The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-10-08
" Article No. 3.

coal was carried from the pile to the
steamer by about 800 negroes Of al ages
and sizes, In baskets containing seventy.
pounds Give sstone) each.t These black
women had on only a short skirt and q
pad on their head to rest the basket.
FROM string around tho mock q small
bag was suspended IN which they placed
their checks. Four negro men ut the pile
were filling the baskets, and an old
&darkey at the wharf gate gave each wo-3
man small brass check as she passed
with her basket Of COAL as they are
paid by tho basketful. 4 AS soon as a.
negress had her bnsketyof coal put on
her head she started of, and they kept
I In Elo almost in trot from the coal pile
to the steamer where they dumped the
coal into the bunker hatch. The line was
coming and going in quick time, to the
music OF a hymn or q weird negro chant,
and it made q lively scene. The five men
mentioned, outside Of the foreman, were
the only ones engaged In the coaling, ex-}
cept the fireman Of tho vessel who were
slowing 1t. l5s
Il But there were numbers Of black and
muatto men on the adjoining Wharyes
and piers, probably husbands. brothers,
and lovers Of the coal carriers, and While
some were fishing others were sleeping,
and yct more were dancing to the music
OF a mouth harp, but tho coal carriers
still kept Zip their trot. remembered
that Hazard, who accompanied the Santo
Domingo Commission In President
Grants time, and wrote a book about
it. said In this work; DO the philan-$
thropsts know that the mon Of the Is
land (HuytD exist upon the Industry OF
tho women ms negroes do eyeryWhero2
who are really the only nborers z" And 1
I also thought of tho old darkey, newly
married, who when asked by the preacher
II he was providing well for his wife,
answered.; 'tYah's sab, Use pervidin her
wild all do washin' sl kin possibly do,
sab. \ And the celebrated novelist An-s
thony Trollope. aforementioned, speak
lngEof the Jamaicn negroes IN his work
on the West Indies and the Spanish
Main" which he visited in 1859, says:
''They have no iden OF country, and no
pride OF race, for even among themselves
the word ''nigger" conveys the worst
farm ~ reproa chs '"rhey have
made no approach to tho civilization Of
their white fellow-creatures, whom they
imitate as n monkey does man..
The Jalmaica negroes have a rage for
the high or plug hat as an article Or
full dress. and the colored pilot who
met us at Port Royal had one, appar:
entity OF the vintage OF 1880, but raced
liz i
for plug hats and the answer ! received
was that 1t was mark of distinction,
When white men first pressed the bless
5lngs Of civilization upon the blacks IN
Africa. the blessing which appeared TO
the latter MS most desirable was rum,
and tho next was the high hat. RuI1'
and silk hats are what the Brltish ma
tlon have conferred upon the heathen n
habitants OF the globe In return tor their
SILK hats are both conspicuous products
of British civilization. II Is needless 20
say that both articles, ms supplied TO the
heather, are Of tho poorest quality; -,
Kingston has a population or a9,ooo'
of whom 900 are white, All the police
men. hremen,i sonvengers, etc, are plaek'
Tho island OF Jamaicn has 5s2eoo m
hahltants. OF whom but 1890 are Wh.,e'
or q Ia per cent, but these hold all the
Offices In the Island. The British, who
we're the first to free the slaves IN their
colonies, in 1894, do not give them any
mart In government or put them IN any
Offices although they educate them,
There were 800, 900 slaves In Jamaica IN
1894, and the British Government appro-f
priated 00,000.o0o to compensate the
owners. A negro regiment is always N
the Kingston barracks but the whlte
regiment is kept In cantOnment at New
castla on the Blue mountains. back OF
KINGSTON. on account OF tho unhealtht-
ness OF tho low lying city for Europeans,
The British never keep negro regi-
ment on duty where II was organized
A. regiment raised IN Kingston would
probably be sent to Balze, Barhadoes,9
cameron. Trinidad, or some other place,
while q regiment from one of those
places would be kent at Kingston, and
They move them around frequently IN
most magnlhcently fitted up troop ships,