Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1911-09-07
IGNORANT BLACK
FREAK F|GURER
FRANZ IlINpIIRIIS GRABS
M\TiiIiM \rlCNL ANSWERS.
NO PROBLEM roo TOUGH"
Delights In ,musIng Crowds n,
lrcnkl~h Gilt Went tl school
Tor Two Weeks.

Tor Two Weeks,
! Dressed I'm pair OF dirty overall,
/ am old belt around the waist, and
shnmb'iug along In the easy -goInr
gait ot the typical negro roustohout,
/ such us one secs at cotton ports, was
the reporters first glimpse of Frank
/ llumphrcN 20, at the KATY freight
depot ON North Main street yesterday.
/ Numphrirs rs n natural mathemauc-
ian, and can solve any problem IN
mathematics no matter how compu-
Gated, In an instant, lie can barely
read ana write and never went to
school but two weeks IN his HE. In
those two weeks the negro learned
the multiplication table, found cut he
know more about 'rithmauc" than
the teacher. ana ended his schooling
then and there
liumrhrlcs is a freak such as one
rarely hears ot. and probably sees not
moro than once in lie time Al
though ne works as "flunky" about
the freight house, Frank" can solve
mathematical problems accurately
and quicker than probably any coll
lcre professor
There Us nothing unusual about tho
uogro's features or talk. HIS face was
vreathed in a broad smile an the
while and he admit seem to consid-
or his remarkable performance q ut
uuusuaG I'm fact he seemed to great
N cuio> standing there and answering
with uehuiuc like rauidiW the knot
W problems that were shot at him ny
the dozen or moro frcght house at
ucNcs and the interviewer
no make sure that the nogro's an
swers were accurate the propounder
~ the problems would first fieure
them out on paper and then give the
problem 10 Humphrios.
What IS the cube Of S5-9lle'
was the first question put to Hum
phrics,
"scvcnW-onc" came his answer IN
stanilN.
III was horn IN the year 1879
Frank, how old would be-" oueued
the reporter.
"ThirW-uinc- years old" he replied
without hesitation.
Multiply los - by s. So" was
tho next problem shot at him.
This one made Humphrics scratch
his head a moment but suddenly his
face hrieh,cned and he answered
"Six thousand. nine hundred and
torty-four and three c!ehts"
Il took the Quosdoner about fit-
teen minutes to fiSure ont that the
answer was correct with a pencil.
lumnhrios don't know any thinc
about cubic root or square root or any
thing Ike that. and he doesn't know
one rcurc from another when it IS
written or printed, hut when it comes
to splitting on; the answer % any
problem that IS found IN any avith-
mc.c iu existence he rc.Ens supreme
Far more than half an hour Hum-
phr.cS stood on ;he Crieght house plat
form and arsO,re3 problems Of all
kinds Then his "hoSs' called him
and Ne shufOed into the building with
the bucket 90 water that ne had set
down whom stopped by the reporter.
lIuwuhrics is c9-yearS-old and un-
married lie lives at the corner Of
Elcin avenue and Brady street
llrwvNrics offers no explanation
~ his wonderful powers. except that
the cict comes natural with him.
when I was a Hale kid,' said
Frank II walked into a big office
TIE bookkeeYcr asked me wha,
times s,ur was and right up and
answered sixteen. He asked me Il
7 hsd ever been % school and when
7 tod him 7 had not ne didn't be-
uevc me They sent me 70 school af-
ter that thourh 7 STAYED two weeks
and learned the multiplication table.
and thcu found oUt I knew more
about tssers than the teacher, and
cult"
Hun7h-.os saws ne used to think
that everyone could answer mathe-
maraal problems Just as easily and
quickly SIS Ne could. that everyone
was alike in that respect; hat since
then Ne hss discovered that he IS an
IN class by himself
Hem7Nries has never put his tai
crt 20 a-y commercial use, pre'errins
manual labor at small wsce to
placing himself or public exhibition.
Ht can Dc found anv working day
st tNa Na-, f~e.crt house sod his en-
.'-v,-s ore a,v-vs willing 20 show
rl- or %, callers Many prominent
I'll s-rs have interviewed the negro
-aev ana have been ascurde5 at
the ease win which De answers prob
I,nls .u msthc-atl-S
sewer r.re Geo. ". Groves Hard
var Isb North Nslr street adv.
.....,..s SGss.sT