on to 60. to Chatham. There he bought
buggy for 500. and from farmer a horse
| and harness for SIPS.
He paid on account $40, the balance on
credit, established by the fact that he was
employed here, The buggy he used only
on Sunday.
"lf he worked regularly, he could not
hope to save more than $50 month with
which to pay for these articles, which he
had purchased al double what they were
worth; He paid $50 the first month The
second he failed to pay and, lending the
buggy 10 a colored companion, it was taken
from him by the merchant when found in
Chatham, and confiscated This was the
end OF the affair, He quit to prevent his
paw being rnrnisheod, ard went to Detroit.
My opiito is that they work for hire
better han for themselves. In fact.
soc daily instances of them losing their
lands rather than cultivate them. | should
from them
This l. he opinion of the white neighbors
nt the negroes The oil lands, with which
this particular district abounds. have
been gobbed up by enterprisng whites,
ana me negroes have secured none of the
profit. There are instances where they
have sold for few dollars in cash their in
terest IN promising oil producin lands,
rather than wait for big ROYALTY
strik'ng feature Of the race here MS we'll
al in the South is the religious enthusiasm
OF the colony. There are more churches
IN IN me district in proportion to the popula
ton than IN those dist riots where only whites
reside. They support their churches and
attend them with great fidelity The
colony has developed number of colored
preachers.
IT j. a curious fact that few types Of full
blooded negroes are found here. The race
ls apparently being assimilated. This
is accounted for in part on the theory that
majority Of the refugees were muattoes
Some have intermarried with Indians,
and there are some instances of misceCena-
ton, There are several Frenchmen here
who have colored wives. The negroes
do not look with favor upon these
marriages.
The post office is conducted by Mrs. G.. B.
Shreve For sixteen years tho comm ssion
has been made out in favor of her husband
He works IN the field and she does practically
all he work She is mulatto
An exception among the negroes of the
klng settlement is the case of Abel Cox
field. He is a splendid type of the pure
Ethiopian, A schooltaacher. he works
on his small farm during vacation, for
PaStime and to supplement his small in
come. He is raising family of five chill
dren, one of whom is taking teachers
course at Chatham, Another has com
pleted his studies there.
he came mere in 1872 from British Guiana
He, never knew the burdens of slavery,
and his parents before him were free men
from the west coast of Africa He is tail,
as black as ebony and ne-featured
He came TO Canada to enter a law school.
but finding no opening. he studied for
teachers certificate AT Chatham, and settled
here. to be near the Rev Mr. King. He
does credit to his teacher. Yet this case
cannot be cited as ono of the results of
the colony, properly speaking because he
was a free British subject before coming
here and was in every respect fitted for
a successful career in competition with
the whites
1t is worthy of note that Coxfield de-
clares the experiment an unqualified sue
cess He says the material advancement
OF the colony iustifes the faith of DR. Kirg
and denies that there is any retrograde
movement among his people
He 8" id th"t the only cases he knew Of
in which whites nd HE clts hH d interma FRIED
in the settlement were few in number n nd
confined n IDIiHarap- 80
He declared th"t Tho settlement had sent
out INTO the Dominion many professional
men OF his race, who hid made their way |
in composition with the whites.
he said he could see little prejudice
? mong the whites of the community gn inst
his color. The other negroes, however. |
In discussing the racial prejudice with |
the writer declf red hHtically that they
could distinguish little difference between |
he sent lment here mong he whites tow rd |
hem and that which they found in the |
southern States, except that they were not |
lvnched and we're treated as equals before
Coxfeld, in commenting upon the con-
drions in the South on served ~ he could |
sea hope for his people there only in materal |
the owning and the cultiya- |
lion of lind. He thought he would |
pa G" this 20 civilizing influence even in
|dva nee OF educs ton. for it fitted men for
education must follow
Many of the colonv's original settlers
and heir children have returned TO tho
states; 'ome have gone to Hayti and others
have drfted to different parts of the Do
ninion
II is interesting to note that the Rev. Mr..
hlng thoroughly believed to the day of
us death tina, his experiment was success
u every sense of the word. In replying
o an address Of the colored people of the
iolomV on May 30, 1880 he said
his colony is Il standing protest against
he charge In the Southeri States that YOU
'rH not capable Of making progrcss in the
tNS, education and m,t"rial industry.
IN establishing this colony so much further
north than the black man had been known
o labor successfully before, was told
mar ne race was not capable of enduring
n" rgors Of n Canadian winter, vet the
lrst winter YOU spent here, with the mer-
my five degrees below zero | recall that
very man o! the colony was engaged in the
woods gntIng out timber and CARRYING on
ordinary lahors. The weather was MOI a
H., errert faC'or
My purpos" in establishing this colony
vas 10 dcnonst"atr that tho iong-op-
pressed race was capable" under favorable
'"hdItl"ns, Of making tho same progress
y the arts, professional lie and industrial
irvHlmpment as other races The forest
las given place to the plough. The 100
'uPl- whom have taught in the mission
Try school IN Buxton have gone To MI paris
y the world. Some have gone into The
Inlted States Congress
Your pXAmpla has rpaultpJ in tho al ,rt i've